Managing Groups and Teams

Module 13

LIS 580: Spring 2006

Instructor- Michael Crandall

May 9, 2006 LIS580- Spring 2006 2

Roadmap

• Groups and teams

• Characteristics of teams

• Reasons for team failure

• Leading teams

• Improving team performance

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Groups and Teams

• Group– Two or more persons who are interacting in

such a way that each person influences and is influenced by each other person.

• Team– A group of people committed to a common

purpose, set of performance goals, and approach for which the team members hold themselves mutually accountable.

G.Dessler, 2003

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Comparing Work Teams andWork Groups

Prentice Hall, 2002

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The Popularity of Teams

• Teams typically outperform individuals when tasks require multiple skills, judgment, and experience

• Teams are a better way to utilize individual employee talents

• The flexibility and responsiveness of teams is essential in a changing environment

• Empowered teams increase job satisfaction and morale, enhance employee involvement, and promote workforce diversity

Prentice Hall, 2002

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Types of Work Teams

Prentice Hall, 2002

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Virtual Team

• Virtual Team– Groups of geographically and/or organizationally

dispersed coworkers who interact using a combination of telecommunications and information technologies to accomplish an organizational task.

– Virtual teams may be temporary, existing only to accomplish a specific task. Or they may be permanent and address ongoing matters.

– Membership is often fluid, evolving according to changing task requirements.

G.Dessler, 2003

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Group Dynamics

• Group Norms– The informal rules that groups adopt to

regulate and regularize group members’ behavior.

• Group Cohesiveness– The degree of interpersonal attractiveness

within a group, dependent on factors like proximity, similarities, attraction among the individual group members, group size, intergroup competition, and agreement about goals.

G.Dessler, 2003

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What It Takes to Be a Team Player

• Personality– Individualism versus collectivism

• Interpersonal Skills– Conflict management skills– Collaborative problem solving skills– Communication skills

• Management Skills– Develop and establish goals– Control, monitor, provide feedback– Set work roles and assign tasks

G.Dessler, 2003

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Team Member Roles

Prentice Hall, 2002

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Challenges to Creating TeamPlayers

• Managers attempting to introduce teams into organization face the most difficulty:– When individual employee resistance to

teams is strong– Where the national culture is individualistic

rather than collectivist– When an established organization places

Prentice Hall, 2002

May 9, 2006 LIS580- Spring 2006 12

Workforce Diversity’sEffects on Teams

• Fresh and multiple perspectives on issues help the team identify creative or unique solutions and avoid weak alternatives

• The difficulty of working together may make it harder to unify a diverse team and reach agreements

• Although diversity’s advantages dissipate with time, the added-value of diverse teams increases as the team becomes more cohesive

Prentice Hall, 2002

May 9, 2006 LIS580- Spring 2006 13

Checklist 13.1How to Build a Productive Team

Have clear mission/purpose. Set specific performance goals. Compose the right team size and mix. Have an agreed-upon structure appropriate to

the task. Delegate the authority to make the decisions

needed, given their mission. Provide access to or control of the resources

needed to complete their mission. Offer a mix of group and individual rewards. Foster longevity and stability of membership.

G.Dessler, 2003

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Characteristics of High-performing Work Teams

Prentice Hall, 2002

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FIGURE 13–3

Why Teams Fail: The Leadership, Focus, and Capability Pyramid

Source: Adapted from Steven Rayner, “Team Traps: What They Are, How to Avoid Them.”National Productivity Review. Summer 1996, p. 107. Reprinted by permission of John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

G.Dessler, 2003

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Checklist 13.2Symptoms of Unproductive Teams

Nonaccomplishment of goals. Cautious, guarded

communication. Lack of disagreement. Malfunctioning meetings. Conflict within the team.

G.Dessler, 2003

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The Challenge of TeamLeadership

• Becoming an effective team leader requires:– Learning to share information– Developing the ability to trust others– Learning to give up authority– Knowing when to leave their teams alone

and when to intercede

• New roles that team leaders take on– Managing the team’s external boundary– Facilitating the team process

Prentice Hall, 2002

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Leading Productive Teams

• Team Leader Skills– Coaching, not

bossing– Help define, analyze,

and solve problems– Encourage

participation by others

– Serve as a facilitator

• Team Leader Values– Respecting fellow

team members– Trusting fellow team

members– Putting the team first

G.Dessler, 2003

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Team Leader Roles

Prentice Hall, 2002

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Team Leader Behaviors

Druskat, V.U. & J.V. Wheeler. (2004). How to Lead a Self-Managing Team

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Typical Leader Transition Problems

• Perceived Loss of Power or Status

• Unclear Team Leader Roles

• Job Security Concerns

• The Double Standard Problem

G.Dessler, 2003

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Stages of Team Development

Prentice Hall, 2002

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The Leader’s Role in Creating a Self-Managing Team

• Forming– The teams and their leaders begin working out

their specific responsibilities.– Training is the leader’s main task.

