Team
Content
Understanding
g Work Teams
Why
y Have Teams Become So Popular?
p
¾ Teams typically outperform individuals.
¾ Teams use employee talents better.
¾ Teams are more flexible and responsive to changes
in the environment.
¾ Teams facilitate employee
p y involvement.
¾ Teams are an effective way to democratize an
organization and increase motivation.
¾ Teams foster Synergy and Consensus Building
among the team members
Definition
“A team is a small group of people with
complimentary skills
skills, who work actively
together to achieve a common purpose for
which they hold themselves collectively
accountable.”
Teams in Organizations
Teamwork is the process of
people working together in
teams to accomplish common
g
goals
3
Pre-requisites for Team Building and Team
W k
Work
¾ Common objectives
¾ Trust
¾ Cooperation
¾ Support
S
t
¾ Information sharing
¾ Mutual
M
l respect
¾ Accountability
¾ Positive group- no back-biting or stabbing
at the back
Team Versus Group: What’s the Difference?
Work Group
A group that
th t interacts
i t
t primarily
i
il tto
share information and to make
decisions to help each group
member perform within his or her
area of responsibility
Work Team
A group whose individual efforts
result in a performance that is
greater than the sum of the
individual inputs
Work Group
¾
¾
¾
¾
¾
¾
Strengths:
members work on the directive of a group leader
perform within his/her area of responsibility
pp
y to engage
g g in collective work
Limited opportunity
requiring joint effort
Weaknesses:
No positive
i i Synergy
S
( performance
f
is
i merely the
summation of each members individual contribution.)
Time-consuming-to
Time
consuming to pool all information
Decision-making authority in a single person can be
perilous
Work Team
¾ A group whose individual efforts result in a
performance that is greater than the sum of
the individual inputs (generates positive
synergy))
¾ Members with complimentary skills committed
to a goal
¾ Mutually accountable
¾ Interact with each other and the leader-highly
leader highly
collaborative
¾ Decisions reflect the know-how and experience
of many-better decisions
Comparing Work Groups and Work Teams
ProblemProblemSolving
SelfSelfManaged
Types of
Teams
Virtual
CrossCrossFunctional
Problem-solving
g Teams
Composed
p
of 5–12 employees
p y
from the same
department, who meet for a few hours each week
to discuss, share ideas or offer suggestions
A special type of Employee Involvement team is
the “QUALITY
QUALITY CIRCLE
CIRCLE” ( A small group of
persons who meet periodically to discuss and
develop solutions for problems relating to quality,
productivity
d ti it and
d cost.)
t)
Characteristics
¾
¾
¾
¾
¾
Ways of improving quality
Efficiency
Work environment
How work processes and methods can be improved
No authority to implement their suggested actions
Self-Managed
g Work Teams
¾
¾
¾
¾
¾
¾
Groups of 10 to 15 people empowered to handle a
t k and
task
d make
k d
decisions
i i
on a day-to-day
d t d basis.
b i May
M
select their own leader and members
performing highly related or interdependent jobs
planning
scheduling of work
assigning tasks to members
Evaluating performance
Training for job-skills
Self-Managed
g Work Teams
Advantages
• Collective control over the pace of work
• Making operating decisions
• Taking
T ki action
ti on problems.
bl
• Selecting their own members who evaluate each
other’s performance.
Disadvantages
•
Higher levels of job satisfaction but also higher
absenteeism
b
t i
and
d tturnover rates.
t
•
The effectiveness is dependent on the situation
Cross-Functional Teams
Employees from about the same hierarchical
level but from different work areas
level,
areas, who come
together to accomplish a task
• Task forces
• Committees
Cross-Functional Teams
Advantages
•
•
•
•
•
Exchange of information
Diverse inputs
New ideas
New solutions
Coordination of complex
p
p
projects
j
Disadvantages
•
•
•
Difficult to setup
Time consuming
Trust formation takes time
Types of Teams (cont’d)
Virtual Teams
Teams that use computer
technology to tie together
physically dispersed
members in order to
achieve a common goal
Characteristics of Virtual Teams
1. The absence of paraverbal and nonverbal cues
2. A limited social context
3. The ability to overcome time and space constraints
4 Cost-effectiveness
4.
