Microsoft Word - TeamStructureDGK_Mar2010

Abstract Team design drives organizational performance in industries in which products are developed by project-based teams. Team members' expertise in what they do, that is, in the tasks they perform and the hierarchical roles they occupy, is critical to teams' success. Equally important is the ability to coordinate interdependent activities, which is easier when team members have experience of working with each other. Many project teams change frequently, however, hampering the development of team familiarity. In this paper we study the performance consequences of two alternative coordination mechanisms: shared experience of working within the same firm, and general experience interacting and coordinating within teams. Using data on electronic games development teams, we find that shared firm experience and teaming experience are positively associated with the commercial success of electronic games, and that these effects matter equally for teams with low and high levels of familiarity. Our results matter for the theory of learning and coordination in teams, and for the practice of team design in project-based organizations