Book Description

Let's face it. In this chaotic world of teams, matrix management, and horizontal organizations, it's tougher than ever to get things done. How do you lead when you're not the one in charge? How can you be effective when joint action is needed? You need an edge in order to reach solutions and effectively work with others. ... Read more

Reviews (9)

Maximizing You're Group's Potential
When searching online for a book on leadership, this book's title,"Getting It Done. How to Lead When You're Not in Charge", immediately grabbed my attention. It seemed perfect for what I needed a little help on. I am sure I am not alone. Everyone at one point in their life is forced into a group situation, whether it is in school, work or everyday life, where they are assigned a problem in which the group needs to accomplish together. However, before a group can solve the problem assigned, it needs to conquer the problems within the group. One of the problems that I have found to exist within every group I have been in is how to reach solutions and successfully work with others when no one knows exactly who is in charge. Everyone needs to individually take on responsibility and contribute, but it works best when you know exactly what you should focus on and the right questions to ask your group members to obtain the best results. This book does an excellent job in first of all, mapping out the problems that groups face and then going into detail by explaining the route group members should take to maximize success. Fisher and Sharp have five basic elements that groups can follow to get things done. By following these five easy steps it will give you a clear focus of how to put it all together and create a successful way to complete the tasks assigned within your group. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a little extra help to maximize their group's potential. It is very easy to read and the information and suggestions that the authors provide will be remembered and used every time I am placed in a group situation again.

Why do people not listen to good ideas?
Somebody told me once: "Never talk about a problem without giving a solution". After reading this book, I think it should be: "without inviting others to improve a solution you have drafted".

The ideas presented in this book do a great deal to improve communication and gain support. I have reread some of my old memos, and now understand why people did not like them, even if they clearly explained the situation and proposed a solution. I used not to invite people to think with me.

I have applied many of the topics to my every day life, specially at work, and it's given results. I mostly try to invite others to participate in the process, and remember that all ideas can be improved.

Great book on teamwork... and much more
This book gave me more than I spected whenI bought it.
I was looking for some guidelines on good teamwork behavior, and I didn't got just that but far more usefull insight on plain work.

Reagarding working with others, the best part is the Feedbck chapter. You'll never give advice to a team mate in the same way after you had read this book. Everybody know someone that "takes advice the wron way", well you'll learn that maybe you and everybo else are giving advice in the wrong way.

Besides this particulary well covered subject, the author explains very usefull techniques to improove not only group workin but personal efficiency. All of this is ilustrated with down to earth examples and exercises.

I read the first edition almost one year ago, and I keep going back to it as if it was reference book, and in some way it is

The title ought to be different
I read the book carefully, i kept looking for triggers on leadership, i found none that i felt effective. It is an alright book on collaboration but not on leadership. The topics were not stongly emphasized, basically i gained no knowledge out of reading this book. I kept feeling bad i did not buy getting to Yes.

A book about successful collaboration
This is a book about a collaboration technique that is packaged as a book about leadership. Although good leaders collaborate, I felt cheated by what this book turned out to cover. Although the book presents sound principles and correctly advises readers to apply these principles personally before using them in groups, I felt that these principles were obvious, low-level stuff. I wanted something more advanced. ... Read more

Book Description

Did you know that games can be a terrifically effective way to build team spirit, communication, and trust among people who work together day in and day out? Now you can spark morale in any work group by choosing from 70 stimulating games and activities specifically designed for the manager who's looking to raise sagging morale in a department, liven up boring staff meetings, enable team members to collaborate smoothly and effectively, and much more!

Reviews (14)

A few nuggets
I ordered this one with Brian Miller's Quick Teambuilding Activities for busy Managers (which is excellent). I was disappointed by this one. So many of the activities were overly simplistic. Several werent what I would even call activities, but rather "facilitated discussions." I only found a few worth trying. I rely on the other book much more.

Terrible
I ordered this book along with Alanna Jones "Team Building for Every Group" and this book is horrible. The Jones book is outstanding.

This book is very difficult to follow, it doesnt flow very well and the activities are very weak. It is geared more towards office stuff, but you couldnt even use it for office stuff since the games are very difficult to manage and obvious. I think they are more concerned with The Questions they ask than the activity. These games are some that I could think of on my own... I am returning the book.

Integrating people
I liked this book for its good, simple and practical exercises to activate training on teamwork. I wouldn't recommend it if you are looking for high-risk activities.

Simplistic
OK but kind of simplistic. I used an item in an MBA class, but I had to add a lot of content to make it interesting.

The Big Book Of Disappointment
I can't imagine who might be pleased with this team building book, including the authors. I can't imagine what group responded positively to a number of the activities. I typically approach a review looking to describe the assets and liabilities of the selection. In my opinion, this book has no asset. The activities of value have been described in many other resource books. The games and activities you won't find in other publications were wisely left unpublished. Fortunately, you don't have to trust my opinion. Read through the sample pages.
I have one condition under which I could recommend this book in good faith. A facilitator or group leader who has access to a willing group that will remain intact over a period of time might try experimenting with some of the otherwise sure to be skipped over activities. A lot of trial and error may produce a new keeper or two.
I bought this book to add to an already extensive resource library. I almost reconsidered my policy of not returning a book. Those who have taken the book off my shelf have wasted little time replacing it. The price might tempt you to purchase this item. Resist! The phrase "you get what you pay for" may be true in many cases. In this case, you really do get less. May you benefit from my mistake and look elsewhere for a team building resource. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A lot of info in a nutshell
The beauty of the Management Pocket Books Series is that you get the necessary information without having to spend so much time reading. This particular book is no exemption. Training tips, techniques, and icebreakers are included. It tells you how to decode a participant's feelings by his/her action. Clear, concise, and helpful, this little book also tells you how people receive, process, learn, and retain information, and what the trainer can do to maximize these areas. ... Read more

