Deck 17: Leading Teams

Question 1

 Which of the following is a characteristic of teams?

A) They deal with simple tasks.
B) Members work independently on tasks.
C) They have clear task objectives.
D) There is no specific timeline for task completion.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

 A(n) _____ is defined as a group of two or more people with complementary skills who are committed to working together to achieve a specific objective.

A) unit
B) system
C) team
D) silo

Answer 2

C

Question 3

 The factor that differentiates work groups from teams is that work groups

A) possess the authority to manage their own work processes.
B) involve individual accountability and clearly defined leadership.
C) involve individuals working together to achieve a common goal.
D) are preferred when the task is complex and sophisticated.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

 The extent to which group members need to work with and rely on each other to produce the collective work of the group is referred to as

A) task complexity.
B) individual accountability.
C) task interdependence.
D) conformity.

Question 5

 Which of the following statements is true of diverse teams?

A) Diverse team members generally lack complementary information and expertise.
B) Collocated teams tend to be more diverse than geographically distributed teams.
C) Dysfunctional conflicts are less likely to be experienced by diverse teams.
D) Diverse team members tend to produce more creative and innovative solutions over the long term.

Question 6

 Which of the following is one of the main components of a team process?

A) Dominating discussions
B) Constructive conflict
C) Increased conformity
D) Blocking behaviors

Question 7

 Which of the following is the best example of a vertical team?

A) Jane, Jack, and Maria, as members of a team, have the authority and responsibility to make decisions and to participate in processes that help the team succeed.
B) Kevin, a manager in the marketing department, had Jim and Jake, team members from the same department, reporting to him on the progress of an ongoing project.
C) Sam, Ben, and Nick are team members working from three different locations on the same project, relying mainly on telephone calls and e-mails to interact with each other.
D) Mike, the project manager, developed a team of middle managers from the marketing, finance, and production departments to work on a project together.

Question 8

 Which of the following is the best example of a self-directed team?

A) Mike, the project head, developed a team of middle managers from the marketing, finance, and production departments to work on a project together.
B) Tom, a manager in the marketing department, had Jim and Jake, team members from the same department,  reporting to him on the progress of an ongoing project.
C) Sam, Ben, and Nick are team members working from three different locations on the same project, reporting to their project manager through telephone calls and e-mails.
D) Jane, Jack, and Maria, as members of a team, have the authority and responsibility to make decisions and to participate in processes that help the team succeed.

Question 9

 Which of the following statements is true of team composition?

A) All members should necessarily agree on how a problem has to be solved.
B) Team members should not be open to new ideas as they might cause confusion.
C) It is not necessary for teams to be composed of members with a common purpose.
D) Effective teams include members with technical and interpersonal skills.

Question 10

 Kevin is leading a team whose members came together and got to know about their tasks and responsibilities, and got an idea about each of their team member's competencies.Which of the following should Kevin typically do during this stage of team development?

A) Disband the team.
B) Provide resources.
C) Manage feelings of sadness.
D) Help the team evaluate work.

Question 11

 Which of the following is the best example of a collocated team?

A) Mike, the project head, developed a team of middle managers from the marketing, finance, and production departments to work on a project together. 
B) Tom, a manager in the marketing department, had Jim and Jake, team members from the same department, reporting to him on the progress of an ongoing project.
C) Jane, Jack, and Maria, as members of a team, use a significant amount of face-to-face communication to make operating decisions.
D) Sam, Ben, and Nick are team members working from three different locations on the same project, reporting to their project manager through telephone calls and e-mails. 

Question 12

 Which of the following statements about teams and work groups is true?

A) All teams may not be a work group, but all work groups are necessarily teams.
B) Unlike teams, work groups are not effective at achieving a group's goals.
C) Teams are better than work groups when the task is complex and sophisticated.
D) Teams tend to have a clearer structure than work groups.

Question 13

 Which of the following teams is the best example of a team in the adjourning stage of development?

A) A team with members sharing their personal opinion with others and group members being more open to one another's ideas and suggestions
B) A team with members arguing with each other due to interpersonal issues arising from differences in the perspectives of each team member
C) A team with some members feeling sad and some feeling relief but ready to move on to the next challenge
D) A team with members getting to know their tasks and responsibilities and each of their team member's competencies

Question 14

 _____ teams are composed of a manager and his or her subordinates in the formal chain of command, usually in one functional department.

A) Collocated
B) Vertical
C) Cross-functional
D) Self-directed

Question 15

 Which of the following is the best example of a geographically distributed team?

