The bachelor’s thesis describes teamwork in social work, with a particular focus on Centers for Social Work (CSW), where the research was conducted. The aim of the study was to explore the effectiveness of teamwork and to identify the factors that contribute to its success as well as those that hinder its effective functioning. In the theoretical introduction, I first define the role and functioning of CSW and then discuss teamwork and its characteristics. I begin by defining the concepts of a team and teamwork, outlining the key characteristics of teamwork, listing and describing different types and forms of teams, and presenting the roles and competencies of team members that are important for successful team functioning. I then focus on the effectiveness of teamwork in social work, distinguishing between factors that contribute to successful teamwork and the challenges and obstacles that team members encounter in collaboration. I formulated five research questions, which are presented in the problem statement. Through qualitative research, I conducted interviews with a non-random convenience sample of seven employees from a selected unit of a Center for Social Work. Through interviews with the participants, I explored their understanding of teamwork, the effectiveness of teamwork, collaboration with different professional profiles, and the factors that contribute to or hinder successful team functioning. In the empirical section, I present the findings of the study. Employees at the CSW understand teamwork as collaboration among different professional workers to resolve problems or address specific cases. They collaborate in teams with professional staff within their CSW unit, with other CSW units, and with external institutions. Interinstitutional cooperation most frequently involves the police, schools, and kindergartens, but also various other institutions from which they obtain relevant information. They evaluate collaboration with different professional profiles positively, as each team member contributes additional perspectives based on their expertise, helping to create a comprehensive understanding of the user’s situation. The participants attribute great importance to teamwork and view it as a key method of work. They identify good interpersonal relationships as the most important factor contributing to successful collaboration, emphasizing that such relationships begin with informal interactions and cooperation. Mutual respect, active listening, and acceptance are also considered essential. The main challenge they encounter in their work is a lack of time, which hinders participation in teams, the organization of team meetings, and the coordination of teamwork with other responsibilities. As a solution, they propose increasing staffing levels, which would partially reduce their workload. They would also like to see more teamwork, not only among employees within individual units but also among all employees across the CSW. Given the nature of work at Centers for Social Work, teamwork is both indispensable and highly valued by employees.
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