HHRR-The Dynamics of Team Member Change

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The Dynamics of Team Member Change



Apr 14, 2011



Team member change affects team performance but to what degree? Stephen Humphrey and coauthors examine flux in coordination, or how much disruption a team experiences as a result of the change. Strategic roles, information transfer, and cognitive ability impact flux levels, but the researchers offer suggestions to overcome high degrees of flux.

Most people can relate to being part of a team. Whether it’s on the field or in the boardroom, cooperation and communication are keys to success. When team members change, these qualities become even more important.

Stephen Humphrey, associate professor of management at the Penn State Smeal College of Business, and coauthors James Summers of Bradley University and Gerald Ferris of Florida State University, examine how team member change affects team performance and disrupts teamwork.

They refer to this disruption as flux, or the time after change occurs and before the team restructures and performs. This unstable period interrupts team coordination and requires internal adjustments.

The researchers study three characteristics that impact flux: strategic roles, information transfer and cognitive ability.

Strategic members, like problem solvers and those central to workflow, hold greater influence over the team. When these members change, teams coordinate ineffectively and experience higher levels of flux.

The team’s ability to disseminate information during member change also impacts flux. In order to reduce disruptions during periods of change, current members must relay important information to new members. If a team transfers information inefficiently, their ability to decrease flux lessens.

When replacing members, teams should know that the characteristics of the new member matters just as much as those of the departing member. However, the new member’s cognitive ability can either help or hinder the team’s transition. A high cognitive ability lessens flux, while a low cognitive ability increases flux and has a greater impact on task performance.

Breakdowns in coordination cause high levels of flux. This hinders the team’s ability to effectively work together, which affects their performance.

“As a team’s coordination process becomes more disrupted through low levels of information transfer and/or changes to its strategic core, the more difficult it becomes to effectively carry out its tasks,” write the researchers.

Humphrey adds that one finding surprised him and his coauthors. A new member, who is less intelligent, comparatively, does not disrupt the team as much as a new member of average intelligence, who tries too hard to make changes. New members of high intelligence easily integrate into the team.

“If you bring in someone who is of average intelligence, they are going to try to fix problems, make changes, and integrate themselves into the team structure,” he says. “This may throw the team for a loop and be very detrimental to team performance.”

Minimizing Flux

Strategic members should have a strong hand in integrating the new member into the team by teaching them the rules and norms of the group.

“The upside of this is that the new members get going faster,” adds Humphrey. “The downside is that, at first, you may lose some of the uniqueness of the new member by trying to fit a round peg into a square hole.”

If teams want to be more creative, they should find a way to fit the team to the new member, instead of fitting the new member to the team.

Humphrey says this is part of the socialization process. Organizations should make sure they have proper procedures in place for new members, especially strategic members for whom socialization is more important.

Human resource managers should be aware of strategic core turnover and its effect on team performance. Turnover in key roles causes disruption in task completion, decreases team efficiency, and can result in detrimental effects on organizational outcomes. Therefore, HR managers need to be mindful of this and replace strategic roles with talented personnel.

More mechanisms like job rotation, management information systems, and training increase the likelihood of easier information transfer among teams. This helps reduce flux in coordination.

Humphrey adds that this study, unlike previous studies, looks at teams as a dynamic process instead of a stagnant body.

“I think we’re going to see more research in this dynamic space,” he says. “We’re all trying to find answers to that question of how collaborations continue in the face of dynamic change.”

Their paper, “Team Member Change, Flux in Coordination and Performance: Effects of Strategic Core Roles, Information Transfer, and Cognitive Ability,” is forthcoming in the Academy of Management Journal.


Source: www.research.smeal.psu.edu