Cost effectiveness and speed to teamwork
HOW TO CREATE EFFECTIVE TEAMS?
Challenge for a Team
¾ Finding a right balance between allowing
individuals to show their unique talents
talents, while
at the same time minimizing grudges, big
egos,
g ,p
personality
y conflicts and
misunderstandings.
THE STRONGEST TEAMS SUCCESSFULLY
BALANCE THE “I” AND THE “WE”
Individual attitudes are also critical for team
success
Effectiveness means
¾ Objective measures of the team’s
team s productivity
¾ Managers’ ratings of the team’s performance
¾ Aggregate measures of member satisfaction
A Team
Team-Effectiveness
Effectiveness
Model
Creating
g Effective Teams
Ad
Adequate
t Resources
R
¾ All work teams rely on resources outside the
group to sustain it
¾ scarcity of resources reduces the ability of the
team to perform its job effectively
Leadership and Structure
¾ On traditionally managed teams two factors influence
team performance.
– leader’s expectations.
– leader’s mood.
¾ Leaders who expect good things from their team are
more likely to get them!
¾ Self-managed work teams often perform better than
teams with formally
y appointed
pp
leaders.
¾ Team members decide collectively.
– Who is to do what?
– Ensure equal sharing.
Performance Evaluation & Reward Systems
y
¾ Individual
Indi id al performance evaluations
e al ations
Incentives/Rewards
¾ Team-based
T
b
d appraisals
i l
– profit sharing/gain sharing
– small-team incentives
– system modifications that will reinforce team
effort
ff t and
d commitment
it
t
Creating
g Effective Teams ((cont’d))
Abiliti off Members
Abilities
M b
¾ Teams require
q
three different types
yp of
skills
– Technical expertise
– Problem-solving and decision-making
skills
– Interpersonal skills
¾ The right mix is crucial
¾ Members learn the skills in which the team
is deficient to reach its full potential
Personality
¾ Teams that rate higher
g
in mean levels of
extraversion,agreeableness,
conscientiousness and emotional stability
achieve higher team performance
f
¾ The variance in personality characteristics
may be
b more important
i
t t than
th the
th mean
– One bad apple can spoil the basket
Allocating Roles and Diversity
¾ Nine potential team roles.
¾ Teams selected to ensure diversity
¾ Select members for their strengths and
allocate work assignments accordingly.
Key
y Roles on Teams
Ad i
Adviser
Li k
Linker
C
Creator
t
Promoter
Assessor
Organizer
Producer
Controller
Maintainer
¾ An adviser encourages the search for more information.
¾ A linker coordinates and integrates
g
team functions.
¾ A creator initiates creative ideas.
¾ A promoter champions ideas after they are initiated.
¾ An assessor offers insightful analysis of opinions.
¾ An organizer provides structure
structure.
¾ A producer provides direction and follow-through.
¾ A controller
t ll examines
i
details
d t il and
d enforces
f
rules.
l
¾ A maintainer fights external battles.
Size of Teams
¾ very small = under 4 or 5
y large
g = over a dozen
¾ very
– Very small teams lack diversity of views
– Large
g teams have difficulty
yg
getting
g
much work done
p p
¾ Effective teams = 5–12 people
Member Flexibility & Preferences
¾ Members’ ability
abilit to complete each other’s
task improves adaptability and reduces
in-dispensability
¾ Cross training leads to higher team
performance
¾ Not every employee is a team player threat to team
team’s
s morale
¾ High performing teams - people who
prefer working
p
g in a team
Creating Effective Teams (cont’d)
Work Design
¾ Effective teams need to work together and
take collective responsibility to complete
significant tasks
¾ This category includes
– freedom and autonomy
– Skill variety
– Task identity
– Task significance
¾ these characteristics enhance
– member motivation
– increase sense of responsibility
– ownership
hi off work
k
– makes work interesting
– increases
i
team effectiveness
ff i
Creating Effective Teams (cont’d)
Purpose
A common and meaningful purpose
Goals
¾S
Successful
f l teams
t
t
translate
l t their
th i common purpose
into
specific
measurable
and
realistic
performance goals
¾ Team goals should be challenging
Efficacy
¾ Team efficacy-teams confidence
fid
in
i themselves
h
l
to
succeed
¾ Team efficacy
y can be increased by
y
– small successes
– providing skill training
Conflict
¾ No conflict leads to apathetic and stagnant teams
¾ Effective teams will be characterized by an
appropriate level of conflict
¾ Relationship conflicts - make teams dysfunctional
¾ Task conflicts - for teams performing non-routine
activities- reduce groupthink
S i l loafing
Social
l fi
¾ Individuals can hide inside a group.
