Exam 15: Managing Groups and Teams

Refer to the scenario below to answer the following questions. The Retreat (Scenario) The first-line managers were sent on a retreat to Niagara Falls for their inaugural strategic planning meeting. Few people knew one another, but their task was clear: design a new performance appraisal system for subordinates that will be effective and usable. Their years of complaining about the old system had landed them with this new responsibility dumped right in their lap. They had four days to become brilliant, and everyone was a little on edge. The first day, little was accomplished except for the jockeying to see who would be the official leader. Finally, Jim seemed to wrestle control and helped provide the first real direction for the group. By the second day, the group seemed to begin working well. They spent the morning deciding how they would make decisions within the group and how to manage the idea-generation process. The third and fourth days saw the new managers move amazingly quickly, with ideas flowing freely. By the end of the fourth day, they had a workable system developed, and they felt satisfied. That night they all signed the new document to be presented to the regional manager the next day. They all felt a sense of regret at having to break up the group and return to normal work life. -The stage of team development characterized by their being at the retreat for a business reason is known as __________.

Refer to the scenario below to answer the following questions. The Retreat (Scenario) The first-line managers were sent on a retreat to Niagara Falls for their inaugural strategic planning meeting. Few people knew one another, but their task was clear: design a new performance appraisal system for subordinates that will be effective and usable. Their years of complaining about the old system had landed them with this new responsibility dumped right in their lap. They had four days to become brilliant, and everyone was a little on edge. The first day, little was accomplished except for the jockeying to see who would be the official leader. Finally, Jim seemed to wrestle control and helped provide the first real direction for the group. By the second day, the group seemed to begin working well. They spent the morning deciding how they would make decisions within the group and how to manage the idea-generation process. The third and fourth days saw the new managers move amazingly quickly, with ideas flowing freely. By the end of the fourth day, they had a workable system developed, and they felt satisfied. That night they all signed the new document to be presented to the regional manager the next day. They all felt a sense of regret at having to break up the group and return to normal work life. -In the third and fourth days of the retreat, the managers were in the __________ stage of team development.

Refer to the scenario below to answer the following questions. Manny's Many Conflicts (Scenario) Manny Gill is reflecting on several recent conflicts and how they were resolved. At work, he has spent weeks of careful negotiations with the labour union representing most of his workers. The previous round of negotiations had not gone well, and Manny saw an opportunity to try to mend the relationship between labour and management. In the end, both sides had to give up some of their demands in order to achieve a settlement before the current agreement expired. However, Manny was not about to give up any ground on his dispute with the production manager over the latest budget allocation. His position may not be popular, but Manny knew he was right! Then there was his brief encounter with Jeff, who complained that Sherry kept leaving the photocopier tray empty. Manny did not have time to deal with such squabbles, so he told Jeff to sort it out with Sherry directly. At home, he was hoping to catch the game on TV last night, but his wife wanted to watch a light romantic comedy instead. Manny agreed to watch the movie with her since it really seemed to be important to her. Besides, he could always catch the game highlights on the news at eleven! -Which conflict-resolution technique is Manny using in his dispute with the production manager?

Refer to the scenario below to answer the following questions. Manny's Many Conflicts (Scenario) Manny Gill is reflecting on several recent conflicts and how they were resolved. At work, he has spent weeks of careful negotiations with the labour union representing most of his workers. The previous round of negotiations had not gone well, and Manny saw an opportunity to try to mend the relationship between labour and management. In the end, both sides had to give up some of their demands in order to achieve a settlement before the current agreement expired. However, Manny was not about to give up any ground on his dispute with the production manager over the latest budget allocation. His position may not be popular, but Manny knew he was right! Then there was his brief encounter with Jeff, who complained that Sherry kept leaving the photocopier tray empty. Manny did not have time to deal with such squabbles, so he told Jeff to sort it out with Sherry directly. At home, he was hoping to catch the game on TV last night, but his wife wanted to watch a light romantic comedy instead. Manny agreed to watch the movie with her since it really seemed to be important to her. Besides, he could always catch the game highlights on the news at eleven! -Which conflict-resolution technique did Manny use with his wife?

