Chapter 14: Assignment: Leading Teams

Everyone in the neighborhood had the same goal: to clean up the graffiti that covered the old trestle bridge. So one Saturday, 30 neighbors came together and worked for 4 hours to repaint the wooden trestles. A-Team B-Group

A

Because all ideas are put on the table, people can eventually achieve genuine buy-in around important goals and decisions. A-Trust B-Healthy conflict C-Commitment D-Results orientation

C

Some of the elements of xxx are a focus on a shared mission, a willingness to work together toward the same goals, and a sense of trust in each other. A-negotiation B-compromise C-teamwork D-storming

C

A team that exceeds its goals has high xxx A-productive output B-conflict C-capacity to adapt and learn D-satisfaction

A

Amara said, "Elise, you mentioned that the data don't show a clear trend in our website usage. Can you elaborate on that — what kinds of trends were you looking for?" A-task specialist B-socioemotional

A

If a team leader wanted to help a team such as Hannah's get through the adjourning stage of team development, he or she should take which of the following actions? (1) A-Give awards to the team to signal the end of their work. B-Help discourage free riding in the team. C-Establish an effective work environment so that the team can meet its goals. D-Help team handle emotions associated with breaking up.

A

Members connect with one another on a deep emotional level; they feel comfortable being vulnerable with one another. A-Accountability B-Commitment C-Trust D-Healthy conflict

A

Obviously, since you do not manage your neighbors, you won't be using a functional team . But since you want formal representation from your homeowner's association, your local law-enforcement agency, and the businesses on your street, you think that you might start with a xxx. Whatever type of team you choose, you know that less diversity will bring you xxx ideas. A-fewer B-more

A

Tough Mudder is committed to teamwork. The managers know that selecting the right type of team with the right characteristics is essential for the success of teams. Tough Mudder takes reservations from people wanting to enroll in its events by phone and online. The employees confirming these reservations, answering customers' questions, and ensuring that billing is processed correctly could be organized as a xxx , because they can be trained to hire new staff and hold one another accountable for results. On the rare occasions an employee cannot meet a customer's needs, the employee can confer with colleagues to decide how best to proceed. A-self-managed team B-special-purpose team

A

Two sisters, Carol and Patty, are sitting at the kitchen table discussing what to do for Thanksgiving. They disagree about almost everything: how to cook the turkey, what kind of stuffing to make, whether to serve wild rice salad, how to prepare the yams, and even what kind of pie to serve. Eventually Carol says, "Just do it your way! You always have to be the boss. I'm sick of fighting with you." Patty responds, "That's only because you're so stupid!" Carol and Patty are engaged in a relationship conflict, based on xxx. A-emotions B-ideas

A

Your manager is thinking about hiring a consultant to help the employees in her department become a team. Before undertaking the time and expense of such a project, he asks you what drivers of organizational performance teamwork can impact. Complete the blanks in your response below. Effective teams are associated with quality improvement and faster xxx A-faster problem solving B-less creative problem solving

A

Each of the scientists in the Research and Development department had a great idea for a future company product. One researcher came up with a new app for survey research, another with an app for inventorying items on store shelves, and a third with an app for easily accessing information about new businesses. A-Team B-Group

B

Gwen said, "I'd like to hear more about that, Amara. I think you're on to something. You always have such good ideas." A-task specialist B-socioemotional

B

Hannah works for a large technology company that sponsors an intramural soccer league. Hannah has been on a soccer team with the other software engineers for her product for several years, and they are very good. Team members rarely miss practices and never miss games, they know each other's strengths and weaknesses on the field, and they play together so well that they have won the company championship 2 years in a row. When the team was first formed, however, the players did not seem very committed, team cohesion was not very good, and the team took a very long time to decide on which plays and strategies to use. After making a change midway through the first season that led to increased cohesion, team performance improved dramatically. A-storming B-performing C-forming D-norming

B

Management in Life Not so long ago, one of your good friends invited you to attend National Night Out, a neighborhood celebration designed to foster police-community relationships and make the United States a safer place to live. After eating fabulous barbecue, chatting with your local sheriff, and seeing several exhibits on crime and drug prevention, you decide to form a Neighborhood Watch Group. You excitedly contact the National Association of Town Watch and the National Neighborhood Watch Institute, and soon afterward you get several packets in the mail containing signs and pamphlets on starting a Neighborhood Watch program. After reading the literature carefully, you realize that every booklet has the same message: It's easier to run a Neighborhood Watch program if you have a team. Now you have to get to work. Your first thought is to have ten members on the team, but management research indicates that ten members would be too many . It would be better to have three to six on the team. A-Too few B-Too many

B

Management in Life Not so long ago, one of your good friends invited you to attend National Night Out, a neighborhood celebration designed to foster police-community relationships and make the United States a safer place to live. After eating fabulous barbecue, chatting with your local sheriff, and seeing several exhibits on crime and drug prevention, you decide to form a Neighborhood Watch Group. You excitedly contact the National Association of Town Watch and the National Neighborhood Watch Institute, and soon afterward you get several packets in the mail containing signs and pamphlets on starting a Neighborhood Watch program. After reading the literature carefully, you realize that every booklet has the same message: It's easier to run a Neighborhood Watch program if you have a team. Now you have to get to work. Your first thought is to have ten members on the team, but management research indicates that ten members would be too many . It would be better to have xxx on the team. A-fifteen B-Three to six people C-Five to eight D-One to two

B

Managing a virtual team poses special challenges. How can a virtual team leader build relationships across distances? (1) A-Recognize that some people are not online much and do not set standards for response times. B-Make sure all team members have a way to stay up-to-date. C-Highlight diverse skills and express appreciation of varying opinions. D-Encourage social networking in which team members share personal information.

