Organization behavior (OB)

Chapter 3
Foundation of Group /Team Behavior in
organizations
Course outline
 Definition of Group/Team
 Feature of Group
 Classifying Groups and/Teams- --- Types of group
 Reasons for Joining Groups
 Stages of group development
 Factors affecting group performance
 Increasing Group/Team Productivity
 Group Structure
 Teams and team work
 Similarities and differences of Team
 Characteristics of Good and Poor team
 Defining Group
 A group is defined as two or more interacting and interdependent
individuals who come together to achieve particular objectives in an
organization.
 Two or more freely interacting individuals who share a common identity
and purpose.
 Groups are interdependence, have interaction, or common goal in an organization.
 Groups differ from organizations due to that involve systematic efforts and are
engaged in the production of goods and services.
 Teamwork occurs when groups are able to work efficiently and effectively together
to achieve organizational goals.
 Features of the group
Ø TWO OR MORE PERSONS - A group should have at least two people.
With a single individual, there cannot be a meaningful interaction.

Ø COLLECTIVE IDENTITY - Each member of the group must believe that

s/he is a part of the group and be aware of his membership.
ØSo, as collective identity, the group is collectively responsible for any result. (e.g.
political party, churches, social group)
Ø INTERACTION - Each member should share her/his ideas with others
through communication, at least occasionally.

Ø SHARED GOAL INTEREST – Every group has a common objective. The

shared goal interest/s brings the group members together.
 Classifying Groups and/Teams
1. Primary & Secondary Groups:-
 A primary group has intimate, face-to-face association & co-
operation e.g. family, neighborhood groups, and friendship groups.
A secondary group is formal, and it may not have any interest in the
problems & pleasure of others.
2. Membership & Reference Groups:
 A membership group is one to which an individual really
belongs.
 A reference group is one with which the individual identifies.
The attractiveness of the reference group makes the norms of
that group more attractive to the individual who aspires for it.
 Reference Group
3. Command & Task Groups:

 A command group - is composed of subordinates who report directly

to a common supervisor

 A task group - is usually formed to solve a problem. (employees who

work together to complete a particular task).

4. In-groups & Out-groups:

 In-groups - are a cluster of individuals that have a dominant place in

social functioning.

 Out-groups - are marginal in the society and referred as minority

5. Informal groups: develop naturally among an organization’s
personnel…….
 A natural outcome at the work place & not designed and plan
 Informal Groups are created in the organization because of social and
psychological forces operating at the workplace
 Organization is coordinated by group norms and not by norms of the formal
organization
 Such group associations are not specified in the blue-print of the formal
organization
 Interest group
 Friendship group
 All in 1 & 2 and 4 are grouped under this
6. Formal:
 Deliberately formed by the organization to accomplish specific tasks &
achieve goals….
 Are created and maintained to fulfill specific needs related to the overall
organizational mission:
 command group
 Task group
 Examples: departments, task force, committees …
 a. Designed by Top management for achieving organizational goals
b. concentrates more on the performance of job
c. People are placed in hierarchy and their status determined accordingly
d. Co-ordination of members are controlled through process, procedures etc.
mal Groups and Informal Groups

Parameters of
Formal Groups Informal Groups
Comparison

Formal groups are the group that is formed The informal groups are the group that is formed
Definition officially intended to do formal communication. unofficially intended to do informal
communication.

In formal groups, only the management of the

In informal groups, the people have the
Authority organization has the authority.
authority.

Formal groups are formed by the management

Informal groups are formed outside the official
and are designed on a hierarchical structure with
Structure hierarchy of the organization, rather it is formed
some designated tasks related to their function.
on the basis of social and personal interactions.

In formal groups, members act according to the

The behavior of group rules and regulations set by the organization’s In informal groups, members act according to
members management. the group and personal interests.

Supervising the formal groups are easier

Supervising informal groups are difficult as it
compared to informal groups as there are specific
Supervision runs based on the personal and group interests
rules to guide.
of the group.
Q

 A group of workers working on a project and reporting to

the same manager is considered
 as a command group.

