senior engineers leadership residential 25 october, 2010 barb wood assistant professor university of...

Senior Engineers Leadership Residential

25 October, 2010

Barb Wood

Assistant Professor University of Western Australia

Learning Objectives for this session:

1. Appreciate the impact of behaviours within organisations.

2. Consider perceptual processes in teams.3. Enable you to work well with others in this

engineers residential program.4. Consider the art of possibility in your working

life.

Why study Behaviours in Organisations?

Organisationalbehaviourresearch

Understandorganisational

events

Predictorganisational

events

Influenceorganisational

events

Behaving in Organisations

What do we know about human behaviour ?

Who are YOU?

1. Background details• Name• Type of works that interests you

2. Respond to this question: If you had the opportunity to get one tattoo by the end of this residential what image would you choose and where would you place it on your body?

Selective attention

Emotions andbehaviour

Organisation andinterpretation

Perceptual process model

Environmental stimuli

Feeling Hearing Seeing Smelling Tasting

Perceptual process model

Environmental stimuli

Feeling Hearing Seeing Smelling Tasting

Selective attention

Characteristics of the objectsize, intensity, motion, repetition, novelty

Perceptual context

Characteristics of the perceivervalues and attitudesperceptual defenceexpectations condition us to expect events

Selective attention

Perceptual process model

Environmental stimuli

Feeling Hearing Seeing Smelling Tasting

Perceptual Organisation/Interpretation

Categorical thinking Mostly unconscious process of

organising people/thingsPerceptual grouping principles

• Closure – filling in missing pieces• Identifying trends• Similarity or proximity

Selective attention

Organisation andinterpretation

Perceptual process model

Environmental stimuli

Feeling Hearing Seeing Smelling Tasting

Perceptual Organisation/Interpretation

Our Mental modelsbroad world-views or ‘theories-in-use’can blind people to potentially better

perspectivesMental boxes used to store

informationAssumptions used to interpret events

Iceberg Model

Behaviours

Thoughts and Emotions

Values and Beliefs

Unconscious Core Beliefs

Self-talk

Cognitive Schema

• These neural networks (cognitive schema) become habitual and automatic

• Act as filters (filters in what fits, filters out what contradicts).

• Beliefs can change but we tend to keep these beliefs and act them out over time…

• Beliefs are NOT WRONG …just self-limiting

• Especially if they remain unconsciousJeff Young

Selective attention

Emotions andbehaviour

Organisation andinterpretation

Perceptual process model

Environmental stimuli

Feeling Hearing Seeing Smelling Tasting

Attribution process

Our process to decide whether an observed behaviour or event is largely caused by internal or external factors.

• Kelley, 1971

Attribution process

Internal attributionperception that outcomes are due to

motivation/ability rather than situation or fate

External attributionperception that outcomes are due to

situation or fate rather than the person

Perceptual errors

Primacy first impressions

Recency most recent information dominates

perceptions Halo

one trait forms a general impression Projection

believing other people are similar to you

Self Fulfilling Prophecy

Our expectations about a person affect our behaviour towards the person which can affect the person’s ability and self-efficacy

Behaviour becomes consistent with expectations!

Self Fulfilling Prophecy

Supervisorforms

expectations

Expectationsaffect supervisor’s

behaviour

Supervisor’sbehaviour affects

employee

Employee’sbehaviour matches

expectations

Self-Fulfilling Prophecy Contingencies

Self-fulfilling prophecy effect is strongest:1. At the beginning of the relationship (e.g.

employee joins the team)

2. When several people have similar expectations about the person

3. When the employee has low rather than high past achievement

Dealing with self-fulfilling prophecy

Self fulfilling prophecy is less prevalent when:Awareness training - leaders learn effects of

negative perceptions and support a learning orientation

Leaders use contingency leadership stylesEmployees strengthen their self-efficacy

Disclosing and Predicting

Read the purpose and background INSTRUCTIONS – rank yourself through

all five statements – reflect for a moment!! Assess the choices made by others

evaluating one statement at a time and discuss your selections after each statement.