B

Obviously, since you do not manage your neighbors, you won't be using a xxx team . But since you want formal representation from your homeowner's association, your local law-enforcement agency, and the businesses on your street, you think that you might start with a cross-functional team . Whatever type of team you choose, you know that less diversity will bring you fewer ideas. A-project team B-functional team C-cross-functional team

B

The team created to document procedures throughout the organization had several xxx, or expectations of behavior: be on time for meetings, check email on evenings and weekends, and share cute animal videos found online. A-member roles B-team norms C-task conflicts D-stages of development

B

There were 25 reviewers for Noria Khan's new book. Each reviewer submitted his or her work individually, and a senior editor reviewed all of the work to give notes to the author. A-Team B-Group

B

Tough Mudder is committed to teamwork. The managers know that selecting the right type of team with the right characteristics is essential for the success of teams. Managers should seek to maximize xxx on the team to enhance its effectiveness. A-the number of people B-diversity of skills

B

Two sisters, Carol and Patty, are sitting at the kitchen table discussing what to do for Thanksgiving. They disagree about almost everything: how to cook the turkey, what kind of stuffing to make, whether to serve wild rice salad, how to prepare the yams, and even what kind of pie to serve. Eventually Carol says, "Just do it your way! You always have to be the boss. I'm sick of fighting with you." Patty responds, "That's only because you're so stupid!" Carol and Patty are engaged in a xxx conflict, based on emotions. A-task B-relationship

B

Which of the following outcomes are likely in this situation? (1) A-Carol and Patty will find a creative way to solve the problem. B-Carol and Patty will become frustrated with each other. C-The sisters will learn from one another. D-The sisters will experience stress and low morale.

B

You are replacing a team's leader and have noticed a number of team norms. If you are wondering how certain behaviors got established as acceptable, you should inquire about: (3) A-What behaviors research has shown are most productive for teams B-Explicit statements that influential people have made about what behaviors are good and bad C-Critical events in the team's history that reinforced certain behaviors D-Patterns of behavior that were laid down during the forming stage, when the team was just starting out

B

Your manager is thinking about hiring a consultant to help the employees in her department become a team. Before undertaking the time and expense of such a project, he asks you what drivers of organizational performance teamwork can impact. Complete the blanks in your response below. Effective teams are associated with XXX and faster problem solving A-lower moreale B-quality improvement

B

As the team works together, Carol plays a xxx , diffusing conflicts and helping everyone feel welcome to contribute ideas. A-diversity manager role B-technology manger role C-socioemotional role D-task specialist role

C

Managing a virtual team poses special challenges. How can a virtual team leader build relationships across distances? (2) A-Recognize that some people are not online much and do not set standards for response times. B-Make sure all team members have a way to stay up-to-date. C-Highlight diverse skills and express appreciation of varying opinions. D-Encourage social networking in which team members share personal information.

C

Members hold one another responsible rather than relying on managers as the source of responsibility. A-results orientation B-trust C-accountability D-commitment

C

Obviously, since you do not manage your neighbors, you won't be using a functional team. But since you want formal representation from your homeowner's association, your local law-enforcement agency, and the businesses on your street, you think that you might start with a xxx. Whatever type of team you choose, you know that less diversity will bring you fewer ideas. A-functional team B-command team C-cross-functional team

C

You are replacing a team's leader and have noticed a number of team norms. If you are wondering how certain behaviors got established as acceptable, you should inquire about: (1) A-What behaviors research has shown are most productive for teams B-Explicit statements that influential people have made about what behaviors are good and bad C-Critical events in the team's history that reinforced certain behaviors D-Patterns of behavior that were laid down during the forming stage, when the team was just starting out

C

Even the best teams have to end eventually. When they were finished filming Breaking Bad, everyone associated with creating the television show went through the xxx stage. A-social loafing B-storming C-norming D-adjourning

D

If a team leader wanted to help a team such as Hannah's get through the adjourning stage of team development, he or she should take which of the following actions? (2) A-Give awards to the team to signal the end of their work. B-Help discourage free riding in the team. C-Establish an effective work environment so that the team can meet its goals. D-Help team handle emotions associated with breaking up.

D

The VP of product development led a xxx of specialists in sales and marketing, manufacturing, and research and development to figure out how to bring new products to market faster in the United States. A-functional team B-self-managed team C-global team D-cross-functional team

D

When Taco Bell wanted to open many new locations, the company's leaders knew they would have trouble hiring enough managers. The solution was to train employees to work as xxx, working together to hire their own colleagues, manage inventory, and do financial reporting. A-global teams B-virtual teams C-special-purpose teams D-self-managed teams

D

Which of the following outcomes are likely in this situation? (2) A-Carol and Patty will find a creative way to solve the problem. B-Carol and Patty will become frustrated with each other. C-The sisters will learn from one another. D-The sisters will experience stress and low morale.

D

You are replacing a team's leader and have noticed a number of team norms. If you are wondering how certain behaviors got established as acceptable, you should inquire about: (2) A-What behaviors research has shown are most productive for teams B-Explicit statements that influential people have made about what behaviors are good and bad C-Critical events in the team's history that reinforced certain behaviors D-Patterns of behavior that were laid down during the forming stage, when the team was just starting out

D

You are the HR manager at FoodFaire, a local grocery store. Your clerks belong to the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union, which has threatened a strike in 11 days unless their demands are met. They are asking for a 12% raise, and you can offer them only 4%. You can almost feel the hours ticking by—this is a critically important negotiation, and neither party really wants the strike. The xxx conflict-handling technique is most appropriate in this situation. A-dominating B-accommodating C-avoiding D-compromising E-collaborating

D