I Can Work in a Team: Why This Phrase Annoys Everyone and What It Really Means

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We figure out why employers love this phrase, what meaning they put into these mysterious words, and whether there is a predisposition to teamwork.

In 2021, UK recruitment company Hays conducted a study that showed that the ability to work in a team ranks first among soft skills on the list of employers’ requirements, given that 96% of employers recognized soft skills as more important than technical ones. Employees themselves are also interested in working in a team. Slack’s study involved 1,400 employees, 91% of whom said that it was important for them to interact with a team.

However, not many people are able to answer the question of what it means to be able to work in a team. Often people feel confused and sometimes irritated when asked about this. One of the reasons for this reaction is the complexity of the term. Teamwork requires many personal qualities: the ability to set goals, communicate, resolve conflicts, listen. In addition, many people imply in the definition the willingness to work hard to the detriment of oneself.

What is teamwork​

There are many studies that talk about a predisposition to teamwork. They are often based on the well-established Big Five personality model, which characterizes a person using five traits: openness, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness, neuroticism. Psychologist and professor of management at the University of Michigan Frederick Morgeson explained the significance of these qualities.

Conscientiousness or good faith​

People with developed conscientiousness are usually ready to perform any role in the team when necessary. This does not mean that the developer and the sales manager should replace each other. But a tester can help another tester. In teams with heavy workloads and staff rotation, this is an important personal characteristic. Conscientious employees have developed self-discipline, they do not need to be constantly monitored, they do not shift their responsibilities to others, they regularly check updates and comments on tasks themselves, meet deadlines, promptly report problems, and create a normal work process.

Extroversion​

Extroverts are often described as active and friendly people. However, there is a stereotype that their excessive inclination to communicate negatively affects work results. Frederick Morgeson believes that it is important for extroverts to realize themselves within a team. They need to be useful so that their colleagues appreciate them. They play an important role in discussions, as they have well-developed communication skills: when someone cannot find the right word or formulate conclusions for the client, extroverts take on the tasks themselves.

Friendliness​

Friendly employees try to build friendly relationships with their colleagues, rather than compete with them for a major project or a quarterly bonus. They are able to quickly resolve conflicts, sympathize and help others, so they are appreciated and loved in the team. Such employees are important for creating a friendly atmosphere in the team.

Neuroticism​

This indicator measures a person’s emotional stability. People with a low level of neuroticism overcome stressful situations that periodically arise in a team. People with a high level, on the contrary, cannot cope with anxiety. They often experience unpleasant emotions and express them publicly. Research has shown that if there is only one such person in a team, he or she is capable of infecting the entire team with negativity. As a result, the team’s productivity falls.

Openness​

Frederick Morgeson did not say anything about openness. According to him, only the four characteristics listed above have scientific evidence to support their impact on teamwork. Other studies say that this trait shows whether a person is open to new experiences, whether they have curiosity and creative imagination. People with a low level of openness are usually conservative, committed to traditions, and tolerate routine more easily. People with a high level do not tolerate monotony and prefer variety. This quality is especially important for IT specialists, since for them learning something new is an endless process.

A recent study by the recruiting company Joblist using the Big Five model found that extroverts have a high predisposition to teamwork, while neurotics have a low predisposition. The study involved 1,011 US workers. Of the respondents, 483 scored high on conscientiousness, 338 on agreeableness, 294 on openness, 155 on neuroticism, and 149 on extroversion.

It turned out that extroverts like working in a team more than others. Respondents who scored high on openness, conscientiousness, and friendliness need a balance between teamwork and individual work, while neurotics prefer to do everything alone.

The study also found that extroverts are the best at building relationships with colleagues, including subordinates and bosses. Among company leaders, people with a high level of extroversion are most common (62%), while those with a higher level of neuroticism are the least likely to become bosses (36%). One reason is that emotional sensitivity makes it difficult to accept criticism.

Among IT specialists, the most common people are conscientious (36%) and friendly (30%). Less common among people of this profession are: openness (16%), extroversion (17%), neuroticism (8%).

People with high levels of neuroticism earn the least - about 35 thousand dollars a year. The most are those who are conscientious - more than 75 thousand dollars.

Neurotics prefer remote work more often than others. They choose a hybrid format, which allows them to combine remote work with office work, less often than others. The fact is that people with neurotic tendencies experience stress with frequent changes in life. Therefore, it is important for them to stick to one line.

Neurotics are also more likely than others to start looking for a new position 3-6 months after employment. In addition, they usually do not stay in one company for more than two years. Employees with a high level of conscientiousness and openness are less likely than others to think about changing jobs.

Teamwork skills​

To become an effective team member, there are specific skills that can be trained. LinkedIn career consultants recommend developing the following qualities:

Be reliable

One of the most important qualities of an effective member of any team is to do what you say you will do. This means being on time for meetings and appointments, and completing work on time. This will require organization. Manage your time properly: write down important tasks in a notebook, make plans, respond quickly to messages, and save meetings in the calendar.

Leonid Ivankin​

Leading Android Developer at MTS

If an employee is constantly late, misses deadlines, forgets to do what he promised, this negatively affects not only the results of work, but also the atmosphere in the team. Colleagues quickly begin to adopt each other's bad habits. Therefore, such employees need to be put in their place, and if this does not help, then you have to part with them.

