Understanding Work Teams

Understanding Work Teams

Why Have Teams Become So Popular?  Teams typically outperform individuals.  Teams use employee talents better.  Teams are more flexible and responsive to changes in the environment.  Teams facilitate employee involvement.  Teams are an effective way to democratize an organization and increase motivation.

Team Versus Group: What’s the Difference? Work Group A group that interacts primarily to 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

Comparing Work Groups and Work Teams

E X H I B I T 10–1

Types of Teams Problem-solving Teams Groups of 5 to 12 employees from the same department who meet for a few hours each week to discuss ways of improving quality, efficiency, and the work environment

Self-Managed Work Teams Groups of 10 to 15 people who take on the responsibilities of their former supervisors

Types of Teams (cont’d) Cross-Functional Teams Employees from about the same hierarchical level, but from different work areas, who come together to accomplish a task

• Task forces • Committees

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 2. The absence of paraverbal and nonverbal cues 3. A limited social context 4. The ability to overcome time and space constraints

A Team-Effectiveness Model

E X H I B I T 10–3

Creating Effective Teams

Creating Effective Teams (cont’d)

Key Roles of Teams

E X H I B I T 10–4

Creating Effective Teams (cont’d)

Creating Effective Teams (cont’d)

Effects of Group Processes =

+ MINUS

Goal: Maximize Process Gains While Minimizing Process Losses!

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 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

Turning Individuals into Team Players  The Challenges – Overcoming individual resistance to team membership – Countering the influence of individualistic cultures – Introducing teams in an organization that has historically valued individual achievement

 Shaping Team Players – Selecting employees who can fulfill their team roles – Training employees to become team players – Reworking the reward system to encourage cooperative efforts while continuing to recognize individual contributions

Teams and Quality Management  Team Effectiveness and Quality Management Requires that Teams: 1. Are small enough to be efficient and effective. 2. Are properly trained in required skills. 3. Are allocated enough time to work on problems. 4. Are given authority to resolve problems and take corrective action. 5. Have a designated “champion” to call on when needed.

Beware: Teams Aren’t Always the Answer  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?

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.

Possibilities include: Too much socializing, coordinating work flow, lag time in responses to emails, personality conflicts, attendance and timeliness problems, etc. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved.

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. How much diversity would there be? Given what we learned in this chapter, what would the pros and cons of your composition be? © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved.

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 to “stir the pot” . . . and write down a phrase you could say (e.g., you would feel comfortable saying to your peers) to create task conflict. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved.