Unit 2: Teams
How is a team different than a group? In this unit, we will discuss team and group development, the characteristics of teams and groups, and what an effective team looks like.
Completing this unit should take you approximately 3 hours.
2.1: Case Study: General Electric Allows Teamwork to Take Flight
Read the introduction and section 3.1, which discusses the concept of teamwork through an analysis of GE's employee practices. Once you have finished this unit of the course, you may want to return to this case study and reexamine it to solidify your knowledge of concepts related to teamwork.
2.2: Managing Group Dynamics
Read this section, which discusses both formal and informal group dynamics. Pay particular attention to the foundational model of team and group development. There are a number of other models for team development available, but the Tuckman model is one of the most popular in today's business world. This section also introduces a more radical approach to understanding groups and teams that is known as punctuated equilibrium. This model of team-building is based on the idea that teams go through periods of stability and periods of rapid change. What happens during these alternating periods is what makes this approach to managing teams so unique.
- Read this article, which explains team and group formation and development. Pay particular attention to the section describing the five stages of group development.
2.3: Identifying the Characteristics of a Team
Read this section, which identifies the main characteristics of a team. Note that a group and a team are not always one and the same. This section discusses the foundational distinctions that differentiate the two. Make sure you fully understand these differences before you move on.
Read the collection of articles under Defining Teams and Teamwork. Start with the sub-section titled "Defining a Team" and read through the sub-section titled "Differences between Groups and Teams". This page describes the components of teams and groups, along with the pros and cons of effective teamwork.
2.4: How Do Managers Organize Effective Teams?
Read this section, which discusses how managers strategize when forming teams. Establishing team norms is an essential part of the team-building process. This section covers how to host team meetings and how to use various strategies in order to efficiently and effectively guide a team.
2.5: Managing the Barriers to Effective Teams
Read this section, which examines some of the common challenges that managers typically face when presiding over workplace teams. After you read this section, consider the following question: How have some of these concepts been applied to some of your own workplace situations? If you have never participated in a team, look at some of the case studies presented in this course with the goal of applying the specific insights presented in this section.
2.6: The Areas of Team Development
Read this article and consider Dr. Lafair's process for team formation. Think about whether or not this process can be consistently successful. Might there be situations in which team development might not ever get to the perform stage? Might there be situations in which a team might be consistently successful, yet not reach the transforming stage? What situations might render the transforming stage ineffective?