 A group of friends chilling out together is considered as

 interest group or say members of a club.
 Reasons for Joining Groups
 Accomplish tasks . some tasks require more than one person; need to pool talents knowledge or
power to complete the job.

 Fulfill Social needs (edir , Mahiber)

 Security needs, e.g. unions

 Affiliation needs, e.g. social clubs

 Esteem and identity needs, e.g. professional associations

 Self-actualization is the complete realization of one’s potential, and the full development of one’s abilities
and appreciation for life. …
 Self-actualized people have an acceptance of who they are despite their faults and limitations, and experience
to drive to be creative in all aspects of their lives.

 Interpersonal attraction
 based upon physical distance, psychological distance (perceived distance), and similarity (i.e.
demographic characteristics, beliefs and attitudes)

 Other slide for more reason

Stages of group development
 Forming: characterized by a great deal of uncertainty about the groups purpose,
structure, and leadership
 major concerns: establishing behavioral expectations

 Storming: group members experience conflict with one another

 Members accept the existence of the group but resist on some aspects
 Do we have common goals and objectives?
 Do we agree on roles and responsibilities?
 major concerns: establishing relative power and status

 Norming: if the group resolve interpersonal conflict, they reach norming stage
 Strong sense of group identity is established
 The group develops norms (standards, rules regulations)
 Complete when the group structure solidifies
 major concerns: adoption of standards, roles and goals
 Performing: The group structure is fully functional
 Group energy perform the task at hand
 major concerns: task accomplishment