A group whose members work intensely on a specific, common goal using their positive synergy, individual and mutual accountability, and complimentary skills, is called a __________.

Describe the advantages and disadvantages of group decision making.

A manager attempts to resolve a conflict by seeking an advantageous solution for all the parties involved. This conflict management technique is called accommodating.

A set of expected behaviour patterns attributed to someone who occupies a given position in a social unit is called __________.

In global teams, cohesiveness is often more difficult to achieve because of higher levels of mistrust, miscommunication, and stress.

Which of the following would be considered a formal group?

An individual's role in a group is not defined by the internal structure of the group.

According to the interactionist view, __________ conflicts support the goals of the organization.

Refer to the scenario below to answer the following questions. Group Development at MagPie Inc. As a consultant who specializes in group dynamics, you are observing MagPie Inc.'s self-managing teams and work groups which are in different stages of development. MagPie is a medium-sized manufacturing business and has recently started using teams in all of their operations. Team training is lacking and you have been asked to evaluate the teams and suggest actions for better cohesiveness among the team members. You have labelled the teams A, B, C, D and E, in order to conceal their names. Group D has resolved its issues of leadership and is devoting all of its energy to getting the job done. Team C, on the other hand, shows significant resistance to its appointed leader's guidance and there is a lot of argument over roles within the group. The members of Group A are getting acquainted in their meeting. The team is made up of employees from different divisions and departments and they are still getting to know each other. Team E is in the process of setting their formal rules, roles, and clarifying expectations. Everyone seems to be in agreement as to how these are done. Team B is full of hostility. At least one group member has withdrawn by sitting quietly away from the others, and is no longer participating in the discussions. -Group C seems to be at which stage?

The acceptable standards or expectations that are shared by a group's members are referred to as ________.

Groupthink occurs only when group members have a negative image of the group or the leader.

Grace has agreed to conduct market analysis and bring the results to the next project meeting. Grace is performing a(n) __________ role.

Refer to the scenario below to answer the following questions. Conflicting Opinions (Scenario) The two vice-presidents were in a heated debate. Celine believed that the company's traditional marketing strategy was no longer effective at attracting new customers, and that loyal customers would stay regardless. So, she proposed an aggressive new marketing promotion to "spice things up a bit" and target new customers. Merle strongly disagreed. He felt the company was doing fine and was concerned that an aggressive new approach might scare away loyal customers without any guarantee of gaining new customers. Regardless of who was right, their battle was causing a stir in the organization. Some felt that a conflict such as this hurt the company and made it appear weak to employees and shareholders. Others felt that a conflict over marketing strategies was bound to occur eventually, and that it may even help the company. Still others even encouraged such conflict and felt it was absolutely necessary in order to achieve the best outcome. -Those in the company who view the conflict over the marketing strategy as bad and harmful have a(n) __________ view of conflict.

An organization must eliminate conflicts to be successful. Do you agree with this statement? Justify your answer.

Refer to the scenario below to answer the following questions. A New Group (Scenario) David had been away from his old company, Control Tech, for a while. He remembered that when he worked there 10 years ago, the company was very traditional and conservative. The lines of authority and responsibility were established and clear. Now, it felt ironic that he was managing the consulting team that was going to help bring a group orientation into being. In addition to the traditional hierarchy, with a manager and subordinates, he saw a need to introduce teams comprised of individuals from various work areas to help solve operational problems. He also felt that for certain projects, there could be groups that could function essentially independently, even taking on traditional management responsibilities such as hiring, planning, and scheduling. Plus, he also saw real potential for special, temporary projects to be handled by groups that would disband once the task was completed. -The teams comprised of individuals from various work areas are __________.

Since Maria is now a manager, she is expected to wear professional attire, take her breaks in the managers' lounge, and eat lunch at the restaurants where the other managers eat. This expected behaviour pattern is an example of __________.