Running head: EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP AND TEAMS 1

Effective Leadership and Teams

Matthew R. Trimble

ORG3000 – Applying Leadership Principles

Colorado State University – Global Campus

Carolyn Salvi

October 22, 2012

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Effective Leadership and Teams

Effective team leadership can be one of the hardest obstacles for a leader to succeed in.

Team leaders must have a very detailed plan on how they will execute any project. Without this

plan the team can suffer from misdirection, increased rework, and low moral. For leaders to have

a successful project they must ensure that they have asked all of the proper questions before the

project is started. If this is not done then the project and the team will suffer.

Successful project leaders will follow a detailed cycle to ensure project success. One of

the cycles that can be used is the Shewhart Cycle. The Shewhart Cycle as stated by Clark (2010)

has four steps. These steps include plan, do, check, and act. In the planning step of the Shewhart

Cycle is where the leader and team need to start asking questions to ensure that a project is

successful. The questions that should be asked in this step according to Clark (2010) include

who, what, when, where, how, and why. In the answering these questions it is important to

ensure that the entire team is involved. With the teams involvement, the leader can now see if he

has the appropriate team members and resources to complete the project. This plan should also

include how the project will be organized. As Clark (2010) states this plan includes three major

steps. These steps include listing all tasks, establishing a structure to complete the task, and the

allocation of all needed resources. Once the planning questions have been completed the project

can now move on to the do part of the cycle.

In the do part of the cycle it is important for the team leader to monitor the progress of

all assigned task. There are various ways for the leader to accomplish this. One way to do this is

by having the team check on each other. Clark (2010) states, “Develop a system for checking

each other and ensuring that each task is accomplished on time.” By doing this it keeps the team

involved in all aspects of the project. Once each task has been completed it is now important

that that task moves on to the check step of the cycle.

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In the check step of the cycle Clark (2010) states that there are three things that should be

looked at. These include standards, performance, and adjustments. Meeting the standards that

have been established ensures the overall quality of the project. It is also important that the team

knows the standards. Clark (2010) states, “The standard, which is set, must mean the same to you

and your people.” How well your team meets the standards determines their performance or

quality of work. If the team is not able to meet the standard or has decreased performance it is

then the leaders job to look in to making adjustments. This adjustment should be made in the

performance level if at all possible. Decreasing the standard can be detrimental to the overall

project and cause it to fail. Now that we have checked on the task that our team is completing it

is time to act on the project.

In the act step of the cycle it is important to incorporate the discoveries found in the

check step. If these changes are successful they should be considered for implementation in to

the other task of the project. If they are not successful those task should be sent back to the check

step to find another solution. Some of the ways that we can find solutions is to using problem

solving techniques.

Problem solving, just like in the Shewhart Cycle, has various steps that should be

followed. Regardless of which problem solving technique you choose there are a few things that

we need to keep in mind when using problem-solving techniques. Some of these techniques only

solve for the current problem at hand and may not fix the entire project. Clark (2010) states,

“Problem solving is simply a method of fighting fires; it does not move the organization forward

and it does not create iPods, Google, paper drinking cups made of recycled paper, or Halo 2s.” If

we use these techniques effectively we can be assured that the team leader has asked all of the

right questions.
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References

Clark, D. R. (2010). Leadership and Direction. Retrieved Oct 22, 2012 from

http://nwlink.com//%7Edonclark/leader/leaddir.html