Management team: five key strategies for maximizing group performance

Citation

Beyerlein, M. (1998), "Management team: five key strategies for maximizing group performance", Team Performance Management, Vol. 4 No. 2, pp. 74-76. https://doi.org/10.1108/tpm.1998.4.2.74.1

This year three new books have emerged that focus on teams for senior managers. This book by Marie McIntyre, Management Team: Five Key Strategies for Maximizing Group Performance, will be published in May by Jossey‐Bass. There are so many positive things that I can say about this book that it is very difficult to condense the endorsement into a brief review.

Some experts believe that the term “top management team” is an oxymoron and that there are only “top management groups.” They may be correct, but this book provides an antidote to that problem. The book identifies the key problems that must be overcome to create a team out of a group of managers, specifies the actions to take in response to a great variety of problems, and illustrates the transformation process with frequent, realistic stories. The addition of work sheets to many chapters creates the possibility of using the book as a diagnostic and intervention tool. Every manager should read this book. In addition, every facilitator of management meetings should read it. And it probably has value for the management development department in improving curriculum. I am glad I had the chance to read it and have already begun to make a few small changes in my work place as a result of what I learned from the book.

This book tells how to build a real team out of a group of managers. It does so with such style that reading it is a pleasure and building teams of top managers seems possible at last.

(1) This book is extremely well written and organized. The feature that strikes me most often is the wealth of examples. The coverage of the topic is also very thorough.

(2) The stated purpose of the book is “to provide a useful, practical guide for team members and leaders who wish to make their management teams more productive, responsive, and successful.” The title promises five strategies for working toward effective management teams, and the strategies are delivered in a clear, rich form. The purpose is clear and fulfilled admirably.

(3) The ideas, perspectives, and techniques are effectively communicated, and the organization of the book makes sense. Each chapter starts and ends with brief stories related to the lessons in the chapter and uses questions as section headings within the chapter. In addition, the chapters end with brief diagnostic questionnaires and with a set of discussion questions to facilitate self‐diagnosis. There are many practical tips and lots of diagnostic information to flesh out the principles presented. This structure stimulates the reader to think about a problem before reading about it, and hence to surface his/her own mental models, so a dialogue with the author can ensue.

Chapters 2 through 10 introduce and cover the five strategies, but are additionally focused on key processes, such as goal setting, networking, relating, meeting, deciding, maintaining productivity, selecting members, and transitioning, and diagnosing and intervening when the team has a problem. The last chapter summarizes the lessons of the book in 12 guiding principles.

For example, in Chapter 2, Clear Goals, the chapter begins with stories to illustrate the importance of goals and then explains strategic and operational planning. Dr. McIntyre draws on her extensive experience as an executive and as a consultant to a number of large companies to then identify a number of specific strategies for management teams. Next, she identifies and diagnosis a set of barriers that prevent establishing clear goals: failure to plan, conflicting goals, a turbulent environment, lack of communication, and poor relationships with top management.

Take Problem Four of Chapter Two as an example. The problem is stated as, “There is little communication with upper management about goals.” The problem is explained as a breakdown in communication. An example is given. Then the reader is urged to ask, “Are you part of the problem?” And a list of questions breaks that down to help in answering it, such as: “Do you like your boss?” “Do you prefer to work with a high degree of independence and autonomy?” “Do you tend to be unassertive and wait for others to initiate communication?” Similar questions are provided for analyzing your bosses’ stance. Then a list of Suggestions for Action is provided, including: “Schedule a meeting . . .” “In the meeting, ask . . .” “Reach agreement . . . on a specific set of goals . . .”

With some many problems and questions covered, and with so many specific action steps to follow, I suspect that this book could be used as a reference by nearly every manager on a daily basis. The implications and applications are very well communicated. I would add tabs with labels to my copy to make it easy to find the sections that applied to the problem I was dealing with at the moment.

(3) Managers of large companies are the obvious audience, and examples include business, government, and nonprofit situations. However, this book would also benefit college and university administrators (my bosses). It should also be relevant for small and medium sized companies and for nonprofit organizations.

(4) The only thing to consider adding would be an overview of group dynamics. But, the author has addressed this in a practical way by focusing on the team processes listed above.

(5) Although I like the figures and tables and find them to be clear summaries of points in the text, I would have preferred to see a few more of them. On the other hand, the numerous, brief stories or vignettes also provide illustrations that are very clear. In that sense this paper book is something of a multimedia presentation. Many text tools are used to involve the reader, to stimulate understanding, and to motivate action that will lead to utilization of the strategies and principles presented in the book.

Summary

Who leads the leaders? That is a central dilemma for management teams. Such teams consist of members who hold leadership positions in the organization. They know how to manage and to lead, but collaboration and followership are often not among their strengths. It is difficult for such people to team, so there are many hurdles to overcome. This book identifies the hurdles and offers detailed responses to them. I am glad I read it; now I need to use it with my own directors’ team. I recommend it to you wholeheartedly.