MGMT 300 Ch. 13 Groups & Teams
Preventing Groupthink: Making criticism & Other Perspectives Permissible
(1) Allow Criticism (2) Allow other Perspectives
(2) Change the Organization's Culture & Procedures
making public moves
What a GROUP is
A group is defined as two or more freely interacting individuals who share collectie norms, share collective goals, and have a common identity
Cohesiveness: The Importance of Togetherness
Cohesiveness the tendency of a group or team to stick together
Dealing with Disagreements: Five Conflict-Handling Styles
(1) Avoiding - "Maybe the Problem Will Go Away" (2) Accommodating - "Let's Do It Your Way" (3) Forcing - "You have to do it my Way" (4) Compromising - "Let's Split the Difference" (5) Collaborating - "Let's Cooperate to Reach a Win-Win Solution that Benefits Both Of Us"
Ways to build collaborative teams: Eight Factors That Lead to Success
(1) Investing in signature relationship practices (2) Modeling Collaborative behavior (3) Creating a "gift culture." (4) Ensuring the requisite skills (5) Supporting a strong sense of community (6) Assigning team leaders that are both task - and - relationship - oriented (7) Building on heritage relationships (8) Understanding role clarity and task ambiguity
Symptoms of Groupthink
(1) Invulerability, inherent, morality, and sterotyping of opposition (2) Rationalization and self-censorship (3) Illusion of unanimity, peer pressure, and mindguards (4) Groupthink versus "the wisdom of crowds"
The results of groupthink: Decision-Making Defects
(1) Reduction in Alternative Ideas (2) Limiting of other information
More Teamwork: Why teamwork is important
1) Increased productivity (2) Increased speed (3) Reduced costs (4) Improved quality (4) Reduced destructive internal competition (5) Improved workplace cohesiveness
Large Teams
10-16 members for more resources & Division of Labor Advantages -More Resources, Division of Labor (in which the works divided into particular tasks that are assigned to particular workers Disadvantages -Less interaction, Lower Morale, Social Loafing (the tendency of people to exert less effort when working in groups than when working alone.
Small Teams
2-9 members for better interaction & Morale Advantages -Better interaction -Better Morale Disadvantages -Fewer resources, possibly less ninnovation, unfair work distribution
Roles: How Team Members are expected to behave
A role is a socially determined expectation of how an indiviual shoul behave in a specific position TASK ROLE or TASK-ORIENTED ROLE, consists of behavior that concentrates on getting the team's tasks done MAINTENANCE ROLES; KEEPING THE TEAM TOGETHER. maintenance role,or relationship-oriented role, consists of behavior that fosters constructive relationships among team members
Action Teams
Action Teams work to accomplish tasks that require people with (1) specialzed training and (2) a high degree of coordination as on a baseball team, with specialized athletes acting in coordination. EX hospital surgery teams, airline cockpit crews, mountain-climbing expeditions, police SWAT teams, and labor contract negotiating teams
Advice Teams
Advice teams are created to broaden the information base for managerial decisions. EX. committees, review panels, advisory councils, employee involvement groups, and quality circles
Work Teams for four Purposes
Advice, Production, Project, Action
Motivation through Mutual Accountability
Being mutually accountable
How to Stimulate Constructive Conflict
Four Ways
Seven Causes of Conflict
Conflict Triggers (1) Competition for scarce resources: When two parties need the same things (2) Time Pressure: When people believe there aren't enough hours to do the work (3) Inconsistent Goals or Reward systems: When people Pursue Different Objectives (4) Ambiguous Juriadictions: When Job Boundaries are Unclear (5) Status Differences: When There Are Inconsistencies in Power & Influence (6) Personality Clashes: When Individual Differences Can't Be resolved (7) Communication Failures: When People Misperceive & Misunderstood
The Nature of Conflict: Disagreement Is Normal
Conflict is process in which one party perceives that its interests are being opposed or negatively affected by another party. NEGATIVE CONFLICT- bad for organizations. It is conflict that hinders the organization's performance or threatens its interests. Dysfunctional conflict CONSTRUCTIVE CONFLICT - good for organizations. This benefits the main purposes of the organization and serves its interests. Functional conflict or cooperative conflict is advantageous
Managing Conflict
Conflict, an enduring feature of the workplace, is a process in which one party perceives that its interests are being opposed or negatively affected by another party. Conflict can be negative (Bad) or functional (Good). Indeed, either too much or too little conflict can affect performance. This section identifies seven sources of conflict in organizations and also describes four ways to stimulate constructive conflict.