 Adjourning: apply only for temporary groups

 The group prepares to split up
 Attention is directed toward wrapping up activities rather than task
performance.
 Factors affecting group performance
 Group Cohesiveness
 Tendency for a group to be in unity while working towards a goal or to satisfy the
emotional needs of its members.
 highly cohesive group develop some common characteristics:
 Everyone respects each other.
 They are fully committed to the decision made by the group.
 Cooperative behavior is rewarded regularly.
 Cohesive groups have a history of past success.
 Communication Structure
 Members are accessible to each other to maintain easy communication.
 Group Roles
 There is good accountability amongst members.
 Size of the group
 Smaller groups complete tasks faster than larger ones. They are also more
productive than large groups.
 Large groups, on the other hand, generate more facts, collect diverse and open
viewpoints, generate more solutions to problems.
 Individual Dominance
 Groupthink
 Groupthink is a phenomenon in which a group of individuals come to a consensus
without critical reasoning or considering the consequences or alternatives.
 It is a phenomenon in which the ways of approaching problems or matters are dealt
by the consensus of a group rather than by individuals acting independently.
Essentially, groupthink occurs when a group makes faulty or ineffective decisions
just for the sake of reaching an agreement.
 Group think can cause
 Failure to listen to people with dissenting opinions
 Lack of creativity
 Lack of preparation to deal with negative outcomes
 Ignoring important information
 Inability to see other solutions
 Obedience to authority without question(terorisim)
 Overconfidence in decisions
 Resistance to new information or ideas
 Any example of Party which can be categorized as group think?
Groups are a subset of a larger organization consisting of the
following:
 Organization Strategy
 Authority Structures
 Formal Regulations
 Organizational Resources
 Human Resource Selection Process
 Performance Evaluation and Reward System
 Organizational Culture
 Physical Work Setting
 Increasing Group/Team Productivity
 Here are 8 ways to empower your teams to be more productive:
 Give your team members ownership.
 Giving ownership to the team members means nothing but letting them make
their own decisions and making them accountable for their work.
 Ensure proper communication.
 Communication is one of the critical factors that contribute mainly to team
productivity. Without effective communication, businesses fail. Because in the
absence of communication, comes miscommunication and this breeds a lot of
failures. A lot of successful businesses thrive on effective communication.
 Identify your team's strengths and weaknesses.
 Knowing team members are making the best use of their knowledge, expertise,
and talents, they look forward to contributing to the workplace. Making them
use their strengths will contribute to making your workplace better and
productive than before.
 Use a project management tool.
 Having the right project management tool by your side can help in effective work
management and increased collaboration between the team members.
 Project management tools are the project manager's answer to manage projects. Simple projects
require nothing more than a checklist while other complex ones require proper planning, assigning tasks,
setting deadlines, making sure that everyone sticks to them, and tracking the time spent.
 Reward your employees.
 Employees work best when given a reason to do so – probably a monetary one.
They want their efforts to be appreciated and prefer to have a little more than a
‘virtual pat on the back from their bosses. That’s why many employers choose to
implement incentive programs to keep their employees motivated.
 Wholesome work environment
 The work environment and infrastructure are essential contributors in improving team
efficiency and productivity. According to a recent study, the physical environment
dramatically affects how employees feel, think and perform at the workplace.
 Due to this, many organizations are paying attention while designing their office
interiors. They make sure to incorporate bright lighting, a comfortable furniture layout,
and a touch of nature with the help of plants and flowers.
 Give them room to work. Empower the team
 Every employee or team member works best when given an environment where
they are allowed to do the things ‘their way’. Most employees tend to lose
interest as soon as they are being micromanaged (interference) by their bosses or
managers.
 Give constructive feedback
 Last but the most important on the list is to introduce a feedback process in a
team. There is no hope of boosting employee efficiency if they don’t know they
are being inefficient in the first place. This is why performance reviews and
constructive feedback are essential in increasing team productivity.
 Getting to know about the areas of opportunities will motivate the team
members to make some changes in their working style.
 Group Structure
 Groups have a structure that shapes the behavior of members.
 Formal Leadership
 Roles
 Norms (Norms are the certain rules about how to behave within groups.)
 Status
 Size
 Composition
 Cohesiveness
 Teams and team work
 What is Team
 A team is smaller number of people with complementary skills who are committed to a common
purpose, performance goals, and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable.
 The interactions within teams revolve around a deeper dependence on one another than the
interactions within groups.
 Goal interdependence---have shared vision
 Out come interdependence --- share in the rewards that the team earns.
 Task interdependence ---
• Teams go through four predictable stages: Orientation, Conflict,
Group Formation, and Differentiation.
1. Orientation: To form the team .
 Member behaviors: (Most comments directed to leader, Lots of questions
about direction and goals, People fail to listen, resulting in non-sequiturs and
repeats.
 Member concerns: what is my role? Can I do this? Who is the leader?
 Ideal leader behavior: provide structure and clarity, Establish norm of non-
domination by anyone, Share all information, Facilitate members learning
about each other.
 2. Conflict: Conflict over control with leader and with other
members.
 Member behaviors:
 Attempts to gain influence. Suggestions, proposals.
 Subgroups and coalitions form, with possible conflict between them.
 Leader tested and challenged.
 Members judge and evaluate each other, shoot down ideas. Task avoidance.
 Member concerns:
 what is my place in the pecking order?
 Who likes me?
 What are my issues?
 Ideal leader behaviors:
 engage in joint problem solving.
 Establish norm of supporting expression of different viewpoints.
 Discuss the group's decision-making process.
3. Group Formation: Development of solidarity(Unity).
 Member behaviors:
 Members can disagree with leader. Group laughs together, has fun. Jokes made at
leader's expense. A sense of we-ness develops. Group feels superior to other groups in
the organization.

