Mathematical proof that teams are more productive

Dear Bob …

I liked this weeks’ Keep the Joint Running (“The causes of greatness,” 9/10/2007).

You have an assertion – that good employees who work together as a team outperform great employees who don’t.

For a very long time I’ve been looking for a reference that provides some/any evidence for this, apart from anecdote or assertion.

Do you know any sources that show teams are more productive and creative?

I’ve read a heap of Jerry Weinberg’s & friends work – this is one of their major planks. I believe it to be true, from my own experience, both negative and positive, I know it to be true, but haven’t been able to find any hard/definitive evidence.

– Teaming with curiousity

Dear Teaming …

Nope. Like you, all I’ve heard is assertion and anecdote. Seems to be a chronic problem in the business press, doesn’t it?

Looking at professional sports is the usual way to assess this. Of course, you then have to decide which sport to look at.

In the Ryder Cup, it’s pretty much about which “team” has the great players.

In football, though, teamwork is essential or your star quarterback will still get creamed. (On the other hand, try asserting that the Packers without Brett Favre would still have won the Superbowl a few years back because they had teamwork. Not very convincing, is it?)

In the end, I think this is what mathematicians would call a “Q.E.D.” situation. When work processes require cooperation among employees, those who know and trust each other will be able to spend more time and energy doing the work and less questioning and challenging each other. While we’d need actual evidence to compute exactly how much less time, the principle seems pretty solid based on the logic alone.

– Bob

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