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Cross Training

Background

“A team training strategy which trains each team member [on] the duties and responsibilities of their teammates” (Shuffler et al., 2018, p. 18).

Cross-training enhances flexibility and shared understanding within a team, allowing members to step in and cover tasks from other roles when needed.

Signs that indicate a team might benefit from a cross-training intervention include a lack of understanding of other roles, difficulty resolving conflicts, and ineffective communication. Cross-training can also help teams adapt to new situations and reduce stress.

Relevant Readings

  • Bäker, A., Maisano, F., & Mestres, C. A. (2023). Enabling leaders of multispecialty teams via cross-training. BMJ Leader, 7(1), 45–51. https://doi.org/10.1136/leader-2021-000526
    • Bäker et al. (2023) investigate the impact of cross-training on leaders of multispecialty medical teams. They find that a cross-training course significantly improves participants' self-rated teamwork and conflict resolution. Both participants and external assessors reported improvements in communication and leadership skills after the training. The results suggest that cross-training enhances collaboration and enables leaders by increasing awareness of different specialties' skills and knowledge.
  • Bokhorst, J. A. C., Slomp, J., & Molleman, E. (2004). Development and evaluation of cross-training policies for manufacturing teams. IIE Transactions, 36(10), 969–984. https://doi.org/10.1080/07408170490496209
    • Bokhorst et al. (2004) explore different cross-training strategies for manufacturing teams. They use a model and simulations to evaluate how these strategies affect team performance (mean flow time) and workload balance across parallel, serial, and job shop production structures. The findings suggest that the ideal cross-training policy depends on the specific production environment.
  • Cooke, N. J., Cannon-Bowers, J. A., Kiekel, P. A., Rivera, K., Stout, R. J., & Salas, E. (2000). Improving teams’ interpositional knowledge through cross training. Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting, 44(11), 390–393. https://doi.org/10.1177/154193120004401116
    • Cooke et al. (2000) find that full cross-training shows some advantages for team performance and significantly enhances interpositional knowledge (IPK). Conceptual cross-training offers little benefit. The authors suggest that acquiring taskwork IPK is important for team effectiveness and may precede the development of teamwork IPK.
  • Hedges, A., Johnson, H., Kobulinsky, L., Estock, J., Eibling, D., & Seybert, A. (2019). Effects of cross-training on medical teams’ teamwork and collaboration: Use of simulation. Pharmacy, 7(1), 13. https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmacy7010013
    • Hedges et al. (2019) demonstrate that cross-training improves teamwork in interprofessional medical teams of physician and pharmacist residents. Their research demonstrates a significant improvement in teamwork scores for the cross-trained group following simulation-based training.
  • McCann, C., Baranski, J. V., Thompson, M. M., & Pigeau, R. A. (2000). On the utility of experiential cross-training for team decision making under time stress. Ergonomics, 43(8), 1095–1110. https://doi.org/10.1080/00140130050084897
    • McCann et al. (2000) investigate if experiential cross-training improves team decision-making under time stress and during team reconfiguration in a simulated naval task. They find that cross-training doesn't enhance performance under pressure but helps maintain it when teams are reorganized.