Chapter 10: Managing Teams
What are the stages of team development?
(1) forming: getting acquainted stage (2) storming: conflicts & disagreement arise as members begin working together (3) norming: team members settle into their roles as team members, will have accepted team goals, be operating as a unit, & increase performance by working together -->> "I think things are finally coming together" (4) performing: improve in performances because the team has finally matured into an effective fully functional team; members think of themselves as members; teams get a lot of work done, & it is fun to be a team member (5) De-norming: team performance begins to decline as the size, scope, goal, or members of the team change (6) De-storming: team's comfort level decreases, team cohesion weakens, & angry emotions & conflict may flare (7) De-forming: team members position themselves to control pieces of the team, avoid each other, & isolate themselves from team leaders team performance is quadratic. It increases from stage 1 and peaks at stage 4 (performing). From stage 5-7, team performance decreases
How does focusing on teamwork (individualism-collectivism), team level, & team diversity can help companies choose the right team members?
(1) individualism-collectivism is the degree to which a person believes that people should be self-sufficient & that loyalty to one's self i more important than loyalty to one's team or company - individualists put their welfare & interests first; prefers to work alone on independent tasks - collectivists put the team interests ahead of self-interests; prefers to work with others on interdependent tasks (2) Team level is the average level of ability, experience, personality, & any other factor on a team. - It serves as a guide selection of teammates when teams need a particular set of skills/capabilities to do their jobs well. (3) Team diversity represents the variances or differences in ability, experience, personality, or any other factor on a teaam - ensures that strong teams have talented members with different abilities, experiences, & personalities to view & solve problems (4) keep them together as long as possible
Define (1) group think & (2) minority domination
(1) members of highly cohesive groups feel pressure not to disagree with each other so that the group an approve a proposed solution, lading to a limited number of alternative solutions (2) when one or two people dominate team discussions, effectively restricting problem definitions & alternative solutions & discouraging other team members from speaking up
How should recognition & compensation of work team be executed?
- careful selection of a team compensation plan - the level of rewards must match the level of performance employees can be compensated in three ways: - skill-based pay (employees earn money for learning additional skills) - gainsharing (companies share the financial value of performance gains, such as increased productivity, cost savings, or quality with their workers) - nonfinancial rewards (e.g. vacations, T-shirts, plaques)
Why is setting specific team goals critical to team success?
- clarifies team priorities by providing a clear focus & purpose. Without specific team goals, team members can head off in all directions. - challenging team goals affect how hard team members work. They greatly reduce incidence of social loafing because team members expect everyone to contribute when faced with difficult gaosl
What are the important characteristics of teamwork?
- establish norms - cohesiveness - relationship between team size & performance is curvilinear (moderately sized team works best; around 6-9 members) - conflicts & disagreement
What can companies & teams do to ensure that team goals lead to superior team performance? What four things must occur for stretch goals to effectively motivate teams?
- give team stretch goals, which are extremely ambitious goals workers don't know how to reach - for stretch goals to motivate teams: (1) teams must be given high degree of autonomy over how they achieve their goals (2) teams must be empowered with control of resources (e.g. budgets, workspaces, computers, etc.) (3) teams need structural accommodation, which is giving teams the ability to change organizational structures, policies, & practices if doing so helps them meet their goals (4) bureaucratic immunity, which means that teams no longer have to go through the process of multilevel reviews & sign-offs to receive management approval before making changes. Therefore, team can act quickly and experiment with little fear
What are the advantages of work teams?
- increase customer satisfaction (work teams are trained to meet the needs of specific customers) - improve product & service quality (teams take direct responsibility for the quality of products/services they produce & sell) - increase job satisfaction (cross-training broadens workers' skills & capabilities) - teamwork is satisfying (work teams often receive proprietary business information that is typically available only to managers) - unique leadership responsibilities that are not typically available in traditional organizations - teams share many of the advantages of group decision making (commitment to making decisions work, more effective at problem-solving, different skills/abilities/experiences)
What are the disadvantages of teams?
- initially high turnover (teams aren't are for everyone) - social loafing (behavior in which team members withhold their efforts & fail to perform their share of the work) the larger the team, the smaller the individual effort - disadvantages associated with group decision making (e.g. groupthink, minority domination, lack of accountability)
What can managers do to manage team conflict?
- managers need to realize that emphasizing cognitive conflict alone won't be enough - understand that cognitive conflict can quickly turn into affective conflict ways teams can have a good fight: - work with more, rather than less, information - develop multiple alternatives to enrich debate - establish common goals because they encourage collaboration & minimize conflict over a team's purpose - inject humor into the workplace - maintain a balance of power by involving as many people as possible in the decision process - resolve issues without forcing a consensus
What can organizations do to enhance work team effectiveness?
- setting team goals & priorities - careful selection of team members - training - recognition & compensation
Which compensation plans should the company use?
- skill-based pay: most effective for self-managing & self-directing teams - gainsharing: stable environments where employees can focus on improving productivity, cost savings, or quality
What can be done to promote team cohesiveness?
