Instructor Resource
Lussier, Management Fundamentals 8e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
Instructor Manual
Chapter 8: Managing Team Work
Work Application Sample Answers
Most of the answers are actual student answers or based on student answers. You may give these
answers as part of your lecture before, after, or in place of getting student answers.
8-1. Consider your present or a past job. Did you work in a group or a team? Explain,
using each of the six characteristics in Exhibit 8-1.
When I worked as a teller at the bank, I worked in a group. There were usually only three of us
8-2. Identify task groups used in an organization you work for or have worked for. Specify
whether each group is a task force or a standing committee.
8-3. Identify a group or team you belong to, and describe its size, composition, leadership,
and objectives.
I work for a college. I’m the secretary for the management and economics department, which is a
8-4. Identify members of a group or team you have been on, and state the primary role
each played in the group.
Instructor Resource
Lussier, Management Fundamentals 8e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
The group I’m using is my sorority, which has seven members: (1) Sue—president (task and
8-5. Identify at least two norms that developed in a group/team of which you were a
member. Explain how you knew they were norms and how the group enforced those
norms.
The group I’m using is my sorority, which has seven members. Our group norms include arriving
8-6. Identify the level of cohesiveness in a group or team of which you are or have been a
member.
8-7. Recall a group of which you were a member. List each member, including yourself,
and identify each person’s level of status within the group. Explain why each member had
the level of status you identified.
The group I’m using is my sorority, which has seven members: (1) Sue—president (high status),
Instructor Resource
Lussier, Management Fundamentals 8e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
8-8. Recall a group from a present or past job. Identify the group’s stage of development
and the leadership style. Did the leader use an appropriate style? Explain what can be done
to improve the group’s structure and/or process.
At the bank I worked for as a teller, all the tellers had worked there for a couple of years, so we all
8-9. Think about the leadership style of a present or past boss. Did that person behave as a
group manager or as a team leader? What made you classify the person this way?
At the factory I worked for, my boss was a group manager. I classify my boss as a manager because
8-10. Give examples of team rewards and recognition where you work(ed).
Where I worked they had an annual awards dinner and gave out some awards.
8-11. Recall a meeting you have recently attended. Did you receive an agenda prior to the
meeting? How well did the leader conduct the meeting? Give ideas on how the meeting
could have been improved. Did the group have any problem members? How well did the
leader handle them?
Our leader planned for the meetings by stating meeting objectives and what we needed to
Instructor Resource
Lussier, Management Fundamentals 8e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
meeting, and the order of priority in which these would take place. We actually voted together on
what the leader recommended and if we didn’t like it, we threw it out.
Review Question Answers
8-1. Which are usually larger, groups or teams?
Groups are usually larger because they can have any number of members.
8-2. Which level of management has the most influence over organizational context?
8-3. Is there an ideal group size?
8-4. Why is diversity important to group composition?
8-5. Why are objectives important to groups?
8-6. How do groups enforce norms?
Instructor Resource
Lussier, Management Fundamentals 8e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
8-7. Which type of group tends to terminate and which does not?
8-8. Are the four functions of management important to both groups and teams?
Yes. The management functions are important but handled differently in groups and teams. In
8-9. Why is it important to keep records of meeting assignments?
8-10. Describe the six types of problem members in meetings. How does each cause a
problem to the group?
1. Silent type: They are a problem because they do not give input.
Communication Skills Answers
8-1. Is it really worth making a distinction between groups and teams? Why or why not?
Instructor Resource
Lussier, Management Fundamentals 8e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
8-2. Which part of the group performance model is the most important to high levels of
performance? Why?
8-3. Select any type of group (work, school, sports) you belong or have belonged to. Explain
how each of the group’s five structure components affects or did affect its performance.
8-4. Select any type of group (work, school, sports) you belong or have belonged to. Explain
how each of the group’s six group process components affects or did affect its performance.
8-5. Are most team leaders really capable of determining the stage of group development
and using the appropriate leadership style for the situation? Why or why not?
8-6. Based on your experience with meetings and what you have read and heard from
others, which part of planning a meeting is most lacking?
8-7. Which type of group problem member is most annoying to you? Why? How can you
better work with this type of group member in the future?
Applying the Concept Answers
Applying the Concept 8-1: Group or Team
Identify each statement as characteristic of a group (A) or a team (B).