Be able to listen

A key skill when working with other people. It takes effort to just sit and listen without judging, interrupting, or planning a response mid-sentence. But if you can become a good listener, it will have three significant benefits. First, other people will like you more. Listening to your colleagues makes them feel important and valuable, so they will like you. Second, you will learn more. Third, it puts you in control of the conversation. Use questions to steer the conversation in any direction you want.

Vitaly Litvinenko​

Founder of HOUSE OF APPS

Often people recognize as important only those arguments that confirm their point of view and ignore others that contradict it. This cognitive distortion is called biased thinking. It leads to loss of productivity. When solving problems, consider all opinions, even those you do not like. Learn to listen and hear your colleagues.

Don't become a source of negative emotions

If you are in a bad mood, try at least not to share your emotions with your colleagues.

Vladislav Utkin​

IT Director of the manufacturing company TECHNONICOL

When working in a team, try to respond constructively to criticism, painlessly accept friendly jokes addressed to you, even if you are in a bad mood. Humor greatly helps to find a common language with colleagues. In IT, this is already an obligatory part of corporate culture.

Be mindful of the quiet team members

Among your colleagues, there may be introverts who need attention. They are good listeners, observers, and thinkers. Such people can notice significant shortcomings in work. But they are shy. Therefore, it is important to communicate with them, gently involve them in group discussions, encourage them for their work, which often goes unnoticed. The main thing is not to overdo it. If colleagues do not like to speak in public, do not force them to do it. To find out their opinion, write in a messenger, leave a comment on the task, give them time to think about the answer.

Victoria Tristanova​

Account Manager at iD EAST

People tend to keep silent about problems because they are afraid of seeming weak. This primarily concerns introverts. Very often, such employees burn out because they do not dare to talk about their problems for a long time. Their silence can be expensive for both the team and the entire company: deadlines are missed, projects are disrupted. To prevent this from happening, notice such things in time. Talk tactfully to such an employee, find out the reasons for the problem and try to solve it together

Talk less

The more people on the team, the less each person should speak. If you have four colleagues, speak about 25% of the total conversation. If you are a natural chatterbox, try to limit yourself during the dialogue by asking questions that should be asked to others. This way, you will give your colleagues a chance to speak up, and you will also learn a lot about the project you are currently working on.

Vyacheslav Gerasimov​

Product Manager at Piramis.dev

It's normal to communicate. The main thing is to know the limits in everything. When the conversation is in the smoking room on abstract topics, there are no restrictions. Another thing is communication during the work process. Respect your colleagues, do not distract them with trifles. Before asking a question, make sure that you have already read the project documentation, looked through the work chats on the topic of interest to you. Do not force them to waste time explaining what has already been described.

Train team flexibility

Sometimes there are situations when there is a lot to do and few employees. You have to work not only on your own tasks, but also help out colleagues within the framework of job responsibilities. As we wrote above, a tester can help another tester with a project, but not a sales manager. Within the team, find in advance the employees who will cope best with certain tasks when there is an increased workload.

Don't be lazy in small things

The idea is to do something extra that is useful to the team in addition to your personal responsibilities.

Ludmila Chernova​

Head of Recruitment Team at ICL Services

A team player will never leave the cooler without water after finishing the last cup, or the printer without paper if it runs out. When your comrades cannot rely on you even in such small things, what can we say about serious projects and tasks. To earn a reputation as a team player, show diligence in any, even the most insignificant, tasks.

Rules of successful teams​

A recent study identified five key characteristics, each of which highlights the important role of relationships between colleagues.

Answering calls

There are many jokes about frequent IT calls, but the facts show that successful teams call more often than their less productive colleagues. Recent research has shown that while most people think of phone calls as awkward and uncomfortable, this is a misconception. In practice, conversations strengthen relationships, prevent misunderstandings, and promote productive interactions between colleagues.

Preparing for meetings

Successful teams prepare thoroughly for their meetings, doing a lot of the preparatory work: carefully reviewing the agenda, announcing it before the meeting, registering participants, and summarizing in writing. As a result, these meetings solve specific problems rather than wasting time on abstract thoughts.

They chat about non-work topics

Employees of such teams discuss non-work issues with their colleagues much more often: sports, books, family relationships - both in the office and outside it. All this allows them to get to know each other better, choose the best communication methods and channels for solving work issues.

They praise

Representatives of successful teams are praised significantly more often than those who are lagging behind: by colleagues - 72%, by managers - 79%.

Show emotions

Successful teams express positive and negative emotions, compliment, joke, and tease their colleagues. They use exclamation marks, emoticons, and GIFs more often in emails. They also swear more often. Researchers explain this phenomenon as follows: the alternative to expressing negative emotions is to suppress them, and suppression takes a lot of energy that is needed for effective work.

Vladislav Chernikov​

CTO of Intelsy

It is important for me that the team is motivated to solve the project tasks independently. At the same time, you can interest them not only financially, but also by complexity: technologies, approaches. It is important to take into account the experience of specialists, so that you do not have to teach them on the go. Experience and qualifications should allow the employee to quickly understand the issue. Even if a junior comes, the processes are built in such a way that he will solve tasks that are understandable to him, but require additional effort, so that it is interesting for him. Each time, these tasks should become a little more difficult than the previous ones.
It can be said that one of the main principles of building an effective team is a competent distribution of responsibilities, team members must complement each other. The second is that each team member is not indifferent to the result. The third is to be demanding of each other and not allow "sloppy work" on the part of colleagues. The fourth is to be obligatory in your promises regarding work. The fifth is mutual trust, which will help to avoid conflicts within the team.

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