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CHAPTER EIGHT: MANAGING GROUP COMMUNICATION AND WORKPLACE TEAMS
Objectives
Lead group discussions
Manage effective group functioning
Increase morale of employees working in groups
Coordinate task outcomes of groups
Manage group recommendations and decisions by applying group communication
principles of group decision making
Identify a high performance team
Select personnel appropriate to and matched with select team projects
Define the qualities that comprise excellence in team performance
Apply steps that can be used in changing to a high performance team
Identify a model that differentiates working groups from potential, real, and high
performance teams
Key Words
Group communication, small group, task outcomes, satisfaction outcomes, communication
networks, centralized networks, decentralized networks, spatial arrangements, leadership styles,
communication processing, team discussions, teams, outcomes, goals, group expectations, group
norms, team benefits, team performance
On the Internet
Chapter Teaching Notes
I. What Is A Small Group? three to fifteen members who have:
A. Purpose
B. Interdependency
C. Interaction among all members
D. Task outcomes to produce or manage
II. Group Outcomes
A. Task outcomes
2. Groups outperform individuals in quantity and quality for complex
tasks
B. Satisfaction outcomes
1. Definition: morale or satisfaction experienced
3. Informal groups can meet needs of individuals
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III. Communication Networks in Small Groups refers to the links or available channels
through which members of the small group have access to one another.
A. Centralized Networks communication occurs through a central person or
persons
1. Wheel members are restricted to communicating with a centrally
located person
3. Advantages task efficiency is greater, high satisfaction among group
members who occupy central positions
4. Disadvantages group satisfaction is low, members in central
positions experience information overload
B. Decentralized Networks information passes randomly through the group
2. All channel all participants have access to all other members
4. Disadvantages takes more time and more messages are sent
C. Virtual Networks
1. Introduce new structures for networking including: global
2. Principles of centralized and decentralized networks still apply
IV. Leadership Styles
A. Highly directive leadership
2. Members can feel as though they are not heard or lack input
3. Leaders can appear: Paternalistic and defensive, rules oriented rather
B. Participatory leadership
2. Produces moderate task efficiency
3. Leaders are: We-oriented and tolerant, objective rather than subjective,
encouraging with use of honest praise and criticism
C. Negligent leadership (laissez faire)
2. Close to a non-leader situation
4. Leaders use: No comments, feedback, or encouragement and you-
orientation
V. Communicating for Group Decisions
A. Communicating for group task outcomes:
1. Providing information and ideas
3. Asking for ideas and information
5. Analyzing information
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B. Communicating for group satisfaction outcomes – behaviors that maintain
satisfaction:
1. Showing solidarity
3. Providing emotional support for group members
5. Providing tension release
C. Communicating over group barriers – negative group communication:
1. Hidden agenda
2. Rigid communication
3. Groupthink communication: Over-conformity communication
groupthink occurs for a variety of
reasons:
4. Special pleading
5. Pulling rank
7. Defensive communication
VI. Conducting Group Discussions
A. Initiating the group discussion
1. Prepare and send an early agenda
3. Frame the decision making with key questions
a. Question of fact: the conditions and definition (what, why,
when)
b. Question of conjecture: focuses on the future (what if, future,
scenarios)
c. Question of value: argues the worth of something (should, value,
ought, worth)
d. Question of policy: what recommendations or actions should be
taken? (how, methods, steps)
4. Wording the question
a. Questions should be specific.
5. Clarify leadership
B. Processing group
problem-solving
1. Step One: Recognize a felt difficulty where exactly does the
difficulty lie?
2. Step Two: Ventilate feelings hidden agenda?
3. Step Three: Describe the problem
a. Define the problem
b. Word the problem or offer a question
4. Step Four: Develop solutions
a. Set up criteria
b. List solutions
C. Concluding group discussions
2. Suspend discussion good option when diversity of opinion is deep
4. Mediation or arbitration using an objective person outside the group
to help reconcile differences
5. Majority vote voting is a win-lose scenario, and in small groups it is
recommended that it be used only in close situations or for quasi-legal
reasons
VII. What Is a Team?
A. Focused collectives of motivated and focused employees in an organization who work
toward a common mission
B. Teams are significant units in the organization
C. Team life cycle
2. Storming the ventilation of past, current, or potential conflict
4. Performing group develops a strong bond, develops knowledge and decisions,
and takes responsibility for those decisions
D. What is a team s function in the workplace?
1. Source of information and innovation
3. Self-motivation and source of achievement
VIII. Qualities of Successful Teams
A. Communication of vision and mission – successful teams create a specific vision and
mission early on in their development.
B. Communication of strategic goals and activities – these lead toward accomplishment of
the mission. Goals must be measurable, with each devoted to a single issue.
C. Communicating expectations – teams need to have responsibility and accountability
D. Communicating commitment and team norms – it is important to develop personal
commitment and rules for teams members
E. Communicating with senior leadership have a person who links the team with executive
leadership
F. Communicate freely with significant amounts of information – information must be freely
available to all members. Information sharing approaches for team management include:
1. Diversity is healthy and demands greater emphasis on communication.
3. Develop rules and norms
5. Reward each member s achievement
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7. Maintain communication relevant and moving toward the goals
9. Share leadership functions
10. Foster sensitivity, listening, trust
IX. Communicating Outcomes of Successful Teams
A. Typical measurable outcomes of organizations
2. These outcomes allow teams to measure their success
3. When one or more outcome changes a team can expect some degree of success
B. Team Success Measures
1. Revenues and profits increase
3. Customer satisfaction increases, complaints decrease
4. Quality of product increases
5. Conflict decreases/harmony increases
7. Vision, mission, and goal setting increase
8. Image and impression management to increase
9. Inventory to be reduced
11. Interpersonal communication effectiveness to increase
Case Study
The Case of the Life or Death Committee
The University Medical School and the University Hospital have acquired an artificial kidney,
a machine that removes waste from the blood of a patient with kidney disease. A patient with
acute kidney disease who does not have access to such a machine will die within weeks of
uremic poisoning and congestive heart failure. However, since facilities are limited, only a
small number may use it.
You are a committee of anonymous laypeople selected to choose which of the candidates
The doctors have recommended that all children and patients over 45 be eliminated for
medical reasons. Therefore, the patients that you will consider will be from 25-45 years of
age.
You are meeting at this time to select two new patients from a list of five candidates. Ability
to pay for the use of the machine should not enter into your decision. (The cost is $25,000 per
year per patient.) In addition to selecting the two new patients, you may also wish
to
formulate
some guideline or policy to aid in the solution of this problem when it comes up
again.
a. A man, age 41, from Capitol City. He is married and has four children, all under
15 years of age. His income is $18,000, working as an accountant for a large oil
company. He does not yet own his home, but his insurance policy will finish
paying for it in case of his death. He owns a car and a small life insurance
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b. A woman, age 38, from University Park. She is married to a university professor
and has two children, ages 16 and 12. Her husband makes $21,000 a year, and
c. A man, age 25, from Capitol City. He is married and has one small child. His
salary is $17,000 a year, working as an engineer for a large industrial firm. He
holds a ma degree and his supervisors have tabbed him as a man who
is
d. A man, age 35, from Midwest City. He is an aircraft maintenance worker at
Tinker Air Force Base. He is married and has five children, all under 10 years of
age. He makes $14,000 a year and is paying on a home and a car. He has a life
e. A man, age 27, from Iran, who immigrated to the United States six years ago. He
Class Exercises
1. Objective: Networks. Increase understanding of communication networks and how they
function. (Worksheet available)
Time: 30 minutes
Directions: For each scenario, identify and draw the type of network that is in use. Identify
the strengths and weaknesses of each network situation.
a. In organization BTA, the employees are constantly working on projects together.
Bill and Sari are currently working on the marketing section of the new big
project. Although Bill and Sari work on the same project, they both work part
time and do not generally work the same shift. In order to compensate for this
time difference, they leave messages and work for each other with Ali.
Ali works
overtime almost everyday, so it is always convenient for people to pass messages
through her. Ali mostly works with Caleb who is the independent accountant for
each project. He gives all of his work to Ali to check and pass on. The other
person who works on the team is Taya. Taya does the entire design
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layout for the marketing projects that Bill and Sari do. Taya only works after
hours Wednesday through Friday, so she also finds it convenient to pass on her
work through Ali.
What kind of network is in use at organization BTA? Draw it out. Would a different
b. The following individuals all work together in the promotion department of
a
large
music company: Ryan, Dave, Julia, Josh, and Kelly. They are a close-knit
team, and rely on each other to accomplish all of their promotional work. Every
person on the team is responsible for the work. Julia and Dave work mostly on
CD distribution, so they work closely everyday. Dave also pitches in on Josh s
main projects of poster design because Dave gives Josh the final work that he did
with Julia. Josh gives all of his finished projects, as well as the work that Dave
and Julia did, to Kelly in order for her to do the proof work. When Kelly
finishes, she passes all of it on to Ryan. Finally, Ryan takes all of the other team
member s work and packages it together into the final project.
What kind of network is in use at the music company? Draw it out. Would a different
network be more effective? Why or why not?
c. A new production team has just been added at the local car plant. The team is
responsible for checking new vehicle models for different functions, in order to
assure that there are no major flaws. Each person on the team is responsible for
checking a different function: Jenna checks engine components, Jack
checks
body
parts, Sarah checks brakes, Rob checks wheels and axles, Robin checks
interior quality, and Brian checks the gas and exhaust structures. After each
person completes his or her check, they meet as a team and share information.