Book Description

Praised for its writing style, research base, and range of topics covered, this book develops issues of diversity, ethics, technology and the organizational use of groups and teams within a systems theory framework. Clearly organized and logically presented, this book provides the opportunity for outstanding discussions of critical issues. Harris and Sherblom effectively integrate real world examples, hypothetical situations, social science theories, and scholarly research into a unified discussion of small group and team communication. Extensive examples, case studies, and exercises engage readers and help them to move from theoretical discussions into application and experience of the concepts presented. For anyone interested in the dynamics of small group communication. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Favorable Review
This book, Small Group and Team Communication, is a descriptive hands-on guide to success in a group setting. The authors intend to highlight the methods by which groups can achieve success, the problems which groups may encounter, and factors which enable groups to complete their tasks. Besides small group and team communication, various other methods of communication are discussed; nonverbal communication, the use of language, diversity in groups, the norms and behaviors of groups, the roles which certain people play in a group, and the characteristics that are necessary for success.
This book is readable and easy to understand; it has scenarios and discussion questions at the end of each chapter which solidify the material for the reader. These activities aid in the comprehension of the text. It may be necessary to have some prior knowledge of communications before reading this book; it would serve as a backdrop for further appreciation of the ideas represented. This book could very easily be used as a textbook for a communication course; it covers a great deal of ground on the topic of communication. The chapters are organized according to facets of group communication, such as decision making and problem solving, listening and feedback, creativity in small groups, diversity, four phases of group development, norms and roles, and conflict management, to name a few.
This book uses a great deal of references and ideas which are discussed in most communication texts. It brings together the various approaches and ideas that are in circulation about group communication and ties them together in a comprehensive and inclusive manner. There is a glossary, index, and it even includes popular testing methods to determine a person's skill and role as a group member.
I would recommend this book to professors for use in the classroom, and also as a resource for a research paper on group communication. ... Read more

Book Description

It is common knowledge that CEOs declare their direct reports as a "team at the top." Yet with a culture of individual accountability and self-reliance prevading executive suites, few management groups ever function as real teams. Now, in a natural follow-up to his bestselling The Wisdom of Teams, John Katzenbach moves his focus farther up the organizational ladder to offer practical guidelines for increasing leadership capacity at the highest executive levels. In Terms at the Top, he shows how even the strongest and most successful CEO can improve a company's performance by turning the senior executive group into a real team-without sacrificing each member's individual leadership capabilities. Teams at the Top explains how to recognize when a team effort at the management level is preferable and when a work group under single leadership will do. Then, the book shows how to develop the capability to shift into whichever mode is appropriate. With stories and examples from well-known companies including Enron, Ben & Jerry's, Champion, Citicorp, and Mobile, as well as lessons that are applicable for management groups anywhere in the organization, Teams at the Top will help companies of all sizes and in all industries maximize the full potential of their leadership. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

A Delicate but Essential Balance
In one of his several brilliant studies of leadership, Organizing Genius, Warren Bennis examines high-performance teams such as those associated with the Disney studios (which created the first full-length animation film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs), the Manhattan Project, Xerox's PARC, and Lockheed's "Skunk Works." But if your own organization has few (if any) geniuses, what are the best strategies for unleashing the potential of both collaborative teamwork and individual leadership? Katzenbach is himself the author or co-author of a number of brilliantly conceived and executed studies, notably The Wisdom of Teams and Real Change Leaders. In this book, his central thesis is that "an integrated balance of real team, individual, and single-leader working group performance is both possible and desirable at the top -- not that one mode is intrinsically better than the other." The key phrase is "integrated balance." Whatever the size and nature of your organization, Katzenbach offers "three major messages":

1. The best senior leadership groups are rarely a true team at the top -- although they can and do function as real teams when major, unexpected events prompt that behavior.

2. Most of the team members can optimize their performance as a group by consciously working to obtain a better balance between their team and non-team efforts -- rather than by trying to become an ongoing single team.

3. The secret to better balance lies in learning to integrate the discipline required for team performance with the discipline of executive (single-leader) behavior -- not in replacing one with the other.

This third "message" is especially relevant to smaller companies, probably privately-owned, in which the CEO (the archetypical single-leader) is either the founder or related to the founder. In such companies, the need for an "integrated balance" may be even greater than it is for much larger organizations. Katzenbach organizes his material within nine chapters. Rather than list their titles, I have selected a few key passages which, hopefully, will suggest the potential value of this book to you and your own organization's specific needs and interests.

Executive Leadership Discipline requires an individual to "create and maintain urgency, resolve the critical strategic issues, enforce individual accountability, leverage executive time, make the tough decisions individually, pick the best individuals for the key jobs, and periodically raise the bar." (Chapter One)

"The notion of 'leadership capacity' implies a system of leadership, if you will, that can extract leadership wisdom, insight, and behaviors from many more individuals. [This is obviously essential to concensus-building.] Thus it fuels the continuing search for different kinds of leadership approaches, both individual and joint, at all levels of the organization." (Chapter Three)

Team Leadership Discipline requires members to "create a meaningful purpose, commit to a team performance goals, be mutually accountable (no member can fail... only the team fails), commit to real work, share decision among members, strive for the right skill mix, and establish the height of the bar." (Chapter Four)

"Integrating real team performance with executive leadership performance requires both a sharp understanding of the differences between the two two disciplines required and a relentless determination to integrate the two. It is hard work, counterintuitive, and outside the comfort zone of most senior executives. Nevertheless, it is well worth the effort." (Chapter Nine)

In Appendix B, Katzenbach offers this definition of a real team: "A small number of people with complementary skills who are committed to a common purpose, performance goals, and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable." My own opinion is that unless an organization has the two disciplines (both executive leadership and team leadership) in appropriate balance, it will probably have neither. Hopefully, this brief commentary will encourage you to read and then re-read this important book. Also, to check out the other books authored or co-authored by Katzenbach.

