Self-managed work teams: what works?

Case studies have shown that under the right circumstances, employees within self-managed work teams (SMWTs) produce more at work than employees organized in a more hierarchical, traditional structure because they perform not only technical skills, but management skills as well. The purpose of this article is to clarify the specific factors most important to an SMWT's success. The information shared here comes from three sources. The primary source is a research project funded by a 3-year grant (1994-1997) from the National Science Foundation. The primary factors found to affect the success of SMWTs formed five groups. Work process factors include those that are needed when actually performing the work, such as the appropriate resources, talent, procedures, and effort. Interpersonal process factors include communication and both positive and negative conflict. Environmental factors include those within the SMWT'S organization, such as management support and the reward system, as well as factors outside the organization, such as suppliers and the market. Team design factors and team member characteristics were found to be equally important to the high performance of the SMWT.