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Working Paper
| HBS Working Paper Series
| 2012
Expertise Dissensus: A Multi-level Model of Teams' Differing Perceptions about Member Expertise
by
Heidi K. Gardner and Lisa Kwan
|
Abstract
Why are some teams more effective than others at using their members' expertise to achieve short-term performance and longer term developmental benefits? We propose that a critical factor is expertise dissensus-members' differing perceptions of each other's level of expertise. We argue that performance hinges on how team members perceive all others' expertise-not just how they view the most expert team member-and that even latent disagreement about how much each person can contribute will undermine individuals' development and teams' capacity building. We develop and test a multi-level model of expertise dissensus, finding that it hampers team coordination, increases task and relationship conflict, and lowers all dimensions of team effectiveness: team performance, team viability, and individual member development.
Keywords: Groups and Teams;
Failure;
Experience and Expertise;
Research;
Performance Effectiveness;
Knowledge Use and Leverage;
Perception;
Personal Development and Career;