Tech Musing #2 - Google’s Quest to Build the Perfect Team

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The importance of being able to get along with others is something we are taught from a young age. As children we are encouraged to form friend groups, share toys, and build imaginary worlds together. This similar collaboration is being emphasized in the workplace. It has been shown that groups innovate faster, see mistakes quickly, and find better solutions. In addition individuals who work mainly in groups have reported better results and higher job satisfaction. Unfortunately not all groups mesh well, work efficiently, or produce decent results.

Google’s Research

Google personnel department wanted to find out what qualities, characteristics, makeup and requirements were needed to make a perfect team. Using survey data from numerous group projects and data banks, psychologists and statisticians set out in search of the ingredients needed to form the ideal group in an endeavor named Project Aristotle. The team analyzed similarities and differences between groups according to makeup, gender, education, experience, personality, I.Q., and if they were friends outside work. No immediate patterns emerged. One group with the same makeup of backgrounds might have soared while another with the same makeup didn’t achieve their goal.

There was one bit of information that was available for most teams. Members were able to describe how being in the group made them feel. The feelings were different depending on the group, but they all felt something while in the group. It could be conformability, ease, pressure to perform, insecurity, controlling, tenseness, calm, lazy, or anything else, but a collective emotion was felt. What the team members were describing were norms. Norms are the traditions, behavioral standards and unwritten rules that govern how we function when we gather together. They can be unspoken or openly acknowledged. Project Aristotle uncovered that understanding and influencing group norms were the keys to improving teams. The right norms could even raise a group’s collective intelligence. But how do we get the right norms in a group?

Psychological Safety

One important norm to have is making sure everyone feels comfortable speaking up in a group. This may sound elementary but Google has backed this up with data. Creating psychological safety in a group means every member has a sense of confidence that the team will not embarrass, reject or punish someone for speaking up. To make groups work well we need to have the following items:

Communication and Empathy – these are the same tools you use to bond with friends. You spend most of your time at work, might as well make some friends while you are there.
Having clear goals and a culture of dependability.
High average social sensitivity- group members need to be skilled at reading how others feel based on nonverbal cues (tone of voice, expression etc).
Equality in distribution of conversational turn-taking – simply put this means everyone speaks roughly the same amount a time within a day, activity or meeting.

Through this research Google has been able to put emotions into charts. They have data proving that in order to have successful teams, the members need to listen to one another and show sensitivity to feelings and needs. This type of sharing and attention will make the sum greater than its parts.

Related to Class

This article is not only related to this class but can be applied to almost all classes at Eller. In our studies, especially in our capstone courses, we as students are required to work in groups. We will continue to be working in groups on our consulting projects for the remainder of the semester. These four characteristics of successful groups are good things to keep in mind while working together. I.Q., personality, friendships, and previous work experiences aren’t everything. Sharing some personal encounters, communicating, and expressing feelings are what make groups strong.

In addition we are learning about project management, which always involves group work. These requirements can be added to a successful project team.

Importance to MIS Students and Professionals

There is increasing demand for employees who can navigate group dynamics. Business schools around the country have revised curriculums to emphasize group team-focused learning. As Eller students we are completing this kind of wanted curriculum. For students going on to attain MBAs when looking at institutions it is important to see how much group work is emphasized in the organization’s assigned studies. As future MIS professionals’ group work is in our future, learning helpful strategies can benefit us as team members and managers.