Assessment Task 1

Activity 1:
1.Consulting team members to establish a common understanding of team purpose, roles
responsibilities and accountabilities in accordance with organisational goals, plans and objectives.

Ans: Consult team members to establish a common understanding of team purpose, roles,
responsibilities and accountabilities in accordance with organisational goals, plans and objectives.

Develop performance plans to establish expected outcomes, outputs, key performance indicators and
goals for work team. Support team members in meeting expected performance outcomes.

1. Encourage team members and individuals to participate in and to take responsibility for team
activities, including communication processes.

2. Support the team in identifying and resolving work performance problems.

3. Ensure own contribution to work team serves as a role model for others and enhances the
organisation's image for all stakeholders.

2.Developing performance plans to establish expected outcomes, outputs, key performance indicators
(KPIs) and goals for work team.

Ans: So, part of performance management is setting goals with members of your team. This may be
done within the formal appraisal process, but it doesn't have to be. The important factor is that the goals
that are set are aligned with the department's strategy, which in turn is aligned with the overall strategy
of the organization.

This follows the common adage in management that says, "What is measured gets done." If you set a
goal around a certain outcome, the chances of that outcome occurring are much higher, simply because
you have committed to managing and measuring the results.

When an employee's goal is defined in terms of an organizational KPI, it ensures that what the employee
is doing is well aligned with the goals of the organization. This is the critical link between employee
performance and organizational success.

Let's take an example of how an individual employee's goal is linked to organizational strategy:

 Organizational Vision – To be known for our superior customer service and satisfaction.

 Organizational Objective – To reduce the number of dissatisfied customers by 25%.

 Organizational KPI – The number of customer complaints that remain unresolved at the end of a
week.

 Team Member's Goal – To increase the number of satisfactory complaint resolutions by 15% this
period.

Taken to the next level, each employee goal should have at least one associated KPI. How will you
specifically measure, on a regular basis, whether this person is meeting his or her goal?
  Team Member KPI – The weekly percentage difference in complaints handled that result in
satisfied customers versus unsatisfied customers.

3. Supporting team members in meeting expected performance outcomes.

Ans:

Support innovation.

To stay ahead, innovation is required. The most successful businesses are those that remain flexible and
innovative and build on current successes without consistently overtaxing their teams. Allow team
members to work when they feel most productive, whether that’s the middle of the night or 5 a.m.
Encourage regular breaks and informal brainstorming sessions. Celebrate breakthroughs, and don’t get
hung up on attempts that didn’t succeed.

Leadership matters.

Innovation comes from inspiration. Teams must be led by managers that go beyond balancing budgets
and schedules. The strongest leaders set goals, priorities and roles for their teams, and encourage each
team member to achieve their personal best while keeping strategic goals in mind. Leaders must be clear
on vision, know where the team is going and have a clear idea of how individual efforts lead to
accomplishing important strategic goals

Hire the right people.

Hiring well can be the single greatest factor in contributing to a company’s success. The right person will
bring not just a skill set or knowledge base but will be a solid addition to drive forward your company’s
vision and values. That’s why it’s important to include vision and values during the hiring and interview
process. Ask the right questions that get at the information you need to know. And make sure the
appropriate people get looped into the process.

Keep learning.

Productivity is increased when team members have all the skills they need to succeed. If you identify
someone with great enthusiasm who lacks practical skills, encourage them to take an online course or be
mentored by a colleague with more expertise. Be sure your team knows that skill development is
expected, and that no one should rest on their laurels. Letting employees stretch their wings and take on
new and different roles creates a culture of support for learning and innovation.

Streamline processes.

The start of a new year is a great time to step back and look at process integration in the workplace.
Streamlining processes between teams and departments can go a long way towards maximizing
productivity. Part of any process integration effort should focus on breaking down obvious silos and
barriers to help groups and individuals feel more connected to the greater whole.