Misses the Point
I was hugely disappointed with this book. It held such promise of addressing one of the most important barriers to building collaborative behavior in organizations---the behavior of the senior people.

Throughout the book the author seemed to defend the hierarchical behavior of senior executives and diminish team benefits. And it completely missed the essence of teams which is collaboration. Phrases such as "amorphous groups with overlapping responsibilities," "disrupt the natural order of things," "seldom the best way to get normal work accomplished or routine problems solved," "seldom the fastest way for a group with an experienced, capable leader to get where they are going," "time-consuming 'forming, norming, and storming' stuff," had me wondering if the author really understands collaboration.

This book may do more to maintain the traditional topdown, hierarchical decision making model than to foster real collaboration and teamwork. ... Read more

Book Description

The New Encyclopedia of Group Activities -- the sequel to the best-selling encyclopedia that was first published more than a decade ago -- is an expansive collection of hands-on activities and games that will help you explore the many elements of group process skills. This thoroughly revised and updated resource covers a multitude of content topics that you can use in a variety of group settings. The 150 new activities offer creative exercises that will give you the tools you need to provide appropriate interventions for any group purpose. Whether searching for a serious foundational process activity or for a light transitional learning game, you will find something here to meet your needs.  ... Read more

Book Description

Provides the frank answers to questions about how teams work, what makes them effective, when they are useful, how to get them going, and how to maintain their vigor and productivity over the long haul. Draws on a survey of over five hundred organizations and an in-depth study of twenty-eight companies (conducted jointly by Industry Week and the Association for Quality and Participation).

... Read more

Reviews (1)

Helpful resource in developing effective work teams
Of the many books written on the subject of self directed work groups, this is one of the better efforts. In the course of providing the information necessary to implement self directed teams, this book helps point out the pitfalls your organization may face and provides potential solutions. When consulting with organizations on their process improvement efforts, reorganization and teamwork often become issues. This book is one of several that have helped me to assist my clients in addressing those issues. If you have any questions, please feel free to email me - adamleft@webspan.net. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Teams have become an increasingly important part of business success. The creation of virtual teams with members geographically scattered but electronically connected has set many companies on fire. Yet for all their power and flexibility, virtual teams face greater obstacles than traditional teams do. Organizational networking experts Jessica Lipnack and Jeffrey Stamps provide the keys to successful virtual teams, showing how to harness their potential while avoiding their many potential pitfalls. The many case studies offered are particularly enlightening as the authors demonstrate the techniques, mechanics, and communications required to build the virtual teams that supercharge an enterprise. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

A "must-have" for any consultant.
Whether we choose to embrace technology, it is here to stay. Those who harness and leverage its capabilities will discover exciting new ways to conduct commerce. From entrepreneurial startups to the mega corporations, "Virtual Teams" explores not only how these emerging technologies will affect our daily activities but how our workplaces and social interactions will metamorphose. I highly recommend this book; Lipnack and Stamps are visionaries in field of networking. -- L. Alan Schuetz, President, DVMS, Inc.

Simultaneously Fundamental and Visionary...
"Virtual Teams" was a real treat for both my academic and consulting sensibilities. I have never seen such a thorough work on this topic. It is both fundamental and visionary at the same time.

In discourse with a fellow business consultant we bantered about the topic of Lipnack and Stamps latest book (of which I had received an advance copy). He said: "Unfortunately, Lipnack and Stamps(L&S) have been 10 years ahead of the curve with their understanding of the importance of networking."

"But," I replied, "With the book 'Virtual Teams' they offer the world-wide-race-to-the-Internet a well needed moment of reflection-during which they offer PURPOSE to connecting and give virtual teaming DEFINITION and DIRECTION." And the banter continued but we both agreed and got tingles as our chat echoed the truth of their statement:

"Communication technologies and computer networks-in particular the Internet-are underwriting this moment of pregnant potential." (p 240)

"You know," I concluded, "It's a good thing they (L&S) were ahead of their time-otherwise we would not have the language to discuss our 'interdependence' symptoms, to test our 'distributed business' hypothesis', and to realize how much responsibilty it is to be 'pregnant' with potential! Really! The capabilities and expectations we have to manage in these Internet days... how exciting, how dangerous! After all, 'net potential, without 'net performance is just predisposed waste, don't you agree?"

"Yeah, yeah Paula,--yadda, yadda, yadda; 'net, 'net, 'net...enough philosophy-so, should I read the book or not?"

"Go for it." I replied. "This book is not just an electronic blip about the latest fad of virtual teams- it is a study on careful communication, on planning and developing valuable distributed business relationships...a book to be savored and re-read over time."

(BTW --Mine is already all dog-eared and worn!)

Be prepared to THINK DEEP; when you read this book, SIP it SLOWLY and --ENJOY! ... Read more

Book Description

Building and maintaining a successful team is no simple task. Even people who have taken their teams to the highest level in their field have difficulty recreating what accounted for their successes. Is it a strong work ethic? Is it “chemistry”? What tools can you wrap your hands around to build – or rebuild – your team?

