Learning outcomes
Upon successful completion of this module, students will have an understanding of how to:
- use leadership techniques and strategies to facilitate team cohesion and work outcomes
- develop policies and procedures to ensure team members take responsibility for own work and assist others to undertake required roles and responsibilities
- establish processes to address issues and resolve performance issues
- support team to meet expected performance outcomes including providing formal and informal learning opportunities as needed
- develop performance plans with key performance indicators (KPIs), outputs and goals for individuals or the team which incorporate input from stakeholders
- communicate effectively with a range of stakeholders about team performance plans and team performance
- facilitate two-way flow of information between team and management relevant to team performance
- evaluate and take necessary corrective action regarding unresolved issues, concerns and problems raised by internal or external stakeholders
Assessment Task 1: Team performance plan project
Performance objective
For this task, the candidate will demonstrate the skills and knowledge required for establishing a team performance plan.
Assessment description
In response to a simulated business scenario, you will build a work team, help assign responsibilities for a team project, develop a performance plan, and support team members to carry out assigned responsibilities. You will develop and propose strategies to ensure each team member participates in the project planning and develops policies and procedures for carrying out teamwork.
Procedure
1. Review the simulated workplace information for Apparel Brands Pty Ltd in Appendix 1.
2. In consultation with your assessor:
a. form a team
b. agree to meet to discuss team objectives and develop performance plans for each team member
3. Prepare to work with your team and complete the following:
a. Consider several strategies to ensure each team member has input into the planning process.
b. Consider several ideas for policies to ensure team members take responsibility for own work.
c. Consider team goals and how team can achieve goals.
d. Consider strategies for gaining consensus among your team.
e. Consider group behaviour and how best to present your ideas and work effectively within the group.
f. Review the third-party report in Appendix 3 to ensure that you are familiar with the team performance expectations.
g. Prepare to take notes to provide evidence of team meeting.
4. In team meeting, consult to establish ground rules for teamwork:
a. propose and agree on strategies for ensuring participation of team members
b. develop policy and procedures to ensure team members take responsibility for own work; these should contain ground rules for group work to ensure fairness and high performance
5. Discuss and determine team goals and how goals can be achieved.
6. Referring to the task requirements in Appendix 1, assign and agree on responsibilities to achieve team goals:
a. Determine outcomes, outputs and KPIs for each team member - for example, determine agreed responsibilities, quality standards and how performance quality or achievement of tasks will be measured, i.e. number of pages of research, number of network contacts, number of credible sources, hours spent on research, number of coaching sessions conducted to improve performance of other team members, number of inputs into team meetings.
b. Ensure work is fairly distributed among team members.
7. Determine and agree on specific duties to support team members with assigned responsibilities.
8. Using the template provided in Appendix 2, develop an individual performance plan in consultation with your team to help achieve team goals:
a. Include your support duties in your individual performance plan.
b. Your performance plan should be at least three pages long.
Note: Together, all individual performance plans must achieve all team goals.
9. Ensure each team member completes the third-party report, included in Appendix 3, to provide evidence on your team performance.
10. Meet with your assessor to discuss your participation in team activities.
Assessment Task 2: Team Meeting to facilitate teamwork
Performance objective
For this task, you will demonstrate the skills and knowledge required for developing team cohesion and facilitating teamwork.
Assessment description
In response to a simulated business scenario, you will carry out the assigned tasks, as detailed in the performance plan, and participate in a team meeting to support your team in achieving team goals..
Procedure
1. Review the simulated workplace information for Apparel Brands Pty Ltd in Appendix 1.
2. Carry out all tasks contained in the individual performance plan you developed in Assessment Task 1.
3. Consult with your team and assessor to determine an appropriate time for your teamwork to be observed in a team meeting.
4. Prepare for the team meeting:
a. Reflect on your achievement of team goals: Which goals have you achieved? Which goals have you not achieved?
b. Identify at least one issue you have encountered with respect to carrying out your tasks that you have not yet fully overcome to discuss with your work team so that they may assist you in enhancing your performance.
c. Consider possible processes for resolution of team issues. For example, you may consider leading a brainstorming session, or creating an issues matrix.
d. In consultation with team, develop a meeting agenda to ensure that all issues, concerns and problems with carrying out performance plan activities are addressed in the meeting in order to keep team on track to achieve goals. The agenda should include opportunity for each team member to employ a process for resolution of team issues. Provide the meeting agenda to participants (i.e. other team members) and assessor.
e. Prepare to take notes on issues and solutions and any unresolved issues.
5. Participate in the team meeting:
a. Present your achievement of team goals and issue/s encountered.
b. Provide feedback to team members to encourage and reward efforts and build team cohesion.
c. Ask questions and encourage team members to contribute to meeting.
d. Lead or play a prominent role in a process to resolve team issues. Ensure you clearly signal each step in the process and explain your methods to model effective team behaviour to emulate.
e. Identify performance problems and propose solutions during the resolution process to resolve team issues to keep on track to achieve goals. If applicable, you may suggest coaching, training etc.
f. Work through any issues that can be resolved during the meeting with team members.
g. Record notes on issues and solutions and any unresolved issues. Note unresolved issues or improvements to group work that you will propose later, after consultation with the manager (assessor).
Assessment Task 3: Written Report - Liaise with Stakeholders
Performance objective
For this task, you will demonstrate the skills and knowledge required for liaising with stakeholders about the performance of the team.
Assessment description
In response to a simulated business scenario, you will consult with your manager (your assessor in role-play), meet with your team to resolve any team performance issues, and write a report to your manager on the steps taken to resolve the performance issues.
Procedure
1. Review the simulated workplace information for Apparel Brands Pty Ltd in Appendix 1.
2. Initiate a meeting with your manager (the assessor) to ensure you obtain advice from outside the work team.
3. Consult with your manager (the assessor) to discuss team performance issues. Use your notes from Assessment Task 2 to provide the basis for this discussion.
4. Discuss your own solutions to improve team performance and achieve team goals. During your consultation:
a. note suggestions from your manager (the assessor) to implement with team/individual team members
b. note any information provided by your manager to be given to team members
5. Meet with team members to resolve performance issues as discussed with the manager. For example, you may help or coach team members to improve their performance. Review the third- party report in Appendix 2 to ensure you are familiar with the task requirements.
6. Write a report for your manager on resolution of team performance issues:
a. Describe how you maintained an open communication process between stakeholders (manager, team).
b. Describe how you were able to initiate and maintain this communication process so that input from outside the team could contribute to team performance.
c. Describe your evaluation of team performance and rationale behind corrective actions in order to provide evidence of your knowledge of:
I. group behaviour to build team cohesion
II. how to support team members to achieve goals through coaching, mentoring, training, etc
III. resolution techniques or strategies
d. Describe corrective actions you have actually taken to ensure team goal/s are achieved.
7. Ensure each team member completes the third-party report on your corrective actions performance using the template provided in Appendix 2.