INFORMAL GROUPS
Created for friendship. An INFORMAL GROUP is a group formed by people seeking friendship and has no officially appointed leader, although a leader may emergebb from the membership.
FORMAL GROUPS
Created to do productive work. A FORMAL GROUP is a group established to do something productive for the organization and is headed by a leader
Adjourning
Final Stage, Adjourning, members prepare for disbandment
Formal Groups Versus Informal Groups
Formal groups vs informal groups
Forming
Forming is the process of getting oriented and getting acquainted. High degree of uncertainty
(3) Bring in Outsiders for new Perspectives
Good so the company does not become inbred and resitant to change
Groupthink
Irvin Janis is groupthink -- a cohesive group's blind unwillingness to consider alternatives
Performing
In Performing - members concentrate on solving problems and completing the assigned task.
Performance Goals & Feedback
Individuals and teams like this
Problem-solving Team
Knowledge workers who meet as a temporary team to solve a specific problem and then disband
Cross-functional Team
Members composed of people from different departments, such as sales and production, pursuing a common objective
Top-management Team
Members consist of the CEO, president, and top department heads and work to help the organization achieve its mission and goals
Work Team
Members engage in collective work requiring coordinated effort DIFFERENT TYPES: advice, production, project, or action
Virtual Team
Members interact by computer network to collaborate on projects
Norms: Unwritten Rules for Team Members
Norms are general guidelines or rules of behavior that most group or team members follow. -To clarify role expeectations - "You have to go along to get along." -To help individuals aoid embarrassing situations --"Don't call attention to yourself." -To emphasize the group's important values and identity - "we're known for being special"
Production Teams
Production Teams are responsible for performing day-to-day operations. EX mining teams, flight-attendant crews, maintenance crews, assembly teams, data processing groups, and manufacturing crews
(4) Use Programmed Conflict: Devil's Advocacy & the Dialectic Method
Programmed conflict - is designed to elicit different opinions without inciting people's personal feelings --Devil's Advocacy- role playing criticism to test whether a proposal is workable. Devil's advocacy is the process of assigning someone to play the role of critic. --The dialectic method- role playing two sides of a proposal to test whether it is workable. The dialectic method is the process of having two people or groups play opposing roles in a debate in order to better understand a proposal.
Project Teams
Project Teams work to do creative problem solving, often by applying the specialized knowledge of members of a CROSS-FUNCTIONAL TEAM, which is staffed with specialists pursuing a common objective. EX task forces, research groups, planning teams, architect teams, engineering teams, and development teams
13.1 E Self-Managed Teams: Workers with Own Administrative Oversight
Quality Circles- which consist of small groups of volunteers or workers and supervisors who meet intermittently to discuss workplace and quality related problems. Self-managed Teams- are defined as groups of workers who are given administrative oversight for their task domains
Storming
Second stage, Storming, is characterized by the emergence of individual personalities and roles and conflicts within the group.
Size: Small Teams or Large Teams
Size is often determined by a team's purpose
What a TEAM is
Team is defined as a small group of people with complementary skills who are committed to a common purpose, performance goals, and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable.
Groups Versus Teams
Teamwork promises to be a cornerstone of future management. A team is different from a group. A group typically is management-directed, a team self-directed. Groups may be formal, created to do productive work, or informal created for friendship. Work teams, which engage in collective work requiring coordinated effort, may be organized according to four bsic purposes: advice, production, project, and action. Two types of teams are quality circles and self-managed teams.
Various Types of Teams
These teams are not mutually exclusive. Work Teams, for instance may also be self-managed, cross functional, or virtual
Norming
Third stage, Norming, conflicts are resolved, close relationships develop, and unity and harmony emerge. GROUP COHESIVENESS , a "we feeling" binding group members together
Can too little or too much Conflict Affect Performance?
Too Little- Indolence. The organizational performance suffers Too Much Conflict - Warfare. Workplace aggression and violence are manisfestations of excessive conflict
BUILDING EFFECTIVE TEAMS
Two types of change are reactive and proactive. F Forces for change may consist of forces outside the organization -- demographic characteristics, market changes, technological advancements, and social and political pressures. Or they may be forces inside the organization -- employee problems and managers' behavior.
Quality Circle
Volunteers of workers and supervisors who meet intermittently to discuss workplace and quality-related problems
Self-managed Team
Workers are trained to do all or most of the jobs in a work unit, have no direct supervisor, and do their own day-to-day supervision
(1) Spur Competition among Employees
good conflict
Groups & Teams: How do they differ
group and team
Stages of Group & Team Development
groups may evolve into teams by going through five stages of deelopment: forming, storming, norming, performing and adjourning