Teams and Teamwork

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Teams and Teamwork
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Advantages of Teams pp.198

• More minds working on the problem
• More information available
• Leads to a better decision
• Ownership of decisions
• More people committed to the decision
• Better chance for support of solutions to the
  problem
• Continuity
• Less need to re-invent the wheel in later
  efforts
• Better chance of constancy in follow-up
  activities
• Communication
• Face to face contact can increase trust
  understanding
• Interpersonal skills improved through joint work

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Types and Functions of Teams

• Ad hoc
• Team formed for a short-term purpose
• Formed from immediately available resources
• Usually have a specific problem to address
• Cross-disciplinary
• Representation from multiple organizations and
  functions
• Usually long term goals and purposes
• Typical of many industry-based teams
• Promotes system improvements
• Informal - not assigned by authority
• Groups who gather due to common interest or by
  happenstance
• Often very tight knit organization
• Sometimes leads to formal organizations

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Team Processes

• Develop clear objectives and goals
• Basis of trust and openness
• Use appropriate leadership
• Practice good inter-group relations
• Encourage individual development

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Appropriate Use of Teams

• Must be given appropriate authority
• Management must understand teams cannot fix
  management problems
• Make sure teams do not work against each other
• Ensure the problem is one for which a team should
  be formed

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Stages of Development

• Forming
• Introductions
• Basic rules established objectives agreed on
• Storming
• Characterized by conflict and disagreement
• 50 of teams fail at this point
• Norming
• Tolerance of others views, opinions
• Good working relationship, Team is becoming
  productive
• Conflicts and resolved or at least agree to
  disagree
• Performing
• Appreciation of others views, opinions, talents
• Characterized by very high productivity
• High level of synergy

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Group Roles and Individual Responsibilities

• Positive Roles in Groups Teams
• Leader/coordinator
• Keeps order, provides direction, interaction with
  leaders
• Harmonizer Summarizer
• Attempts to resolve disagreement
• Provides ability to pull together
  ideas/discussions
• Gatekeeper
• Helps keep communication open, involves everyone
• Reality Tester or Critical Evaluator
• Provides critical analysis of idea (devils
  advocate)

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Group Roles and Individual Responsibilities

• Negative Roles in Groups Teams
• Aggressor
• Stops progress through intimidation
• Dominator
• Monopolizes time, resources
• Comedian
• Impedes progress through comical and immature
  behavior

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Keys Regarding Team Roles

• Many people can fit the same role.
• Very few people play a negative role
  intentionally or consistently.
• Someone who recognizes a need for a role can fill
  that role.
• The specific attributes of a role may vary
  depending on the nature of the one filling it.

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Key Points Regarding Group Consensus

• Groups have access to more information than
  individuals.
• Therefore groups can make better decisions than
  individuals.
• Consensus helps in at least 2 ways
• Decisions are more accurate
• More people are willing to support the decision
• Consensus enables a group to explore
  disagreements rather than avoid them.
• It takes more time.

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Groupthink

• Definition -
• a mode of thinking that people engage in when
  they are deeply involved in a cohesive group,
  when the members' strivings for unanimity
  override their motivation to realistically
  appraise alternative courses of action.
• 
  Irvin Janis

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Symptoms of Defective Decision Making

• The group fails to explore alternatives. Rejected
  alternatives are seldom re-examined and go
  unheeded.
• The group fails to consider all available
  objectives.
• Insufficient exploration of costs and risks of
  options.
• Information searches are superficial. There is
  selective/biased filtering and communicating of
  results to others. The group excludes items of
  information which "do not fit their picture".
• The group fails to work out the detail of
  implementation, monitoring, and contingency plan
  and worst case scenarios etc.

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Symptoms of Groupthink

• Illusion of Invulnerability.
• Members of the group develop an impression that
  they can do no wrong which may happen when the
  group is powerful. "Our approach and organization
  are sound. We are confident and enjoy a good
  reputation. If we all work together we can't go
  wrong". They feel invincible.

