ExchangeEveryDay Past Issues

Roger Neugebauer, in the book Developing People in Early Childhood Organizations, writes about three issues that must be identified and successfully addressed in order to promote great staff teamwork. He describes three common team problems this way:

“Role ambiguity: Sometimes certain areas of responsibility are left out in never-never land. Everyone knows that they exist, but no one knows whose responsibility they are…Sometimes it can occur with very important tasks that are hard to find time for. Everyone on the team may believe that researching new ideas or evaluating the curriculum are important, but if no one is specifically charged with carrying out these tasks, they just don’t get done.

Role conflict: Conflict can occur when two or more team members believe they have responsibility for the same task...When this occurs, both team members may end up expending a considerable amount of energy outwardly arguing about whose job it is, or inwardly dealing with anger and frustration…

Intergroup conflict: Conflict can also occur between groups of individuals (i.e. between teams). If the staff of a center is divided into two teams, one serving the preschool children and one serving the infants and toddlers, these two teams may come into conflict over the use of space, money for supplies….”

The article urges administrators to prioritize their time to resolve team conflicts, stating that “when a staff is functioning as a team, team members’ interrelationships can be supportive, satisfying, and stimulating. Team members will be motivated and enabled to use their talents to the fullest.”

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