¾ Effective
Eff ti teams
t
undermine
d
i this
thi tendency
t d
b holding
by
h ldi
themselves accountable at both the individual and
team level.
level
A Team
Team-Effectiveness
Effectiveness
Model
Turning individuals into team players
All team members must
¾ have
ha e no interpersonal/communication
interpersonal/comm nication
barriers
¾ be able to confront differences
¾ resolve conflicts
¾ sublimate personal goals for
f the good off
the team
What can go wrong in teams?
– social loafing
– personality conflicts
– task ambiguity
– poor readiness to work
– poor teamwork
t
k
41
Beware! Teams Aren’t Always the Answer
The P
Th
Problems
bl
•Teamwork takes more time
•Requires
R i more resources.
•Teams increase communication demands,
conflicts
fli t to
t be
b managed,
d andd meetings
ti
to
t be
b run.
•Some managers have introduced teams into
situations
it ti
where
h the
th workk is
i better
b tt done
d
by
b
individuals.
Beware: Teams Aren’t Always the Answer
¾ Three tests to see if a team fits the situation:
– Is the work complex and is there a need for
different perspectives?
– Does the work create a common purpose or set of
goals for the group that is larger than the
aggregate of the goals for individuals?
– Are members of the group involved in
interdependent tasks?
Contemporary Issues in Managing Teams
• How
H
d
do tteams ffacilitate
ilit t th
the
adoption of total quality
management?
• What are the implications of workforce
diversity
y on team p
performance?
• How does management reenergize
stagnant teams?
Teams and Quality Management
Team Effectiveness and Quality Management
q
that teams:
requires
– Are small enough to be efficient and effective.
– Are properly trained in required skills
skills.
– Are allocated enough time to work on problems.
– A
Are given
i
authority
th it tto resolve
l problems
bl
and
d ttake
k
corrective action.
– Have a designated “champion”
champion to call on when
needed.
Creating Effective Teams: Diversity
Group Demography
The degree to which members of a group share a
common demographic attribute, such as age,
sex,, race,, educational level,, or length
g of service
in the organization, and the impact of this
attribute on turnover
Cohorts
Individuals who, as part
of
a group, hold a
common attribute
Reinvigorating Mature Teams
Ho does management re
How
re-energize
energi e stagnant
teams?
Effective teams can become stagnant due to
– Familiarity breeds apathy.
– Success can lead to complacency.
– Maturity brings less openness to novel ideas
and innovation.
– Mature teams are susceptible to groupthink.
Suggestions for reinvigorating Teams
– Prepare members to deal with the problems of
maturity
– refresher training
– advanced training
g
– development to be treated as a constant
learning experience
Chapter Check-up: Teams
What kinds of things have you
experienced in a team setting that
could be considered as process loss?
Choose two and write them down
down.
Possibilities include: Too much
socializing, coordinating work flow, lag
ti
time
iin responses tto emails,
il personality
lit
conflicts, attendance and timeliness
problems etc
problems,
etc.
Chapter Check-up: Teams
If you were asked to choose
people from your class right now
to make up a team for a class
project, list five individuals you
would choose.
Now that you have your list, consider what
the composition of your team would look like.
H
How
much
h di
diversity
it would
ld th
there b
be?
? Gi
Given
what we learned in this chapter, what would
the pros and cons of your composition be?
Chapter Check-up: Teams
Is conflict in a team good or bad? Discuss.
Conflict can be both good and bad. Task conflict
is beneficial for a team because it helps protect
against groupthink. Relationship conflict is bad
for a team’s morale.
What, specifically, can you do to create task
conflict in a group? Think about the reality of
trying
i to ““stir
i the
h pot”” . . . and
d write
i d
down a
phrase you could say (e.g., you would feel
comfortable saying
y g to yyour p
peers)) to create task
conflict.
g Work Teams
Why
y Have Teams Become So Popular?
p
¾ Teams typically outperform individuals.
