Team - Definition and Overview

A team is any group of people or animals linked in a common purpose. A group in itself does not constitute a team.

Thus teams of sports players can form (and re-form) to practice their craft. Transport logistics executives can select teams of horses, dogs or oxen for the purpose of conveying goods.

Theorists in business have recently popularized the concept of constructing teams. There are differing opinions on the efficacy of this new management fad. Some see "team" as a four-letter word that is overused and underuseful. Others see it as a panacea that finally realizes the Human Relations movement's desire to integrate what is best for workers and best for managers. Still others believe that teams are indeed effective, but that they are also dangerous because of the potental for exploiting workers — that is, they can rely on peer pressure and peer surveillance.

Compare the more structured/skilled concept of a crew, and the advantages of formal and informal partnerships.

A team is used for grouping people based on a common function. Members of a team usually belong to different groups, but are assigned to activities for the same project, thereby allowing them to be viewed as one team. Therefore, the team feature facilitates the creation, tracking and assignment of a group of people based on the project they have been assigned to. A team can be divided into sub-teams accoring to need. When a team is only used for a defined period of time it is often called a project team. Team building usually go through a couple of stages. These are, forming, storming, norming, performing and adjourning.

See also

• Coalition
• Community
• Teamwork
• Team building