The opinion that relates to the difference between team and group and whether Nikki belongs to a team or group considering an individual’s outlook, after the analysis of the Holden Outerwear case study. As a workgroup member at college, while working on her first group assignment, Nikki found the experience far from motivational. Nikki Brush started her career as a freelancer. She could never estimate her true potential by freelancing and could never become one of the most reliable members of the company. Her true talent did not remain hidden for long and Design Chief at Holden identified her true potential. Nikki received and accepted her first on site guest work-placement. At Holden, she then designed to her creative limits and she came out with one of the best-selling designs of the season. She out-performed at large in her individual capacity and as part of a team and received various opportunities of promotion to a new job role where she could prove her capabilities. One of the reasons of her rise was her attitude as a team-member where she always took ownership for her as well as her associates’ successes.
The type of team Holden Outerwear anticipated was a problem-solving team that shared ways of solving problems, improving quality, maintaining energetic environment by communicating with other members and their manager with much enthusiasm and by taking entrepreneurship of the projects at hand. LeBlanc the owner of Holden Outerwear said, “I like the word ‘team’ because it brings people together.” (Video Case Library - Holden Outerwear) Currently a design and development manager at Holden Nikki supports LeBlanc’s views about team. Although, it was a progressive anticipation of teams that she developed over the years, she is happy mainly because she has become one of the trendsetters at Holden. Many would agree with their view and that to work in an inspirational environment where creativity penetrates each sphere of the design, it is essential to have teams at work where idea circulates.
Like most organizations, LeBlanc’s use of team-based organization had various downsides like individuality crisis, conflict resolution, loss of best ideas among team-based decisions, pooling of resources in order to make effective decisions, and proper communication flow. In spite of these downsides, teams created more knowledge, more energy, and more support. The probability of creating best-selling and popular designs that pleased the management of Holden increased when a team was engaged in brainstorming session. Obviously, these brainstorming sessions at the problem-solving stage could either motivate or demotivate their teams.
Conclusion
A group and a team both are two faces of a coin; one eventually gives way to another. By analyzing Holden Outerwear case study in particular, this opinion is most appropriate that it is always a combined effort that wins the obstacles. Teams usually lead because of their organizational ownership and collective effort.
References
Video Case Library - Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams:Understanding Individual Behavior. (n.d.). Retrieved July 16, 2013, from Cengage: http://www.cengage.com/resource_uploads/downloads/0538479531_281557.pdf
Video Case Library - Holden Outerwear:Leading Teams. (n.d.). Retrieved July 16, 2013, from Cengage: http://www.cengage.com/resource_uploads/downloads/0538479531_281557.pdf
