Is your team complete ?

You know a great team when you are part of one. You can feel it. And you also know when you are in a team where people prefer to be somewhere else. Managers who inherit a team often conclude, after a few months, that Mr X or Mrs Y would better be replaced. Sometimes it's not just one person, but a few, or even a handful. The temptation is great to think that, if only I could replace these people, then all the rest will be great, and my team will perform fabulously.

This judgment is often based on differences. Those who are direct, aggressive or pushy will likely appreciate those in the team who are similar. And they will think that those that are keeping to themselves or are more concerned about what others are thinking, are weak and unfit for a tough business environment.

Yet research has shown that the most effective teams are those with a balance of 'types' of team members. Just imagine a bunch of pushy and aggressive managers trying to work together ! You'd probably spend your time fighting fires and atoning conflicts. 

So where to start ? Belbin Team Roles is a simple tool that identifies team members' preferred roles, as well as those that are far out of their comfort zone. It does not pretend to figure out "who you are" but rather looks at what you do (behavior), and what others see you do at work. The profile is based on a combination of self-assessment and observer assessments. Since the observations are about behaviors (and not values, personalities, or motivations), they are 'safer' as a feedback approach.

There are a total of 9 Belbin Team Roles. None is better than another, and everybody embodies these 9 roles in a different way: some roles are the top preferred roles (strengths) and others are very much out of the comfort zone (weak team roles). Belbin Team Roles allows team members to have meaningful discussions about their own and others' profiles, and these dialogues go a long way in seeing the strengths of each member, however different they may seem.