Team Science

Excellent and impactful science is best accomplished in teams, as the significant challenges of our time must be addressed through interdisciplinary cooperation. But what makes an effective and impactful team? Often, creating a large-scale impact in science requires a large team of, for example, 50–100 people. At the same time, studies indicate that an ideal group consists of only 10–15 members to optimize its impact per person. (1) In much larger teams, it becomes more challenging for the Principal Investigator (PI) to supervise and interact with all team members and guide their research effectively. As a result, very large groups, while impactful because of their size, see diminishing returns in the output per researcher.