John C. Maxwell shares the vital principles of team building that are necessary for success in your business, family, church, or organization.

Reviews (14)

Developing Effective Teams in a Church Staff Setting
In a format that is similar to the "21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership" Maxwell walks us through the essential elements of teamwork. He uses examples from business, ministry, sports and families to bring us principles for building and developing teams. In a style that is true "John Maxwell" he draws interesting and relevant stories from history and from current events to explain the "laws" that he has developed. Maxwell makes great points about how this fits many settings, including a church staff. Here's some examples; - From the "Law of Significance" chapter, "individuals play the game, but teams win championships." If a Sr. Pastor is not leading, each pastor just runs his own area of ministry. Very little communication, interaction, etc. So, it is very much like a professional team that has a lot of players, even great players, yet can't "win the championship" because they are not coached into being a cohesive team. - Under the "Law of the Big Picture" he says, "Members of a team must have mutually beneficial shared goals." Church staff members generally want to serve the Lord, but their understanding and implementation of the church's "mission statement" may NOT coordinated with each other, nor led by the Sr. Pastor. Maxwell goes on to say that the "goal" has to be more important than the "role," meaning the "power of the position." - "All players have a place where they add the most value" is the subtitle of the "Law of the Niche." This seems to be something that many pastors may not understand, but which DOES fit church settings quite well. We can have a great team with lots of potential, but "players" in the wrong "positions." As Maxwell pints out, we will not reach our potential this way. - The "Law of Mt. Everest" says that for each level (of difficulty) that a team reaches, a higher degree of teamwork is required. As a church is growing, they need to know that we don't just need more people, such as adding another pastor, but we need a stronger TEAM! -In the "Law of the Chain" he makes a side comment that "one of the differences between leaders and followers is action." An effective leader must take action. He can't hesitate and avoid "confrontation" SO MUCH that it freezes him. - The "Law of the Compass" says "Vision gives a team focus/direction and confidence." This is a truth that, but if it is not understood by the Sr. Pastor, can cause a staff to wander without the "compass." The leader also shouldn't surprise the team with a "new' (never before announced) direction. Maxwell says, "Great vision precedes great achievement.' - The "Law of Communication" says that teammates have to be constantly talking to each other. We "cannot be effective" if we don't talk regularly. "Interaction fuels action" is how Maxwell put it. True in any setting. - The "Law of the Edge" touched on several things that fit. The difference between failing or struggling teams and truly successful ones is often "the leadership." There are many great advantages to having effective leadership! Maxwell has said that "everything rises and falls on leadership." Finally, one of the things that Maxwell says is that "few people are successful unless a lot of other people want them to be." We can't be successful as loners or disconnected individuals, no matter how great our individual expertise or "potential" is.

This Book is Out of Touch
I recently read "The 17 Indisputable Laws of Teamwork." Although the book has some valid points, it fails to grasp workplace reality from a subordinate team member's perspective and experience. (I was a team-oriented manager for 12 years and then became a team member. I was shocked at how I and other team members were treated by egocentric, domineering, and abusive bosses who weren't team-oriented. Recently, I've seen national surveys that verify that unfortunate reality.)

This book maintains an old-style "us and them" view of teams by assuming that management is mostly competent and benign, and that team members are often the source of problematic behavior. The book does this through such outdated concepts as "the weakest link" and "the bad apple," directed mostly at team members. Ironically, the places I've worked were the opposite: The employees were mostly decent, hard-working people and the managers were mostly incompetent.

This book uses too many back-slapping Forltune 500-type stories as well as sports and war stories to score its points. For example, Enron is cited glowingly as "One of The Best Teams in the World." Anyone who follows business news knows how ridiculous that view is!

The book title and content indicates that these 17 laws are indisputable. Yet, after reading this book, I can say that the title is arrogant; the book is too long on simplistic ideas and bravado, and too short on relevant, real-world understanding that would make a difference for most struggling teams.

This book is like so many others written by those in a management position for years. It lacks the current experience of "in the trenches" subordinate workers to be a credible work. The author even writes in Chapter 11: "I don't have a computer--I don't even know how to use one."

Save your money and take your fellow team members out for coffee. Have a heart-to-heart talk to smooth out your conflicts and problems. That will be a far better investment of your time and money.

17 Indisputable Laws of Teamwork book review
In the 17 Indisputable Laws Of Teamwork, John Maxwell focuses on building a winning team using strategies based on interviews with some of the world's top CEO's. It is 265-page self-help type, in which he describes the 17 laws to be used as a guide by individuals in any setting, whether it is business or personal. Maxwell writes the book using simple language trying his best to connect with a large audience.
Maxwell breaks the book into 17 chapters in which each chapter represents a different law. In each, he includes the essentials for teamwork followed by suggestions and how to apply them. In each chapter Maxwell includes two main examples and then several smaller examples related to the topic.
Maxwell starts the book explaining the law of significance and writes that one is too small a number to achieve greatness. He works through every law although some of the 17 are quite obvious. Some are learned at an early age and some are just common sense not only for a "team player," but anyone, in any type of relationship. For example, law number 9 reads: The Law of Countablitly, teammates must be able to count on each other when it counts. This type of common sense information is spread evenly throughout Maxwell's book. Another example of Maxwell's not so unique language is written into law number 8: The Law of the Bad Apple. The subtitle then reads: Rotten attitudes ruin a team. This chapter's main point "Attitudes have the power to lift up or tear down a team," seem too obvious and make the chapter useless and boring.
Maxwell closes the book by explaining that good chemistry cannot occur until all 17 laws or strategies are applied. I feel this book was overall an easy to read guide with good examples and even better suggestions.