• To avoid this Janis recommends that members
  should systematically play devil's advocate to
  explore all perspectives, possibilities and flaws
  before putting plans into action.

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Symptoms of Groupthink

• Shared Stereo-types (we-them)
• A group exhibiting groupthink will more
  frequently and dangerously rely on shared
  stereotypes to justify their positions. They may
  stereotype members of the group itself - they
  more readily stereotype rivals, enemies, other
  departments and even expert advisers who slow
  down or challenge their decision-making tasks.

• To avid this use external advisors as a check of
  group understanding and knowledge and assign a
  group member as an advocate for external review.

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Symptoms of Groupthink

• Bounded rationality and tethered assumptions
• Group tend to suffer from their own bounded
  rationality. Members fall under the impression
  that they are right - even if data/evidence
  suggests they may be wrong. Members reassure
  others that their interpretation and perspective
  on matters is correct. It may even have a moral
  tone to it.

• Avoidance of the bounded rationality problem
  requires listening and careful scrutiny of
  evidence and alternative. If some evidence points
  in the wrong direction then GO OUT and get more.
  DO NOT act until the situation can be confirmed.
  Challenge tethered assumptions.

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Symptoms of Groupthink

• Belief in Inherent Morality
• This is an extension to the invulnerability and
  righteousness symptoms. They exhibit an illusion
  of morality. This can occur when the group as a
  whole
• - feels they are doing the right thing and
• - believe their cause to be morally underpinned.

• Janis recommends caution and sensitivity to
  ensure that members constantly reappraise the
  "rightness" of their cause. The statement that
  there is no alternative or that the consequences
  are inevitable need to be challenged. There are
  always other alternatives with different
  consequences.

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Symptoms of Groupthink

• Avoiding Self-Censorship.
• A group member may raise questions and objections
  about the group's activities but on meeting a
  rebuff will withdraw and not press the point
  home. The person on their own - a minority of
  one - sticks out like a sore thumb. It is
  uncomfortable and can be humiliating and stressful

• To avoid this assign a group member to be a
  critical evaluator. This assignment can be
  rotated as well to have all group members with
  varying points of view critically evaluate the
  group decisions and discussions.

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Symptoms of Groupthink

• Direct Pressure
• A group member who questions the rightness of the
  goals is pressured by others into concurring.
  Some may seek to discredit a dissenting member.
  Power statements such as The Director is keen
  on this and would not take kindly to being
  contradicted" or "Just go along with it, we will
  make concessions and fine tune the detail later
  may be used.

• To avoid this group leaders need to solicit and
  receive feedback/criticism from others. This
  feedback and examination process needs to seen as
  a contributor to quality and not a gripe or
  complaint mechanism. The potential for
  holding grudges and punishment of "critics" must
  be avoided.

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Symptoms of Groupthink

• Illusion of Unanimity
• On the surface and and first glance it may appear
  all are in agreement. It may come as a result of
  the fostering of the earlier described symptoms.
  Group members may be led to believe that
  unanimity, not good decisions, is the primary
  role of the group. When an objection is shared it
  may seem easy to go along with group then carp
  about the group's decision afterward to friends.

• Have the group to take regular time-out breaks to
  give individuals room to re-think, re-formulate,
  gather further data and re-present. Sub-groups
  can do more detailed work for re-presentation.
  Value and reward those who voice concerns and
  follow the concerns through to the end.

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Symptoms of Groupthink

• Mindguarding
• Members of the group might take it upon
  themselves to shield the leader from
  dissenters/doubters. You try to avoid expressing
  an unpopular view. This is akin to
  self-censorship. The silence contributes an
  illusion of unanimity

• To avoid this make sure that all of the group
  members know that the leader is open to
  criticism. Ask for opposing viewpoints and if
  all are in agreement then it may require
  dismissal until someone is willing to challenge
  the decision or idea.