Build commitment.
Use your company’s leadership around vision and values to build employee commitment. A competitive
business plan and strategy are important, yet a company culture that celebrates innovation and
dedication to that vision and strategy will do as much to motivate employees. Recognize team
members who go the extra mile and are willing to take risks on implementing new ideas. Clear
communication is paramount.

Get the team involved in managing resources.

When you involve appropriate team members in the resource allocation process, you create a spirit of
collaboration on important decisions. Plus, you probably get more accurate outcomes when recourses
are being managed by the person who is most knowledgeable in their area.

Activity 2:
1.Developing strategies to ensure team members have input into planning, decision making and
operational aspects of work team.

Ans: In work teams, having a common purpose and a clear understanding of the roles, responsibilities
and individual goals within the team dynamic is essential to ensuring a quality outcome. In this case,
quality refers to more than just a positive outcome in relation to the prescribed goals; it also means the
cohesion of individuals within the team environment and the lasting impressions of the success (or
otherwise) of the group project. As a leader, aligning the focus of the team helps to enable the team
members to achieve goals.

Important issues to consider include facilitating a shared understanding of:

• the purpose of the organisation, who its customers are and the team’s role with the customers.

• what the organisations goals are, and how your team will help achieve them. Skills required to
effectively lead teams to get the most out of their teams, managers and team leaders should firstly
understand the skills required to lead teams, and what constitutes a team.

The skills you require to effectively lead teams include:

• planning and organising skills

• training skills

• communication and consultation skills

• conflict resolution skills.

2.Developing policies and procedures to ensure team members take responsibility for own work and
assist others to undertake required roles and responsibilities.

Ans: Ways of consulting with others and getting feedback in the workplace

Meetings: Formal, scheduled meetings and informal, ad hoc gatherings between team members
contribute to a better understanding of tasks, responsibilities and roles.

Interviews: Creating a list of questions to establish knowledge, skills and understanding of the task can
help you identify individual needs and attributes.

Brainstorming: sessions the group considers several possible perspectives. Successful brainstorming
requires commitment, contribution and cooperation by all team members.

Email/intranet communication: If a team is geographically dispersed, a system of electronic

communication can aid understanding and contribution by all team members.

Policies can be developed in anticipation of need and in response to need. The organisation needs to
constantly assess its activities, responsibilities and the external environment to identify the need for
policies and procedures.

Consult with appropriate stakeholders: Policies are most effective if those affected are consulted are
supportive and can consider and discuss the potential implications of the policy. What monitoring, and
reporting systems are in place to ensure that the policy is implemented and to assess usage and
responses? On what basis when will the policy be reviewed and revised?

3.Providing feedback to team members to encourage, value and reward individual and team efforts and
contributions.
 Ans: the importance of understanding exactly how your employees are feeling and creating a culture
that encouraged honest feedback – including complaints! Here are six strategies to encourage employee
feedback and complaints that you can implement and discover what your employees are really thinking:

1. Skip-Level Meetings

In a skip-level meeting, the leader or senior executive meets one-on-one with employees two levels
below them in the hierarchy. This can be a great way for executives to stay in touch with the day-to-day
realities of the business and increases the flow of information.

2. Survey Your Employees

Surveys are an easy, low-cost way to obtain a lot of information. Conducting a survey can help you to:

 Identify areas where you want to make changes – for example, improving your internal
communications

 Know what is bugging your staff – such as a lack of training, or making decisions which impact
differently on employees of different demographics

 Send a message to all staff that you are listening and care what they think.

3. Conduct Exit Interviews

Exit interviews of departing employees can yield a treasure trove of information. Sure, the exiting
employee may not give you a report of ‘the average’ experience of the remaining workforce, given that
they are either leaving for good reasons (moving on to a better position) or bad (their employment has
been terminated or made redundant).

4. Confidential Complaints Line

Many employees do not speak up because they are afraid that they will suffer adverse consequences if
they lodge a complaint. Enabling staff to raise concerns anonymously is a good way to encourage fearful
employees to come forward. Employees can make a report of inappropriate conduct via telephone or
our online reporting system. Reports lodged with Integrity Line are provided to the designated person at
the subscriber organisation, and the organisation then decides how the report will be managed.

