Mod 5 SLP Team Performance Measurement (Team Building)

Course:

Date: September 3, 2013

Evaluating team performance

Collaboration and joined effort is the key to success in all health care organizations. It is implemented through many ways, like sharing of information and pooling of human resource skills. To provide quality health care services, health workers must work as a team with one aim and mission. This is the main reason why we work as a team in our organization (Sanwong 2008). Tasks are allocated to individual members and the success of one team player translates to the entire team’s success.

As a team leader, I am expected to mobilize my group and evaluate the output given. There are various methods for evaluating team performance, as a team in general or by focusing on individuals and evaluating their performance. The best way to evaluate a team is by considering the performance of every single participant in the team and their output. When people work as teams, at times some may be overworked while others just sit back and watch the work, waiting to get the credit for it (Sanwong 2008).

To avoid overworking some people while others do less work, I chose to evaluate team performance by considering each individuals output (Sangvai, Lynn, Michener, 2008). First, set the tasks and duties to be performed by each individual but create the bond of a team. This is assigning everybody a task to do after dividing a large task into many parts. This will bring out the collaboration expected in a group because every effort is made towards a common goal. After the task is complete, it is easy to evaluate individual performance since you know what every person contributed. Success is then shared by those who contributed towards it (Sangvai, Lynn, Michener, 2008).

Before this type or any other evaluation is conducted, it is important for a manager to understand how groups work. There are organizational behaviors that come up with the implementation of teams. As a team leader, I have put this into consideration, factors that influence team performance and how to motivate health practitioners (Sangvai, Lynn, Michener, 2008). Motivation is key for us to get the expected outcome in providing quality health care services. All this is better understood when a team leader puts into consideration group dynamics.

Other methods of team evaluation

Get all the stakeholders in health services to collaborate and support the program financially and also share in ideas. With support within the health sector, health practitioners will be motivated to implement the strategies for personal evaluation. A health practitioner will know what is expected of them and they will deliver it, Self-Evaluation will also be possible.

Self-evaluation is another strategy that I can used to evaluate and monitor the team’s progress. It is easy to implement as every team player evaluates their role and their performance and asks for assistance where they need. It is however more successful for teams that comprise of mature members who require less supervision and are more committed. Working as a team is in play in this strategy, however there is no team leader every member has taken up a task and performs it independently. Team work comes in where members consult among themselves (Sanwong 2008).

In conclusion

Providing health care requires team effort and collaboration, not only by those within the health sector but also from external sources. Patients too have a role to play in making this a success.

References

Sangvai, D., Lynn, M., & Michener, L. (2008, Mar./Apr.). Defining high-performance teams and physician leadership. 34(2), 44-51

Sanwong, K. (2008, Mar.). The development of a 360-degree performance appraisal system: A university case study. International Journal of Management. 25(1), 16-23.

Castka, P., Bamber, C.J., & Sharp, J.M. (2004). Benchmarking intangible assets: enhancing teamwork performance using self-assessment. Management Decision, 11(6), 571-583.

Canadian Health Services Research Foundation (2006). Teamwork in healthcare: Promoting effective teamwork in healthcare in Canada.