The Teamnet Factor: Bringing the Power of Boundary Crossing Into the Heart of Your Business

Here is the basic concept of "Teamnet": the word "team" implies a group which is small, in the same place, and tightly coordinated; the word "network" implies connectivity which tends to be large, spread out, and loosely linked. "Teamnet" brings the best of both together. Lipnack and Stamps organize their excellent material within two Sections and then provide an Afterword ("The Risk of Democracy: Teamnets as the Hope for the 21st Century") and a Reference Section ("Transforming Bureaucracies and Systems"). The authors assert that teamnets create the "great competitive advantage of boundary crossing" and I agree. They identify "Five Teamnet Principles" (unifying purpose, independent members, voluntary links, multiple leaders, and interactive levels), explaining precisely how these principles shape and inform teamnetting initiatives. What I found especially interesting and informative are their analyses of various organizations which have created and sustained successful teamnets. I want to stress two points when highly recommending this book. First, it was valuable in 1993 when first published but is even more valuable now because of all of the opportunities which the WWW continues to create. Eventually all organizations will be directly or indirectly involved in globalization, for example. The "Five Teamnet Principles" will continue to create almost unlimited potential applications. Also, with all due respect to major international corporations such as those the authors examine, I think their observations and suggestions will be of even greater value to small-to-midsize organizations in which teamwork and connectivity are not only desirable but indeed imperative.

On se demande souvent pourquoi certains projets ou phases de projet atteignent une efficience magique, pourquoi des equipes se démarquent alors que d'autres pietinent. Ce que Lipnack et Stamps font dans leur livre, c'est de nous expliquer les facteurs qui declenchent cette magie, cette chimie qu'ils appellent le TeamNet Factor, et comment l'implanter dans les organisations. C'est bien fait, et ce qui est super, c'est que je peux maintenant creer cette chimie autour de moi.