New Zealand Herald

How to build good teams
Wednesday May 17, 2006By Philippa Stevenson

Winner-take-all reality TV series suggest teams and teamwork are inevitably a dysfunctional mix of high-maintenance drama queens and kings, borderline personality disorder types, graspers, and backstabbers.
It's enough to make you swear allegiance to the adage that the best committee is a committee of one.
Fortunately, for an increasingly complex world, the group dynamics featured on TV shows such as The Apprentice and Survivor are about ratings not function. more..

Great article. One of the best I have ever read. Professor Wertheim had me interested the moment I realized that, after his accurate views of The Apprentice and Survivor, that was his last reference to either show. He got right down to talking about how being on a great team brings out the best in people.

He has the value of a team leader nailed.

* You cannot overestimate a manager's influence on team performance. As one executive who oversees a successful performance management system says, 'Over time, a team becomes a reflection of the manager'. Managers with a weak performance orientation produce teams with lacklustre performance. Managers who care little for their team member's engender conflict between employees and the organisation.
* Companies must invest the time and resources necessary to get the right person in the manager's position. Having no manager at all is a better choice than saddling a team with a bad manager.
"For better or worse, teams and organisations will succeed or fail based on the quality of their managers. Lousy managers drain productivity and morale. Great managers drive maximum performance. The principle is simple and straightforward. The hard work is finding and developing great managers to lead your teams."

There is nothing of value I can add to this other than "Here, Here! Well-said" (written)

Team Leadership is the difference between ordinary staffs and extraordinary teams.