A Good Primer, but...
Got the Audio Tapes of this book and I am somewhat pleased. However, the author has that vaguely self righteous tone when he reads. It feels almost as if he has spent hours of practice trying to relate to us unelightened, but still can't get it right.

He effectively breaks down teamwork into logical and understandable parts, but unfortunately the parts seem very obvious. "Bad apples. Having a vision..." these are all very basic things that we are taught from early on in our social development. What Maxwell does is state the same things our kindergarten teachers told us..."don't let a bad apple spoil the bunch" But then he doesn't take us into the real world to tell us how to solve that problem. He gives us a great story of how he and friend ruined their high school basketball team with their bad attitudes, but he doesn't take the next step and explain how his coach or fellow players should have dealt with that situation. He basically ends by saying, "my friend and I shouldn't have been bad apples." Well, yes John, but you WERE bad apples, just as there will always be Bad Apples, what do you suggest we DO about it!

I look at the book as more of a good primer for a strategic meeting or a brainstorming session than any type of a helpful resource. These are the kind of seminars that give the seminar and self-help industry a bad name. They state what the ideal is, and what the brokeness is, but don't even give you a hint of how to bridge the gap.

Not Real Impressed
The book was a waste of a good [money]. It relied to heavily on cut and paste stories from the headlines and from history. It lacked heart. ... Read more

Book Description

This long-awaited sequel to the classic bestselling manual, Team Games for Trainers, is based on a sophisticated new understanding of team dynamics, gleaned from nearly a decade of experience with all sorts of workplace teams.Containing 90 easy-to-facilitate training games, this up-to-the-minute, cutting-edge collection addresses new team issues like "advanced team building," "why teams fail," and team learning.Use these games to align individual and team goals, make diversity work, unleash creativity, and much more. ... Read more

Book Description

For many managers, teamwork is a concept that in their minds has little to do with making money and staying in business. Breakthrough Teamwork changes that perception by offering readers insights from companies such as Motorola, Monsanto, Westinghouse, and Amoco that have experienced significant breakthroughs in productivity and profitability as a result of the author's unique process called Structured Teamwork/uT/uM. Focusing on successful implementation of teams, Breakthrough Teamwork reveals: A summary of 1200 studies of "what works" in business and industry. A new definition of teamwork that endures as a team develops and improves its structures. A Structured methodology for implementing successful teams. Examples of what the most effective teams in corporate America have accomplished for their organizations using this system. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

"Breakthrough Business Skills You Can Immediately Apply"

Results. My primary motivation for reading business books is specifically to learn how the world's most successful businesses, leaders, and teams are producing breakthrough results. "Breakthrough Teamwork" delivers. For example, if you want to instantly improve your company's creative output and your facilitation skills, turn directly to page 81 and read "Structured Brainstorming Versus Unstructured Brainstorming." I've personally used this simple procedure to boost the creativity of my clients, coworkers, and family members. And that's not the only idea I've successfully borrowed from the book!

The author, Dr. Dennis Romig, has distilled 20 years' work experience as a businessman, consultant, and applied psychologist into a set of 10 teamwork skills that have been proven to produce results in companies such as Motorola, Advanced Mico Devices, and Amoco. The origin and procedure for each of the skills is backed by hard data studies, which Dr. Romig defines as studies that have been tried in a real business, have generated real business results, and have been compared to a control group. After having read shelves full of popular business books chronicling the latest fads, I really appreciated Dr. Romig's hard data approach. To me, it seems that many of the business practices prescribed in the business books and journals I've read are based upon a single case, studies with college students, or the imagination of an enthusiastic author -- not the most credible business sources. My conclusion: Suggestions in most business books are seldom effective outside the context of the book.

I highly recommend "Breakthrough Teamwork." It's one of a handful of books I've read that contains scores of immediately applicable ideas. Though it's not quite as metaphorical as some of the popular business books, it's filled with cogently organized, results-bearing suggestions. ... Read more

Book Description

When we join an organization, we're immediately slotted into a hierarchy based on a rank-based system of "leaders" and "followers." We then make false assumptions about our place in these hierarchies that divide our efforts, limit our growth opportunities, and rob us of meaningful, dignified work. These assumptions are what Jeffrey Nielsen calls the "myth of leadership."

In this unconventional book, Nielsen calls for an end to "rank-based" organizational structures, which foster secrecy and miscommunciation, and steal the joy from work, while breeding corruption and abuse of power. Nielsen's new model is the "peer-based" organization, which uses rotating peer leadership councils and cross-functional task forces to manage the organization's work. These new entities are better suited to making decisions based on the organization's competencies and customer needs, rather than on static functional groups or other artificial divisions. ... Read more

Reviews (10)

Thoughtful, Inspiring Book
This book sets out the wonderful possibility of truly meaningful organizational life. As the direct report of a die-hard rank-based leader, I can relate to the author's portrayal of rank-based thinking. At every page, I found myself shaking my head in agreement to the book's description of the waste of human potential in rank-based, big chief and hierarchical companies. I loved the model of peer councils as a new management model for leaderless organizations. The ideas in this book are very timely!

One of the Most Insightful Books I¿ve Read in a Long Time
I found that the book's portrayal of most business organizations as rank-based resonated with my own experience. The author's careful analysis of our assumptions regarding leaders and followers - that he calls the myth of leadership - was truly profound. Other writers have challenged hierarchy and command and control leadership, but no one has struck at the root of the problem as deftly and provocatively as this book does. I liked the three parts of the book, discussing first the context of leadership, second the history of organizational types, and then the strategies for creating peer-based organizations. I found the idea of organizational attractors - modeled on chaos theory - very interesting. I wish the author had said even more about the parallels of attractors in natural systems, like strange attractors, and organizational attractors like the Big Chief and Hierarchical organization. All in all, one of the most insightful books I've read in a long time.

