Building High-Performance Teams

A team is a set of two or more individuals who are working interdependently toward a common goal. Modern work settings or activities, such as spaceship expeditions, product launches, intensive care units, professional soccer, and military reconnaissance, all involve teams. A Google search for “teams” and “HBR” gives a plethora of Harvard Business Review articles on various topics, including the discipline of teams, leadership, emotional intelligence, diversity, and team collaboration and communication. This is a testament to how work settings today are passionate about creating high-performing, cohesive, innovative teams. In this Research Digest I present some of the key factors that affect team performance, based on an analysis of the human factors literature.