Managing Teams Flashcards
Define work team
A small number of people with complementary skills who hold themselves mutually accountable for pursuing a common purpose, achieving performance goals, and improving interdependent work processes
What are the two general classifications of teams?
> Formal team: defined by the organization’s structure and focuses on defined tasks and outcomes
Informal team: neither formally structured nor organizationally defined; forms naturally in reaction to a need for social interaction
What are some advantages of teams?
> Increase customer satisfaction
Improve product and service quality
Increase the speed and efficiency in product development
Increase job satisfaction
Benefits associated with group decision making
What are some disadvantages of teams?
> Initial high turnover
Social loafing
Pitfalls associated with group decision making, such as groupthink or minority domination
When should teams be used?
> There is a clear, engaging reason or purpose for using a team
The job can’t be done unless people work together
Rewards can be provided for teamwork and team performance
Ample resources are available
When should teams not be used?
> There isn’t a clear, engaging reason or purpose for using a team
The job can be done by people working independently
Rewards are provided for individual effort and performance
The necessary resources are not available
Name and describe the 5 major types of teams, in order from least autonomy to most autonomy
> Traditional work group: a group composed of two or more people who work together to achieve a shared goal
Employee involvement team: a team that provides advice or makes suggestions to management concerning specific issues
Semi-autonomous work group: a group that has the authority to make decisions and solve problems related to the major tasks of producing a product or service
Self-managing team: a team that manages and controls all of the major tasks of producing a product or service
Self-designing team: a team that has the characteristics of self-managing teams but also controls team design, work tasks, and team membership
Name 3 special types of teams that could fall anywhere on the autonomy spectrum, depending on how they’re designed
> Cross-functional team: a team composed of employees from different functional areas of the organization
Virtual team: a team composed of geographically and/or organizationally dispersed coworkers who use telecommunication and information technologies to accomplish organizational tasks
Project team: a team created to complete specific, one-time projects or tasks within a limited time
How can a manager best manage virtual teams?
> Establish clear expectations for communication, availability during office hours, and frequency of check-ins
Establish clear goals and milestones to help remote workers stay on track and accountable to the team
Help team members set clear boundaries between work and family spaces
Assign employees who have many outside obligations to teams whose members mostly have few nonwork obligations
Ensure that team members have access to technology tools such as teleconferencing, file-sharing services, online meeting services, and collaboration portals
Facilitate face-to-face communication with video conferencing or by requiring members of remote teams to work on-site several days each month
Ensure the task is meaningful to the team and the company
When building a virtual team, solicit volunteers as much as possible
What are the stages of team development?
Standard Stages:
> Stage 1 - Forming: team members meet each other, form initial impressions, and begin to establish team norms
> Stage 2 - Storming: characterized by conflict and disagreement, in which team members disagree over what the team should do and how it should do it
> Stage 3 - Norming: team members begin to settle into their roles, group cohesion grows, and positive team norms develop
> Stage 4 - Performing: performance improves because the team has matured into an effective, fully functional team
Possible Additional Stages:
> De-Norming: a reversal of the norming stage, in which team performance begins to decline as the size, scope, goal, or members of the team change
> De-Storming: a reversal of the storming phase, in which the team’s comfort level decreases, team cohesion weakens, and angry emotions and conflict may flare
> De-Forming: a reversal of the forming stage, in which team members position themselves to control pieces of the team, avoid each other, and isolate themselves from team leaders
