BMA: Chapter 9

Group

refers to two or more individuals who share common interests or characteristics and interact with one another

Team

a group of individuals with complementary skills who are committed to a common purpose defined by a set of performance goals

Type of groups

Informal group

Formal group

Work team

Informal group

consists of a small number of individuals who frequently participate in activities together to meet their mutual needs

Friendship groups

formed by members who enjoy similar social activities, political beliefs, or other common bonds

Reference group

any group against which a person evaluates themselves, family or friends

Formal group

created within an organisation with the intention of completing a specific role or task

Work team

consists of a small number of identifiable, interdependent employees who are held accountable for performing tasks that contribute to achieving an organisation’s goals

Type of teams

Functional work teams

Problem-solving work teams

Multidisciplinary work teams

Self-managing work teams

Virtual work teams

Functional work teams

includes members from a single department who consider issues and solve problems common in their area of responsibility and expertise

Problem-solving work teams

consists of between 5 and 20 employees in an organisation who consider how something can be done better

Quality circles

a group of employees who meet regularly to identify and analyse various types of workplace problems and propose solutions

Multidisciplinary work team (cross-functional team)

consist of between 5 and 30 employees from various functional areas and sometimes several organisational levels who collectively have specific goal-orientated tasks, may be permanent or temporary

Self-managing work teams

consists of between 5 to 15 employees who work together daily to make an entire or deliver an entire service, composed of highly skilled members who are fully empowered to accomplish major tasks

Virtual work teams

teams that meets and accomplishes its tasks without team members being physically present in the same or even at the same time

Type of virtual teams

Networked teams

Parallel teams

Product development teams

Production teams

Service teams

Management teams

Action teams

External system def

the conditions and influences, in an organisational context, that exist before and after the work team is formed

External systems

Culture

Organisational design

The virtual organisational models

Telecommuting - employees work from home

Front-line - employees work at client’s site

Cyber-link - employees virtually connected via network in cyberspace

Team design

Team size - can influence how well team members work with one another towards achieving their goals

Team proximity - the location of a team member

Stages of work team development

Forming

Storming

Norming

Performing

Adjourning

Forming stage

The team leader’s role in the forming stage is to put members at ease and help them to get to know one another as well as outline the expectations of team members

Storming stage

Potential conflicts or disagreements and competitive behaviour will develop, team leader’s role in conflict resolution is to acknowledge all concerns and guide the team members towards shared goals

Norming stage

Task-related and role behaviours of team members are progressively resolved through cooperation, teamwork, support, and open communication

Performing stage

A sense of mutual trust and acceptance is established, leadership is necessary to direct team performance during this stage. To maintain team harmony, it is better to reward the team rather than individual performance

Adjourning stage

Terminating task behaviours and disengaging from relationships, team members often experience feelings of closure and sadness as they prepare to leave.

Feelings

reflect the emotional climate of a group (trusting members, openness towards other members)

Behavioural norms

the individual unwritten rules of behaviour that are widely shared and informed by members of a work team

Factors that develop norms

Explicit statements

Critical events

First behaviours

Past experiences

Empowerment

putting employees in charge of and allowing them to make decisions that affect themselves and what they do

Empowerment steps

Textbook

Work team effectiveness

Customer satisfaction

Team satisfaction

The satisfaction of other teams with teams

Work team leadership

Managing the external boundary

Disbanding an ineffective work team

Support for work teams

Team training

Team cohesiveness - demonstrates loyalty of team members to one another and to the team as a whole

Effective team procedures - team members who are taught about the stages of team development are less likely to become frustrated during the early forming and storming stages of team development

Effective work team leaders - new team leaders require training

Team rewards

rewards should be linked to the assessment of the work team’s accomplishments

Team communication

effective communication is key to being a successful team

Team emotional support

all employees need emotional support at all times

Team technology support

without the correct tools and technology, virtual teams are not able to work effectively.