Organizational Behavior: Groups and Teams

Extended Chapter 7

Group

Two or more people who interact with one another such that each person influences and is influenced by each other person.

Team

An interdependent collection of at least two individuals who share a common goal and share accountability for the team’s as well as their own outcomes.

Workgroups

Formal groups formed by the organization to do its work.

Command group

A relatively permanent, formal group with functional reporting relationships, usually included in the organization chart.

Affinity group

A collection of employees from the same level in the organization who meet on a regular basis to share information, capture emerging opportunities, and solve problems.

Functional teams

Members come from the same department or functional area.

Cross-functional teams

Members come from different departments or functional areas.

Problem-solving teams

Solve problems and make improvements.

Self-directed teams

Set their own goals and pursue them in ways defined by the team.

Venture teams

Operate semi-autonomously to create and develop new products, processes, or businesses.

Virtual teams

Made up of geographically and/or organizationally dispersed coworkers who communicate using telecommunications and information technologies.

Global teams

Face-to-face or virtual teams whose members are from different countries.

Informal group

A group established by its members.

Friendship group

Relatively permanent and informal and draws its benefits from the social relationships among its members.

Interest group

Relatively temporary and informal and is organized around a common activity or interest of its members.

Group composition

The degree of similarity or difference among group members on factors important to the group’s work.

Homogeneity

The degree to which members are similar in one or several ways that are critical to the group’s work.

Heterogeneity

The degree to which members differ in one or more ways that are critical to the group’s work.

Group size

Number of members in the group.

Social loafing

The tendency of some members of groups to put forth less effort than they would when working alone.

Norm

A standard against which the appropriateness of a behavior is judged.

Informal leader

A person who engages in leadership activities but whose right to do so has not been formally recognized by the organization or group.

Mutual acceptance stage

Characterized by members’ sharing information about themselves and getting to know each other.

Communication and decision-making stage

Members discuss their feelings more openly and agree on group goals and individual roles in the group.

Motivation and productivity stage

Members cooperate, help each other, and work toward accomplishing tasks.

Control and organization stage

The group is mature; members work together and are flexible, adaptive, and self-correcting.

Process gain

Performance improvements that occur because people work together rather than independently.

Process loss

Performance decrements that occur when a team performs worse than the individual members would have if they had worked alone.

Team efficacy

A team’s shared belief that it can organize and execute the behaviors necessary to reach its goals.

Trust

Confidence that other people will honor their commitments, especially when it is difficult to monitor or observe the other people’s behavior.

Social facilitation

Happens when people are motivated to look good to others and want to maintain a positive self-image.

Role

Defines the behaviors and tasks each team member is expected to perform because of the position they hold.

Positive norms

Team members comply with norms to avoid punishments and receive rewards, imitate team members whom they like and admire, and because they have internalized norms.

Challenges of virtual teams

Geographic and temporal separation in virtual teams.

Leadership skills for virtual teams

Communicating effectively, building community, establishing a shared vision, leading by example, and coordinating across boundaries.

Group Norms

A standard against which the appropriateness of a behavior is judged

Mutual acceptance stage

Sharing information about themselves and getting to know each other

Motivation and productivity stage

Members cooperate, help each other, and work toward accomplishing tasks

Process Gain

Performance improvements that occur because people work together rather than independently

Process Loss

Performance decrements that occur when a team performs worse than the individual members would have if they had worked alone

Team efficacy

A team’s shared belief that it can organize and execute the behaviors necessary to reach its goals

Social facilitation

People are motivated to look good to others and want to maintain a positive self-image

Role

Behaviors and tasks each team member is expected to perform because of the position they hold

Self-Managing Teams

Teams mature and become more flexible

Functional Teams

Members come from the same department or functional area

Cross-Functional Teams

Members come from different departments or functional areas

Global Teams

Teams face-to-face or virtual whose members are from different countries

Group Composition

The degree of similarity or difference among group members on factors important to the group’s work

Homogeneity

The degree to which members are similar

Heterogeneity

The degree to which members differ