¾ Teams use employee talents better.
¾ Teams are more flexible and responsive to changes
in the environment.
¾ Teams facilitate employee
p y involvement.
¾ Teams are an effective way to democratize an
organization and increase motivation.
¾ Teams foster Synergy and Consensus Building
among the team members
Definition
“A team is a small group of people with
complimentary skills
skills, who work actively
together to achieve a common purpose for
which they hold themselves collectively
accountable.”
Teams in Organizations
Teamwork is the process of
people working together in
teams to accomplish common
g
goals
3
Pre-requisites for Team Building and Team
W k
Work
¾ Common objectives
¾ Trust
¾ Cooperation
¾ Support
S
t
¾ Information sharing
¾ Mutual
M
l respect
¾ Accountability
¾ Positive group- no back-biting or stabbing
at the back
Team Versus Group: What’s the Difference?
Work Group
A group that
th t interacts
i t
t primarily
i
il tto
share information and to make
decisions to help each group
member perform within his or her
area of responsibility
Work Team
A group whose individual efforts
result in a performance that is
greater than the sum of the
individual inputs
Work Group
¾
¾
¾
¾
¾
¾
Strengths:
members work on the directive of a group leader
perform within his/her area of responsibility
pp
y to engage
g g in collective work
Limited opportunity
requiring joint effort
Weaknesses:
No positive
i i Synergy
S
( performance
f
is
i merely the
summation of each members individual contribution.)
Time-consuming-to
Time
consuming to pool all information
Decision-making authority in a single person can be
perilous
Work Team
¾ A group whose individual efforts result in a
performance that is greater than the sum of
the individual inputs (generates positive
synergy))
¾ Members with complimentary skills committed
to a goal
¾ Mutually accountable
¾ Interact with each other and the leader-highly
leader highly
collaborative
¾ Decisions reflect the know-how and experience
of many-better decisions
Comparing Work Groups and Work Teams
ProblemProblemSolving
SelfSelfManaged
Types of
Teams
Virtual
CrossCrossFunctional
Problem-solving
g Teams
Composed
p
of 5–12 employees
p y
from the same
department, who meet for a few hours each week
to discuss, share ideas or offer suggestions
A special type of Employee Involvement team is
the “QUALITY
QUALITY CIRCLE
CIRCLE” ( A small group of
persons who meet periodically to discuss and
develop solutions for problems relating to quality,
productivity
d ti it and
d cost.)
t)
Characteristics
¾
¾
¾
¾
¾
Ways of improving quality
Efficiency
Work environment
How work processes and methods can be improved
No authority to implement their suggested actions
Self-Managed
g Work Teams
¾
¾
¾
¾
¾
¾
Groups of 10 to 15 people empowered to handle a
t k and
task
d make
k d
decisions
i i
on a day-to-day
d t d basis.
b i May
M
select their own leader and members
performing highly related or interdependent jobs
planning
scheduling of work
assigning tasks to members
Evaluating performance
Training for job-skills
Self-Managed
g Work Teams
Advantages
• Collective control over the pace of work
• Making operating decisions
• Taking
T ki action
ti on problems.
bl
• Selecting their own members who evaluate each
other’s performance.
Disadvantages
•
Higher levels of job satisfaction but also higher
absenteeism
b
t i
and
d tturnover rates.
t
•
The effectiveness is dependent on the situation
Cross-Functional Teams
Employees from about the same hierarchical
level but from different work areas
level,
areas, who come
together to accomplish a task
• Task forces
• Committees
Cross-Functional Teams
Advantages
•
•
•
•
•
Exchange of information
Diverse inputs
New ideas
New solutions
Coordination of complex
p
p
projects
j
Disadvantages
•
•
•
Difficult to setup
Time consuming
Trust formation takes time
Types of Teams (cont’d)
Virtual Teams
Teams that use computer
technology to tie together
physically dispersed
members in order to
achieve a common goal
Characteristics of Virtual Teams
1. The absence of paraverbal and nonverbal cues
2. A limited social context
3. The ability to overcome time and space constraints
4 Cost-effectiveness
4.
