Раскрытые топики к ГОСу по Английскому / TOPIC+12

Topic 12. “What factors must be taken into consideration when building a strong business team?”

Japanese proverb says that none of us is as smart as all of us.

Teams are supposed to be able to create something that is greater than the sum of its parts. But the truth is that the large majority of them do not achieve the synergies they could. More often than not, ineffective teams are the result of poor planning. In fact, team building involves more than throwing a few people together. So to build a team you need to know what your strengths and weaknesses are – of course weakness isn’t the right word – but areas where you need added input. You identify what the project is or task is and then you start building a team around what you need to complete the task.

There are six measures that need to be taken before you can get the most out of a team:

1). There should be a clear reason for a team to exist: common goals with challenging targets. But goals shouldn’t be considered as wish lists – they have to be achievable, yet challenging enough to motivate team members.

2). There should be open communication between the members. They should be able to express their opinions freely without fear of retribution, and feel that suggestions will be taken seriously.

3). Involvement of all team members. You need to ensure that every member has an opportunity to add his or her thoughts to discussions.

4). Conflict resolution. Disagreements are natural and, in fact, debate and discussion should be encouraged. Consequently, there should be explicit rules on how lengthy disagreements should be tackled. It is also important to remember that team meeting is not an appropriate place for a discussion that involves only two people. It means that nothing personal, not related to work should be discussed.

5). Leadership. Most high-performing teams have leaders. A good leader should be able to play to individual strengths and compensate for their weaknesses. He or she should be critical, act as a catalyst and a constant reminder of what the team needs to achieve. He or she also must be skilled in sharing responsibility and delegating work to others, coaching them to achieve tasks, and providing constructive feedback on how the tasks went.

6). And the last but not least – measuring progress against goals. Team members need to be able to see how they are doing against the objectives set at the beginning of the project.