Groups in Organizations

Definitions
Group

Two or more people interacting

and interdependent individuals
who come together to
accomplish specific goals

Groups & Teams in

Organizations
Types of Groups

Functional or Command or Formal Group

A group determined by the organizational structure

to accomplish a number of organizational tasks with
an indefinite time horizon. The individuals report
directly to a given manager.

Informal or interest or Social Group

Created by its members of common interest and

friendships for purposes that may or may not be
relevant to the organization

Task Group

A group created by the organization to accomplish a

relatively narrow range of purposes within a stated
time horizon

Teams in Organizations
Definitions
Team

A group of workers who function as a unit, often with

little or no supervision, to carry out work-related
activities
Organizations create teams to give more
responsibility to workers, to empower workers, to
allow the organization to capitalize on the workers
knowledge and motivation, and to shed bureaucracy
and promote flexibility
Sometimes are called self-managed teams, crossfunctional teams, or high performance teams.

Groups & Teams in

Organizations
Types
of Teams
Problem
solving team

Comprises knowledge workers who gather

to solve a specific problem, then disband

Management team

Consists mainly of managers from various

functions, who coordinate work among
other teams

Groups & Teams in

Organizations
of Teamscontinued
Types
Work team

Responsible for the daily work of the

organization and, when empowered,
are self-managed teams

Virtual team
Members interact via computer
Quality circle

Consists of workers and supervisors,

who meet to discuss workplace
problems

Groups & Teams in Organization

Why People Join
Interpersonal attraction
People are attracted to one another
Group activities

Activities of the group appeal to them

Group goals
Groups goals motivate them
Need satisfaction

Satisfies an individuals need for affiliation

Instrumental benefits
Membership provides other benefits

Forming
Members get acquainted
test interpersonal behaviors

Stages of
Group
Developmen
t

Slow
evolution
to next
stage
Storming
Members develop group
structure and patterns of
interaction
Burst of
activity
to next
stage
Norming
Members share acceptance
of roles, sense of unity
Slow
evolution
to next
stage
Performing
Members enact roles, direct
effort toward goal attainment
and performance

Stages of Group
Development

Forming includes:

Two stages: joining the group people join

formally because of some task assignments
defining the groups purpose, structure and
leadership great deal of uncertainty as
members test the water
Storming includes:
Defensiveness, competition, and factions i.e,
intragroup conflicts
Arguing among members, even when they
agree

Stages of Group
Development

Norming includes:

Establishing and maintaining team ground rules,

common set of expectations regarding member
behavior
Strong sense of group identity, camaraderie and
cohesiveness

Performing includes:

Ability of the group/team to prevent or work

through problems
Close attachment to the team

Adjourning includes:

Stages
of
Group
Develo
pment

Source: Van Fleet, David D., and Tim

Peterson, Contemporary Management,
Third Edition. Copyright 1994 by
Houghton Mifflin Company. Used with
permission.

Characteristics of Teams

Role

The part an individual plays in

helping the group reach its goals.

Task-specialistrole concentrating on
getting the groups tasks accomplished.
Socioemotional roleproviding social
and emotional support to others on
the team.

Characteristics of Teams

Role Structures

The set of defined roles and

interrelationships among those
roles that the group or team
members define and accept.
A result of role episodes in which
the expected role is translated and
defined into the enacted role.
Role ambiguityoccurs when the
sent role is unclear.

Characteristics of Teams

The Development of a Role

The first two stages of role development are

group processes as the group members let the
individuals know what is expected of them.
The other two parts are individual processes as
the new group members perceive and enact their
roles.

Expected
role

Sent
role

Perceived
role

Enacted
role

Characteristics of Teams

Role Structures

Role conflictoccurs when the messages and

cues comprising the sent role are clear but
contradictory or mutually exclusive.

Interrole conflict is the result of a conflict between roles.

Intrarole conflict is caused by conflicting demands from
different sources.
Intrasender conflict arises when a single source sends
contradictory messages.
Person-role conflict is the discrepancy between role
requirements and an individuals values, attitudes, and
needs.

Characteristics of Teams

Role Structures

Role ambiguity When

the sent role is unclear
Role overload
occurs when role
expectations exceed
an individuals
capacities.

Characteristics of Teams

Implications

Avoid role ambiguity, conflict, and

overload by:

Having clear and reasonable expectations of

employees.
Sending clear and straightforward role cues.
Taking into account the employees other
roles and personal value system.
Recognizing an individuals
capabilities and limits.

Characteristics of Teams

Behavioral Norms

Norms are standards of behavior that a group

accepts and expects of its members.
Norms define the boundaries between
acceptable and unacceptable behavior.

Norm generalizationthe norms of one

group cannot always be generalized
to another group.
Norm variationnorms and their
application vary within a group
or team.

