Reference no: EM133169746

CASE STUDY

James Clark is the Managing Director of successful haulage company based in the West Midlands. He has identified problems with the team dynamics of two teams which normally work separately but have recently had to work together on a larger project. Although the project was delivered on time, and on budget, a number of issues have concerned him, and he is now looking for guidance on how these issues might be tackled. 

Team A: One team (Team A) is headed by Nick who has been at the company for ten years. The other team members are Gareth, Nigel and Jo. Nick and Gareth are good friends, and Nick relies heavily on the views and opinions of Gareth when he is making decisions that impact the wider team.

Gareth is highly driven by his own career and very ambitious. However, Gareth has slowly gained a reputation for politicking within the company and is known for talking about other team members with colleagues outside the team. He has also taken credit for work produced by others, for which he has contributed minimal input. Unfortunately, due to the closeness of their relationship, Nick has either not recognized this or has chosen to ignore this behaviour.  

In contrast, Nigel is a quiet and highly conscientious member of the team. He is viewed as being dependable but not overly ambitious, so often does not receive (or seek) the credit he is due. Although he does not openly communicate his dissatisfaction, he has considered moving (but has stayed until now). The team often delivers on their tasks because of the work of Nigel and another colleague (although this colleague has recently retired due to stress-related ill health). 

The final member of the team is Jo, who only recently joined the company. When she joined, she was really enthusiastic about her new job because she has recently graduated and has limited experience. Jo replaced the highly experienced person who retired due to ill health. Gareth has been quite dismissive of Jo in team meetings, and as a result her contributions have been largely ignored. Jo is starting to question whether the job is living up to her expectations, especially as she turned down a different job because she thought this position would offer her more opportunities. 

Team B: In contrast the dynamics in the other team (Team B) are quite different. The team is headed by Alice who has only been at the company for two years, and the wider team consists of Jenny, Graham, and Andrew. All of the team members seem to get on well and generally work well as a team. Alice tries to listen to the view of all of the team members, and tries to take into account these views when making decisions that impact on the team. 

However, the team is not without problems. Jenny is very capable and hardworking but is not very confident. She often worries about the work she does even though it is usually very good. Graham is slightly more experienced and works closely with Jenny on tasks and has tried to mentor Jenny at the request of Alice. 

Andrew is outgoing and seen as the 'joker' within the team, and often lightens the mood in team meetings. As a result, Andrew is viewed outside the team as being someone who doesn't take his work seriously. This was further exacerbated recently when Andrew prioritized one task over another more important task, and this resulted in the important task being late and the whole team (Team B) having to work over a weekend to cover for him. Alice defended him to James Clark, but James seems to hold the view that Andrew doesn't take his work seriously and lacks motivation. 

Recently the two teams (Team A and Team B) have had to work together on a large Brexit related project which was very important to the company. At first things seemed to be going well; however, in some of the joint team meetings Andrew continued to act as the 'joker' and Gareth took this as an opportunity to undermine the suggestions of Team B. This resulted in tension developing between the two team leaders (Nick and Alice). 

This was witnessed first-hand by the Managing Director, James Clark, and he took the view that the two teams were not working as collaboratively as they could be. James was more supportive of Nick because of his previously held views on Andrew and Alice not managing him correctly.  He was also influenced by Team A's track record of delivering results over a long period.  

Question

PArt A: 

Based on the materials learnt during this module, discuss how individual differences might have affected the team dynamics in Team A and Team B. Focus particularly on the behaviour of Gareth (in Team A) and Andrew (in Team B) as part of your discussion. 

PART B: 

Based on the materials learnt during this module, analyse the weaknesses of Team A and Team B. How might Nick (Team A) and Alice (Team B), as team leaders, have managed the situation differently to address the weaknesses in their respective teams? 

PART C:

Based on the materials learnt during this module, what practical advice would you give to James Clark in dealing with the issues highlighted in the case study?