Wow, I Wish I'd Read This in Business School!
I predict that before long everyone will be talking about organizational management and design in terms of rank and peer. The book does a wonderful job comparing and contrasting these two basic types of thinking and relating. It reminds me of the pioneering work of Douglas McGregor and theory x and y, but this book goes deeper into the very nature of leadership as inherently rank-based. Excellent!

Insightful Read!
This book creates a whole new paradigm in management and organizational thinking. The emphasis on context and competence instead of character and conduct is very refreshing. It's nice to hear that I don't have to change who I am to match someone else's template of what a leader or successful business person should be.

A Must Read For Organizational Consultants!
This book presents some profound ideas with world changing implications, and does it in an easy to read style that completely moved me! I will never view "leaders" or "leadership" as I once did. After reading this book, I have found myself suddenly challenging anyone who glibly used the word "leadership" to promote their agendas. The author's argument that we create a dualistic and unhealthy world whenever we uncritically accept our own leadership over others or their own over us, has completely changed my approach to organizational consulting. His suggestion as well that we do less soft skills training and more hard skills like decision-making and strategic thinking makes sense. I also appreciated his advice to trust more in the tacit wisdom of our own employees over the expertise of outside consultants. ... Read more

Book Description

The ASTD Trainer's Sourcebook Series presents complete toolkits and instructions for creating effective, personalized training programs. Each individual sourcebook--written by an expert trainer in the field--contains everything needed to design and conduct training sessions. Developed in association with the American Association for Training and Development, the first six sourcebooks cover some of the hottest topics in training, from leadership, to diversity, to team-building. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

A true Sourcebook
All the titles from the 'ASTD Trainer's Sourcebook' series are excellent. These are books that provide the trainer with a comprehensive reference on the subject matter, ideas on activities and games, as well as other tools.

For the beginning and advanced trainer alike, this is a wonderful and comprehensive book on teambuilding that can also be easily used by non-training professionals.

Teambuilding Basics
Excellent book for the novice facilitator as well as the pro! This comprehensive guide takes you through every phase of team development from start to finish. It presents the data in an easy to follow, step-by-step facilitator style. It includes reproducable handouts and slides. An excellent resource for establishing teams! I recommend all of the training guides in the series of ASTD Sourcebooks. I've used them all! ... Read more

Book Description

"Creating Effective Teams takes readers by the hand through the four developmental stages of getting from group creation to highly effective teams. It is packed with strategies for building and supporting well-managed, high-performing teams. The author provides ample checklists and case examples to guide members and leaders through their groups’ developmental states and to help them work through the times when they inevitably get stuck. She does an amazing job of summarizing a vast literature of empirical research on team functioning and development into a comprehensive yet uncomplicated, straightforward guide. She supports detailed explanations of how to start, build, and sustain a team with real-life examples from her many years of consulting experience. This book is a must for anyone whose work requires teamwork." --Andrea Markowitz, University of Baltimore Based on the author’s many years of consulting experience with teams in the public and private sector, the book tells us why teams are important, how they function, and what makes them productive and unproductive. The author clearly illustrates the developmental nature of teams and describes what happens in each stage. Separate chapters are devoted to the responsibilities of team leaders and team members. Problems that occur frequently in groups are highlighted, followed by what-you-can-do sections that offer specific advice. Real-life examples and questionnaires are used throughout the book, giving readers the opportunity for self-evaluation.

Amazon.com

If you're in charge of putting together or overseeing a work team, butyou can't bring yourself to crack those gazillion-pound guides or weightyworkbooks that you've been handed to help you, you'll love this nifty palm-sizecompanion to every aspect of leading the crew. Here, you'll learn not only whatmakes a good team and how to balance individual skills within a team, but alsohow to set the whole thing up (from setting goals and establishing trust tocreating a self-managed team, or taking on an existing one), improve itsefficiency (by facilitating improved communication, running meetings, improvingteam standards, and getting everyone to deal with problems and thinkcreatively), and ensure team success in the future through measuring teamperformance and tracking its progress, setting and meeting targets, rewardinggood work, and adapting to change. On every snazzy little page, boxed tips,handy checklists, mini case studies, and easy-to-follow flow charts bring thewhole team-leading process to life--from inception to long-term operation andplanning. Granted, if you're looking for very specific or in-depth guidance, youmight find this book too cursory and general in its approach. But, if you'relooking for a thumbnail guide to the basics, it'll do just fine.

