ABSTRACT
Recent trends in organizational practice, such as the increasing use of quality teams, autonomous work groups, project teams, and management task forces, suggest that groupwork is becoming more pervasive in organizations and is recognized as a vital means of maintaining organizational effectiveness and productivity. Reduced bureaucracy, increased employee/member involvement, and high quality products are all potential benefi ts gained from the use of teams in organizations. In today’s business world the use of teams to increase product development, productivity, and profi tability is rapidly expanding. Cross-cultural and cross-functional teams that can work effectively to tap the deep reservoir of knowledge possessed by all members have a distinct strategic advantage in the global marketplace. The U.S. Armed Services are effective team-based organizations with strong leadership. To be sure, the history of the U.S. military would strongly suggest that teams, system of teams, and team management-from the Joint Chiefs of Staff to basic training squads-are vitally inherent to the success of mission accomplishment and organizational effectiveness. Fundamentally, the core of military execution relies on preparedness, team cohesion, and responsiveness.
