Another case of the Emperor's new clothes?

The article presents the author's comments on the article "The Romance of Teams: Toward an Understanding of Its Psychological Underpinnings and Implications," by Natalie Allen and Tracy Hecht. Allen and Hecht charge that those advocating teamwork initiatives have deluded themselves as to the real performance benefits of teamwork interventions--most likely because people enjoy the experience of working within a team, and because such arrangements help boost feelings of competence. There is some merit in such suggestions, and it would be wise to consider some aspects of the charges in some more detail. In the first instance, there can be little argument with one of Allen and Hecht's primary conclusions--namely that groups of individuals working together within teams do not necessarily achieve more, either individually or collectively, than that which could be achieved by competent individuals working alone.