It's worth mentioning that the book is part of the "Essential Managers" seriesby reference publisher Dorling-Kindersley--a series comprising 20 itty-bittybooks on business and career topics that range from communication, leadership,and decision-making to the management of time, budgets, change, meetings,people, projects, and teams. Combining the talent of the "For Dummies" bookseries for breaking down a lot of information into bite-sized bits and sidebarswith Dorling-Kindersley's signature design style of crisp, classy graphics on agleaming white backdrop, the books don't represent the cutting edge of businessthinking or reflect necessarily any unique individual perspective. Instead, it'sas if someone had collated the best general thinking on these 20 topics, androlled them out into 72 brightly designed and easy-to-read pages--studded alongthe way with boxed tips, color shots of a multiracial cast of "coworkers"animatedly hashing through the workplace issues of the day, and, on the last fewpages of each volume, a self-test of one's skills in the topic at hand. Again,they're not for anyone who's looking for more in-depth or focused help on any ofthe covered subjects, but they're perfect as a quick general-interest reference;and, let's face it, they're so damn cute, and look so smart in a neat littlestack or row, that probably you'll want to buy a whole bunch to give as gifts toyour entire staff or department. --Timothy Murphy ... Read more

Reviews (2)

An Essential Book for Managing Teams.
"Managing Teams" by Robert Heller is a very informative book and definitely should be read by new managers. This book contains many different ideas on how to manage your team. Heller brings up important points that many new managers may not be aware of when first starting into the challenging world of team managing. Heller discusses several different topics including 'Understanding How Teams Work,' Setting Up A Team,' 'Improving Team Efficiency,' and 'Working For The Future.' Each of these chapters cover important topics that are broken down into easy to understand summarized sections. This book helps you determine the right people for a team, and how to form a multi- talented, functioning team. You will also learn how to motivate your team to complete the goals that they were brought together to achieve. Learning to manage a team can sometimes be a difficult transition if you are not used to doing so, but Heller's book can really help you to adjust to the position.
One great part about this book is that it is short (74 pages) and to the point. The chapters are informative and do not drag on and on like some of the books out there on the market. However there are enough details to help you understand and try out his suggestions and ideas. There is even an added bonus of 101 tips that offer practical advice. I especially like the examples and charts that are listed in this book. They are great in helping understand the individuals in the team, and how to deal with each person within the group and as a group. I highly recommend "Managing Teams" to anyone interested in learning new techniques for managing a team in the workplace. I also highly recommend several of Robert Heller's other books as well in the 'Essential Managers' set of books, including "Motivating People."

Well-organized, brief, and covers key points
I'd recommend this to anyone who's part of a team and wants a brief, concise, useful summary of key points that help you better manage (and be part of) a team. Sections are well organized, and actual techniques are described that you can use to improve.

One of the better of this series. Best of all, it's small and cheap! ... Read more

Book Description

Meredith Belbin's work on teams has become part of everyday language in organizations all over the world.

All kinds of teams and team behaviours are covered. At the end of the book is a self-perception inventory so that readers can match their own personalities to particular team roles.

Management Teams is required reading for managers concerned with achieving results by getting the best from their key personnel.

*One of the most widely read, imaginative and influential books on this vital area of management research

*Classic title now containing range of mini case-studies of Belbin's theories in action ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Moderately Pleased
R. Meredith Belbin's text, Management Teams: Why the succeed or fail is quite applicable to my studies in small group communication. However, I would not choose to read it again outside of this context. I did not enjoy the writing style or the setup of the book, yet it contained helpful information for the assignment I needed it for. The review on the back cover perfectly describes the intended audience of the text, with a line drawn from PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT that says "It should be read by all who have responsibility and authority for guiding organizations in their selection of management teams." For the purpose of writing a speech with the intended audience being a startup corporation looking to build new management teams, this text was very useful and informative. Beyond this, I did not learn much that I had not already learned, or could have surmised on my own. Without having the time to read the text from cover to cover in order from beginning to end, it was difficult to follow some of the associations drawn to other material. There were a few concepts that I did not fully understand even after reading the information, and chose to leave these things out of my speech, such as the Apollo Syndrome. Given that this text is probably not meant for use in coursework, or at least not so much in the area of communication, it was quite applicable to the study of team communication. The focus of the text is more geared toward management research, which seems to be common-sensical at times, yet I think needs to be put into print to establish general guidelines for all to follow. Overall, I would probably recommend this text to someone completing the same or similar assignment or to someone looking to get ahead in a management team. This is definitely a very directed reading and intended for a very tailored audience.

An Essential Book for Building Collaborative Teams
This extraordinary book was written by Dr. Belbin nearly 20 years ago and remains in a class by itself in providing a useful theory for building and operating effective decision-making teams. Nowhere else will the reader find a set of principles that are so soundly based on direct evaluation of competing teams, explain so much of effective and ineffective team behavior which otherwise confounds explanation, and which is so beautifully and succinctly written.

While Belbin's title suggests this book is simply about business management, the content of the book is of much wider applicability. This book is a valuable, perhaps indispensable, source for anyone involved in collaborative endeavors. The book would be useful if it merely answered the question "Why do collaborative (creative, decision-making) teams succeed or fail?" Belbin goes much further than that. He tells us how to proactively build teams that are predisposed to succeed and, equally importantly, how to adopt strategies that will lead to success on the part of teams not so fortunately constructed.

I have found this book very useful in building, and teaching the building, of software product development teams, and heartily recommend it for that purpose.

Using Belbins team roles
This book is a must for all trainers in the HR arena. It explains the background to Belbins research, it explains the roles in detail and goes on to explain what the roles mean and how to use them to optimise team performance.

The language Belbin uses is friendly and easy to read and so the book is ideal material for trainers and students alike.

A classic book which should be included on every HR Trainers bookshelf.

Matching personality with tasks, and vice versa: the prequel
This is really the story behind Belbin's Team Roles. The book show how he, through painstaking research for over twenty years, discovered nine different styles of work (which he calls "Team Roles") that are typical of individuals in teams.

His team role theory is fascinating, and has been shown to correspond with Cattell's 16PF and with the Big 5 personality taxonomy (see e.g. John's chapter in Pervin's Hanbook of Personality).

His ideas on the problems with "perfect fits" in organizations and how to discover "surprise fits" are very ingenous.

