Team Leadership

Memorandum

TO:

FROM:

DATE:

Re: MGT521/Team Leadership

Group/Team Use

The organizations that can effectively combine and complement all of the technology and expertise at their disposal, throughout their organizations, are usually the most successful. Cross functional teams help provide a diverse mixture of ideas, creativity, innovation, and experience which often provides the organizations that use them a competitive advantage. Advantages which are not typical realized in other team formations.

Cross-functional teams are, “typically comprised of individuals with a functional home base (e.g. engineering, personnel, and marketing) but who work collaboratively on issues or processes requiring diverse resources. In addition, there are four key areas that distinguish cross-functional teamwork from more conventional teams. These are: functional diversity; competing identities; integration in the organizational structure; and performance expectation” (Kettley & Hirsh, 2000).

The use of specialized teams such as this is an effective way to accomplish many tasks in today’s highly competitive business environment. “Teams provide employers flexible, self-disciplined, multi-skilled elements that enable them to better meet their competitive organizational goals” (Cadotte & Bruce, 2003). However, it is worth noting that literature dictates that the team concept should only be used when required and this is especially important when considering the use of the cross-functional team.

Obstacles

The biggest obstacle that disadvantages the cross-functional teams is weak leadership. The leader is supposed to be the individual that provides direction to the team and that helps mitigate many of the aforementioned obstacles. Although, many times the team leader is simply not up to the task. According to Parker, “inadequate team leader technical and process skills; insufficient team member training; unclear team objectives; and teams which are too large”...