• Storming– Questions typically arise regarding who is leading

the team and what its structure and purpose should be.

– The leader ensures that team members continue to learn and eventually exercise leadership skills.

G.Dessler, 2003

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The Leader’s Role in Creating a Self-Managing Team (cont’d)

• Norming– Team members agree on purpose, structure, and

leadership and are prepared to start performing.– The leader’s job is to emphasize the need for the

team to temper cooperation with the responsibility to supervise its own members.

• Performing– A period of productivity, achievement, and pride as

the team members work together to get the job done.

• AdjourningG.Dessler, 2003

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How to Improve Team Performance

• Select members for skill and teamwork.

• Establish challenging performance standards.

• Emphasize the task’s importance.

• Assign whole tasks.• Send the right signals.• Encourage social

support.• Make sure there are

unambiguous team rules.

• Challenge the group regularly with fresh facts and information.

• Train and cross-train.• Provide the necessary

tools and material support.

• Encourage “emotionally intelligent” team behavior.

G.Dessler, 2003

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Providing an Organizational ContextThat Supports Teams

Team WorkTeam WorkApproachApproach

Team WorkTeam WorkApproachApproach

OrganizationalOrganizationalStructureStructure

OrganizationalOrganizationalStructureStructure

OrganizationalOrganizationalSystemsSystems

OrganizationalOrganizationalSystemsSystems

Organizational Organizational PoliciesPolicies

Organizational Organizational PoliciesPolicies

EmployeeEmployeeSkillsSkills

EmployeeEmployeeSkillsSkills

G.Dessler, 2003

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FIGURE 13–5

Designing Organizations to Manage Teams

Source: Adapted from James H. Shonk, Team-Based Organizations (Homewood, IL: Irwin, 1997), p. 36. G.Dessler, 2003

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Pros and Cons of Group Decision Making

Pros• More points of view• More ways to define the

problem• More possible

solutions/alternatives• More creative decisions• Stronger commitment to

decisions

Cons• More disagreement and

less problem solving• Desire for consensus

(groupthink)• Domination by a single

individual• Less of commitment to

the group decision

G.Dessler, 2003

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FIGURE 13–7

Signs That Groupthink May Be a Problem

Source: Adapted from information provided in Irving James, Group Think: Psychological Studies of Policy Decisions and Fiascos, 2nd ed. (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1982).

G.Dessler, 2003

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Improving Group Decision Making

• Devil’s-Advocate Approach– The group appoints a person to prepare

a detailed counterargument that lists what is wrong with the group’s favored solution and why the group should not adopt it.

– The aim is to ensure a full and objective consideration of the solution proposal.

G.Dessler, 2003

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Improving Group Decision Making (cont’d)

• Brainstorming– A creativity-stimulating technique in which prior

judgments and criticisms are specifically forbidden from being expressed and thus inhibiting the free flow of ideas, which are encouraged.

– Brainstorming rules:• Avoid criticizing others’ ideas until all suggestions are out

on the table.• Share even wild suggestions.• Offer many suggestions and comments as possible.• Build on others’ suggestions to create your own.

G.Dessler, 2003

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Improving Group Decision Making (cont’d)

• The Delphi Technique– A multistage group decision-making process aimed

at eliminating inhibitions or groupthink through obtaining the written opinions of experts working independently.

– Process steps• Identify the problem.• Solicit the experts’ individual opinions on the problem.• Analyze, distill, and then resubmit these opinions to other

experts.• Continue this process for several more rounds until the

experts reach a consensus.G.Dessler, 2003

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Improving Group Decision Making (cont’d)

• The Nominal Group Technique1. Each group member writes down his or her ideas

for solving the problem at hand.2. Each member then presents his or her ideas orally,

and the person writes the ideas on a board for other participants to see.

3. After all ideas are presented, the entire group discusses all ideas simultaneously.

4. Group members individually and secretly vote on each proposed solution.

5. The solution with the most individual votes wins.G.Dessler, 2003

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Improving Group Decision Making (cont’d)

• The Stepladder Technique1. Individuals A and B are given a problem to solve,

and each produces an independent solution.2. A and B develop a joint decision, and meet with C,

who has analyzed the problem and arrived at a decision.

3. A, B, and C discuss the problem and arrive at a consensus decision, and are joined by D, who has analyzed the problem and arrived at a decision.

4. A, B, C, and D jointly develop a final group decision.

G.Dessler, 2003

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Improving Group Decision Making (cont’d)

• How to Lead a Group Decision-Making Discussion1. See that all group members participate and

contribute.2. Distinguish between idea getting and idea

evaluation.3. Do not respond to each participant or dominate the

discussion. 4. Direct the group’s effort toward overcoming

surmountable obstacles.5. Don’t sit down.

G.Dessler, 2003

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Next Time

• Guest Lecturer:– Martha Choe, Director of Global Libraries

Program, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation– Read the articles, and come prepared to

discuss library leadership issues