Making Teamwork Work: Team Knowledge for Team Effectiveness

ABSTRACT

This study examined the impact of two types of team knowledge on team effectiveness. The study assessed the impact of taskwork knowledge and teamwork knowledge on team satisfaction and performance. A longitudinal study was conducted with 27 service-management teams involving 178 students in a real-life restaurant setting. Teamwork knowledge was found to impact both team outcomes. Furthermore, team learning behavior was found to mediate the relationships between teamwork knowledge and team outcomes. Educators and managers should therefore ensure these types of knowledge are developed in teams along with learning behavior for maximum effectiveness.

Keywords:

• team knowledge
• team learning behavior
• team performance
• team satisfaction
• service-management
• team-based learning

Author Notes

Priyanko Guchait is an Assistant Professor at University of Houston. His current research interests are organizational culture and climate, error management, learning, forgiveness, and team effectiveness.

Puiwa Lei is an Associate Professor at The Pennsylvania State University. Her current research interests are structural equation modeling, hierarchical linear modeling, categorical data analysis methods, and item response theory.

Michael J. Tews is an Assistant Professor at The Pennsylvania State University. His current research interests are personality, ability, and employee job performance; decision making in employee selection; coworker support, workplace fun, and employee retention; and learner engagement in training and development contexts.