Understanding and Improving Teamwork in Organizations: A Scientifically Based Practical Guide

• Date: 01 July 2015
• Published date: 01 July 2015
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.21628

Human Resource Management, July–August 2015, Vol. 54, No. 4. Pp. 599–622

© 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com).

DOI:10.1002/hrm.21628

Correspondence to: Eduardo Salas, Institute for Simulation and Training, Department of Psychology, University

of Central Florida, 3100 Technology Parkway, Orlando, FL 32826, Phone: 407-882-1325, Fax: 407-882-1550,

E-mail:esalas@ist.ucf.edu

and processes known as teamwork (Marks,

Mathieu, & Zaccaro, 2001). But what exactly is

teamwork? What influences it? Perhaps most

importantly, how do we develop and maintain

it? A plethora of research driven by increased

interest in teams has resulted in a seemingly

endless array of literature attempting to explain

teamwork and the conditions surrounding its

success or failure.

Teams are pervasive in today’s world,

and rightfully so as we need them.

We need them in our hospitals, flight

decks, oil rigs, military, nuclear power

plants, and a host of other organiza-

tions involved in our everyday functioning. To

be effective, these teams must operate through

the interdependent actions of individuals work-

ing toward a common goal—a set of actions

UNDERSTA NDING AND IMPROVING

TEAMWORK IN ORGANIZATIONS:

ASCIENTIFICALLY BASED

PRACTICAL GUIDE

EDUARDO SALAS, MARISSA L. SHUFFLER,

AMANDA L. THAYER, WENDY L. BEDWELL,

AND ELIZABETH H. LAZZARA

Teams are pervasive in today’s world, and rightfully so as we need them. Draw-

ing upon the existing extensive body of research surrounding the topic of team-

work, we delineate nine “critical considerations” that serve as a practical heuristic

by which HR leaders can determine what is needed when they face situations

involving teamwork. Our heuristic is not intended to be the defi nitive set of all

considerations for teamwork, but instead consolidates key fi ndings from a vast

literature to provide an integrated understanding of the underpinnings of team-

work—specifi cally, what should be considered when selecting, developing, and

maintaining teams. This heuristic is designed to help those in practice diagnose

team-based problems by providing a clear focus on relevant aspects of team-

work. To this end, we fi rst defi ne teamwork and its related elements. Second,

we offer a high-level conceptualization of and justifi cation for the nine selected

considerations underlying the heuristic, which is followed by a more in-depth

synthesis of related literature as well as empirically-driven practical guidance.

Third, we conclude with a discussion regarding how this heuristic may best be

used from a practical standpoint, as well as offer areas for future research regard-

ing both teamwork and its critical considerations. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Keywords: teams, groups

600 HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT, JULY–AUGUST 2015

Human Resource Management DOI: 10.1002/hrm

Drawing upon the

current extensive

body of research

regarding teamwork,

we delineate

nine “critical

considerations” that

serve as a guiding

heuristic by which

individuals, teams,

organizations, and

other collaborating

entities can

determine what is

needed when they

face situations

involving teamwork.

Dickinson, Converse, & Tannenbaum, 1992, p.4).

This definition captures the primary components

of teams—multiple individuals, interdependen-

cies, and a shared goal—while also remaining

comprehensive so as to not exclude any particular

type of team or teamwork.

For teams to be effective, they must suc-

cessfully perform both taskwork and teamwork

(Burke, Wilson & Salas, 2003; Morgan, Glickman,

Woodward, Blaiwes, & Salas, 1986). Taskwork

involves the performance of specific tasks that team

members need to complete in order to achieve

team goals. In particular, tasks represent the work-

related activities that individuals or teams engage

in as an essential function of their organizational

role (Wildman et al., 2012b). Conversely, team-

work focuses more on the shared behaviors (i.e.,

what team members do), attitudes (i.e., what team

members feel or believe), and cognitions (i.e., what

team members think or know) that are necessary for

teams to accomplish these tasks (Morgan, Salas, &

Glickman, 1994). Both taskwork and teamwork are

critical to successful team performance, with the

effectiveness of one facilitating the other. Although

taskwork often becomes a key focus for teams as

they work toward goals, it is teamwork that aids in

ensuring taskwork is performed effectively. Despite

having an extensive knowledge of the task at hand,

a team will fail if the members cannot successfully

share knowledge, coordinate behaviors, and trust

one another (Mathieu, Maynard, Rapp, & Gilson,

2008). In fact, individuals who have extensive task-

relevant expertise are still vulnerable to poor team

outcomes if teamwork is inadequate (Gregorich,

Helmreich, & Wilhelm, 1990; Ruffel-Smith, 1979;

Schmidt, Keeton, Slack, Leveton, & Shea, 2009). In

sum, teamwork is an adaptive, dynamic, and epi-

sodic process that encompasses the thoughts, feel-

ings, and behaviors among team members while

they interact toward a common goal. Teamwork

is necessary for effective team performance, as it

defines how tasks and goals are accomplished in a

team context.

Critical Considerations for Teamwork:

AHeuristic

Given this definition of teamwork, we now turn

to identifying the critical considerations for its

effectiveness. These critical considerations are the

summation of a wide range of teamwork literature

accumulated over the past several decades. Indeed,

many reviews exist to highlight the different con-

ditions and processes that can impact teamwork

(e.g., Cannon-Bowers & Bowers, 2010; Kozlowski

& Ilgen, 2006; Marks etal., 2001; Mathieu et al.,

2008; Sundstrom, McIntyre, Halfhill, & Richards,

2000). Table I provides a more complete list

Although this literature base has provided us

with vast knowledge, it can be difficult to summa-

rize this information into a useful set of principles

to aid practitioners in understanding what factors

must be considered when teamwork is enacted.

Thus, the focus of this article is to offer an over-

arching, practical heuristic of the most critical

considerations for teamwork. The novelty of the

current work is not necessarily in the review of

teamwork itself, but instead in the offering of a

concise framework that organizes previous find-

ings in a meaningful, practically relevant manner.

Drawing upon the current extensive body of

research regarding teamwork, we

delineate nine “critical consider-

ations” that serve as a guiding heu-

ristic by which individuals, teams,

organizations, and other collaborat-

ing entities can determine what is

needed when they face situations

involving teamwork. This heuristic

provides a basic understanding of

the underpinnings of teamwork—

specifically, what should be consid-

ered when selecting, developing,

and maintaining teams.

Our heuristic is not intended to

be the definitive set of all consider-

ations for teamwork nor a definition

of teamwork, but rather serves as a

practical attempt to consolidate key

findings from a vast literature to

provide useful guidelines for those

outside this area of research. To this

end, we first define teamwork and

offer a high-level conceptualization

of the nine selected considerations.

This is followed by a more in-

depth review of each consideration,

delineating relevant research and

describing why each consideration

is critical to understanding team-

work. We also offer practical advice

and recommendations that can be

leveraged by organizational leaders and others

involved in ensuring teamwork success. Finally,

we conclude with a discussion of how this heuris-

tic may best be used from a practical standpoint

and for future research.

Defi ning Teamwork

To provide a heuristic of critical considerations for

teamwork, it is important to clearly define teams

and teamwork. Teams are “a distinguishable set

of two or more people who interact, dynamically,

interdependently, and adaptively toward a com-

mon and valued goal/objective/mission” (Salas,