The Power of the Teamwork

Some time back in the days, I was working for a production company as a Manufacturing Manager. There was a misconception there about the way to recognize achievements and celebrate good performance. And that was, like in most other companies around the globe, the title ''The Employee of the Month''.

You might have a factory with 200 workers/operatives and 20 supervisors/white-collars, for instance, and you have just one employee of the month. Hoorayyyy!!! You might as well hand out 219 notes, saying ''you suck''. In fact you're saying that 219 people have made no contribution to the factory or company. You know that's not true. If you want to throw the factory line into disorder. Congratulations, you did it!

The same will happen, if some of these employees are overconfident, and don't follow the rules, the order, and the pace of the line, don't help others, don't work in tune with the process pace and their workmates.

I used to tell production workers one of my favourite stories about a boat rowed by eight men. One rower might feel he is stronger than the next and row twice as hard. This extra effort upsets the boat’s process and moves it off course.

I firmly believe that a team is much stronger than any individual, and can achieve its goals much quicker than him/her.