Success and Teamwork
“Coming together is a beginning.
Keeping together is progress
Working together is success.”
-Henry Ford
“Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision.
The ability to direct individual accomplishments toward
organizational objectives.”
– Andrew Carnegie
“Getting” good players is easy.
Gettin’ ’em” to play together is the hard part.”
– Casey Stengel
What is teamwork?
Team work is a group that has:
A common purpose and clear goals.
Complimentary Skills
A common approach to work
The willingness to share information.
Member-supporting environment.
The ability to work through conflicts.
Why Teamwork?
1. Accomplish more in:
• Quantity
• Complexity
2. Generate more solutions/brainstorming ideas.
3. Gain exposure to various points of view.
4. Develop/use “critical thinking” & “evaluation” skills.
5. Improve conflict resolution skills.
6. Improve communication skills
2. Generate more solutions/brainstorming ideas.
3. Gain exposure to various points of view.
4. Develop/use “critical thinking” & “evaluation” skills.
5. Improve conflict resolution skills.
6. Improve communication skills
Accomplish projects an individual cannot do
• Most engineering projects are too large or too complex for one individual to complete alone. • Imagine trying to build the Golden Gate Bridge all by yourself!
Brainstorm More Solution Options
• Different people looking at the same problem will find different solutions.
Detect Flaws in Solutions
• A team looking at different proposed solutions may find pitfalls that an individual might miss.
Build Community
• Members of effective teams can form personal bonds which are good for individual and workplace morale. In the university setting, students on teams often form bonds that extend beyond the