team management and conflict

MultiMedia by Stephen M. Peters © 2002 South-Western

Team Management and Conflict


Teams Defined

• A group of two or more people• Interact regularly and coordinate their work to accomplish a common objective


Three Points Characterize a Team

First, at least two people must be involved. Second, the members must interact regularly and

coordinate their work. Third, members of a team must share a common

objective.


Characteristics of Effective Teams Team members are committed. All team members feel free to express themselves and

participate in discussions and decisions. Members trust each other. When needs for leadership arise, any member feels free to

volunteer. Decisions are made by consensus. As problems occur, the team focuses on causes, not symptoms. Team members are flexible in terms of work processes and

problem solving. Team members change and grow.


Two Types of Teams Vertical Team – sometimes called a command team or a

functional team. Composed of a manager and his or her subordinates. May include as many as three or four levels of management.

Horizontal Team – made up of members drawn from different departments in an organization. In most cases such a team is created to address a specific task

or objective. May disband after the objective is achieved. Three common kinds of horizontal teams:

– Task forces– Cross-functional teams– Committees


Potential Uses For Teams

Team Options

Product Development

Teams?Teams

?Teams

ProjectTeams

ProcessTeams

?Teams

QualityTeams

WorkTeams


Virtual TeamsDefining Characteristics

Members are distributed across multiple locations.

Membership can be extremely diverse in skills and culture.

Team members can join or depart the team in midstream.


Teams with Moderate Independence

Cross-functionalProduct development

Project


Independent Work Teams

Self-managed

Work teams

Self-directed

Executive teams


Steps in the Process of Team Building

Step 1: Assessing feasibility. Step 2: Identifying priorities. Step 3: Defining mission and objectives. Step 4: Uncovering and eliminating barriers to team building.Step 5: Starting with small teams. Step 6: Planning for training needs. Step 7: Planning to empower. Step 8: Planning for feedback and development time.


Prince (1989), Parker (1990)Reported that the Typical Team

Includes Roles For

Task specialists

Social specialists


Roles for Task Specialists Include

The contributor, a data-driven person who supplies needed information and pushes for high team performance standards.

The challenger, a team player who constantly questions the goals, methods, and even the ethics of the team.

The initiator, the person who proposes new solutions, new methods, and new systems for team problems.


Roles for the Social Specialists Include

The collaborator, the “big picture” person who urges the team to stay with its vision and to achieve it.

The communicator, the person who listens well, facilitates well, and humanizes the work of the team.

The cheerleader, the person on the team who encourages and praises individual and team efforts.

The compromiser, the team member who will shift opinions to maintain harmony.


Team Leaders Require a Special Set of Skills

Oriented toward

teamwork and cooperation

Create a noncompetitive

atmosphere

Think reasonably

Positivelyreinforce

Keep their teams focused

Share leadership

Encourage members to

assume as much responsibility

as they can handle

Renew trust


Stages of Team Development

Forming PerformingStorming Norming


Forming Stage

Members become aquatinted

Members test behaviors

Marked by a high degree of uncertainty


Storming Stage

Disagreement and conflict occur.Personalities emerge.Members assert their opinions.Disagreements may arise.Coalitions or subgroups may emerge.The team is not yet unified.


Norming Stage

Team comes together

Teams achieves unity; consensus about who

holds the power

It has oneness A sense of team cohesion

Now focused

Disagreements and conflicts resolved


Performing Stage

Begins to function and moves toward accomplishing its objectives.

Team members interact well with each other.

Deal with problems.

Confront each other if necessary.

Coordinate work.


Determinants and Results of Team Cohesiveness

Small Size Frequent Interaction

Clear Objectives Success

Large SizeInfrequent Interaction

Unclear ObjectivesFailure

HighCohesiveness

Failure to Achieve

Objectives

Low Morale

Objective Achievement

HighMorale

LowCohesiveness

Team FactorsDegree of

Cohesiveness Results


Effects of Cohesiveness and Performance Norms on Productivity

BModerate Productivity

CLow-to-Moderate

Productivity

AHigh Productivity

DLow Productivity

Team Cohesiveness

Team

Per

for m

a nc e

Nor

ms

Low

High

HighLow


Costs of Teams

Power-realignment Training expenses

Free-riding Loss of productive workers

Lost productivity


Philosophical Approaches to Conflict

TRADITIONAL VIEWBeliefs Reactions

• Conflict is unnecessary.

• Conflict is to be feared.

• Conflict is harmful.

• Conflict is a personal failure.

• Immediately stop conflict.

• Remove all evidence of conflict, including people.



Beliefs ReactionsBEHAVIORAL VIEW

• Conflict occurs frequently in organizations.

• Conflict is to be expected.

• Conflict can be positive but, more likely, it is harmful.

• Immediately move to resolve or eliminate conflict.



INTERACTIONIST VIEWBeliefs Reactions

• Conflict is inevitable in organizations.

• Conflict is necessary for organizational health.

• Conflict is neither inherently good nor bad.

• Manage conflict to maximize the positive.

• Manage conflict to minimize the negative.


Sources of Conflict

Disagreements about role requirements

Differences in objectives

Work activities

Values and perceptions

Individual approaches

Breakdowns in communication


Analyze a Conflict Situation,Three Key Questions

Who is in conflict?

What is the source of conflict?

What is the level of conflict?


Conflict Situation Strategy

Avoidance Smoothing Compromise Collaboration Confrontation Appeals to subordinate objectives Decisions by a third party


Circumstances in Which Managers Stimulate Conflict

When team members exhibit and accept minimal performance.

When people appear to be afraid to do anything other than the norm.

When team members passively accept events or behavior that should motivate action.

team management and conflict

Documents

team problems

team management

team leaders

typical team

command team

team efforts

team player

process of team buildingstep