A) Jane, Jack, and Maria, team members with different cultural backgrounds, are responsible for contributing information to a project based on cultural diversity.
B) Mike, a project head, developed a team of middle managers from the marketing, finance, and production departments to work on a project together.
C) Sam, Ben, and Nick are team members working from three different locations on the same project, relying mainly on telephone calls, e-mails, and videoconferencing to interact with each other.
D) Tom, a manager in the marketing department, had Jim and Jake, project members who came from another country, reporting to him on the progress of an ongoing project.

Question 16

 A task is considered complex when

A) it involves a lot of uncertainty about possible outcomes.
B) additional information is not needed to understand the task.
C) standardized procedures are present to conduct the task.
D) there are no subtasks that require a range of skills and knowledge.

Question 17

 Which of the following statements about team size is true?

A) The optimal size of a team ranges from 20-30.
B) It is generally better to have too many than too few members.
C) As the size of a team increases beyond 20 members, the tendency to collaborate increases.
D) Team size should reflect the nature of the task.

Question 18

 Which of the following teams is the best example of a team in the norming stage of development?

A) A team with members sharing their personal opinion with others and group members being more open to one another's ideas and suggestions
B) A team with members arguing with each other due to interpersonal issues arising from differences in the perspectives of each team member
C) A team that has completed its task and dispersed, with some members feeling sad at the separation from the team on which they have been so dependent
D) A team that comes together and team members get to know about their tasks and responsibilities and each of their team member's competencies

Question 19

 Which of the following is the best example of a team in the storming stage of development?

A) A team that has completed its task and dispersed, with some members feeling sad at the separation from the team on which they have been so dependent
B) A team with members arguing with each other due to interpersonal issues arising from differences in the perspectives of each team member
C) A team with members sharing their personal opinion with others and group members being more open to one another's ideas and suggestions
D) A team that comes together and team members get to know about their tasks and responsibilities and each of their team member's competencies

Question 20

 Tom, the head of human resources, is working on an important project for which he develops a team of five middle-level managers, each coming from a different department, including finance, IT, marketing, logistics, and production. The five managers will be reporting to Tom, who heads the team, and will coordinate among themselves to complete the project on time. This scenario shows that

A) the managers belong to a functional team.
B) Tom has formed a horizontal team.
C) Tom has formed a geographically distributed team.
D) the managers belong to a self-directed team.

Question 21

 Outline the five-stage process of team development.

Question 22

 _____ refers to the extent to which individuals engage in the process of generating solutions and articulating their opinions and perspectives.

A) Participation
B) Conformity
C) Influence
D) Social loafing

Question 23

 Describe manager-led teams.

Question 24

 What defines a team, and under what conditions is the use of teams appropriate?

Question 25

 Vertical teams are composed of employees from about the same hierarchical level but from several different departments in the organization.

Question 26

 Although conformity may speed up the decision-making process, it often results in less than ideal or even negative outcomes.

Question 27

 Work groups are better than teams when the task is complex and sophisticated.

Question 28

 Identify and describe the behaviors of effective team leaders.

Question 29

 Social loafing occurs when team members disengage from the team process and fail to contribute to the team's recommendations or other deliverables.

Question 30

 Teams that include members with divergent agendas often struggle to come together to accomplish their assigned task.

Question 31

 In the forming stage of team development, team members experience conflicts about interpersonal issues.

Question 32

 Which of the following describes a team that is considered effective?

A) The team follows a set of standard rules and procedures.
B) The team enhances the ability of another team.
C) The team enables members to work independently.
D) The team contributes to team members' satisfaction.

Question 33

 When a team includes members with different primary languages, team members should avoid using jargon or slang.

Question 34

 The boundary manager determines

A) whether the team's leader has the ability to effectively manage the team.
B) the size and composition of a team to make sure it efficiently reaches its goals.
C) the roles and task responsibilities of each team member during the forming stage.
D) how a team works with others who have an interest in the team's performance.

Question 35

 Which of the following statements does not provide an example of an effective team leader?

A) Tom focuses more on members' needs than the team's goals.
B) Jill obtains information from external sources and shares it with the team.
C) Carlos presents two perspectives and shows ways in which one is more relevant.
D) Joe provides reinforcing comments when the team faces challenges.

Question 36

 Identify the three main components of team process. Define participation and blocking behaviors.

Question 37

 It is not necessary for effective teams to satisfy their team members.

Question 38

 Which of the following managers should be assigned to lead a geographically distributed team?

A) Jose, who has already shown skill at managing a collocated team
B) Marci, who handles conflicts poorly, because conflicts seldom occur in geographically distributed teams
C) Roger, who will not disclose team members' background information to other team members
D) Saul, who seldom sets guidelines, because there are no timelines for virtual teams

Question 39

 The success of diverse teams increases when their members possess a shared understanding of each other's strengths and limitations.

Question 40

 As the size of a team increases beyond 20 members, the tendency to collaborate increases as coordination activities increase.