Is it wise to avoid being a part of a team inc orporate?

Human resource function in most corporate engages seriously in developing teams and team spirit among its employees.  Most corporate would attach great importance and meaning to the word ‘team’ as they believe that ‘team work’ alone would fetch them success both at the employee and corporate level. 

The corporate also tend to nurture team spirit as they believe that there will be no disparity or dissonance or discrimination when people work as a team.  How true is the above belief? 

Is it true that there will be no noise, furry and mutiny among different members of a team?  Will there be a ‘utopia’ when people are made to work as a team?  

It is a myth that team spirit will help minimize conflicts and combats.  When people work in isolation or as individuals, may garner greater achievement than in a team.     The purpose of the article is not to discourage or mock at the team effort and to make people perform as individuals in the corporate ecosystem.  But to makes them aware of the working dynamics of a team and its merits and demerits.   Otherwise, confusions become imminent whether employees work as individuals or a team. 

Nature has finest examples to provide to the corporate about the advantages and disadvantages of a team. 

The animals that live as a team in general are the carnivores (predators) and not the herbivores (prey).   Look at the pride of a lion or pack of dogs or wolf or hyena, they all hunt as a team.  They know the fact that only when they hunt as a team, they can win.  But when the issue of sharing the hunt arises, only the strongest and smartest could make it.     If the size of the hunt were big enough to meet the needs of all members of the team, only then the ‘true’ team spirit or ‘team definition’ is followed. 

The ‘biggest’ truth is that everyone lives as ‘individual’ whether they are in a team or perform as individuals.  Live first for yourself and for the above sake, be in a team or remain as an individual (solitary) or be in a heard, is the natural law all the animals in the jungle follow. 

Interestingly, none of the animals that follow team culture would ever prefer to move away from the team even if their effort did not get them the due share.  They know that they can exist only when they work as a team and not as individuals.  They neither carry the ‘fossils’ of the loss nor do they refuse to put in their effort for the next hunt in future. 

What the corporate and its HR must learn from the above is that they should create acute necessity of team work among employees but should ensure that all of them are assured of the reward for their effort.  Corporate and its HR should recognize the fact that more conflicts is seen only among members of the team and not when they exist as individuals.  

Team spirit should not be misinterpreted as ‘sacrifice the self’ and work for the ‘common goal’.   The true meaning of a team is that the individual goals and needs are automatically taken care off when they work for a common or organizational goal.  Do not ever carry the ‘misnomer’ that ‘team’ will bring success and there will be less conflicts when people work as team. 

Remember, while you perform well in a team, only your individual performances are also measured.  Your existence is possible only when you excel as an individual.