Explain the common characteristics and differences between groups and teams
three common characteristics:
- dependence is the extent to which one member’s tasks and responsibilities are linked to those of other members
- accountability involves who is responsible for the tasks and related outcomes
- time is the duration members spend to together completing tasks and responsibilities
- groups are collections of two or more individuals with low or no task dependency, who are not accountable to each other for their work, and who may or may not assemble for a specified period of time
- teams are collections of two or more individuals whose tasks and responsibilities depend on the other members, are collectively accountable for the performance and outcomes associated with their work, and work together for the time required for task completion
Explain Tuckman’s five-stage model of group development
- forming = ice-breaking stage when group members tend to be uncertain and anxious about the unknowns such as their roles, the people in charge, and the group’s goals. Mutual trust is low, and there is a good deal of holding back to see who takes charge and how
- storming = time of testing. Individuals test the leader’s policies and assumptions as they try to decide how they fit into the power structure. Sub-groups may form and resist the current direction of a leader or another subgroup
- norming: stage in which a feeling of team spirit is sometimes experienced because members believe they have found their proper roles. Its principal by-product is group cohesiveness, the degree to which members feel part of the collective or “we”
- performing: activity during this vital stage is focused on solving task problems, as contributors get their work done without hampering others. This stage is characterized by a climate of open communication, strong cooperation, and lots of helping behavior. Conflicts and job boundary disputes are handled constructively and efficiently. Cohesiveness and personal commitment to group goals help the group achieve more than could any one individual acting alone
- adjourning: the group’s work is done - it is time to move on to other things. The return to independence can be eased by rituals such as parties or award ceremonies celebrating the end and new beginnings. During the adjourning stage, leaders must emphasize valuable lessons learned
Name and explain common forms of teams and three important characteristics of team players
- work teams: have a well-defined and common purpose, are more or less permanent, and require complete commitment of their members e.g. professional sports teams’
- project teams: are assembled to tackle a particular problem, task, or project together.
- they most often divide their time between the team and their primary jobs and responsibilities
- they may be from the same department, product, customer, or service area in an organization, or different functional disciplines such as finance, operations, or marketing
- any given employee may be a member of multiple project teams at one time
- Cross-Functional Teams (CFTs) are created with members from different disciplines within an organization, such as finance, operations, and R&D
- Self-Managed Teams (SMTs) self-managed teams have collective autonomy and responsibility to plan, manage, and execute tasks interdependently to achieve their goals
- three important characteristics of team players:
- committed
- collaborative
- competent
Explain trust and its three different forms
- trust is the willingness to be vulnerable to another person, and the belief that the other person will consider the impact of how his or her intentions and behaviors will affect you
- Contractual trust = trust of character. Do people do what they say they will do? Do managers and employees make clear what they expect of one another?
Tip:
- keep track of your commitments
- be realistic (don’t overpromise), and
- be sure to deliver quality work on time - Communication trust = trust of disclosure. How well do people share information and tell the truth?
Tip:
- keep team members and employees informed by explaining policies and decisions
- provide accurate feedback
- be candid about your challenges and limitations
3. Competence trust = trust of capability. How effectively do people meet or perform their responsibilities and acknowledge other people’s skills and abilities? Tip: enhance your credibility by - demonstrating good business sense - technical ability, and - professionalism
Name the characteristics of high-performing teams and the three Cs of effective teams
- Compelling team purpose
- Clear goals and responsibilities
- Appropriate mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities
- Effective incentives and motivation
- Trust and communication
- Power and empowerment
- Early and effective conflict resolution
- Norms for collaboration
- Charters and strategies:
team charters: describe how the team will operate,
– how members will share information
– hold members accountable
– deal with conflict, and
– make decisions
team performance strategies are deliberate plans that outline what exactly the team has to do, such as goal setting and defining particular member roles, tasks, and responsibilities - Composition: team composition describes the collection of jobs, personalities, knowledge, skills, abilities, and experience levels of team members
- Capacity: adaptive team capacity (adaptability) is the ability to make needed changes in response to demands put on the team
Name five take-aways for good collaboration within teams
- Communicate expectations
- Set team goals
- Encourage creativity
- Build work flow rhythm e.g.: by using technology
- Leverage team member strengths: set individuals up to win by identifying and utilizing their strengths
Explain the punctuated equilibrium with regard to the development of groups
- some groups follow a form of development called punctuated equilibrium, as groups establish periods of stable functioning until an event causes a dramatic change in norms, roles, and/or objectives; the group then establishes and maintains new norms of functioning, returning to equilibrium
- extreme examples of punctuated equilibrium often occur because of disruptive technologies, like Apple’s introduction of iTunes
What are (group) roles are and why do they matter? Explain the difference between task and maintance roles
- a role is a set of expected behaviors for a particular position
- a group role is a set of shared expected behaviors for members of the group as a whole
- task roles enable the work group to define, clarify, and pursue a common purpose
- maintenance roles foster supportive and constructive interpersonal relationships
Explain the Reina seven-step model for rebuilding trust
- Acknowledge what caused trust to be compromised
- Allow feelings and emotions to be discussed constructively
- Get and give support to others in the process
- Reframe the experience and shift from being a victim to taking a look at options and choices
- Take responsibility. Ask, “What did I do or not do that caused this to happen?”