 Member concerns:
 How close should I be to other group members?
 How do we compare with other groups?
 Can we accomplish our task?
 Ideal leader behaviors:
 Start sharing issues and concerns like any other member.
 Have members managed agenda items (especially those in which you have a stake).
Give and request feedback.
 Assign challenging problems requiring consensus (e.g., budget allocations).
 Delegate as much as possible.
4. Differentiation: Development of differentiation and productivity.
 Member behaviors:
 Roles are clear and each person's contribution is distinctive.
 Members take initiative and accept initiative of others.
 Challenging each other leads to creative problem solving.
 Members seek feedback to improve own performance.
 Member concerns: None.
 Ideal leader behaviors:
 Jointly set goals that increase group's scope.
 Question assumptions and traditional ways of behaving.
 Characteristics of an effective (Successful) team

 Awareness and attention paid to group processes - This means that not only
do you talk about the task and how you are going to do it, but you also discuss
yourselves and what is happening in the group.
 Common goal or vision - A clear and common vision is a tremendous motivator
that releases energy and creativity. Conflicting visions tend to demoralize and time
wasting.
 Every one accepted the vision, mission, goal & task
 Discipline - The team has the will to stick to the task
 Communication –
 Teams need to ensure that everyone is heard. Often, there are members who cannot say anything
unless specifically asked and given the floor:
 Teams need to ensure that everyone is heard and spend enough time chatting to know about each to
other's lives give everyone a feel for who they are and where they are coming from.
 Shared knowledge of the groups goals and methods -
 People often assume that their view of the specific goals of the team and the procedures they will
employ to get there are shared by all. However, Teams need to explicitly discuss not only their goals
but also their style and approach.

 Personal security of individuals is not an issue - People need to feel safe and treated
well in the team. Without this, people are not free to think and contribute ideas.
 Characteristics of poor team

 Refuse to share
 Depend too much on the leader
 Fail to follow through on decision
 Hide conflict
 Fail at conflict resolution
 Form subgroups
 Manual for Working in Teams
• Getting to Know One Another – understanding team members have very different
abilities, motivations and personalities.

• Vision - think about what you really are trying to accomplish. Besides the explicit tasks, it
makes you think about your real goals.

 Structure – that shape the behavior of its members & make it possible to predict and explain
individual behaviors as well as the performance of the team.

 Assigning a leader, list down tasks and split it to members

 Process –
 Meetings can be useless if they are not done rightly. One simple thing that helps a lot is having an
agenda.

 having a written agenda makes it easier for the facilitator to steer things back to the task.
 Barriers to effective group or team work
 Individuals shrinking their duties – due to failure of the team to establish clear norms
of accountability
 Skewed influence over decisions – when individuals don’t feel listened they may
reduce their efforts
 Lack of trust – lose confidence on sharing set of goals
 Conflicts – negative conflicts can delay progress on tasks
 Lack of team or task skills – a team that doesn’t have expertise will have trouble
achieving its goals
 Stuck in formation – due to poor specification of roles tasks and priorities
 Too many members – coordination and communication are more complex in a larger
team
 Group Behavior Model (reading Assignment)
 The model proposes that there is a chain of influences whereby background and individual personal
factors impart on the formal system to produce actual behavior, which in turn, produce the outcomes of
group behavior.
Key components of the Model
i. Activities
 They are the physical movements that individuals make that can be observed by others.
ii. Interaction
 It refers to the verbal and non-verbal communication and contacts that actually take place between
people.
iii. Sentiments
 They are the values, attitudes and beliefs within a person. They include all the positive and negative
feelings that group members hold about each other.
iv. Required behavior
 It refers to the activities, interactions and sentiments that are defined by the group’s formal leaders and
assigned to the members as their specified roles.
v. Emergent behavior
 It refers to behavior that is not required. It is in addition to
what is required.
 It relates as the personal system by making work more
interesting and satisfying, or it can he detrimental
 IMPLICATIONS ON PERFORMANCE AND SATISFACTION
Roles, norms and status have a significant impact on groups behavior.
i. Roles - When a person plays out his/ her role as it is supposed to be played, it improves
the ability of others to predict the behavior of the role mandatory.

ii. Norms - Norms control group member behavior by establishing standards of right or
wrong. If we know the norms of a given group, it can help us to explain the attitudes and
behavior of its members.

iii. Status - Inequities create frustrations and can adversely influence productivity,
satisfaction and willingness to remain with an organization.
End of the Chapter