Robbins & Judge

Organizational Behavior
14th Edition

Understanding
Understanding Work
Work Teams
Teams

Kelli J. Schutte
William Jewell College

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10-1

Chapter
Chapter Learning
Learning Objectives
Objectives
 After studying this chapter, you should be able to:
– Analyze the growing popularity of teams in organizations.
– Contrast groups and teams.
– Compare and contrast four types of teams.
– Identify the characteristics of effective teams.
– Show how organizations can create team players.
– Decide when to use individuals instead of teams.
– Show how our understanding of teams differs in a global
context.

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10-2

Why
Why Have
Have Teams
Teams Become
Become So
So Popular?
Popular?

 Great way to use employee talents

 Teams are more flexible and responsive to changes in the
environment
 Can quickly assemble, deploy, refocus, and disband
 Facilitate employee involvement
 Increase employee participation in decision making
 Democratize an organization and increase motivation
 Note: teams are not ALWAYS effective

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10-3

Differences
Differences between
between Groups
Groups and
and Teams
Teams

 Work Group
– A group that interacts primarily to share information and to
make decisions to help each group member perform within
his or her area of responsibility
– No joint effort required

 Work Team
– Generates positive synergy through coordinated effort. The
individual efforts result in a performance that is greater than
the sum of the individual inputs

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10-4

Comparing
Comparing Work
Work Groups
Groups and
and Work
Work Teams
Teams

E X H I B I T 10-1
E X H I B I T 10-1

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Types
Types of
of Teams
Teams
 Problem-Solving Teams
– Groups of 5 to 12 employees from the
same department who meet for a few
hours each week to discuss ways of
improving quality, efficiency, and the
work environment

 Self-Managed Work Teams

– Groups of 10 to 15 people who take
on the responsibilities of their former
supervisors

See E X H I B I T 10-2
See E X H I B I T 10-2

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10-6

More
More Types
Types of
of Teams
Teams
 Cross-Functional Teams
– Employees from about the same hierarchical level, but from
different work areas, who come together to accomplish a
task

– Very common
– Task forces
– Committees

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10-7

AA Final
Final Type
Type of
of Team
Team
 Virtual Teams
– Teams that use computer technology to tie together
physically dispersed members in order to achieve a common
goal
 Characteristics
– Limited socializing
– The ability to overcome time and space constraints
 To be effective, needs:
– Trust among members
– Close monitoring
– To be publicized

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10-8

AA Team-Effectiveness
Team-Effectiveness Model
Model

The model assumes that

teamwork is preferable
to individual work.

E X H I B I T 10-3
E X H I B I T 10-3

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10-9

Key
Key Components
Components of
of Effective
Effective Teams
Teams
Context
Composition
Work Design
Process Variables

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10-10

Creating
Creating Effective
Effective Teams:
Teams: Context
Context
 Adequate Resources
– Need the tools to complete the job
 Effective Leadership and Structure
– Agreeing to the specifics of work and how the team fits
together to integrate individual skills
– Even “self-managed” teams need leaders
– Leadership especially important in multi-team systems
 Climate of Trust
– Members must trust each other and the leader
 Performance and Rewards Systems that Reflect Team
Contributions
– Cannot just be based on individual effort
Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10-11
Creating
Creating Effective
Effective Teams:
Teams: Composition
Composition
 Abilities of Members
– Need technical expertise, problem-solving, decision-making,
and good interpersonal skills
 Personality of Members
– Conscientiousness, openness to experience, and
agreeableness all relate to team performance
 Allocating Roles and Diversity
– Many necessary roles must be filled
– Diversity can often lead to lower performance
 Size of Team
– The smaller the better: 5 to 9 is optimal
 Members’ Preference for Teamwork
– Do the members want to be on teams?

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10-12

Key
Key Roles
Roles On
On Teams
Teams

E X H I B I T 10-4
E X H I B I T 10-4

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10-13

Creating
Creating Effective
Effective Teams:
Teams: Work
Work Design
Design

 Freedom and Autonomy

– Ability to work independently
 Skill Variety
– Ability to use different skills and talents
 Task Identity
– Ability to complete a whole and identifiable task or product
 Task Significance
– Working on a task or project that has a substantial impact on
others

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10-14

Creating
Creating Effective
Effective Teams:
Teams: Process
Process
 Commitment to a Common Purpose
– Create a common purpose that provides direction
– Have reflexivity: willing to adjust plan if necessary
 Establishment of Specific Team Goals
– Must be specific, measurable, realistic, and challenging
 Team Efficacy
– Team believes in its ability to succeed
 Mental Models
– Have an accurate and common mental map of how the work gets
done
 A Managed Level of Conflict
– Task conflicts are helpful; interpersonal conflicts are not
 Minimized Social Loafing
– Team holds itself accountable both individually and as a team

E X H I B I T 10-5
E X H I B I T 10-5

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10-15

Turning
Turning Individuals
Individuals into
into Team
Team Players
Players
 Selection
– Make team skills one of the interpersonal skills in the hiring
process.
 Training
– Individualistic people can learn
 Rewards
– Rework the reward system to encourage cooperative efforts
rather than competitive (individual) ones
– Continue to recognize individual contributions while still
emphasizing the importance of teamwork

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10-16

Beware!
Beware! Teams
Teams Aren’t
Aren’t Always
Always the
the Answer
Answer
Teams take more time and resources than does individual
work.
Three tests to see if a team fits the situation:
1. Is the work complex and is there a need for different
perspectives – will it be better with the insights of more
than one person?
2. Does the work create a common purpose or set of goals for
the group that is larger than the aggregate of the goals for
individuals?
3. Are members of the group involved in interdependent
tasks?

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10-17