MANAGING

TEAMS
Prepared by: Audrey V. Cawis
 Traditional Approaches
VS.
Team-Based Organizations
  
TRADITIONAL TEAM-BASED
Most communication starts at the top. Since teams are more flexible, they can
The use of formal communication is used use different modes of communication to
COMMUNICATION such as newsletters, e-mail, and other share information, make announcements
company collaterals, and status report updates.

DECISION MAKING A manager usually makes the decisions. Team leaders seek the participation of the
team members and conduct
brainstorming meetings to gather
information.

MEETINGS A manager usually schedules and leads Team members are empowered to call
meetings. He or she sets the agenda and meetings on their own. Virtual meetings
controls the flow from one topic to the could also be conducted.
next.  
 

PERFORMANCE Managers review the performance of all Team leaders usually gather information
subordinates. from not only superior, but also peers,
EVALUATION   subordinates and business partners.
WHY WORK
TEAMS?
 WORK TEAMS
Defined as a small number of people with
COMPLEMENTARY SKILLS who hold
themselves mutually accountable for
pursuing a COMMON PURPOSE,
ACHIEVING PERFORMANCE GOALS,
and IMPROVING INTERDEPENDENT
WORK PROCESSES.
A team has a common goal or purpose where
team members can develop effective, mutual
relationships to achieve team goals. (Harris &
Harris, 1996)
THE GOOD AND BAD OF USING TEAMS
 ADVANTAGES OF TEAMS

Customer Satisfaction Product and Service quality Decision making

Employee job Speed and Efficiency in

satisfaction product development
DISADVANTAGES OF TEAMS

High turnover Social loafing

Groupthink Minority Domination

FACTORS THAT ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO
WITHHOLD EFFORT
IN TEAMS
The presence of someone with expertise.

The presentation of a compelling argument.

The lack of confidence in one’s ability to contribute.

An unimportant or meaningless decision.

A dysfunctional decision-making climate.

WHEN TO USE TEAMS
 KINDS OF TEAMS
Autonomy, the Key Dimension
Teams can be classified in a number of ways,
such as permanent or temporary, or functional
or cross-functional. However, studies indicate
that the amount of autonomy possessed by a
team is the key difference among teams.

*Autonomy
-The degree to which workers have the
discretion, freedom, and independence to
decide how and when to accomplish their jobs.
• Traditional work groups
• Employee Involvement teams
• Semi-autonomous work groups
• Self-Managing teams
• Self-designing teams
SPECIAL KINDS OF TEAMS

Cross-Functional teams
Virtual Teams
Project Teams
 For managing successful teams

1) Maintain good communication.

2) Build positive working relationships.
3) Acknowledge good work.
4) Be real.
5) Be decisive.
6) Delegate jobs to the right people.
7) Manage conflict.
8) Set a good example.
 MANAGING
WORK TEAMS
 WORK TEAM
CHARACTERISTICS

Team Norms
Informally agreed-on
standards that regulate over
team behavior.
Norms are valuable because
they let team members know
what is expected from them.
 Team Cohesiveness
Cohesiveness is the extent to which team members are attracted to a team and
motivated to remain in it.

How to promote cohesiveness:

• Make sure that all members are present at team meetings and activities
• Create additional opportunities for teammates to work together by
rearranging work schedules and creating common workspaces.
• Engage in non-work activities.
• Make employees feel that they are part of an organization
 Team Size
As teams grow, there is a greater chance of minority
domination, where just a few members dominate team
discussions.
Signs that indicate that a team size needs to be changed:
• If decisions are taking too long
• If the team has difficulty making decisions or taking
action
• If a few members dominate the team
• If the communication efforts of team members are weak
 “Overall, the question of the “optimal” group size is a complex one
and future research is needed to determine the impact of team size
given specific team contingencies, such as the nature of the team task
and its consequent internal and external coupling demands.”
(Kozlowski & Bell, 2001)
 Team Conflict
Casual remarks that unintentionally offend a team member or fighting
over scarce resources is the primary cause of team conflict.
• Cognitive conflict – Strongly associated with improvements in team
performance.
• Affective conflict – Strongly associated with decreases in team
performance.
When the organization put unclear policies and rules,
there will be misunderstanding and confusion
between the employees for the rules, some of them
may follow the policy and the rule on the wrong way,
and their intention is to follow the policies on the right
way, so it may cause conflict in the organization.
(Preez, 2011)
Stages of team development
 FORMING

The initial stage of team development.

Some of the first team norms will be established during the stage as
team members begin to find out what behaviors will and won’t be
accepted by the team.
 STORMING
Team members become more assertive at this stage
and more willing to state opinions.
Team members are likely to disagree about what the
group should do and how to do it.
 NORMING
Team members begin to
settle into their roles as
team members.
PERFORMING
Performance
improves because
the team has finally
matured into an
effective, fully-
functioning team.
 DE-NORMING
With new members joining the group, older members may become
defensive as established ways of doing things are questioned and
challenged.

New members change team norms by actively rejecting but passively

neglecting previously established team roles and behaviors.
 DE-STORMING
The team’s comfort level decreases. Team cohesion
weakens are more group members resist conforming
to team norms.
 DE-FORMING
Team members begin to avoid each other and isolate
themselves from team leaders.
  
ENHANCING WORK TEAM
EFFECTIVENESS
 Setting team goals and priorities

Increasing a team’s performance is Without a specific goal

inherently more complex than just for the team itself, team
increasing one individual’s job members may head off in
all directions at once
performance.
pursuing there other
goals
What can companies do to ensure that team goals lead to superior
team performance?

• Team must have a high autonomy or control over how they achieve their
goals
• Teams must be empowered with control resources such as budgets,
workspaces, computers, or whatever else they need to do their jobs, to try to
give people the tools they need to meet tough goals.
• Teams need structural organization.
Structural accommodation – means the ability to change organizational
structures, policies, and practices if doing so helps them achieve their goals.
Bureaucratic accommodation – teams no longer have to go through the
frustratingly slow process of multilevel review and sign-offs to get management
approval before making changes.
Selecting people for
teamwork
• Individualists – put their own interest put their own welfare and interests
first.
• Collectivists – put team or group interests ahead of self-interest

“Successful teamwork relies upon synergism existing between all team members
creating an environment where they are all willing to contribute and participate
in order to promote and nurture a positive, effective team environment. Team
members must be flexible enough to adapt to cooperative working environments
where goals are achieved through collaboration and social interdependence
rather than individualised, competitive goals” (Luca & Tarricone, 2001).
  
Team level
Average of ability, experience, personality, or any other factor on a
team. This is also used to guide selection of teammates when teams
needs a particular set of skills or capabilities to do their jobs well.
Team Diversity
Represents the variances or differences in ability, experience,
personality, or any other factor on a team. Team diversity is often used
to guide the selection of team members when teams must complete a
wide range of different tasks or when tasks are particularly complex.
 Team
Training
 • Decision-making and problem
solving skills – Help members do a
better job in cost-cutting and
improving quality and customer
service.

• Conflict resolution skills – Help

members work out conflicts
without the team leader.

• Technical training – Members are

cross-trained to perform all of the
different jobs on the team.
Team Compensation and
Recognition
Skill-based pay – pay employees for
learning additional skills or
knowledge. There programs
encourage employees to acquire
additional skills they will need to
perform multiple jobs.
Gainsharing – companies share the
financial value of performance
gains, such as productivity
increases, cost savings, or quality
improvements with their workers.
Nonfinancial rewards – these
rewards include vacations, t-shirts,
mugs, etc. are especially effective
when coupled with management
recognition, such as awards,
certificates and praise.