Forming Teams for Classroom Projects

While much is known about benchmarks of success for teams and the need for diverse skills and abilities within teams, little research has been done to proactively identify a focused strategy for team formation that will help to ensure high performance and group efficacy. This paper applied what is understood from the groups and teams research literature regarding the characteristics of high-performing and effective teams to the assembly of teams in the business classroom. The authors describe a focused, experiential activity that can be used to help students form teams based on predetermined skills and abilities considered relevant to the assigned group project. This activity may also be useful when forming teams within longer-term teams within a cohort of students enrolled in a degree program, and also within organizations