Characteristics of Teams

Behavioral Norms

Norm conformity individuals conform as

response to:

Group or team pressure to conform to group

behavior.
An initial (ambiguous) stimulus
prompting
group behavior.
Individual traits that reflect their
propensity to conform.
The influence of situational
factors (e.g., group size and unanimity).

Characteristics of Teams

Behavioral Norms

Individual responses to norm conformity:

Adopt the norms of the group.

Try to obey the spirit of the norms
while retaining individuality.

Socialization

Norm conformity that occurs when

a person makes the transition from
being an outsider to being an insider
in the organization.

Group Cohesiveness
Cohesiveness The extent to which
members are loyal and committed to the
group; the degree of mutual attractiveness
within
group.
Factorsthe
increasing
cohesiveness

Factors reducing
cohesiveness

Intergroup competition

Group size

Personal attraction

Disagreement on goals

Favorable evaluation
Agreement on goals
Interaction

Intragroup competition
Domination
Unpleasant experiences

Characteristics of Teams

Consequences of Cohesiveness
The interaction between cohesiveness
and performance norms
The best situation is
Moderate
High
high cohesiveness
performance
performance
combined with
high performance

Performance norms

High

Low
Low

Low
performance

Lowest
performance

Cohesiveness

High

Characteristics of Teams

Formal and Informal Leadership

Informal leader

A person who engages in leadership activities

but whose right to do so has not been formally
recognized by the organization or group.
An informal leader, ideally, may also be the
formal leader for the group or he may
supplement the formal leader in fulfilling
leadership roles.
Informal leaders draw on referent or expert
power to establish themselves as leaders.

Characteristics of Teams
(contd)

Formal and Informal Leadership

Formal leader

A person who has been elected or

designated to engage in leadership
activities by the group members
A person who has been formally
appointed or recognized by
the organization as the
leader for the group.

Group and Team Decision

Making in Organizations

The most common method of

group and team decision making
are:

Interacting groups
Delphi groups
Nominal groups.

Group Decision Making

Advantages

Disadvantages

More information &

knowledge are available

The process takes

longer, so it is more
costly

More alternatives are

likely to be generated
More acceptance of the
final decision is likely
Enhanced
communication of the
decision may result
Better decisions

Compromise
decisions due to
indecisiveness may
emerge
One person may
dominate the group
Groupthink may occur

Groupthin
k

A situation that occurs

when a group or
teams desire for
consensus and
cohesiveness
overwhelms its desire
to reach the best
Source: Gregory Moorhead, Group &
possible
Organizations
Studies (Vol.decision.
7, No. 4), pp.

429-444. Copyright 1982 by Sage

Publications, Inc. Reprinted by permission
of Sage Publications, Inc.

Managing Group and Team

Decision-Making Processes
Promoting the Effectiveness of Group
and Team Decision Making:

Be aware of the pros and

cons of having a group or
team make a decision.
Set deadlines for when
decisions must be made.
Avoid problems with
dominance by managing
group membership.
Hold a follow-up meeting
to recheck the decision.

Have each group

member individually
and critically evaluate
all alternatives.
As a manager, do not
make your position
known too early.
Appoint a group
member to be a
devils advocate.

Interpersonal and
Intergroup Conflict

The Nature of Conflict

Conflict

A disagreement between two or more

individuals, groups, or organizations.

Interpersonal and
Intergroup Conflict

The Nature of Conflict

There is an optimal level of conflict in an

organization:

Too little conflict and the organization becomes complacent

and apathetic, and lacks innovation and underperforms.
Too much conflict creates a dysfunctional organization
where hostility and non-cooperation dominate, and the
organization suffers from low performance.
A moderate level of conflict in an
organization fosters motivation,
creativity, innovation, and initiative
and can raise performance.

Interpersonal and
Intergroup Conflict

The Nature of Organizational

Conflict
High
Performance

Low
Low

Optimal level of conflict

Conflict

High

Interpersonal and
Intergroup Conflict

Interpersonal Conflict

Personality clash
Differing beliefs or
perceptions
Competitiveness

Intergroup Conflict

Interdependence
Different goals
Competition for scarce
resources

Causes of Conflict

Conflict Between
Organization and the
Environment

Conflict with
competition
Conflict with
consumer groups
Conflict with
employees

Causes and Consequences

of Conflict

Source: Van Fleet,

David D., and Tim
Peterson,
Contemporary
Management, Third
Edition. Copyright
1994 by Houghton
Mifflin Company.
Used with
permission.

Managing Conflict in
Organizations

Methods for Managing Conflict

Stimulating conflict
Increase competition among individuals and teams
Hire outsiders to shape things up
Change established procedures

Controlling conflict
Expand resource base
Enhance coordination of interdependence
Set supraordinate goals
Match personalities and work habits of employee

Resolving and eliminating conflict

Avoid conflict
Convince conflicting parties to compromise
Bring conflicting parties together to confront and negotiate conflict