Cost effectiveness and speed to teamwork
HOW TO CREATE EFFECTIVE TEAMS?
Challenge for a Team
¾ Finding a right balance between allowing
individuals to show their unique talents
talents, while
at the same time minimizing grudges, big
egos,
g ,p
personality
y conflicts and
misunderstandings.
THE STRONGEST TEAMS SUCCESSFULLY
BALANCE THE “I” AND THE “WE”
Individual attitudes are also critical for team
success
Effectiveness means
¾ Objective measures of the team’s
team s productivity
¾ Managers’ ratings of the team’s performance
¾ Aggregate measures of member satisfaction
A Team
Team-Effectiveness
Effectiveness
Model
Creating
g Effective Teams
Ad
Adequate
t Resources
R
¾ All work teams rely on resources outside the
group to sustain it
¾ scarcity of resources reduces the ability of the
team to perform its job effectively
Leadership and Structure
¾ On traditionally managed teams two factors influence
team performance.
– leader’s expectations.
– leader’s mood.
¾ Leaders who expect good things from their team are
more likely to get them!
¾ Self-managed work teams often perform better than
teams with formally
y appointed
pp
leaders.
¾ Team members decide collectively.
– Who is to do what?
– Ensure equal sharing.
Performance Evaluation & Reward Systems
y
¾ Individual
Indi id al performance evaluations
e al ations
Incentives/Rewards
¾ Team-based
T
b
d appraisals
i l
– profit sharing/gain sharing
– small-team incentives
– system modifications that will reinforce team
effort
ff t and
d commitment
it
t
Creating
g Effective Teams ((cont’d))
Abiliti off Members
Abilities
M b
¾ Teams require
q
three different types
yp of
skills
– Technical expertise
– Problem-solving and decision-making
skills
– Interpersonal skills
¾ The right mix is crucial
¾ Members learn the skills in which the team
is deficient to reach its full potential
Personality
¾ Teams that rate higher
g
in mean levels of
extraversion,agreeableness,
conscientiousness and emotional stability
achieve higher team performance
f
¾ The variance in personality characteristics
may be
b more important
i
t t than
th the
th mean
– One bad apple can spoil the basket
Allocating Roles and Diversity
¾ Nine potential team roles.
¾ Teams selected to ensure diversity
¾ Select members for their strengths and
allocate work assignments accordingly.
Key
y Roles on Teams
Ad i
Adviser
Li k
Linker
C
Creator
t
Promoter
Assessor
Organizer
Producer
Controller
Maintainer
¾ An adviser encourages the search for more information.
¾ A linker coordinates and integrates
g
team functions.
¾ A creator initiates creative ideas.
¾ A promoter champions ideas after they are initiated.
¾ An assessor offers insightful analysis of opinions.
¾ An organizer provides structure
structure.
¾ A producer provides direction and follow-through.
¾ A controller
t ll examines
i
details
d t il and
d enforces
f
rules.
l
¾ A maintainer fights external battles.
Size of Teams
¾ very small = under 4 or 5
y large
g = over a dozen
¾ very
– Very small teams lack diversity of views
– Large
g teams have difficulty
yg
getting
g
much work done
p p
¾ Effective teams = 5–12 people
Member Flexibility & Preferences
¾ Members’ ability
abilit to complete each other’s
task improves adaptability and reduces
in-dispensability
¾ Cross training leads to higher team
performance
¾ Not every employee is a team player threat to team
team’s
s morale
¾ High performing teams - people who
prefer working
p
g in a team
Creating Effective Teams (cont’d)
Work Design
¾ Effective teams need to work together and
take collective responsibility to complete
significant tasks
¾ This category includes
– freedom and autonomy
– Skill variety
– Task identity
– Task significance
¾ these characteristics enhance
– member motivation
– increase sense of responsibility
– ownership
hi off work
k
– makes work interesting
– increases
i
team effectiveness
ff i
Creating Effective Teams (cont’d)
Purpose
A common and meaningful purpose
Goals
¾S
Successful
f l teams
t
t
translate
l t their
th i common purpose
into
specific
measurable
and
realistic
performance goals
¾ Team goals should be challenging
Efficacy
¾ Team efficacy-teams confidence
fid
in
i themselves
h
l
to
succeed
¾ Team efficacy
y can be increased by
y
– small successes
– providing skill training
Conflict
¾ No conflict leads to apathetic and stagnant teams
¾ Effective teams will be characterized by an
appropriate level of conflict
¾ Relationship conflicts - make teams dysfunctional
¾ Task conflicts - for teams performing non-routine
activities- reduce groupthink
S i l loafing
Social
l fi
¾ Individuals can hide inside a group.