- Forgive yourself and others
- Let go and move on
What is a conflict?
- ongoing process starting with an individual/ group perceiving differences and opposition between themselves and others about interests, beliefs or values that matter to them
a modern view: conflict is the energy created by the perceived gap between what we want and what we’re experiencing
Explain functional vs. dysfunctional conflict and name their desirable outcomes
- functional conflict = constructive or cooperative conflict, is characterized by:
- consultative interactions
- a focus on the issues
- mutual respect,
- and useful give-and-take
desirable outcomes:
- open-mindedness
- increased understanding and strengthened relationships
- innovation
- accelerated growth
- dysfunctional conflict = disagreements that threaten or diminish an organization’s interests
- absenteeism -> more conflict generates more stress, more stress results in more time off
- turnover -> lack of fairness, bullying, or other forms of disrespect and incivility cause people to quit altogether
- unionization -> a lack of fairness can be costly and motivate employees to organize to combat poor treatment and practices
- litigation -> if conflict is not dealt with effectively internal to the organization, many employees will seek legal remedies which are often expensive not only in terms of money, but also time and reputations
Name ten common causes of workplace conflict
- Personality differences
- Irritating workplace behaviors
- Unmet needs at work
- Perceived inequities of resources and policies
- Unclear roles and responsibilities
- Competing responsibilities
- Change
- Poor management
- Poor communication (including no communication)
- Differences in methods for doing work
Name five common warning signs of conflict escalation
- Tactics change
- Growing number of issues
- Issues moving from specific to general
- Number of involved parties grows
- Goals change
Name the five steps of how to “avoid avoiding”
- Stop ignoring a conflict
- Act decisively to improve the outcome
- Make the path to resolution open and honest
- Use descriptive language instead of evaluative
- Make the process a team-building opportunity
- Keep the upside in mind
Name the three desired outcomes of conflict management
- Change -> conflict is rarely productively resolved if nothing changes
- Goal alignment -> incongruent objectives are common sources of conflict for individuals, groups, and departments, and organizations. Confronting these is an opportunity to review and realign goals to serve the parties involved
- Innovation -> the cousin of change, innovation occurs when conflict generates new and more effective processes, products, and mindset
Explain conflicts for individuals and name their pro’s
For individuals conflicts are related to…
- wellbeing and health
- creativity
- motivation
Pros for having conflicts:
- increase self-knowledge
- challenge problem solving skills
- enable personal growth and development
- essential for developing relationships
Explain conflicts for groups and name their pro’s
For groups conflicts are related to…
- innovation
- performance and commitment
- satisfaction
etc.
