T2. w.7 Managing Team Processes

Question 1

traditional hierarchy

Answer 1

set responsibilities, alone accountable for work performance

Question 2

Network

Answer 2

successful performance depends on interactions with work team, individually and jointly accountable for team’s work product

Question 3

Benefits of teams:

Answer 3

changing events
solve complex problems - faster
enable greater creativity and innovation
highly motivating

Question 4

command group is -

Answer 4

collection of subordinates reporting to same supervisor (departments, divisions)

Question 5

task force is a

Answer 5

special ad hoc committee dealing with a specific issue, come together to accomplish specific goal then usually disband

Question 6

A team is a

Answer 6

specific type of formal work group in which there is a high level of interaction among group members who work intensely together to achieve a common group goal

Teams differ from other groups in terms of the:
intensity with which team members work together
presence of a team goal or objective

Question 7

Groups can be:

Answer 7

Informal - social groups formed naturally based on friendships and common interests
Formal- formed by the organisation with designated work and tasks to meet organisational goals

Question 8

A group is where two or more

Answer 8

people interact with and influence each other, “are psychologically aware of each other and think of themselves as a group” (Martin & Fellenz, 2010, p. 226).

Question 9

Problem solving teams

Answer 9

• same dept, meet few hours a week to discuss organisational problems

Question 10

Cross-functional teams -

Answer 10

employees from same level but from dif, areas, working together to accomplish a task

Question 11

Self-managed work teams -

Answer 11

no manager/members assigned to lead team
Report high job satisfaction
Have higher absenteeism and turnover
May not manage conflict well

Question 12

How do you get self-managed work teams to overcome issues?

Answer 12

responsibitliy to be self-managing
Making task complex enough to have lots of steps
Careful selection of members for their skills
Guiding members not supervising
Determining training needs and providing that training

Question 13

Virtual teams

Answer 13

Locations, some evidence that they can be more effective than a team in one location
Reduces costs, faster turnover as they can potentially work across globe 24hrs a day

Question 14

Tuckman and Jensen’s (1977)

Answer 14

five stage group-development model

Question 15

Features of Tuckman and Jensen’s (1977) five stage group-development model

Answer 15

1. Forming - uncertainty about structure purpose and leadership, testing waters
2. Storming - intragroup conflict due to differences, debates over roles & leadership structure
3. Norming- cohesiveness and close relationships, group identity and camaraderie
4. Performing - fully functional group, ready to work
5. Adjourning- wrapping up activities

Question 16

do temporary groups with deadlines usually follow this sequence?

Answer 16

no, usually follow own sequence

Question 17

Gersick’s (1988)

Answer 17

punctuated equilibrium model

Question 18

Gersick’s (1988) punctuated equilibrium model

Answer 18

Involves transitions btw inertia and activity.
Phase 1- locked into one form of action
Transition- major changes, occurs when group has used up half its allotted time at calendar midpoint, groups spurred on to commence a new activity/direction for phase 2, altering the basic course of action midstream as unlikely to do so when transition phase passes
Phase 2- actions put into place, usually characterised by final burst of effort/activity.

Question 19

IPO

Answer 19

Input Process Output Model of team functioning
Teams inputs relatively stable,
Processes- interactions btw activities and people
Outcomes- results of inputs or processes

These models might not apply to all teams, but can be used to give a general framework by the processes/phases teams are likely to experience over time

Question 20

Inputs

Answer 20

Composition (size/structure), task/team characteristics, organisational context

Question 21

Processes

Answer 21

norms & rules, communication, coordination, cohesion, conflict management

Question 22

Outputs

Answer 22

Performance, member satisfaction, viability, learning outcomes

Question 23

+ve team processes hel to

Answer 23

to facilitate effective teamwork, such as the establishment of positive team norms, clear roles, and team cohesion. But while there are many benefits to teams, the expected benefits of teams do not always materialise.

Question 24

-ve team processes

Answer 24

reflect the darker side of teams, such as when team members engage in negative behaviours like social loafing, over conformity and groupthink.

Question 25

Good teamwork is about

Answer 25

effective collaboration. One of the most common mistakes that people make is not taking advantage of the different strengths and skills of their teammates.

Question 26

Process gains:

Answer 26

Combined efforts exceed the sum of the individual inputs

Question 27

positive synergy

Answer 27

Ability to bounce ideas
Correct mistakes
Bring diverse skills/knowledge
Accomplish work that’s too much for one person alone

Question 28

Effective team performance depends on:

Answer 28

1. member abilities
2. motivations
3. Coordination strategy - goal setting, good methods of communication.

Question 29

task interdependence

Answer 29

Refers to how work of one member impacts other members

As this rises, members must work more closely together

Question 30

Roles,

Answer 30

refers to the set of behaviour patterns expected of someone who occupies a given position in a social unit

Question 31

Types of roles:

Answer 31

Role perception – individual view of how to act
Role expectations – how others believe a person should act
Role conflict – competing perceptions, expectations and roles

Question 32

Norms

Answer 32

unwritten rules
behaviours that are accepted
shared within a group

Question 33

Types of team norms

Answer 33

Performance norms - explicit cues about how hard members should work, timeline etc
Appearance norms - dress codes, unspoken standards about how to act and look
Social arrangement norms
Allocation of resources

Question 34

why do members conform?

