Cross Functional teams

We mentioned this buzz word in the previous post. But what exactly are they?

A CFT consists of a group of people working toward a common goal and made of people with different functional expertise. It could include people from finance, marketing, operations, and human resources departments. Typically it also includes employees from all levels of an organization. Members may also come from outside an organization (in particular, from suppliers, key customers, or consultants). They respond to broad objectives, but not to specific directives. A non-business yet good example of cross-functional teams are music bands. Songs are the result of collaboration and participation, and the goals are decided by consensus.