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Creating Effective Teams: A Guide for Members and Leaders by Susan A. Wheelan. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 1999, 154 pp., $22.95, paper [ISBN 0-7619-1817-5].
Reviewed by David Coghlan, University of Dublin, Ireland
The glut of books on teams and work groups may create a reluctance to consider yet another one. When the author is Susan Wheelan, who has been researching and writing on groups and teams for many years, then this reluctance is rightly set aside. The opening chapter lays out the focus of the book, which is about how work groups become teams. The chapter gives a good flavor of the author's approach. There will be no jargon, no references and no silly exercises. The book will contain only the author's research based experience. The second chapter explores how teams in organizations need to be supported through creating expectations of success, setting clear expectations, valuing quality and service, attention to detail and valuing team recommendation and rewarding team performance. Wheelan is clear about what teams need-goals and tasks, resources, members trained to be team members, not getting too much help, and the avoidance of unsubstantiated team development and consultation strategies.
Wheelan presents four stages of team development: dependence...