Pros for having conflicts:
- increase performance
- necessary to deal with latent issue
- challenge the status-quo -> may stimulate creativity and innovation
- improve problem solving quality
Explain conflicts for organization, name their most common types and their pro’s
For organizations conflicts are related to…
- mergers
- org. resolution systems
- performance
etc.
most common types include:
- task conflicts e.g.: critical debate, open discussion
- relationship conflicts e.g.: gossip, ideals, and political views
- process conflicts e.g.: who is responsible for what
Pros for having conflicts:
- increase performance
- necessary to deal with latent issues
- prevent a standardized, routine-based approach
- stimulate creativity and innovation
- improve problem solving quality
Name four of the most common reasons people avoid conflict
- We’re social
- It’s stressful
- Agreeableness is rewarded
- Backlash -> fear of damaging relationships
Name and explain the five common conflict-handling styles
Integrating: Interested parties confront the issue and cooperatively identify it, generate and weigh alternatives, and select a solution
Obliging:
- tends to show low concern for self and a great concern for others
- such people tend to minimize differences and highlight similarities to please the other party
Dominating:
- high concern for self and low concern for others, often characterized by “I win, you lose” tactics. The other party’s needs are largely ignored. This style is often called forcing because it relies on formal authority to force compliance
Avoiding: Passive withdrawal from the problem and active suppression of the issue are common
Compromising: Is a give-and-take approach with a moderate concern for both self and others. Compromise is appropriate when parties have opposite goals or possess equal power
Name and explain forms of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) and their benefits
- alernative dispute resolution (ADR) is a means for solving disputes using an independent third party and avoid the costs and problems associated with litigation or unilateral decision making
forms:
- facilitation: a third party, usually a manager, informally urges disputing parties to deal directly with each other in a positive and constructive manner
- conciliation: a neutral third party informally acts as a communication conduit between disputing parties
- peer-review: a panel of trustworthy coworkers, selected for their ability to remain objective, hears both sides of a dispute in an informal and confidential meeting
- ombudsman: someone who works for the organization and is widely respected and trusted by his or her coworkers, hears grievances on a confidential basis and attempts to arrange a solution
- mediation: a neutral and trained third party guides the others to find innovative solutions to the conflict
- arbitration: disputing parties agree ahead of time to accept the decision of a neutral arbitrator in a formal court-like setting, often complete with evidence and witnesses
benefits:
- speed
- low cost
- confidentiality
- winning solutions
Explain what negotiations (inclduing their two forms) are and how they are affected
- negotiation is a give-and-take decision-making process involving two or more parties with different preferences
- they are affected by emotions and ethics
two types:
- position-based negotiation focuses on a single issue and dividing a fixed pie
- interest-based negotiation seeks agreements that serve both parties varied interests
Name and explain the different components on the dual concern model
= the approach to conflict management is a combination of concern for self and concern for the other (i.e., a duality)
- the model consists of five conflict handling styles:
– avoiding: “I try to avoid conflicts at all costs”
characteristics: maintaining status quo, detests conflict and minimizes risks, physical avoidance, avoiding actual contact
concern for self and others is low
– competing: “I make sure I get what I want”
characteristics: autonomous, decisive, convinced of being right, pressure and force, using pressing arguments and explanation
concern for self is high, while concern for others is low
– compromising: “We look for the middle ground”
characteristics: pragmatic, businesslike, distribution of outcomes, minimal time and energy
concern for self and others is balanced
– accomodating: “I try to make sure that others get what they want”
characteristics: prosocial, insecure, crucial to make concessions, adapting aspirations
concern for self is low, while concern for others is high
– collaborating: “We look for solutions that work for all”
characteristics: mutuality, creativity, large investments, open approach, searching for mutually beneficial solutions
concern for self and for others is high
Explain formal vs. informal groups and their subgroups
- formal groups = groups that are created by an organization and are designed intentionally to direct members toward some important organizational goal
subgroups: - command groups (formal power, based on organizational chart)
- task groups (specialized expertise)
- informal groups = groups that develop naturally among an organization’s personnel without any directions from the management of the organization
subgroups: - interest groups (shared interests and ideas to advance in the company)
- friendship groups (common interests unrelated to organization)
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Attitudes9
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Personality & Diversity18
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Motivation21
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Perceptions, Decisions and Power43
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Leadership32
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Teams & Conflicts29
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Human Resource Management - Theory17
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Culture and Change18
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Training & Development16
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Recruitment & Selection13
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Performance management & Rewards15
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Dark side of OB HRM9
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Trending topics in HRM14
