Team Dynamics Chapter Seven

Teams at Whole Foods Markets Whole Foods Markets organizes employees around self-directed teams, responsible for a particular store area. These teams have considerable autonomy to operate their store section.

What are Teams? Groups of two or more people Exist to fulfill a purpose Interdependent -- interact and influence each other Mutually accountable for achieving common goals Perceive themselves as a social entity

Groups versus Teams All teams are groups Some groups are just people assembled together Teams have task interdependence whereas some groups do not (e.g., group of employees enjoying lunch together)

Many Types of Teams Departmental teams Production/service/ leadership teams Self-directed teams Advisory teams Skunkworks Task force (project) teams Virtual teams Communities of practice

Why Informal Groups Exist Innate drive to bond Social identity We define ourselves by group memberships Goal accomplishment Emotional support

Advantages of Teams Compared with individuals working alone, teams tend to: Make better decisions Make better products and services due to more knowledge and expertise Increase employee engagement

The Trouble With Teams Individuals better/faster on some tasks Process losses - cost of developing and maintaining teams Brooks’ Law -- more delays when adding members to a team already behind schedule Social loafing Occurs when individuals exert less effort when working in groups than alone

How to Minimize Social Loafing Make individual performance more visible Form smaller teams Specialize tasks Measure individual performance Increase employee motivation Increase job enrichment Select motivated employees

Team Effectiveness Model and Components Team Dynamics

Team Effectiveness Model Task characteristics Team size Team composition Team Design Achieve organizational goals Satisfy member needs Maintain team survival Team Effectiveness Organizational and Team Environment Team development Team norms Team cohesiveness Team trust Team Processes

Team’s Task and Size Task characteristics Team size Better when tasks are clear, easy to implement Share common inputs, processes, or outcomes Task interdependence Team size Smaller teams are better But large enough to accomplish task

Levels of Task Interdependence High Reciprocal A B C Sequential A B C Pooled Resource A B C Low

Shell Looks for Team Players Shell holds the 5-day Gourami Business Challenge in Europe, North America, and Asia to observe how well the university students work in teams. One of the greatest challenges is for students from different cultures and educational specializations to work together. Gourami session in Asia -- Courtesy of Shell International Ltd Gourami session in U.S.A. -- Courtesy of Shell U.S.

Team Composition Effective team members must be willing and able to work on the team Effective team members are good at the 5 C’s: Cooperating Coordinating Communicating Comforting (psych support) Conflict resolving Team diversity Homogeneous or heterogeneous, depending on task requirements Gourami session in Asia -- Courtesy of Shell International Ltd Gourami session in U.S.A. -- Courtesy of Shell U.S.

Team Development Team development involves: Interpersonal knowledge and trust Understand and agree on roles Discover appropriate behaviors Learn to coordinate with each other Develop team mental models

Stages of Team Development Performing Adjourning Existing teams might regress back to an earlier stage of development Norming Storming Forming

Team Norms Informal rules and shared expectations team establishes to regulate member behaviors Norms develop through: Initial team experiences Critical events in team’s history Experience/values members bring to the team

Changing Team Norms Introduce norms when forming teams Select members with preferred values Discuss counter-productive norms Reward behaviors representing desired norms Disband teams with dysfunctional norms

Team Cohesion The degree of attraction people feel toward the team and their motivation to remain members Calculative -- members believe the team will fulfill goals and needs Emotional -- team is part of person’s social identity

Influences on Team Cohesion Member similarity • Similarity-attraction effect • Some forms of diversity have less effect Team size • Smaller teams more cohesive Member interaction • Regular interaction increases cohesion • Calls for tasks with high interdependence

Influences on Team Cohesion (con’t) Somewhat difficult entry • Team eliteness increases cohesion • But lower cohesion with severe initiation Team success • Successful teams fulfill member needs • Success increases social identity with team External challenges • Challenges increase cohesion when not overwhelming

Team Cohesiveness Outcomes Want to remain members Willing to share information Strong interpersonal bonds Resolve conflict effectively Better interpersonal relationships

Cohesiveness and Performance Moderately high task performance High task performance Team Norms Support Company Goals Moderately low task performance Low task performance Team Norms Oppose Company Goals Low Team Cohesiveness High Team Cohesiveness

Trust Defined A psychological state comprising the intention to accept vulnerability based upon positive expectations of the intent or behavior of another person

Knowledge-based Trust Three Levels of Trust High Identity-based Trust Knowledge-based Trust Calculus-based Trust Low

Three Levels of Trust (con’t) Calculus-based trust Based on deterrence Fragile, limited, dependent on punishment Knowledge-based trust Based on predictability and competence Fairly robust, develops over time Identification-based trust Based on common mental models and values Increases with person’s social identity with team

Self-Directed Teams and Virtual Teams Team Dynamics

Self-Directed Teams at Chrysler Chrysler president Tom La Sorda is pushing the automaker into an era of “smart manufacturing” which relies more on self-directed teams (SDTs). This photo shows La Sorda meeting employees at the company’s plant in Saltillo, Mexico, which has already introduced SDTs.

Self-Directed Team Attributes Formal groups that complete an entire piece of work requiring several interdependent tasks and have substantial autonomy over the execution of these tasks. 1. Complete an entire piece of work requiring interdependent tasks 2. Substantial autonomy over execution of the team’s tasks

Self-Directed Team Success Factors Responsible for entire work process High interdependence within the team Low interdependence with other teams Autonomy to organize and coordinate work Technology supports team communication/coordination

Virtual Teams Teams whose members operate across space, time, and organizational boundaries and are linked through information technologies to achieve organizational tasks Increasingly possible because of: Information technologies Knowledge-based work Increasingly necessary because of: Knowledge management Globalization

Virtual Team Success Factors Member characteristics Technology savvy Self-leadership skills Emotional intelligence Flexible use of communication technologies Opportunities to meet face-to-face

Team Decision Making Team Dynamics

Team Decision Making Constraints Time constraints Time to organize/coordinate Production blocking Evaluation apprehension Belief that other team members are silently evaluating you Conformity to peer pressure Suppressing opinions that oppose team norms Groupthink Tendency in highly cohesive teams to value consensus at the price of decision quality Concept is losing favor -- need to consider specific features instead (e.g. overconfidence)

General Guidelines for Team Decisions Team norms should encourage critical thinking Sufficient team diversity Ensure neither leader nor any member dominates Maintain optimal team size Introduce effective team structures

Constructive Conflict Courtesy of Johnson Space Center/NASA Occurs when team members debate their different perceptions about an issue in a way that keeps the conflict focused on the task rather than people. Problem: constructive conflict easily slides into personal attacks

Rules of Brainstorming Speak freely Don’t criticize Provide as many ideas as possible Build on others’ ideas

Evaluating Brainstorming Strengths Produces more innovative ideas Strengthens decision acceptance and team cohesiveness Sharing positive emotions encourages creativity Higher customer satisfaction if clients participate Weaknesses Production blocking still exists Evaluation apprehension exists in many groups Fewer ideas generated than when people work alone

Electronic Brainstorming Participants share ideas using software Usually in the same room, but may be dispersed Question posted, then participants submit their ideas or comments on computer Comments/ideas appear anonymously on computer screens or at front of room

Evaluating Electronic Brainstorming Strengths Less production blocking Less evaluation apprehension More creative synergy More satisfaction with process Weaknesses Too structured Technology-bound Candid feedback is threatening Not applicable to all decisions

Nominal Group Technique Individual Activity Team Activity Individual Activity Describe problem Write down possible solutions Possible solutions described to others Vote on solutions presented

Team Dynamics Chapter Seven