Organizational Behavior
& Choosing your Team
Vicky Parker,
Ed.M.,D.B.A.
Mark Prashker,
MD, MPH
Associate Professor
Health Policy &
Management
Associate Dean
School of Public
Health
Agenda
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What are organizations?
Levels of organizational analysis
A brief organizational experience
Teams/a brief team simulation
Implications for action
What is an organization?
Group of people
Intentionally together
To achieve a goal (or goals)
Difficulties
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How do we organize to optimize
communication and efficiency?
Can we agree on goals? Methods?
What do we need from other
organizations?
Simulation set-up
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Locations
Groups
Each group will get the rules; the rules
must be followed
Communication between groups is only in
writing, via the courier (me)
You must give the courier the physical
location of the group you are writing to
When time is called, return to large group
Simulation debrief
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What was the purpose of the activity?
What did you notice about your group?
Your communication with other groups?
The organization’s ability to succeed?
Other observations?
Navigating an Organization in
the “Real World”
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“What got you here won’t get you
there”
Intelligence and skill don’t differentiate
why some people do well in organizations
and others plateau
Ability?
 Experience?
 Training?
 No—it’s your Behavior
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7 Bad Habits of Highly
Successful People
Being the smartest person in the room
 Tinkering with already good ideas
 Passing judgment
 Withholding information
 Failing to give proper recognition/Claiming
credit you don’t deserve
 Playing favorites
 Not listening
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Focus on teams
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Teams are widely used when
– No single person has all necessary
expertise
– Acceptance of and commitment to
outcome are essential
– The task crosses the boundaries of
existing organizational units
What are effective team
behaviors in reaching a
group decision?
Cascade survival
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Have you done this before?
Step one: develop your individual
rankings, using pen to mark them
Use #1 to indicate which item on the
list is most important to surviving this
situation
Use #2 to indicate the second most
important, etc.
This part is based solely on your own
opinions
Team
discussion/deliberation
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use consensus to arrive at a team
ranking
do not use voting or averaging;
discuss until you reach agreement
do not go back and change your
individual rankings
Team process
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how did your team work?
did your team use the effective
behaviors that the group
brainstormed?
Expert ratings
(Developed by survival experts based on
real experiences)
Group scoring and
discussion
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lower team score, less “waste” of
collective knowledge
average individual score a measure of
the team’s knowledge base
focus on difference between individual
and team scores, NOT on comparison
with other teams’ scores
Organizing groups and
teams
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multiple options for structure
roles & relationships fundamental
variables
what is a team?
– small # with complementary skills
– common purpose/approach
– goals with accountability
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structure needs to relate to task
demands
“Real World” Dysfunctions
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Lack of trust
Fear of confrontation/conflict
Absence of commitment
Absence of accountability
Failure to focus on goals
Lack of Trust
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Lack of trust prevents open, honest
communication
Unwilling to take responsibility for fear
of making mistakes
Trust is:
– Willingness to admit weakness and
mistakes
– Give the benefit of the doubt before
arriving at a conclusion
Confrontation/Conflict
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Lack of trust leads to reluctance to
confront
Decisions get muted
Ideas don’t get worked through
Progress stalls
Conflict can be healthy and is often
necessary to help solve a problem
Absence of Commitment
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Lack of commitment is contagious
– Team members go through the motions
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Don’t seize opportunities—miss
opportunities
Progress stalls
Clarity and buy in are two functions
that should happen every time
Lack of Accountability
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If you don’t trust, won’t discuss
honestly, and aren’t committed, then:
– No accountability
– Effort lacks focus
– Everything falls apart
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Peer Pressure—willingness to call their
peers on performance or behavior that
might hurt the team
Failure to focus on Team Goals
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Dysfunctional teams pursue all
agendas but the team’s agenda
– Insidious undermining
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It is not the individual, the
department, but rather the team
Wageman – key points
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Team design more influential than coaching
Leader role evolves as team does
Critical design elements:
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direction
real team task
team rewards
resources
authority over work
team performance goals
team norms about strategic thinking
Next steps
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Observe managers who lead or
facilitate teams that perform well
Observe your own managerial practice
& learn from mistakes
Seek & use feedback