10 Scientific Facts About Successful Teams

6. Diverse teams might be the most creative:

Again, conclusive evidence is difficult to come by considering science of team science’s status as a nascent field. Experts, however, have unofficially noted a pattern in group success as it relates to more heterogeneous perspectives. They believe that more testing is obviously necessary, but bringing in multiple viewpoints from across gender, gender identity, racial, religious, ethnic, and national spectrum increases the chances of forging a cogent solution faster — not to mention nurtures a greater understanding of humanity’s inherent differences and breaks down social barriers still holding back women and minorities.

7. The best leaders don’t “coddle” their stars:

As with the research regarding reward distribution, researchers at Arizona State University and University of Miami noticed how the more ineffectual leaders tended to heap more praise and make allowances for their higher performers. Even if they earned more than their teammates, any whiff of preferential treatment compromises unit cohesion. Instead of motivating poorer performers to achieve the same ends, such a structure only serves to harbor resentment in the long run.

8. Set clearly defined goals:

Even before J. Richard Hackman published his findings in the accessible book Leading Teams: Setting the Stage for Great Performances, the integral role communication plays in forging successful group dynamics was already pretty well understood. But it’s worth repeating. If you want to achieve a goal, make sure you and everyone else on the team understands all the ins and outs of the end game. Otherwise you run the risk of hitting some sort of Waiting for Godot scenario, and nobody wants that.

9. Regular training:

Another Hackman tidbit, courtesy of Xerox. A properly skilled team is a productive team, and the company — and the researcher — found that making sure their abilities stayed sharpened throughout a long-term project benefited everyone involved. Not to mention their superiors. Plus, spreading out the training and providing hands-on opportunities to apply lessons ensures the necessary skill sets sink in instead of overwhelming the worker’s mind all at once.

10. An ideal group size is between 5 and 12, but not really:

Science of team scientists, management experts, and the like always seem to be pumping out theories and research regarding the right size of the best groups out there. And then they seem to be pumping out theories and research regarding the right size of the best groups out there refuting everyone else’s theories and research regarding the right size of the best groups out there. Honestly, though, the exact number typically takes a backseat to effective leadership and engaged members. It helps to keep a wieldy number, of course, but no magic amount of warm bodies exists. Yes, despite what the conflicting research says!