Modern society lives under the influence of individuality. Individuals love to work on their own, believing that this is the best way to get things done. Adam Smith, who is considered to be the founding founder of Economics and Free Enterprise, believed that this is not the case. In the 1700’s, he expounded on the theory of work and the output of work, by proving that things can be done better and faster by a group of workers assigned a portion of a task than by single workers doing the whole task. Many management practitioners believe the benefits to the principles he introduced transcend time. Today, the repercussions are best seen in the benefits of working in a team.
Team Work is a Great Time Saver
Some believe that working in a team is a time-waster instead of a time-saver. Adam Smith believed otherwise. He proved then, that it is a great time saver. In the modern context, the time-saving element can be quantified by the reality that if you form a team to do a specific task, you will need less training for the group. You can bring in people with different specialties and people involved in different disciplines to handle a project. By doing this, the time allotted for individual training can be minimized.
Team Work Increases Productivity
All organizations, whether non-profit or for profit, have to meet deadlines. Working in a team helps the organization meet the deadlines because in essence, teams increase productivity. While there are challenges both for the team members and the organization as a whole, to increase productivity and to work ahead of a deadline, this does not take away the principle that many heads working together is definitely better than one head thinking alone. Different minds with different training makes for better output. There are thousands of stories that prove this undeniable fact.
Team Work Enhances the Individual
In an environment where people work in closed quarters, conflict is unavoidable. Definitely, there will be conflicts of interest, conflicts in ideas and conflicts in work methodology. At first glance, this may look negative but in reality, the conflicts hone the problem solving skills of the members of the team. Healthy conflicts within the team, like conflicts of ideas enhance problem solving and resolution. The result is that working in a team polishes the individual’s character and work skills as a whole. Adam Smith was right when he taught that even in the context of a group setting, personal skills can still be improved.
Team Work Contributes to the Organization
Organizations are made up of people and this creates a complex scenario. When workers are grouped into teams as required by the management, certain visible contributions can be observed. Working in a team, can enhance the monitoring capability of the organization. Individuals who may lack the skill can be easily identified and assigned to a different team if the need arises. Specific specialties can also be spotted early and the corresponding individual brought in. Aside from this, the team environment helps the worker become better at the individual level.
Team Work Develops Healthy Competition
Organizations will become boring in the absence of competition. Working in a team develops healthy competition. There can be healthy competition within the team. There can also be healthy competition with other teams within the organization. This scenario keeps everyone productive and alert to the progress of work within the organization. Healthy competition can also involve other teams working on similar projects. The principles practiced by Adam Smith in the 1700s are still relevant in our day and age. These principles can bring health to any modern organization.
Team Work Keeps Management Updated
In an age of instant and updated information, working in a team accomplishes something very ideal. The team environment helps the management measure team progress with the mission and vision of the organization. Such type of information is essential to the financial health of the organization. There are instances when groups deviate from the organizational goals. Measuring team progress can be done by being connected real-time with the different aspects of the team. Management can then be updated with work-in-progress, work glitches and work innovation. Strategy formulation can then be done for present and future teams within the organization. Adam Smith would be all smiles if organizational strategies work well.
There are other timeless benefits of working in a team that may be missing in this article. Sometimes new ideas incubate through the passage of time and circumstances. What is vital is that Adam Smith gave the principles that have proved to transcend time and business models. The most unusual thing of all though, is the principle that team work enhances the individual. It sounds contradictory and it is contradictory. Upon closer examination, the principle is true. Working in a team develops the individual, so Adam Smith believes.
