Value, anti-value and teamwork

Every team, from a school project group to a company, is trying to get better at reaching a goal. Value Management Theory (VMT) gives us words to describe what helps and what hurts.

Four ideas

• Value is the potential of a group to get better at reaching its goals. It exists before anything is sold or graded.
• Anti-value is value that is lost or destroyed: burnout, mistrust, people giving up, friction between team members.
• Value flows are the ways value moves: someone explains a topic, shares notes, gives feedback, helps a new member settle in.
• Value systems are the different ways people judge what is worth their effort.

People value different things

In one project group, one student wants a top grade, another wants to learn the topic, a third wants to spend time with friends. None of them is wrong. Research at ÆVRI shows that treating everyone as if they wanted the same thing is a common reason why good intentions fail. A plan works when each person's value system and the group goal fit together.

Why the same rules give different results

Two classes can use the same rules for group work and get very different results. The rules are not the whole story. What matters is how the rules fit the people in the group and the goal they share.

Questions for discussion

• Describe a group project that went well. Which value flows made it work?
• What anti-value have you seen in teams? Was it visible at first?
• How would you design a project so that people who want different things all contribute?