Chapter 11 Managing Project Teams

In matrix environments the project manager will have to request appointments with _ managers to discuss the project requirements for staffing.

functional

_ conflict plays a critical role in obtaining a deeper understanding of the issues and coming up with the best decisions possible.

functional

The first project meeting comes in a variety of shapes and forms and is often held off-site over one or two days. This meeting is called a project _________ meeting.

kick off

A project manager observes that his team members understand what behavior is acceptable and have established ground rules for the project and personal relations. They have also begun to see themselves as a project team. What is the next stage of development for his team?

storming

In the _______ stage of team development, members accept that they are part of a project group but resist the constraints that the project and the group put on their individuality.

storming

In a ________ project team the members are geographically situated so that they may seldom meet face-to-face as a team.

virtual

A shared _ is the answer to the question "What do we want to create?"

vision

Identify the characteristics that are commonly associated with high-performing teams.

Share a sense of common purpose Accept differences of opinion and expression Make effective use of individual talents and expertise Encourage risk taking and creativity Maintain a problem solving focus

Disagreements and conflicts naturally emerge within a project team during the life-cycle of the project. Participants will disagree over ___.

project priorities allocation of resources quality of work

In what step of group decision making does the team assess the merits of alternative solutions?

reaching a decision

In many matrix structures, the _ manager controls who is assigned to the project.

functional

What title best describes the role of the project manager in the group decision making process?

Facilitator

Five Stages

Forming Forming = Testing and dependence Storming Storming = Intragroup conflict Norming Norming= Development of group cohesion Performing Performing = Functional roles emerge Adjourning Adjourning = None

Which of the following is not a characteristic commonly associated with high-performing teams that exhibit positive synergy?

Have well defined individual role boundaries

The group energy of Jose's team has moved from getting to know each other and how the group will work together to accomplishing the project goals. In what stage of development is his team?

Performing

In what step of group decision making does the project manager identify the underlying issues?

Problem identification

Which of the following phrases best describes the concept of positive synergy?

The whole is greater than the sum of the parts

Under what circumstance is a high-performance team more likely to develop?

When team members are located within conversational distance of one another.

In the ________ approach to managing conflict, the project manager imposes a solution to the conflict after listening to each party.

arbitrate

During _ , the team generates a list of possible solutions on a flipchart or blackboard.

brainstorming

When a project team is licensed to gets things done without having to go through normal protocols of the parent organization, it may experience the pathology of ___.

bureaucratic bypass syndrome

During the course of the discussion to reach a decision, the project manager attempts to build _ among the group.

consensus

When trying to reach a decision, it is useful to have a set of for this process.

criteria

Conflict is detrimental to the success of the project and should be avoided in all cases.

false

In what step of group decision making does the team evaluate the effectiveness of the decision?

follow up

In what step of group decision making does the team brainstorm possible solutions?

generating alternatives

Without shared _, there is no common ground for working out differences.

goals

Most project managers we talk to advocate the use of _ rewards for project performance.

group

The demarcation between functional and dysfunctional conflict is neither clear nor precise. A distinguishing criterion is _____________.

how the conflict affects project performance

The question 'How will changes be instituted?' best fits as a ____ decision, and should be addressed by project managers early in the project.

managing change

If defensive posturing is detected during the problem-identification discussion, then it may be wise to _ the problem-solving step if possible.

post pone

If the project is complex and fuzzy, then a manager wants people who are good at working under uncertainty and have strong _ - _ skills.

problem, solving

Project managers are responsible for managing the ________ that encourage team performance and extra effort.

reward systems

Which of the following conflicts can occur during the executing stage of the project life cycle?

schedule technical workforce priorities

In addition to kick-off meetings, project managers are responsible for ___ meetings.

status report problem-solving audit

The _______ stage of team development ends as conflicts are resolved, the project manager's leadership becomes accepted, and the team moves to the ______ stage.

storming, norming

Consultants use a wide variety of _ - _ techniques to elevate team performance.

team building

Symbolic actions at the project level that contribute to a unique team subculture are called ________.

team rituals

Too often when constrained by time, project managers try to accomplish too much during the first meeting, rather than use ________ and not create information overload.

the keep it simple stupid (KISS) principle

Project managers play a major role in establishing team norms _____.

through word and deed

Groupthink refers to the tendency of members in highly cohesive groups to make decisions quickly without adequate consideration of alternatives.

true

The term synergy, which is derived from the Greek word sunergos, means " _ _."

working together

True or false: On high-priority projects, senior management will often tell a project manager who will be on the team.

False Reason: On high-priority projects, the project manager is often given the authority to select team members.

What is one major finding of Gersick's research on the punctuated equilibrium model of group development?

Gersick's research suggests that not all teams go through the same sequence of the "5 stages" of developmen

Which of the following is NOT an example of behavioral norms associated with high-performing teams?

High performing team members are allowed to establish their own work schedule.

Two of the biggest challenges involved in managing a virtual team are developing trust and effective patterns of communication. Which of the following is NOT one of the tips for alleviating communication problems of virtual teams?

Hold face-to-face meetings

_____ postulates that project groups transition from a lower level to a higher level of performance about halfway through the project.

Punctuated equilibrium model of group development

Identify the most significant source of conflict which occurs in all the project phase(s), i.e. defining, planning, executing, and delivery.

Scheduling

Project managers play a key role in developing high-performance project teams. Which of the following is NOT one of the activities the project manager performs to build a high-performance team?

Select project goals Reason: Project goals are often established by the client/customer and the sponsor.

As indicated by experience and research, identify the conditions under which high-performance project teams are much more likely to develop.

There are 10 or fewer members per team The organization culture fosters cooperation and trust Members are assigned to the project full time Members serve on the project from beginning to end

A project _ is an image project team members hold in common about how the project will look upon completion, how they will work together, and how customers will accept the project.

Vision

One of the biggest challenges in managing a virtual team is ___.

developing effective patterns of communication

While project managers tend to focus on group rewards, there are times when they need to reward individual performance. All of the following are among the rewards used to motivate and recognize individual contributions except ______________.

coaching and counseling

Once the decision has been made and implemented, it is important for the team to find the time to evaluate the _ of the decision.

effectiveness

When a conflict becomes intolerable, the best strategy for a project manager may be to ___________ the conflict.

eliminate

The Five Stage team development model states that team development generally follows a sequence of stages. Which is the correct order of these stages?

forming storming norming performing adjourning

When complex problems require input from multiple specialists, ____ decision making should be used.

group

When strong commitment to a decision is needed, ____________ should be used.

group decision making

Place the steps to group decision making in the correct sequence.

identifying problems generating alternatives reaching a decision following up

A project team has resolved its conflict over who will control the group and how decisions will be made. Team members are beginning to accept the project manager's leadership. What is the next stage of development for this team?

norming

The _______ stage of team development ends when the group structure solidifies and the group establishes a common set of expectations about how members should work together and the team moves to the ______ stage.

norming, performing

Project teams are often licensed to get things done without having to go through normal protocols of the

parent organization

For conventional work groups, _______ is the last stage of their development. However, for project teams, there is a(n) _____________ phase where attention is devoted to wrapping up the project.

performing, completion

_ managers play a key role in developing high-performance project teams.

project

When a project team loses momentum, it is the job of the ___ to realign the team with project objectives and get the team moving forward.

project manager