Let the Team Take the Strain: lessons from research into senior management teams in secondary schools

This paper looks at the implications for teamwork and school management of the research findings from a two year funded research study of senior management teams (SMTs) in secondary schools in England. Using a dual theoretical perspective encompassing both power and culture, it proposes a number of lessons to be learned from an analysis of the gains and strains of teamwork. It shows how the conflict between hierarchy and equal contribution, which is a fundamental norm of teamwork, influences the team's behaviour and outcomes of team processes. It ends by concluding that SMTs can make a difference, but only if members are willing and able to work in this way.