Multidisciplinary Design Problem Solving on Product Development Teams

This study also found that well-known, shared team objectives and team co-location were positively correlated with team member satisfaction and product and project performance. The significance of shared objectives reinforces the argument that teams need to establish a shared system of evaluation. When project goals were well known to the team, its members tended to evaluate design problems -- and their potential solutions -- more similarly than when such goals were not present. Therefore, team members were able to reach a consensus more easily about how to solve the problem. Similarly, co-located teams were able to meet regularly and easily, allowing team members to get to know each other personally and to learn about each other’s technical concerns. This increased understanding and awareness then facilitated effective problem solving.