1.
1. The three main types of teams used in organizations: Manager led, Self-Managing, & Self-directing (Self-designing) `
The pros and cons of each
The responsibility of the team members and the managers of each type of team in terms of power, leadership, decision making, and tasks.
2. Be able to explain four of the seven myths about teams
2. Performance and Productivity
1. What four measures are used to appraise team performance? Be able to explain each.
2. There are three essential conditions that must be met in order for a team to be high performing. What are these conditions? What are some of the major points that contribute to or threaten each condition? (you should be able to describe at least two limiting factors
3. Rewarding Teamwork
1. What are the four basic types of team pay? Describe each. What are the pros and cons of each?
2. What is a 360-degree performance evaluation program?
3. Your book describes 11 different rater biases and 5 ratee biases. Be able to discuss two of each.
4. Designing the team
1. What are the three factors that form the basic internal system of a team, and what are the key questions you would ask concerning each factor if you were asked to put together a team?
2. This chapter discusses three particular types of work that teams do:
a. Name each type. For each type list:
i. Its broad objective
ii. Its dominant feature
iii. Its process emphasis
iv. And threats to its success and functioning
3. Diversity:
a. Why is diversity valued in teams?
b. What are the challenges to diversity? Be prepared to discuss them.
5. Team Identity, Emotion and Development
1. How can membership in groups be linked to one's sense of identity?
2. Cohesion:
a. How can you as team leader increase the cohesion in your team?
b. If you were observing a team for the first time, what types of behavior would indicate to you that the team has a high level of cohesion?
3. Why is trust important in a team?
a. Where does trust come from?
6. Decision Making
1. Be able to define, describe, and give examples of the right and wrong ways to manage each:
a. Groupthink
b. Escalation of Commitment
c. The Abilene Paradox
d. Common Information Effect
2. Describe three major decision making biases.
7. Conflict
1. Affective, Task, and Process Conflict
a. What are they?
b. What causes them?
c. What kind of questions would you ask to assess them?
2. Discuss the skills managers should have in order to manage conflict effectively? (hint: see the slides from the self-assessment portion of the class on conflict)
3. How would you explain Wageman and Donnenfeld's conflict intervention model to a friend worried about how to reduce the amount of conflict in his/her team?
8. Creativity
1. How can a group measure the creativity of the ideas they generate?
2. Explain the importance of and how you would use the following:
a. Guildford's creativity measurement system
b. Convergent and divergent thinking
c. Exploration and exploitation
3. What are the four major threats to team creativity?
a. Describe them
b. How would you counteract each?
4. Explain brainstorming to someone. Tell them Osborne's four rules. ? What are the benefits and drawbacks of brainstorming
9. Networking and Social Capital
1. What are clique and boundary spanning networks? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each?
2. What are five methods by which you can increase your social capital?
3. Your book discusses five types of team relationships to the environment. What are they? What are the key focus and activities of each? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each?