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Working Groups and Teams are they the same?

Lucy Ruiz

Industrial Organizational Psychologist

There is no consensus on the definitions of WORK GROUPS and TEAMS.

WORK GROUPS might be defined as two or more individuals, interacting and

independent, that meet to achieve a particular goal. WORK GROUPS interact

 primarily to share information and to make decisions that help each member work 

within their areas of responsibilities. WORK GROUPS are prevalent and required in

large organizations where individual responsibility is important. The best WORK 

GROUPS come together to share information, perspectives and ideas; to make

decisions that help everyone to do their jobs better; and to increase the standards of 

 performance. The focus is always On the individual. Single WORK GROUP

members take responsibility for their actions and individual results.

On the other hand, TEAMS are groups whose individual efforts result in

 performance that is greater than the sum of the individual inputs. That is, it generates

 positive synergy with coordination efforts. A TEAM is a small number of people with

complementary skills committed to a common purpose, established goals, and they

are mutually responsible for achieving them. The TEAM differs fundamentally from

WORK GROUP in that it requires both individual and shared responsibility. TEAMS

 produce discreet results with the joint contribution of its members. This is what

enables higher levels of performance than the sum of all the best individual parts of 

its members. Commitment is essential for the TEAM. Without it, it performs at the

individual level, and with it becomes a powerful unit of collective performances. This

type of commitment requires a purpose for each member to believe in. By having a

credible TEAM purpose it gives a motivational element to achieve it.

 Not all WORK GROUPS can be considered TEAMS, but all TEAMS can be

analyzed from the perspective of group processes. There is a wide range of individual

and social factors that have driven the development and establishment of these

TEAMS. From a social perspective it is worth mentioning that one of the most

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Equipos vs. grupos 2

relevant factors is the increased market competitiveness, thanks to the overwhelming

advancement of new technologies and reduced manufacturing costs. This has

increased the complexity of the work processes, making it necessary for employee

 participation both in functional processes and quality control. Among the individual

elements that must be mentioned is the individual evolution of workers. Today more

and more workers demand greater participation, and have higher levels of training

and academic formation as compared to only ten years ago.

Therefore, current organizational needs have led to developing within WORK 

GROUPS more agile ones called TEAMS. What distinguishes basically the TEAM

from other kinds of WORKING GROUPS is their performance. WORK GROUPS

depend on the individual contribution of its members to the group performance. But

the TEAM strives for something greater than what could be reached by the members

individually. In other words, an effective TEAM is always more than the sum of its

 parts. This is why TEAMS will continue to grow and become the primary unit in

competitive organizations.

Bibliography

Aritzeta, A., (2001). Efectos de los Equipos de Trabajo Autogestionados (EQTA) y delTrabajo Individual sobre Características Grupales e Individuales. Revista de

 Psicología del Trabajo y de las Organizaciones, 17 (2), 197-218.Katzenbach, J.R., Smith, D.K., (2004). The Discipline of Teams. In Harvard Business

 Review in Teams that Success (pp. 1-25). MA: Harvard Business School Press Robbins, S.P. y Judge T.A. 2007. Organizational Behavior . (12 ed.) New Jersey, Pearson

Prentice Hall