1) ensure that all team members are present at team meetings & activities 2) create additional opportunities for teammates to work together by rearranging work schedules & creating common workspaces 3) engage in nonwork activities (e.g. eating out) 4) make the employees feel that they are part of an organization
How do cognitive conflict & affective conflict affect teamwork?
Cognitive conflict: - team members disagree b/c of different views of problems & solutions - characterized by a willingness to examine, compare, & reconcile differences to produce the best possible solution Affective conflict: - often results in hostility, anger, resentment, distrust, cynicism, & apathy - make people uncomfortable & cause them to withdraw & decrease commitment to a team - lowers satisfaction of team members, leading to personal hostility between coworkers & decrease team cohesiveness - preventing teams from engaging in the kinds of activities that are critical to team effectiveness
What are pros and cons of team norms?
Pros: - allow team members to know what is expected of them - regulate the everyday actions that allow teams to function effectively - associated with positive outcomes such as stronger organizational commitment, more trust in management, & stronger job an organizational satisfaction Con: - norms can also influence team behavior in negative ways - the longer individuals were members of a team with negative norms, the more likely they were to perform negative behaviors
When to use teams for maximum benefits & minimum cost?
When to use: - there is a clear, engaging reason or purpose - the job can't be done unless people work together - rewards can be provided for teamwork & team performance - ample resources are available
Define work teams
a small # of people with complementary skills who hold them themselves mutually accountable for pursuing a common purpose, achieving performance goals, & improving interdependent work processes
How do teams differ in terms of autonomy (the key dimension that differs between teams?
autonomy: the degree to which workers have the discretion, freedom & independence to decide how & when to accomplish their jobs. from groups with the least autonomy to most autonomy: traditional work groups --> employee involvement groups --> semi-autonomous work groups --> self-managing teams --> self-designing teams traditional work groups: a group composed of two or more people who work together to achieve a shared goal - people are responsible for doing the work but they have no direct responsibility or control over their work employee involvement teams: team that provides advice or make suggestions to management concerning specific issues - offer advice & suggestions - membership is voluntary - members may be selected of their expertise - people closest to the problem are best able to recommend solutions semi-autonomous work group: a group that has the authority to make decisions & solve problems related to the major tasks of producing a product or service - regularly receive information about budget, work quality & performance, competitors' products - members are cross-trained in a number of different skills & tasks - have the authority to make decisions typically made by supervisors & managers self-managing teams: a team that manages & controls all of the major tasks of producing a product or service w/o first getting approval from management - includes managing & controlling the acquisition of materials, making a product or providing a service, & ensuring a timely delivery - all decisions are made without management's input or approval self-designing teams: a team that has the characteristics of self-managing teams but also controls team design, work tasks, & team membership.
Define cognitive conflict vs. affective conflict
cognitive conflict (aka c-type conflict): focuses on problem-related differences of opinion; strongly associated with improvements in team perforamnce affective conflict (aka a-type conflict): emotional reactions that occurs when disagreements become personal rather than professional; associated with decreases in team performance
What are some examples of special kinds of teams?
cross-functional teams: a team composed of employees from different functional areas of the organization - members usually have different functional backgrounds, education, & experience, allowing the members to attack problems from multiple perspectives & generate more ideas & alternatives solutions virtual teams: groups of geographically/organizationally dispersed coworkers who use a combination of telecommunications & information technologies to accomplish an organizational task - can be employee involvement teams, self-managing teams, or nearly any kind of team - are often temporary teams that are set up to accomplish a specific task - flexible - often suffers from a lack of understanding regarding the team's purpose & member roles - trust is critical project teams: a team created to complete specific, one-time projects or tasks within a limited time - often used to develop new products, significantly improve existing products, roll out new information systems, or build new factories or offices - often led by a manager who has the overall responsibility for planning, staffing, & managing the teams - drawing employees from different functional areas can reduce or eliminate communication barriers - flexible
What are some important training required for team members?
important skills for training: - interpersonal skills (listening, communicating, questioning, & providing feedback to have effective working relationships among the members) - decision-making - problem-solving skills - conflict resolution skill - technical training so the members can best perform their jobs - team leader training
Define norm
informally agreed-on standards that regulate team behavior - important that teams establish positive norms from the outset
What is a good team size? How so?
the best team has ~6-9 members - small enough for the members to get to know each others & contribute to the team's success in meaningful ways - take advantage of team members' diverse skills, knowledge, & perspectives - easier to instill a sense of responsibility & mutual accountability
define cohesiveness
the extent to which team members are attracted to a team & motivated to remain in it
What are some bad things that can occur if the team is too large or too small?
too large: - difficult to know every member - may split into smaller subgroups - greater chance of minority domination - insufficient amount of tiem for members to share their inputs - logistical problems (e.g. finding an appropriate time or place to meet) - social loafing too small: - lack diversity of skills & knowledge - unable to gain advantages of team decision making (e.g. multiple perspectives, generating more ideas & alternative solutions, & stronger commitment)
define cross-training
training team members to do all or most of the jobs performed by the other team members advantages: - allows a team to functional normally when one member is absent, quits, or is transferred. - for workers, cross-training broadens their skills & increases their capabilities while also making their work more varied and interesting - allows a team to function normally when one member is absent, quits, or is transferred
