Week 7
Understanding
Work Teams
Groups or Teams?
People on 4 x 100 relay
Finance Department
Safety Committee
Argentina Football
Google, 3M
Yourselves
Comparing Teams and Groups
A group - two or more interacting and interdependent individuals who
come together to achieve specific goals. (formal and informal groups)
A team - groups whose members work intensely on specific, common
goals using their positive synergy, individual and mutual accountability,
and complementary skills.
Exhibit 9.2
The Stages of Group Development
Stage 1: Forming

The team experiences
uncertainty about its
purpose, structure, and
leadership.
Stage 2: Storming

Intragroup conflict
predominates within the
group
Stage 3: Norming

Close relationships develop
and group members begin to
demonstrate cohesiveness.
Stage 4: Performing

The team develops a
structure that is fully
functional and works on
group tasks.
Stage 5: Adjourning

Temporary groups
prepare for
disbandment.
The Stages of Group Development
Types of Work Teams
Problem-Solving Teams (e.g. in MTR)

A team from the same department or functional area
that’s involved in efforts to improve work activities or to
solve specific problems.
Self-Managed Work Team (e.g. Google)

A type of work team that operates without a manager and
is responsible for a complete work process or segment.
Cross-Functional Team (e.g. Investigative, Sp. Project)

Teams made up of individuals from various departments
and that cross traditional departmental lines.
Virtual Team

A type of work team that uses technology to link
physically dispersed members.
Foundations of Group Behavior
Role

A set of expected behavior patterns attributed to
someone in a given position in a social unit ( Role
Conflict).
Norms and Group conformity

Standards (e.g. effort and performance, dress, and
loyalty) or expectations accepted by a group’s members.
Status

A prestige grading, position, or rank within a group
May be informally conferred by characteristics such
as education, age, skill, or experience.
Status congruence (e.g. the higher the position, the
bigger the office) vs Status incongruence
Norms
Meeting Norms

Do you have a preference for when meetings will be
held?
Work Norms


How will work be distributed?
How will deadlines be set?
Communication Norms

Is it generally easier to reach you by e-mail or
phone?
Social Norms
Examples of Cards Used in Asch
Study
Solomon Asch and Group Conformity:
Conformity
Does the desire to be accepted as a part of a group leave one
susceptible to conforming to the group’s norms? Will the group exert
pressure that is strong enough to change a member’s attitude and
behavior? According to the research by Solomon Asch, the answer
appears to be yes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6kWygqR0L8
Group Effects
Social loafing/Free-rider tendency


Effect of group size on group behaviour
The tendency for individuals to expend less effort
when working collectively than when working
individually.
Group cohesiveness


The degree to which members of a group are
attracted to each other and share the group’s goals.
The more the members are attracted to one another
and the more the group’s goals align with their
individual goals, the greater the group’s cohesiveness.
Cohesive groups are more effective.
The Relationship Between
Group Cohesiveness and
Productivity
Exhibit 8.10
Managing Conflict
Conflict – traditional vs human relations view

Perceived differences resulting in interference
or opposition
Functional conflict - constructive

Conflict that supports an organization’s goals
Dysfunctional conflict – destructive

Conflict that prevents an organization from
achieving its goals
Task conflict vs Relationship conflict
Conflict and Group/
Organizational Performance
ConflictResolution
Techniques
Avoiding
Compromising
Accommodating
Collaborating
Forcing
Conflict Management What Works Best
and When
Class Exercise – Noughts and Crosses