Creating high performance teams

The benefits of diverse teams have been well tested and documented.  Work done by Meredith Belbin in the 1970s[1] established the importance of selecting a team with diverse and balanced skills and work styles.  In the 1980s Janis warned of the perils of groupthink and suggested that different perspectives tend to generate more creative ideas.[2]

More recently, the link between diversity, effective teams and creativity has been explored. “Teams of problem solvers…do better when the diversity of perspectives and heuristics is greater than the overall ability or talent of the team’s members. In other words, diverse teams outperform teams composed of the very best individuals. Diversity trumps ability” (Scott E. Page Professor of Complex Systems, Political Science, and Economics at the University of Michigan, Jan 2007[3])

Whilst it appears obvious that diverse teams with diverse thoughts and perspectives will be more creative and innovative in their decision making processes, in reality creating a team of diverse individuals is only the start of creating a high performing team.  Without training and managing diverse teams can actually be less effective than homogenous ones: failing to communicate and pulling in different directoions.  Training and coaching for all team members but particularly team leaders is essential to ensure that teams are able to leverage their diversity to create value for the organsation.   At Proctor and Gamble, evidence has shown a correlation between the successful application of diversity and gender initiatives in teams and the sustained business success of those teams.[4]