Belbin (Uk) 2011 TeamRolesInANutshell PDF

Team Roles in a Nutshell
Ever wondered why some teams just seem to work

and others hit the rocks? When things don’t work, it
is obvious to all and it often has a profound effect on
the people involved, as well as the project or
objective to be achieved.
In the 1970s, Dr Meredith Belbin and his research

team at Henley Management College set about
observing teams, with a view to finding out where
and how these differences come about. They wanted
to control the dynamics of teams to discover if – and
how – problems could be pre-empted and avoided.
Over a period of nine years, international management teams were studied. Each participant
completed a battery of psychometric tests, so that attributes such as personality and behaviour
could be brought into play and their effects on the team could be accurately considered.
As the research progressed, the research revealed that the difference between success and failure
for a team was not dependent on factors such as intellect, but more on behaviour. The research
team began to identify separate clusters of behaviour, each of which formed distinct team
contributions or “Team Roles”. A Team Role came to be defined as: “A tendency to behave,
contribute and interrelate with others in a particular way.” It was found that different individuals
displayed different Team Roles to varying degrees.
The first Team Role to be identified was the “Plant”. The role was so-called because one such
individual was “planted” in each team. They tended to be highly creative and good at solving
problems in unconventional ways.
One by one, the other Team Roles began to emerge. The Monitor Evaluator was needed to provide
a logical eye, make impartial judgements where required and to weigh up the team’s options in a
dispassionate way. Co-ordinators were needed to focus on the team’s objectives, draw out team
members and delegate work appropriately.
When the team was at risk of becoming isolated and inwardly-focused, Resource Investigators
provided inside knowledge on the opposition and made sure that the team’s idea would carry to the
world outside the team. Implementers were needed to plan a practical, workable strategy and carry
it out as efficiently as possible. Completer Finishers were most effectively used at the end of a task,
to “polish” and scrutinise the work for errors, subjecting it to the highest standards of quality
control. Teamworkers helped the team to gel, using their versatility to identify the work required
and complete it on behalf of the team. Challenging individuals, known as Shapers, provided the
necessary drive to ensure that the team kept moving and did not lose focus or momentum.
Whilst some Team Roles were more “high profile” and some team members shouted more loudly than
others, each of the behaviours was essential in getting the team successfully from start to finish. The
key was balance. For example, Meredith Belbin found that a team with no Plant struggled to come up
with the initial spark of an idea with which to push forward. However, once too many Plants were in
the team, bad ideas concealed good ones and non-starters were given too much airtime. Similarly,
with no Shaper, the team ambled along without drive and direction, missing deadlines. With too many
Shapers, in-fighting began and morale was lowered.
As well as the strength or contribution they provided, each Team Role was also found to have an
“allowable weakness”: a flipside of the behavioural characteristics, which is allowable in the team
because of the strength which goes with it. For example, the unorthodox Plant could be forgetful or
scatty; or the Resource Investigator might forget to follow up on a lead. Co-ordinators might get over-
enthusiastic on the delegation front and Implementers might be slow to relinquish their plans in favour
of positive changes. Completer Finishers, often driven by anxiety to get things right, were found to
take their perfectionism to extremes. Teamworkers, concerned with the welfare and morale of the
team, found it difficult to make decisions where this morale might be compromised or team politics,
involved. Shapers risked becoming aggressive and bad-humoured in their attempts to get things done.
It was only after the initial research had been completed that the ninth Team Role, “Specialist”
emerged. The simulated management exercises had been deliberately set up to require no previous
knowledge. In the real world, however, the value of an individual with in-depth knowledge of a key
area came to be recognised as yet another essential team contribution or Team Role. Just like the
other Team Roles, the Specialist also had a weakness: a tendency to focus narrowly on their own
subject of choice, and to prioritise this over the team’s progress.
The Team Roles that Meredith Belbin identified are used widely in thousands of organisations all over
the world today. By identifying our Team Roles, we can ensure that we use our strengths to
advantage and that we manage our weaknesses as best we can. Sometimes, this means being aware
of the pitfalls and making an effort to avoid them.
Most people have a number of “preferred Team Roles” or behaviours they frequently and naturally
display. We also have “manageable roles”, roles which might not be the most natural course of
behaviour for us, but which we can assume if required and might wish to cultivate. Lastly, we have
least preferred roles, those we should not assume, since we’ll be playing against type. In this instance,
the effort is likely to be great, and the outcome, poor. If work requires Team Roles other than our
own, it is a much better bet to find and work with others who possess roles complementary to our
own. Since people tend to display more than one preferred role, a team of four could quite easily
represent all nine Belbin Team Roles.
So, in a nutshell, the Belbin philosophy is about celebrating – and making the most of – individual
differences. The message is that there is room for everyone in the team: all positive contributions
are welcome.
© Belbin Associates 2011 www.belbin.com

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Team Roles in a Nutshell

Ever wondered why some teams just seem to work

In the 1970s, Dr Meredith Belbin and his research

© Belbin Associates 2011 www.belbin.com

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