Read the case study provided. Based on your reading, answer the following questions by referring to the requirement.

FROM TEAMWORK TO COLLABORATION

Organizations are keen to employ people who work well together, even a good team player has become a horribly over-used phrase on curriculum vitae. Few articulate the importance of teamwork as starkly as Nicky Binning, head of experienced hire and global mobility at advisory firm KPMG. 'There is now such a pace of change that it almost does not matter what you have done in the past. She says, it is the ability to understand what is in front of you and work collaboratively that counts. You have to work together as a team because it is likely you are facing something you have never faced before.'

There was a time, she says, when KPMG would hire accountants, or IT technicians. Now, the firm seeks to hire people with emotional intelligence and analytical abilities, allied to specific skills. Change is so rapid that even new graduates' knowledge can be out-of-date by the time they are employed. This is a profound shift. Ten or 20 years ago, collaborators usually had to be in the same room. Today, technology means they can be strangers, of a different culture and first language, in a different time zone.

Pam Jones, director of Ashridge Business School's Performance Through People programme and an expert on leadership and team development, identifies half a dozen different types of team common in many modern workplaces. An individual from one function might be delegated to participate in various teams that can be face-to-face, project teams, ad hoc, virtual, cross-cultural and a combination of these. Ms Jones and some Ashridge colleagues asked 600 organizations around the world about teamworking. They found that 75 percent of complex' teams were dispersed geographically, 30 percent were spread across time zones, and half were 'virtual' and rarely met. It can make achieving full and clear communication far from easy: team members might be expected to work via conference calls or e-mail with strangers, who are perhaps using their second or third language, and operating in a culture where speaking out is frowned upon.

Ms Jones says: You need good emotional intelligence to be a good team player, especially in a virtual team. You have to be reading the pace and tone in someone's voice. You have to be clued in to what is said and what is not being said. 'For many employers the search for collaboration skills is becoming increasingly important. 'Collaboration underpins a lot of what it takes for a firm like KPMG to be successful.' Says Ms Binning. 'We always bringing together new teams for clients with different skill sets.' Very often., KPMG people have to form joint teams with people from other firms to meet client needs.

The belief in the importance of hiring people who can collaborate effectively and share a 'company's 'values' is even more pronounced at Microsoft. Theresa McHenry, UK director of human resources, says 'Everyone we hire is Microsoft first and the job second.' Jobs change, but an employee might stay for decades, so a can-do attitude, optimism, interpersonal awareness and other qualities that underpin successful collaboration are what matters most she says.

Clive Davis, a director with Robert Half UK, a financial recruitment consultancy, confirms that employers are trying ever harder to identify whether candidates have skills that will enable them to work well with others. In order to be meaningful, this needs detail. Employers are looking for someone who will ensure they are going in the same direction as the team, he says. They are looking for someone who will share ideas, lead by example, communicate effectively and so on.

Ms Binning notes that these soft skills are much harder to identify and test, and more subjective, than technical capabilities. Like Microsoft, KPMG has identified a set of values that embrace some collaboration skills, such as leading by example, working together, respecting individuals, and being open and honest in communication. I think these values are threaded through our behaviors, she says. In order to be successful at KPMG, you will need to adopt most of these behaviors. Although a lot of effort goes into quizzing job candidates about how well they work with others, Ms Binning questioned whether KPMG is always sufficiently diligent about human qualities when assembling ad hoc teams.

Technology-enabled teams are easy to delegate, but do not always work well. Meredith Belbin, one of the pioneers of modern thinking about teamwork, identified nine roles adopted by members of effective teams - for example, 'the plant' tends to be highly creative, 'monitor evaluators' keep track of the opposition and ensure an outward view, and so on. Jo Keeler, business director at Belbin Associates in Cambridge, notes that Meredith Belbin's preferred size of team is four to six. More than nine, it depends, she says, and the group becomes over-large and ineffective. She adds that most people have the propensity for three or four roles, though some have just two preferred roles.

Personnel chiefs are familiar with these ideas, but Microsoft's Ms McHenry says, we do not always have the luxury of allowing people to say you need a plant, and a resource investigator and so on, Belbin tests, and others like them, help people identify roles in which they feel most comfortable. This knowledge can be useful both to those assembling teams, and to participants. The experts agree that for a team to work well, members need clear roles and objectives. The team leader must be articulate what a team is trying to achieve, and as Microsoft's McHenry stresses, the ream must review its performance to ensure it is effective.

Job seekers are not helped by the typical jargon. Ms Keeler says it is not enough to claim to be a 'good team player'. A more positive approach is needed: a prospective hire might say, "I like detail. My ability to plan work, and my anxiety to complete the task, ensures that a job is done to the highest standards. I enjoy hard work and do not pursue personal glory'. Such words, she says, are far more attractive than 'good team player'.

Ms Jones of Ashridge says, that for a team to function well, the members also need to know about each other. 'You need to know your strengths, but also know when you need to draw on the skills of others.' In addition, 'You need to be humble, to have good social skills, and to be committed to a common goal and to achieving it selflessly.' All of these behaviors and qualities become more even important as careers progress. Ms Jones says, 'Even as a board member you have to be a team player, and this may be even more difficult at a senior level.' Source: Cornerstones of Management (2011), Laurie Dickie and Carolyn Dickie, 2nd ed. 125, Tilde University Press, Australia.

Based on the case, answer the following questions.

QUESTION 1 Analyze the challenges identified in this article. Support your answer with ONE (1) relevant justification.

QUESTION 2 Assuming you are the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), of this organization, propose an action plan to help the team work better by preparing TWO (2) important guidelines which should be followed by all team members. Elaborate your points.