Assignment:
Readings the following chapters are given below is:
1. Understanding Groups and Teams
2. Group Development
The Research Project
Identify a generic organization (e.g., manufacturing plant, hospital, educational institution). You will use this same organization in your Final Project. Assume that you are part of a research team examining work groups in the organization to determine factors that enhance or inhibit group productivity. Identify what factors you would examine in your research and provide a rationale for your choice.
Guided Response: Respond to at least two of your classmates' posts using source citations from the course text and at least two other scholarly sources, one of which can be a course video.
Part 1
Organization: Manufacturing plant
I have almost no experience with manufacturing, but I think productivity is a huge focus in an operation like this. I would look at how the organization is structured and then I would examine how those sub-groups work.
I would look at performance levels as a baseline for each group then compare communication dynamic. According to Hale (2012) and a MIT study, the most valuable form of communication for groups is face-to-face communication. The development of new ideas and other kinds of creativity come from these interactions.
I would examine performance expectations and how goals are developed and defined (Coget & Losh, 2018, p.69). Clearly defined roles and expectations put staff on the right course to success. If the target is unclear or ambiguous, then nothing really gets accomplished in terms of high level objectives.
I would assess how managers and supervisors are graded and what level of trust do the sub-groups have with their managers. Effective management and leadership is critical. Lack of cohesion, distrust and poor attendance are indications of ineffective leadership.
I would look at training and skills development opportunities. Employees remain engaged and motivated if they see an investment in them. That investment often produces loyalty and higher performance.
References
Coget, J. and Losh, S. (2018). Group behavior in organizations (2nd ed.). [Electronic version].
Hale, E. (July 17, 2012). The 6 group dynamics of high performing team. Fastcompany.
Part 2
Organization- Educational Institution
If I were to examine work groups in an educational institution, I would look at how everyone appears to work together overall, and then I would look deeper and see which factors enhance the productivity of the organization and which factors still need to be worked on. An important factor that needs to be considered is the morale of the institution as a whole. Are the employees actually passionate about their work, or are they just there to collect a paycheck? Do the employees enjoy their everyday work, or is there something that the institutions administrative team could do to make everyone's days more enjoyable? Morale is such an important factor because if the company has low morale, then the whole thing can start to fall apart. Something else I would look at is how educated everyone seems to be on what they are teaching their children and what could be done to provide them with more opportunities to further their educations in their specific subject areas. I would look at how the staff communicate with each other and see if they can easily communicate with each other or if there seems to be some sort of tension.
This is an important factor to consider because children will sense the tension between staff members, and this can cause disruptions in behavior and learning. Educational institutions should be happy environments where children can learn they shouldn't be filled with tension because there is a communication problem between staff. I would also look at the creativity level and diversity of the things being taught. Usually, there are some sort of guidelines to follow when it comes to teaching children whether it be state-mandated or just guidelines from the institution's administration, but this doesn't mean that the learning has to be boring and all be taught the same way. I will look to see how the teachers are making the lessons fun and engaging for all of the students in the classroom so that everyone has the best chance at learning and retaining what is being taught to them.