Its members are part of an ongoing, active team for as long as they work for the company. They set many of their own goals and determine the methods they will use to attain them. Members meet regularly to plan, report activities, discuss problems and strengthen group cohesiveness. They establish rules, roles and procedures. Teams may be empowered to various degrees.
Members are interdependent.
They rely on each other's skills. In contrast to workers in bureaucratic environments who are responsible only for their individual jobs, members of self-directed teams work together to achieve common goals. They need to understand how what they do affects others, and vice versa. They learn aspects of each other's jobs, often rotate various duties, and commonly are asked to temporarily fill in for absent teammates. The leader is an equal member of the team.