Continue to move through all five statements.

Improving Perceptions

Decision making accountability and meaningful interaction with others

Training in:Empathy

• Sensitivity to the feelings, thoughts and situation of others

• Cognitive and emotional componentSelf-awareness

• Awareness of your values, beliefs and prejudices

• Applying Johari Window

Known to self Unknown to selfKnown

to others

Unknownto others

OpenArea Blind

Area

UnknownArea

HiddenArea

Know yourself (Johari Window)

Openarea

Blindarea

Hiddenarea

Unknownarea

Disclosure

Feedback

What are Teams?

Groups of two or more people

Exist to fulfil a purpose

Interdependent – interact and influence each other

Mutually accountable for achieving common goals

Perceive themselves as a social entity

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Advantages of Teams Advantages

1. Make better decisions, products/services2. Better information sharing3. Increase employee motivation/engagement

• Fulfils drive to bond• Closer scrutiny by team members• Team members are benchmarks of comparison

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Disadvantages of Teams

Disadvantages1. Individuals better/faster on some tasks2. Process losses – cost of developing and

maintaining teams3. Social loafing - the tendency for individuals to

exert less effort when working in a group than when working alone

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Team Design Elements

Task characteristicsclear, easy to implementtask interdependence - share common

inputs, work processes, or outcomes Team size

smaller teams are betterbut large enough to accomplish task

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Existing teams might regress

back to an earlier stage of development

Forming

Storming

Norming

Performing

Adjourning

Stages of team development

Team Effectiveness Model

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• Task characteristics

• Team size

• Team composition

Team Design

• Accomplish tasks

• Satisfy member needs

• Maintain team survival

TeamEffectiveness

• Team development

• Team norms

• Team cohesiveness

• Team trust

Team Processes

•Rewards

•Communication

•Org structure

•Org leadership

•Physical space

Organisational and Team

Environment

Team Composition

Effective team members must be willing and able to work on the team

Effective team members possess specific competencies (5 Cs)

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Five Cs of Team-member Competencies

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Decision Making Pitfall #1 - Groupthink

Team members place consensus above decision quality

Deterioration of mental efficiency, reality testing, moral judgement

Results from a group pressures toward conformity of opinion

Desire to agree becomes so dominant that it overrides any realistic appraisal of alternative courses of action

Problem < > Too Rapid Convergence which moves into Action

Groupthink

Ideal Group ProcessGathering Intelligence Coming to Conclusions

Problem Debate Action

Divergent Thinking Convergent Thinking

Debating Society

Problem (No Closure) No Action

Decision Making Pitfall #2 – Escalation of Commitment

A choice by the team to persist with a losing course of action even in the face of clear evidence to the contrary

Decision makers would likely make a different choice if they had not been involved in decisions up until this point

Further resources are expected to “turn the situation around”

Decision Making Pitfall #3 – Abilene Paradox

Results from team members wanting to avoid conflict

Pluralistic ignorance – members pursue a position because they think other members desire it

Expectation bubble – a set of expectations about other people’s expectations that could burst if even one person expressed a contrary view

Decision Making Pitfall #4 – Group Polarisation

The tendency for a group discussion to intensify group opinions, producing more extreme judgment

These extreme views would not be obtained from pooling the individuals views

Usually results in cautious shift and a risky shift

Decision process

High risk

Individualopinions

Low risk

Group polarisation process

Team decision

Team decision

Social supportPersuasion

Shifting responsibility

Team Tower Power

• Receive your materials• Newspaper• Chocolate Egg• Tape

• Use your teams – tower must be free standing!!!!

• Build your tower• Identify the winner

Structure Discussion Principles Beware of Time Pressure Invite Different Perspectives & protect alternative

viewpoints when needed Frame the task as a decision to be made Shape the task as a decision Provide a formal forum for controversial views Take responsibility for failure Understand what drives conformity (need to be

right, need to be liked)

Overcoming Pitfalls

The Art of Possibility

It’s time for a new kind of leadership