Teams and Synergy

Take a moment and think about the productivity of a team compared to that achieved by the same individuals working separately. Would you say the first is higher? Or the second?

• If you have answered "first", you are picturing the positive synergy of a team or the "2 + 2 = 5 effect".
• If your answer was "second", you have in mind the negative synergy, also known as the "2 + 2 = 3 effect".

However...

The Experiment
In the early 20th century, Max Ringelmann, a French professor of agricultural engineering, set up teams to pull a rope attached to a strain gauge. He expected that, for example, eight people who pull the rope would exert a pulling force 8 times bigger than an individual average.

Results
Contrary to his expectations, Ringelmann found that the "tug-o'-var" team of three pulled with only 2.5 times the average individual force and the eight-team yielded a force almost 4 times bigger than the average individual force.

To Remember
Having group members work together on a task actually results in significantly less effort than when individual members are acting alone unless we ensure that we are able to identify and measure the individual effort. When measuring is not possible we should compare potential productivity losses to possible advantages in terms of employees' satisfaction.

Source: Robbins, S.P. (2006). "Adevarul si numai adevarul despre managementul personalului". Bucharest: Meteor Press