2019-03-28

MANAGEMENT CONCEPTS II

TEAM WORK AND INTERPERSONAL

COOPERATION

2019 S sem 2 Barbara Jacennik 1

Based primarily on

Adler, R.B., Elmhorst, J., Lucas, K. (2013).

Communicating at work. New York:
McGraw-Hill

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The importance of teams in organizations

Team superior to individual
• Task requires broad range of
talents and knowledge
• Complicated task (requires
division, coordination of
labor)
• Time available for
deliberation
• Members are motivated to
succeed
• High standards of
performance
Individuals superior to team
• Task required limited
knowledge, information
(that individuals possess)
• Simple task (can be done by
one person or individuals
working separately)
• Little time available
• Members don’t care about
job
• „Social loafing” is the norm

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Social loafing
• Tendency of certain members of a group to get by with
less effort than what they would have put when working
alone.
• Its two common manifestations are:
(1) Free-rider effect, where some members do not put in
their share of work under the assumption that others'
efforts will cover their shortfall, and thus cause
(2) Sucker effect, where the other (fully performing)
members lower their efforts in response to the free-
riders' attitude.
Source: Businessdictionary.com
http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/social-
2019 Sloafing.html
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Characteristics of work groups

• Work group – small, interdependant collection of

people with a common identity who interact with
one another, usually face-to-face over time, to reach
a goal

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Characteristics of work groups

SIZE
• Two people – not a group
• Three or more people – different way of interactions
e.g. forming alliances, voting, exerting pressure
• More than 20 people – the group becomes
ineffective
• Communication and decision making – best in groups
of 5-7 members

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Characteristics of work groups

SHARED PURPOSE
• People at a party usually do not share a collective
goal, they won’t collectively accomplish goals
• Leader of a new group should start with giving a
clear sense of purpose

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Characteristics of work groups

INTERACTION OVER TIME

• People in a library – co-acting
• An interacting group develops shared standards –
punctuality, expectations re routine, kind of humour

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Characteristics of work groups

INTERDEPENDENCE
Depending on one another e.g. workers in a
restaurant

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Characteristics of work groups

IDENTITY
• Goups viewed as distinct entities
• Groups having formal title or informal groups
• Individual image tied to group image
• Addition or loss of a group member is significant for
other members

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Work group vs team

• True teams have all attributes of a group plus some

additional qualities
• Team qualities make working together more
satisfying and more productive

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Work group vs team

Groups
• Members primarily
concerned with their
own challenges and
goals
• Members produce
individual products
• Work shaped by
manager
Teams
• Members focus
primarily on team
challenges and goals
• Members produce
collective products
• Work shaped
collectively by team
leader and members

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Winning team characteristics

Larson and Lafasto (2001) research on winning teams

• 3 years interviewing 75 teams
• Interviewees from a range of industries and areas of
achievement:
mountain climbers, cardiac surgery team,
presidential commission, IBM personal computer
designers etc.

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Winning team characteristics

Based on Larson and Lafasto (2001) research

• Clear and inspiring shared goals
• A results-driven structure
• Competent team members
• Unfied commitment – the group’s goals put above
personal interests
• Collaborative climate – teamwork – trust and
support of one another

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Winning team characteristics

Based on Larson and Lafasto (2001) research

• Standards of excellence – doing outstanding work
considered a norm, doing his/her personal best
• External support and recognition – an appreciative
audience that recognizes the team’s effort and
provides the necessary resources (boss, the public,
clients)
• Principled leadership – leaders creating vision of the
team’s purpose and challenging members to get the
job done, stimulating to develop individual talents

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Virtual teams

• Interact and work without being physically in the same

place at the same time
• „Working together apart”
• Technology – crosses boundaries of space and time
• Time difference can be used to advantage in team work
e.g. USA and Europe teams can hand over work back and
forth extending 8-hour work day to 14 hours
• Working with e-communication makes team work more
efficient also for teams in one location (hybrid teams:
face-to-face and virtual)

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Virtual teams

• Newly formed teams do best when members can

meet in person
• Established teams can work equally well online
• People working more than 50 feet (13 m) apart have
a tendency to collaborate no more than once a week
– virtual meetings functional also for people working
in the same building

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Virtual teams

• Virtual teams – leveling of status difference

– on network teams, position rank is not as
prominent
– email exchange less intimidating than face-to-face
• Real time communication – instant messaging and
videoconferencing
• Computer networking vs personal contacts
– Need to pay attention to social aspect of
interaction

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Working in virtual teams – guidelines

• Strive for some face-to-face time especially during
the team’s formation
• Put communication on the agenda – plan means and
schedule
• Be mindful of time zone differences
• Use time zones to your advantage – handing over
tasks back and forth
• Keep a personal touch – express similar emotions
and personal remarks as you would in face-to-face
conversation

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Working in virtual teams – guidelines

• Consider using „back channels” – telephone, email
and messaging when needed to confer directly with
a team member without using the time alloted to
whole team videoconference
• Do a trial run of technology in advance of meetings
• Seek input from all team members – some may be
intimidated by technology, having less experience
using it
• Be aware of cultural differences in communication
style

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Changing perspective on leadership

• Historical view – leadership held by an individual

• Recently – leadership viewed as a process with
different team members taking part to provide
leadership to the team, officially or unofficially

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Leader-Member Exchange theory

• Leaders have different relationships with each

person on their team – LMX (Leader-Member
Exchange) relationships
• Some relationships are positive and satisfying, others
distant or dissatisfying
• Leader-Member Exchange theory views leadership as
a collection of multiple relationships with members,
each one unique

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Leader-Member Exchange theory

• Leaders have a limited time and energy – can’t give

every member an equal amount of resources such as
time and mental energy – this causes differences of
LMX relationships (insiders vs. non-insiders)

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Power and influence of members - types

• Designated leader – formal authority and

responsibility to supervise
• Self-directed work teams – no manager present
– When work organisation and operating system is
established and functional, and the employees
engaged and trained the managerial supervision is
not required
– Every member of a team has the power to
influence the interaction and functioning of a
team

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Forms of power possessed by leaders or group

members

French and Raven (1959) – forms of power

• Position power – infuence that comes from the
position
• Coercive power – the power to punish, control
unpleasant conditions or consequences
• Reward power – the ability to reward, pay raises,
social payoffs e.g. increased goodwill

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Forms of power possessed by leaders or group

members

French and Raven (1959) – forms of power

• Expert power – comes from recognition of a
member’s experise in a given area
• Referent power – influence that comes from refering
to persons with popularity, liking, respect, attraction

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Forms of power possessed by group members

French and Raven (1959) – forms of power

• Information power – power that comes from having
access to information sources (insider, grapevine,
competiton, etc.)
• Connection power – comes from connections one
has, e.g. being related to the company owner

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RECOMMENDED READING AND REFERENCES

• Adler, R.B., Elmhorst, J., Lucas, K. (2013).

Communicating at work. New York: McGraw-Hill
• Phillips, P., Moutinho, L. (2018). Contemporary Issues
in Strategic Management. Routledge.
• Businessdictionary.com. Social loafing.
http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/social
-loafing.html

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