A Team has TWO areas of management that make the difference in its effectiveness, good or bad.
It is the essence of teamwork.
One of the areas is the exterior (the team’s relationship with the outside of it) in which the most important part is the team’s goal, and how to reach it efficiently.
In the case of a flight crew, the objective is the transport of passengers and merchandise from one point to another with safety, punctuality, efficiency and economically.
It is the visible part of the team: The results.
The inner part is how the team communicates internally, how its components (crew members) interact and coordinate and communicate so that the outer part works correctly.
This part is vital, since the “glue” of a team is its communication system, that is, what we say, how we say it and what is the purpose of doing it.
When a crew begins a service, the team phases are almost always the same:
Creation: the team knows each other (here it depends a lot on the airline and the size of the airline whether the components are previously known or not) and non-verbal communication in case of not knowing each other plays a fundamental role at the beginning.
Conflict: Then the “conflict” arises, problems to be solved (for that we follow the SOPs) tasks to distribute (for that we do the briefings), and internal conflicts generally derived from communication.
Conflict resolution (or freezing stage): depends on the effectiveness of the team, the conflict can get stuck (freeze) without apparent solution or it is solved by the task of its components (here training has a great influence).
Dissolution of the team: Once the task has been carried out, the team is dissolved (here it is important to do a debriefing based on learning from mistakes and improving performance).
When in an interview we say that we are people who know how to work as a team, these areas are the ones that underlie the word “teamwork”, and for these reasons it is important:
To Know how to do good crew training. Observe non-verbal communication.
Communicate effectively (English is very important at this point in the aeronautical world)
Follow the stipulated procedures (SOPs)
Know how to handle a debriefing correctly (areas to improve from a positive perspective).
With these clear points, the team will do a good job.
Until then, may you find peaceful skies.
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Enrique. QrewMentor Team
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