¾ Effective
Eff ti teams
t
undermine
d
i this
thi tendency
t d
b holding
by
h ldi
themselves accountable at both the individual and
team level.
level
A Team
Team-Effectiveness
Effectiveness
Model
Turning individuals into team players
All team members must
¾ have
ha e no interpersonal/communication
interpersonal/comm nication
barriers
¾ be able to confront differences
¾ resolve conflicts
¾ sublimate personal goals for
f the good off
the team
What can go wrong in teams?
– social loafing
– personality conflicts
– task ambiguity
– poor readiness to work
– poor teamwork
t
k
41
Beware! Teams Aren’t Always the Answer
The P
Th
Problems
bl
•Teamwork takes more time
•Requires
R i more resources.
•Teams increase communication demands,
conflicts
fli t to
t be
b managed,
d andd meetings
ti
to
t be
b run.
•Some managers have introduced teams into
situations
it ti
where
h the
th workk is
i better
b tt done
d
by
b
individuals.
Beware: Teams Aren’t Always the Answer
¾ Three tests to see if a team fits the situation:
– Is the work complex and is there a need for
different perspectives?
– Does the work create a common purpose or set of
goals for the group that is larger than the
aggregate of the goals for individuals?
– Are members of the group involved in
interdependent tasks?
Contemporary Issues in Managing Teams
• How
H
d
do tteams ffacilitate
ilit t th
the
adoption of total quality
management?
• What are the implications of workforce
diversity
y on team p
performance?
• How does management reenergize
stagnant teams?
Teams and Quality Management
Team Effectiveness and Quality Management
q
that teams:
requires
– Are small enough to be efficient and effective.
– Are properly trained in required skills
skills.
– Are allocated enough time to work on problems.
– A
Are given
i
authority
th it tto resolve
l problems
bl
and
d ttake
k
corrective action.
– Have a designated “champion”
champion to call on when
needed.
Creating Effective Teams: Diversity
Group Demography
The degree to which members of a group share a
common demographic attribute, such as age,
sex,, race,, educational level,, or length
g of service
in the organization, and the impact of this
attribute on turnover
Cohorts
Individuals who, as part
of
a group, hold a
common attribute
Reinvigorating Mature Teams
Ho does management re
How
re-energize
energi e stagnant
teams?
Effective teams can become stagnant due to
– Familiarity breeds apathy.
– Success can lead to complacency.
– Maturity brings less openness to novel ideas
and innovation.
– Mature teams are susceptible to groupthink.
Suggestions for reinvigorating Teams
– Prepare members to deal with the problems of
maturity
– refresher training
– advanced training
g
– development to be treated as a constant
learning experience
Chapter Check-up: Teams
What kinds of things have you
experienced in a team setting that
could be considered as process loss?
Choose two and write them down
down.
Possibilities include: Too much
socializing, coordinating work flow, lag
ti
time
iin responses tto emails,
il personality
lit
conflicts, attendance and timeliness
problems etc
problems,
etc.
Chapter Check-up: Teams
If you were asked to choose
people from your class right now
to make up a team for a class
project, list five individuals you
would choose.
Now that you have your list, consider what
the composition of your team would look like.
H
How
much
h di
diversity
it would
ld th
there b
be?
? Gi
Given
what we learned in this chapter, what would
the pros and cons of your composition be?
Chapter Check-up: Teams
Is conflict in a team good or bad? Discuss.
Conflict can be both good and bad. Task conflict
is beneficial for a team because it helps protect
against groupthink. Relationship conflict is bad
for a team’s morale.
What, specifically, can you do to create task
conflict in a group? Think about the reality of
trying
i to ““stir
i the
h pot”” . . . and
d write
i d
down a
phrase you could say (e.g., you would feel
comfortable saying
y g to yyour p
peers)) to create task
conflict.
