Workplace Interpersonal Skills: Group Work

My least favorite aspect of college was assigned group projects. The worst part about group work is how college instructors always think that they’re being so helpful by assigning groups, “Hey everyone. Today’s your lucky day! Your workload is going down because…(dramatic pause)… we’ll be working in groups! Yippee!”

Yes, yippee indeed. Now I’m not only responsible for my own work, but the work of four mindless, text-messaging during class, non-major declaring, rather-be-at-a-kegger kids, who could care less if they pass this class. Yeah, I’m sure they’re concerned with me keeping my A average.

There’s no funny punch line coming; I honestly spent 99% of my college group work time picking up the slack of others and getting little in return for my efforts. No surprise; when I moved to the working world from college, I had an ingrained group work be damned attitude. However, at most jobs you will eventually work with a group of other humans. Possibly, depending on the career you choose, every single day.

Maybe you’ve had bad group experiences like me, and you just know that every group project will suck. Maybe you’ve never worked extensively with groups and you think it’s a terrifying proposition. Or maybe, you’re such a super-star employee that you know you don’t need a group to succeed. Wrong, wrong, and wrong.

Most of my jobs have been heavy on the group work. It’s not comparable to college group work; it’s been much better. I have experienced conflicts at work during group projects, but mostly, I’ve found that workplace groups are ultimately helpful and can even be fun.

The Positive Attributes of Successful Workplace Groups:

• You get to impress your boss and co-workers with your amazing interpersonal communication skills. Additionally, observing your co-worker’s behaviors can give you new insight about which interpersonal skills work well and which skills never work.
• You will meet new and exciting people. You already know Joe who sits in the cubicle next to you; but have you met all of your other co-workers? Studies show that places of employment can be remarkable like high school – you meet a group of friends and stick like glue to them. If you have an inner circle of co-workers that you hang with at work, a group project will help to expand your circle outwards. Every new person you connect with at work might be the person who can lead you to new personal and professional gains.
• You will get more done. If you have a major workplace project it’s nice to be able to divvy up tasks. When everyone contributes to a group project instead of going it alone, the work gets done faster and that means less stress for everyone.
• You can ask for and will quickly receive help. Usually when a problem at work occurs, you set a meeting with your supervisor (if your supervisor can fit you in), and the two of you eventually hash the issue out. When you’re working in a group, advice is just a quick question to a co-worker away. Different co-workers will be able to offer a multitude of varying perspectives on the project or tasks at hand.
• You will be able to offer help and advice to co-workers. This not only helps your co-workers but you will likely receive positive feedback and the incentive to grow and improve your personal job performance.
• You will learn from yourself. How you interact within a group dynamic will allow you to better see your strengths and weaknesses related to interpersonal skills and work performance. You will learn to adapt your effectiveness in order to be useful to the team.

During successful workplace group projects these are the most positive aspects that occur. It’s a far cry from the days of college and I’ve learned to appreciate the benefits of group projects.

It’s fine to talk about the positives of successful workplace groups, but what if your co-workers are still acting like they’re in college? What if the bulk of the work falls on you, and communication skills of the team fall short? Now we’re talking about negative attributes of unsuccessful workplace groups. Not to worry… Coming soon – a primer about how to handle workplace conflict.