Belbin perhaps spends too many words on his discoveries, but they are good words. ... Read more

Book Description

Describes concepts of facilitating meetings and offers a six-step plan to improve the process. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

An Excellent Source of Information
I felt this book was a valuable source of information. I needed a brief account on the necessary components on being a successful and effective team leader. This book led me from step to step on how to go about learning how to be a successful team manager. It included the basic know-how of team leadership, like being prepared and posing crucial questions to the team. However, it also went in-depth into the necessary skills needed in order to manage a goal-oriented group. I felt that this book not only acknowledged how to plan for a discussion, but it also looked at the real truth that can come up in group discussion. It analyzed the ins and outs of a group dynamic and even suggested ways of combating difficulties that arise in the process. The authors, Donald Hackett and Charles L. Martin, have a style of writing that is efficient, easy to grasp, and sensible. They were able to provide a step by step analysis on what it takes to be a valuable facilitator, but also the things that come up that leaders need to deal with carefully. Their topic ranges from the basic start of what a facilitator is to what skills a team leader needs. Then they consistently maintain this vision of how an effective leader can lead the group to a successful completion of the task. I enjoyed reading this book, because it not only opened my eyes to how I see leaders perform in groups I have been involved in, but I also know now how to be a successful facilitator in groups that I may choose to lead in the future. I can know use these suggestions and techniques to really drive a team into successful task completion. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has thought about leading a team in group discussion. The authors' simple, to the point style of writing, including examples and suggestions, made for a delightful read. I enjoyed reading this book as much I enjoyed learning from it as well.

Team Facilitation-Not a Mystery Anymore
A wonderful book for a person whose new to facilitating teams. The writing is in language that's very easy to understand, and the concepts are presented clearly. The book takes the reader on a step by step progression of the processes and tools required to help meetings be productive and efficient. Cudos to the authors, who created a wonderful and effective tool.

Essential reading for all involved in helping groups work
This excellent book provides a simple overview of the skills and tools needed when getting a group to work on a problem. Nothing is covered in depth, however I did not think that was the purpose. This books starts a learning process which people can take further if needed. The sytle is light and it has been written to maintain the readers interest. It adequately covers concepts, communication (questioning, body language, etc) and some simple tools with easy to understand examples. Most impressive was the straight forward treatment of writing a process map to identify and deal with problems.

Facilitation For Team Leaders
An invauable tool for any one who is involved in Team Building, Facilitation, Training or Management. This book leads you through the many processes to gain agreement or concensus in groups. The approach and questions for problem solving are very practical. ... Read more

Book Description

The Art of Facilitation provides a superb training resource for facilitators and enables group members to understand facilitation and to take on this role themselves. It also provides access to the source of group empowerment and shows how to create group synergy.

Divided into four major components, this book will give you the insight, tools and resources you need to help your group work easily and more effectively together.

Provides an in-depth examination of the art of intervention and cooperative beliefs and values underlying facilitation for creating group synergy.

The toolkit includes facilitative designs for workshops, meetings, projects and evaluations; facilitative processes of being with a group, working with other individuals, keeping sight of the group's vision and goals, empowerment, identity, role playing and more. Plus, a Facilitators' Training Program.

A personal perspective on facilitation through interviews with experienced facilitators. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Great resource for enhancing facilitation!
I found The Art of Facilitation to be an easy-to-read, complete guide in helping to better understand facilitation. I suggest that every beginner facilitator should read this. The authors wrote it specifically outlined and detailed, yet not too complicated. It is a good book to keep close by as a quick reference source. The breakdown of the book allows it to be a wonderful training guide complete with a toolkit to assist your every need of facilitation.

Excellent book on facilitation
A very good book on one of the most difficult arts that of drawing together a group through facilitation.

Distinguishing Facilitation Powerfully and Simply
The Art of Facilitation is written in simple language. It cuts through the academic tendency to complicate this domain, and in doing so displays the authors mastery of it.

The Art of Facilitation elucidates what it takes to facilitate groups powerfully and provides pathways, tools and processes for this.

This book will provide people new to facilitation with an intellectual analysis of it and old hands clear pathways to doing complex things simply. I use it all the time as a resource in my pratice as a professional facilitator and it is the required text in facilitator training courses which I lead for Zenergy.

I would also recommend Hunter et al's other books: Co-operacy, The Zen of Groups, The Essence of Facilitation.

New Facilitators must read!
The Art of Facilitation is a must read for new facilitators or trainers. It is easy to read and offers practical advice and activities for newcomers to the field of facilitation. This is one of the few facilitation books to offer a chapter on facilitating yourself. Not as advanced as other facilitation books (Masterful Facilitation or Facilitator's Guide to Particiapatory Decision Making) but recommend this as part of any facilitator's library of resources.

A great guide for "first time" facilitators!
I have found this book a great resource to augment the training of first time facilitators and coaches. It provides many practical exercises, with numerous tips that help to demystify facilitation and increase the first time facilitator's success. ... Read more

Book Description

The book is designed to develop high-performance teams in an organization by focusing on the four factors that contribute to team performance: structure, process, culture, and politics. It uses an applied approach centered around the construction of a "team charter."Teams: Structure, Process, Culture, and Politics provides a comprehensive view of the management principles that foster effective teams as well as examples of effective and problem teams within organizations. Practical exercises such as How Does a Team Show Trust? give readers an opportunity to develop team-building skills. Reflections features ask readers to draw from their own experiences. Team Work discussions encourage readers to productively arrive at team agreements. Section Objectives highlight the topics to be covered, and end-of-section activities and discussion questions reinforce important topics.A valuable book for any manager seeking to improve the functioning of the teams within an organization. ... Read more