They then write up their findings and give the car a rating. After this, they report
as a team to a board of directors.
What kind of network is in use in the production team? Draw it out. Would a
different network be more effective? Why or why not?
2. Objective: Create a better understanding of leadership types and current practices.
Time: One or two class periods, outside class preparation.
Directions: This activity will take the place of a lecture or discussion on leadership, and it
works best in a smaller class. This is an opportunity for students to teach each other and
develop presentation skills. Divide the class into three groups to five groups. Assign each
group a different topic: directive leadership, participatory leadership, negligent leadership,
etc. Ask each group to research the style of leadership that they were assigned. They will
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3. Objective: To illustrate how groupthink becomes a reality. See Social Mixer list below
Time: 30 minutes
Directions: Part of this exercise must be done in secret so that the outcomes will
be successful.
As the teacher, predetermine a group list for the class. Groups of about 6
would be
ideal. Try
to group students together that you know are friends, or at least acquaintances. In class, you
will break the students into these groups. Before hand, you will have talked privately with 5
of the 6 students in each group. These 5 students are to be informed that they are going to part
of a groupthink persuasion group. These students on the day of the activity will attempt to act
using groupthink in order to get the sixth student to agree with them.
In class, you will set up a mock exercise, not associated with groupthink at all. You will tell
them that the better business bureau in town wants to set up a social mixer between the
business department at your school and their bureau. You, as a school representative are in
In class, you will present the class with a sheet of paper containing the list of choices that you
have already narrowed it down to. (See worksheet page following) Some of the lists will have
normal choices, and some will have one outlandish choice (meaning that students would
not be
likely to choose that choice). In these instances, it will be the work of the group to use
The exercise will illustrate how groupthink works. Do the uninformed students go along with
the group or do they hold their ground?
It is important that the students who find out about the project a head of time, DO NOT tell
their other classmates what is happening or discuss it with anyone else, since they will not
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List of choices for BBB and Business Department Social Mixer
What are the choices that best represent the college age crowd and that you would like the
best?
Circle one:
Colors for decorations and dinnerware:
1. Bright orange and dark purple
2. Black and gold
3. Dark green and dark blue
5. Bright red and white
(Groupthink must choose orange and purple)
Appetizers:
1. Chips and dip
3. Fruit and vegetables
(Can choose any answer the group thinks is best)
Dinner entrees:
1. Chicken
3. Pork chops
4. Mexican food
(Can choose any answer the group thinks is best)
Background music:
2. Soft jazz music
3. Classical music
(Groupthink must choose Barry Manilow)
Place:
2. Rent a reception hall
(Can choose any answer the group thinks is best)
4. Objective: Identifying team development stages.
Time: 45 minutes
Directions: Ask students to interview a family member or an adult friend who has had
corporate work experience. Have them interview that person to find out about a team
5. Objective: Identify the meanings behind mission statements and goals.
Time: 50 minutes
Directions: Have students research and make a list of (or to save time, provide them with a
list) as many mission statements an goals that they can for large or well-known organizations.
Ask them to analyze them to discover what message the organization is intending to send
with their mission statement/goals. Are there any messages being sent that may not be
intentional? Is each statement an effective? Why or why not?
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6. Objective: Making mission statements and goal writing personal.
Time: 25 minutes
Directions: Each student should work independently to write their own mission statement.
Their statement should be clear and well worded. After they have written their own mission
7. Objective: Team success/Team norms. Identifying personal factors for team success.
(Worksheet available) [Taken from Table 9.3 Factors of Team Success]
Time: 40 minutes
Directions: Have students circle on the worksheet which way they tend to behave, or what
they
tend to prefer for each factor. (Which way they actually behave, not how they would like to
behave.) After they have finished this step, group them into random Now have each
8. Objective: To demonstrate the influence of group size on cohesiveness, productivity, and
effectiveness, and participation in groups of varying size.
Time: About 60 minutes
Directions: Break the class into groups of three to discuss the case study for ten
minutes. Then
have two groups join so that there are now groups of six people. Have them discuss the case
study for about 10 minutes. Now join the groups into groups of 12 for ten minutes.
After
this,
Discussion Questions
1. Before discussing the chapter, ask for the definitions of a small group. Then
give them the text definitions. Are they surprised by the requirements to be considered a
small group? How did their definitions differ from the definition?
2. How does working in a group differ from working by yourself? What are your
experiences? Do you feel that you were more effective working in a group or by
yourself? What kinds of activities were you working on? Does the activity change the
effectiveness?
3. If you had the choice of working on a project by yourself or working in a group, which
would you chose and why?
8. Can you think of a time when it would have been best for a negligent leadership
experience, when in fact another type was used?
9. Think of the last time that you participated in a group. What methods helped maintain
and reach satisfaction?
10. What events of groupthink have you been a part of? How did it happen?
11. What difference does it make in the decision process depending on how you frame the
question?