BroadX: Rewriting the rules of teamwork

As the pace, scope and complexity of work in organizations increases, traditional teams are too small and insufficiently specialized to meet the multifaceted demands of contemporary problems. This has resulted in the increased use of multiteam systems in business, government, medical and military contexts.

Scholars in the social and behavioral sciences have noticed this increased use of multiteam systems, and accordingly, research on this topic has expanded rapidly over the last 15 years. Unfortunately, the small amount of existing research conducted with multiteam systems makes it clear that size and specialization matter, and this precludes simple generalizations from teams to multiteam systems when it comes to theory and practice.

John Hollenbeck, associate dean of research and Eli Broad University Professor of Business, says the “rules of teamwork” need to be rewritten. In this BroadX video, he talks about his research involving a multimillion-dollar effort funded by multiple branches of the U.S. Department of Defense to create a national infrastructure for studying multiteam systems and the future of teams.

To hear more from Hollenbeck on his research on teams, tune in to Season 3 of the Broad Matters podcast.