Chapter
10
Organizational Behavior
15th Ed
Robbins and Judge
Understanding
Work Teams
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Chapter 10 Learning Objectives
After studying this chapter you should be able to:
1. Analyze the growing popularity of using teams in
organizations.
2. Contrast groups and teams.
3. Compare and contrast four types of teams
4. Identify the characteristics of effective teams.
5. Show how organizations can create team players.
6. Decide when to use individuals instead of teams.
7. Show how the understanding of teams differs in a global
context.
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LO 1
Analyze the growing popularity of
using teams in organizations
• Teams typically outperform individuals when
the tasks being done require multiple skills,
judgment, and experience.
• Organizations turn to teams to utilize talents.
• Employee involvement as a motivator—
teams facilitate employee participation in
operating decisions.
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LO 2
Contrast groups and teams
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LO 3
Compare and contrast four types of teams
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LO 4
Identify the characteristics
of effective teams
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LO 4
Identify the characteristics
of effective teams
• Context
– Adequate Resources
– Leadership and Structure
– Climate of Trust
– Performance Evaluations and Rewards
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LO 4
Identify the characteristics
of effective teams
• Composition
– Abilities of members
– Personality
– Allocating roles
– Diversity
– Size of teams
– Member flexibility
– Member preferences
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LO 4
Identify the characteristics
of effective teams
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LO 4
Identify the characteristics
of effective teams
• Composition
– Abilities of members
– Personality
– Allocating roles
– Diversity
– Size of teams
– Member flexibility
– Member preferences
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LO 4
Identify the characteristics
of effective teams
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LO 4
Identify the characteristics
of effective teams
• Team Processes
– Common Plan and Purpose
– Specific Goals
– Team Efficacy
– Mental Models
– Conflict Levels
– Social Loafing
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LO 5
Show how organizations can
create team players
• Creating Team Players
– Selecting-Hire Team Players
– Training-Create Team Players
– Rewarding-Incentives to Be a Good Team
Player
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LO 6
Decide when to use
individuals instead of teams
• When not to use teams…Ask:
– Can the work be done better by one
person?
– Does the work create a common goal or
purpose?
– Are the members of the group
interdependent?
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LO 7
Show how the understanding of
teams differs in a global context
• Research evidence indicates these elements
of diversity interfere with team processes, at
least in the short term.
• Cultural diversity does seem to be an asset
for tasks that call for a variety of viewpoints.
• Although newly formed culturally diverse
teams underperform newly formed culturally
homogeneous teams, the differences
disappear after about 3 months.
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Summary and Implications for Managers
• Few trends have influenced jobs as much as
the massive movement to introduce teams
into the workplace.
• The shift from working alone to working on
teams requires cooperation with others,
sharing information, confronting differences,
and sublimating personal interests.
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Summary and Implications for Managers
• Effective teams have common
characteristics.
– They have adequate resources, effective
leadership, a climate of trust, and a
performance evaluation and reward
system that reflects team contributions.
– These teams have individuals with
technical expertise as well as problemsolving, decision-making, and
interpersonal skills and the right traits,
especially conscientiousness and
openness. Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall 10-17
Summary and Implications for Managers
• Effective teams also tend to be small—with
fewer than 10 people, preferably of diverse
backgrounds.
– Members fill role demands and prefer to be
part of a group.
– The work provides freedom and autonomy,
the opportunity to use different skills and
talents, the ability to complete a whole and
identifiable task or product, and work that
has a substantial impact on others.
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Summary and Implications for Managers
• Finally, effective teams have members who
believe in the team’s capabilities and are
committed to a common plan and purpose,
an accurate shared mental model of what is
to be accomplished, specific team goals, a
manageable level of conflict, and a minimal
degree of social loafing.
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Summary and Implications for Managers
• Because individualistic organizations and
societies attract and reward individual
accomplishments, it can be difficult to create
team players in these environments.
• To make the conversion, management
should try to select individuals who have the
interpersonal skills to be effective team
players, provide training to develop
teamwork skills, and reward individuals for
cooperative efforts.
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Printed in the United States of America.
Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc.
publishing as Prentice Hall
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