Group Dynamics

1. Group Dynamics

2. TYPES OF GROUPS AND TEAMS • A group is a collection of people who interact with each other, are working toward some common purpose, and perceive themselves to be a group • A team is a special type of group. Team members have complementary skills and are committed to a common purpose, a set of performance goals, and an approach to the task.

3. TYPES OF GROUPS AND TEAMS • A major factor in understanding both groups and teams is that they are governed to some extent by group norms, the guidelines for acceptable and unacceptable behaviors that are informally agreed upon by group members

4. Formal versus Informal Groups • A formal group is one deliberately formed by the organization to accomplish specific tasks and achieve goals. • Informal groups emerge over time through the interaction of workers. Informal groups satisfy a social or recreational purpose yet at the same time may deal with work problems.

5. Types of Work Teams • Cross-functional teams comprise workers with different specialties. • Virtual teams communicate electronically instead of face-to-face. • Crews assign specific roles to specialists. • Top management teams are executives working together or sharing the work.

6. Cross-functional teams. A cross-functional team is a work group composed of work groups from different specialties, but about the same organizational level, who come together to accomplish a task. Product development is the most frequent purpose of a cross-functional team.

7. Cross-functional teams. • Leader must have both technical and process skills. • Enhance communication across groups • Strong customer focus – orients itself towards satisfying specific customers

8. Virtual team • A small group of people who conduct almost all of their collaborative work by electronic communication rather than face-to-face meetings.

9. Virtual Teams • Face the challenge of differences in perception of time, and different non-work days. • Mutual trust is a major factor for the success of a virtual team. • Trust is established by repeatedly setting expectations and then delivering results that meet or surpass those expectations.

10. Crews • A group of specialists each of whom has specific roles, perform brief events that are synchronized with each other, and repeat these events under different environmental conditions. • A crew is identified by the technology it handles.

11. Crews • Criteria for a group to qualify as a crew: • Clear roles and responsibilities • The workflow is well-established • Careful coordination is required • The group needs to be in a specific environment to complete its task • Different people can join the group without interfering with its operation or mission

12. Top management team • groups of top managers are teams in the sense that most major decisions are made collaboratively with all members of the top-management group included.

13. Stages of Group Development Stage 1 Forming Stage 2 Storming Stage 5 Adjourning Stage 3 Norming But could continue Stage 4 Performing

14. STAGES OF GROUP DEVELOPMENT Stage 1: Forming. Members are eager to learn what tasks they will be performing, and what constitutes acceptable behavior. Stage 2: Storming. During this “shakedown” period, individual styles come into conflict. Hostility, infighting, tension, and confrontation are typical. Members may argue to clarify expectations of their contribution. Subgroups may attempt to form their own agenda.

15. STAGES OF GROUP DEVELOPMENT Stage 3: Norming. Group standards of conduct are formed, and cohesiveness and commitment begin to develop. Norms may stem from the group itself, from the larger organization, and from professional codes of conduct. Stage 4: Performing. The group is now ready to focus on accomplishing its key tasks, and the group becomes a well-functioning unit. Ideally, group members feel they are working “for the cause.” Stage 5: Adjourning. After the task is completed, the group adjourns, yet members depart with important relationships and understandings they can use again in the future. Many groups reform when the need arises.

16. Knowledge contributor Process observer People supporter Challenger (confronts bad ideas) 5. Listener 6. Mediator 7. Gatekeeper (lets other members into the discussion) 8. Take-charge leader Roles within Group

17. Roles within Groups • Knowledge contributor. The knowledge contributor provides the group with useful and valid information. • Process observer. A person occupying this role forces the group to look at how it is functioning. • People supporter. A person occupying this role assumes some leadership responsibility for providing emotional support to teammates and resolving conflict.

18. Roles within Groups • Challenger. A challenger will criticize any decision or preliminary thinking that is deficient in any way, including being ethically unsound. • Listener. Listening contributes so substantially to team success that it comprises a separate role even though other roles involve listening. • Mediator. Because disputes among members may become so prolonged and intense, a team leader or member may have to mediate.

19. Roles within Groups • Gatekeeper. When the opportunity gate for contributing is closed to several members, the gatekeeper pries it open. He or she requests that a specific team member be allowed to contribute, or that the member’s past contribution be recognized. • Take-charge leader. When leadership is lacking, a team member can assume the role of the take-charge leader. A starting point is to encourage the team to define.

20. Effective job design Empowered feeling Interdependence of tasks and goals Team efficacy Right mix of people and size Emotional intelligence Support from the organization Effective processes within the group Group cohesiveness Familiarity with jobs, coworkers, and the environment Characteristics of Effective Work Groups

21. 1. Assemble group 2. Assign subgroups 3. Present question 4. Record ideas 5. Present ideas with no discussion; summarize ideas on chart or screen 5. Group discusses and clarifies ideas 6. Silent and independent voting to rank ideas, then choose best one. Nominal Group Technique

22. The Delphi Technique • Variation of NGT designed to obtain serial feedback • Participants receive questionnaires by e-mail • Responses sent to coordinator who aggregates the opinions and data • Process continues until final version of report

23. Potential Problems in Groups • Group polarization—positions become more extreme • Social loafing—shirking individual responsibility • Groupthink—extreme form of consensus in which reality testing is absent. Members should be encouraged to express doubt.