2. What are Teams?
• Groups of two or more
people
• Interact and influence each
other
• Are mutually accountable for
achieving common objectives
• Perceive themselves as a
social entity
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3. Definition
Harvard Business School Press,1993
“ A team is a small number of people with
complementary skills who are committed
to a common purpose, performance
goals, and approach for which they hold
themselves mutually accountable”
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4. Types of Teams
1.Self managed teams
– Team-based departments
– Self-directed teams
2.Task forces/ problem solving
team
– Temporary teams that investigate a
problem
– Same department
Courtesy of TRW Canada
3.Cross functional teams
– Temporary teams
– Formed spontaneously, using
borrowed resources, to develop
products or solve problems
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5. 4. Virtual Teams
• teams that operate across space, time and
organizational boundaries using electronic
technology
• Increasingly possible because of:
– Technology
– Knowledge-based work
• Increasingly necessary because of:
– Globalization
– Knowledge management
– Need for team work
– Ex - crew of TV network
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6. Why Informal Teams Exist
• Relatedness Needs
– Fulfil need for social interaction
– Social identity
• Goal accomplishment
• Emotional support
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7. Team Effectiveness Model
Organizational and Team
Team Design
Team Environment Effectiveness
• Reward systems •Task characteristics
•Team size • Achieve
• Communication
organizational
systems •Team composition goals
• Physical space
• Satisfy member
• Organizational needs
Team Processes
environment
• Maintain team
• Organizational •Team development survival
structure •Team norms
• Organizational •Team roles
leadership •Team cohesiveness
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8. Team Design Elements
• Task characteristics
– Better when tasks are clear, easy to implement
– Task interdependence
– Share common inputs, processes, or outcomes
• Team size
– Smaller teams are better
– But large enough to accomplish task
• Team composition
– Members motivated/competent to perform task in a
team environment
– Team diversity
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9. Stages of Team Development
Performing
Norming
Storming
Existing teams
Forming might regress Adjourning
back to an
earlier stage of
development
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10. Conformity to Team Norms
100
Day 12:
Peer
pressure Day 28:
75
Units begins Employee
Pressed has doubled
performance
per Hour
50
Day 1: Day 20:
25 Employee Employee
begins job begins
with team working alone
0 4 8 12 16 20 24 28 32 36 40
Production Days
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11. Changing Team Norms
1. Introduce norms when team formed
2. Select members with preferred norms
3. Discuss counterproductive norms
4. Rewards to support desired behaviours
5. Disband the team
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12. Causes of Team Cohesiveness
Member
Similarity
External Member
Challenges Interaction
Team
Cohesiveness
Team Team
Success Size
Somewhat
Difficult Entry
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13. Team Cohesiveness Outcomes
Members of cohesive teams:
• Want to remain members
• Willing to share information
• Strong interpersonal bonds
• Want to support each other
• Resolve conflict effectively
• More satisfied and experience less stress
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14. Cohesiveness and Performance
Team Norms
Support Moderately High
Firm’s High Task Task
Goals
Performance Performance
Team Norms Moderately
Oppose Low Task
Low Task
Firm’s Performance
Goals Performance
Low Team High Team
Cohesiveness Cohesiveness
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15. The Trouble With Teams
• Individuals better/faster on some tasks
• Process losses - cost of developing and
maintaining teams
• Companies don’t support best work
environment for team dynamics
• Social loafing
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16. Conditions for Social Loafing
• Low task interdependence
• Individual output not visible
• Routine, uninteresting tasks
• Low task significance
• Low collectivist values
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17. TEAM FUNCTIONS (facilitation & application)
• Understanding
• Ownership
• Creativity and contribution
• Trust
• Common understanding
• Personal development
• Conflict resolution
• Participative decision making
• Clear leadership
• commitment
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18. The elements that distinguish teams from groups are:-
(1)full commitment by members to a common goal and mission,
(2) mutual accountability,
(3) shared leadership,
(4) trust and a collaborative culture
(5) achievement of synergy, and
(6) complementary skills.
Teams are found to be higher on these six variables as compared to
groups. Groups meet to share information for enabling each member
to perform efficiently in his/her own area of responsibility.
Normally groups may not jointly work on collective goals. Teams
have full commitment to collective goals and mission. Group may
have designated leader while teams have shared leadership.
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