Teamwork is one of those buzzwords that fly about whenever you hear anything about organizational processes. In fact, you would be hard pushed to find a resume that doesn’t include the fact that the applicant is “an excellent team player” somewhere in there. Similarly, any time there is a vacancy, the requirement for team work will be firmly noted on there as well. Unfortunately, it has become so much of a buzzword that people have stopped thinking about what it actually means. Sure, it is about working together, but what does that entail exactly? And why is it so important within an organization to have teamwork? Isn’t it a case that everybody has their own job?
Individual Control
For a long time, businesses operated on a process of “individual control.” This means that one person covered the reception desk, one person did the photocopying, one person did the finances and so on. This works to a degree, particularly in a very small organization, because it makes it clear who does what. However, it stops individual employees from feeling like they are part of the whole. Besides this, if anybody is ever off sick or takes a vacation, all of the operations stop. Transitioning into an environment of team work can be a difficult process, but it is one that must be achieved.