Answer 34

Compliance - Attain rewards/avoid punishment
Identification with others
Internalisation of norms - you believe the behaviour dictated by the norm is truly the right norm

Question 35

cohesiveness

Answer 35

the degree to which members are attracted to and motivated to stay in the group

Question 36

how can you build team cohesion?

Answer 36

Creating smaller  groups
Setting team goals 
Increasing time spent together
increasing group status
creating competition with other groups (strengthen ingroup and outgroup distinctions
Rewarding group performance
ensuring clear and open communication
promoting inclusive culture

Question 37

too much cohesiveness bad bc

Answer 37

can undermine productivity, members spend more time socialising than working/too much conformity and intolerance of deviance

Question 38

negative team processes

Answer 38

1) social loafing
2) conformity
3) groupthink
4) conflict

Question 39

1) social loafing

Answer 39

the tendency for individuals to expend less effort when working collectively than when working individually

Tradeoffs- larger groups have more access to knowledge, skills but social loafing can hinder efficiency

Rationales, are that people think they’re not contributing much or jealousy that others aren’t contributing enough.
Greater perceptions of fairness related to less social loafing

Question 40

how to overcome social loafing

Answer 40

make individual contributions identifiable & indispensable in
achieving desired outcomes.
1) Increasing task difficulty
2) Increase uniqueness of individual contributions
3) Lead individuals to infer that attaining the collective good depends on their personal contributions
4) Instruct individuals directly that their contributions are necessary
5) make groups smaller to minimise effects

Question 41

3) groupthink

Answer 41

occurs when groups are highly cohesive, when members are under considerable pressure to make a quality decision, and strive for unanimous agreement

Question 42

2) conformity

Answer 42

members behave according to group norms and processes regardless of their own values and beliefs
Finding a good balance between conformity and will generally result in effective groups and high performance
Too much conformity can hinder performance as they fail to recognise/change dysfunctional norms, but too much conflict means groups can’t get past individual differences

Question 43

yes we need some conflict in teams, but what type of conflict is good?

Answer 43

encourage the right type of conflict and manage conflict when it arises so that it does not become dysfunctional or harmful to members of the team.

Question 44

bad apples types

Answer 44

1. The Jerk
2. The Slacker
3. The Depressive Pessimist

Question 45

What can we do about bad apples?

Answer 45

choose members wisely
Minimise negative spillover to other members
Develop strong awareness of self and others
Set up group norms about appropriate member behaviours

Question 46

(Hass & Mortensen, 2016)

Answer 46

The secrets of great teamwork

Question 47

Teams are defined as an

Answer 47

independent collection of individuals who work together toward a common goal and share responsibility for specific outcomes for the organisation.

Question 48

what matters most to collaboration?

Answer 48

certain enabling conditions

1) A compelling direction
2) A strong structure
3) A supportive context
4) Shared mindset

Question 49

1) A compelling direction

Answer 49

A direction that energises, orients and engages its members

Explicit goals that are challenging but not too difficult

Goals must be consequential (people care about them) either through extrinsic rewards e.g. pay, or intrinsic rewards e.g. satisfaction

Question 50

2) A strong structure

Answer 50

1) mix and number of members (balance of skills, diversity - surface & deep level). Adding team members can help but larger teams more vulnerable to poor communication, fragmentation & free riding)
2) optimally designed tasks & processes
3) establish clear norms (norms that discourage destructive behaviour) & promote +ve environments

Question 51

3) A supportive context

Answer 51

1) Maintaining a reward system that reinforces good performance
2) An information system that provides access to the data needed for work + training

Question 52

4) shared mindset so group can have a frame of reference, understand each-other better, greater efficiency

Answer 52

Tackles the challenges of:

1) “Us versus them” thinking
2) incomplete information (from geographical dispersion/dif. expertise)

achieve by fostering common identity & understanding

Question 53

ways to evaluate your team

Answer 53

1) Criteria of
Output
Collaborative ability
Members’ individual development
2) regular light monitoring for preventive maintenance
3) less frequent deeper checks when problems arise
4) self-assessments

Question 54

types of teams

Answer 54

1) Quality Circles
2) Project teams
3) Production teams
4) virtual teams

Question 55

autonomous work groups

Answer 55

specific kind of production team that has control over a variety of its functions, including planning shift operations, allocating work, determining work priorities, performing a variety of actual work tasks, and making recommendations regarding the hiring of new work group members.
Purpose: improve the integration of social and technical systems by allowing groups of employees to manage themselves

Question 56

rationale for IPO

Answer 56

Provides links among team inputs, processes and outputs, thereby enabling an understanding of how teams perform and how to maximise performance
Model suggests that inputs affect outputs indirectly through team processes
Inputs can also affect outputs directly
Feedback loops in which traditional outputs such as team performance can also serve as inputs to future processes