A. A group
B. A team
Instructor Resource
Lussier, Management Fundamentals 8e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
1. “Sharon, I’d rather just get paid for my own output. I make more money with this
current bonus system because I sell more than the rest of the sales reps.”
2. “Cindy, I get the assembled product from Tina; then I paint it and send it to Jamal for
packaging.”
3. “There are ten people in my department, and we get along well, Jose.”
4. “Our boss is great, Hanna. She lets us all participate in decisions.”
5. “Supervisor Kim is the only one who conducts employee performance appraisals in our
department.”
6. “Your department has goals, Eddie; we don’t. But we have been told to do the best we
can to accomplish the company mission statement.”
Applying the Concept 8-2: Types of Group Structure
Identify the dimension of the group structure exemplified in each statement.
A. Formal group
B. Informal group
C. Functional group
D. Cross-functional group
E. Task force
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F. Standing committee
G. Global virtual team
7. Hank, don’t forget we have a Skype meeting with our England and German engineers
at 6:00 our time today
8. Suzan, I just got elected to serve a three-year term on the budgeting group.
9. Juanita, some of our department members are going skiing next Sunday. Want to join
us?
10. Kirsten, will you serve on the search group to select the new software program?
11. Kent, our group consist of our sales manager and seven sales reps.
Applying the Concept 8-3: Roles
Identify the type of role exemplified in each statement.
A. Task
B. Maintenance
C. Self-interest
12. “I want to hear Karin’s idea before we make this decision.”
Instructor Resource
Lussier, Management Fundamentals 8e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
13. “So do we all understand the objective? Any questions?”
14. “We tried your idea before you came to work here, Sandy. It did not work then, so it
won’t work now. Let’s just do it my way.”
15. “We are getting sidetracked talking about TV shows we like to watch.”
A. Task. Getting the group back on track helps to get the job done.
16. “Tolo’s idea is better than mine. Let’s implement her idea instead of mine.”
Applying the Concept 8-4: Group Process
Identify the dimension of the group process exemplified in each statement.
A. Roles
B. Norms
C. Cohesiveness
D. Status
E. Decision making
F. conflict resolution
18. “ You’re late, Sue. Everyone else was on time, so we started without you. Be on time for
the next meeting.”
19. “What does this topic have to do with solving the problem we are working on?”
20. “We do have occasional differences of opinion, Jon. But you will find out that we
really get along well and enjoy working together.”
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Lussier, Management Fundamentals 8e
21. “Let’s stop the discussion and select one of these three insurance packages.”
E. Decision making. Selecting an alternative is part of the decision making model.
22. “That’s a tough one. Go ask Kennedy; she knows more about the program than any
of us.”
23. “Every time there is a disagreement, Aden tries to get the members to work out the
problem.”
Applying the Concept 8-5: Problematic Group Members
Identify the problem type described in each statement.
A. Silent type
B. Talker
C. Wanderer
D. Bored member
E. Arguer
F. Social loafer
24. Clarita asks if anyone heard about their manager and the new guy she’s dating.
25. “l Tony, this looks like you just rushed through this to get it down without concern
for giving us really good data for our team presentation.”
26. Sonia is usually reluctant to give her ideas, and when she does and is challenged, Sonia
backs down easily.
Instructor Resource
Lussier, Management Fundamentals 8e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
27. Chris enjoys challenging members’ ideas and getting them emotional so they will let
him get his own way.
28. Kim is always first or second to give her ideas. She is always elaborating in detail on
others’ ideas as well.
B. Talker. Kim talks a lot and dominates the conversation.
29. Sean, one of the usually active group members, is sitting back quietly today for the first
time. The other members are doing all the discussing and volunteering for assignments.
D. Bored member. A silent type does not start talking and then later get quiet. This usually
Join the Discussion
Join the Discussion 8-1: Team Players
JetBlue Airways is not structured around teams. However, teamwork skills and attitudes are
1. Is it necessary to be a team player to be a successful employee at JetBlue?
2. Is it ethical and socially responsible of JetBlue to reject job candidates because they are
considered not to be team players?
Join the Discussion 8-2: Norms
Group members influence each other’s behavior through the development and enforcement of
norms—that is, essentially through peer pressure. In general, this process is positive, as it helps
Instructor Resource
Lussier, Management Fundamentals 8e
SAGE Publishing, 2019
1. Should employees be able to “do their own thing” without group enforcement of norms?
2. Is it ethical and socially responsible for groups to develop and enforce norms? If yes,
what type of ethical standards should a group have?