5. Workplace Review

We are often contacted by a client because they have a ‘toxic team’ or dysfunctional division, but they
can’t work out why. Work logic conducts independent workplace review of problematic, dysfunctional or
unethical workplaces and teams, and of critical incidents. After exploring the situation, we give practical
and strategic advice to resolve the workplace problems. We identify problems, risks and opportunities to
improve the morale, efficiency, functioning and ethics of the team.

6. Ask for Ideas

Encourage people to offer new ideas and to speak up about things that aren’t going well. Make sure that
there is time on the agenda of meetings for people to bring up new ideas and opportunities for
improvement. Listen to what they tell you, reward people who speak up – even if their ideas aren’t
ultimately pursued.
4.Developing processes to ensure that issues, concerns and problems identified by team members are
recognised and addressed.

Ans: Encourage team members and individuals to participate in and to take responsibility for team
activities, including communication processes. Support the team in identifying and resolving work
performance problems. Ensure own contribution to work team serves as a role model for others and
enhances the organisation's image for all stakeholders.

Establish and maintain open communication processes with all stakeholders. Communicate information
from line manager/management to the team. Communicate unresolved issues, concerns and problems
raised by team members and follow-up with line manager/management and other relevant
stakeholders. Evaluate and take necessary corrective action regarding unresolved issues, concerns and
problems raised by internal or external stakeholders.

This describes the essential skills and knowledge and their level, required for this unit.

Required skills:

• communication skills to explain team goals, to address team conflict and to build an environment of
trust.

• planning and organisational skills to keep team on track and focussed on work outcomes.

Required knowledge:

• group behaviour.

• strategies for mentoring and coaching to informally guide and instruct team members.

• issue resolution.

• strategies for gaining consensus.

Activity 3:
1.Encouraging team members and individuals to participate in and to take responsibility for team
activities, including communication processes.

Ans: Try these 9 powerful ways to keep the members of your team motivated and giving their very best
on the job.

1. Pay your people what they are worth

When you set your employees' salaries, be sure that their pay is consistent with what other companies in
your industry and geographic area are paying. Don't lose great people because you're underpaying them.

2. Provide them with a pleasant place to work

Everyone wants to work in an office environment that is clean and stimulating, and that makes them feel
good instead of bad. You don't have to spend a lot of money to make an office a more pleasant place to
be.

3. Offer opportunities for self-development

The members of your team will be more valuable to your organization, and to themselves, when they
have opportunities to learn new skills. Provide your team with the training they need to advance in their
careers and to become knowledgeable about the latest technologies and industry news.

4. Foster collaboration within the team

According to Weekdone.com, 39 percent of employees don't feel that their input is appreciated.
Encourage the members of your team to fully participate by inviting their input and suggestions on how
to do things better. Ask questions, listen to their answers, and, whenever possible, implement their
solutions.

5. Encourage happiness

Happy employees are enthusiastic and positive members of the team, and their attitude is infectious.
Keep an eye on whether your people are happy with their work, their employer, and you.

6. Don't punish failure

We all make mistakes. It's part of being human. The key is to learn valuable lessons from those mistakes,
so we don't make them again. When members of your team make honest mistakes, don't punish them--
instead, encourage them to try again.

7. Set clear goals

In one study, 63 percent of employees reported that they wasted time at work because they weren't
aware of what work was a priority, and what wasn't. As a leader, it's your job to work with the members
of your team to set clear goals. And once you do that, make sure everyone knows exactly what those
goals are, what their relative priority is, and what the team's role is in reaching them.

8. Don't micromanage

No one likes a boss who is constantly looking over her shoulder and second-guessing her every decision.
In fact, 38 percent of employees in one survey reported that they would rather take on unpleasant
activities than sit next to a micromanaging boss.

9. Avoid useless meetings

Create an agenda for your meetings and distribute it in advance. Invite only the people who really need
to attend, start the meeting on time, and then end it as quickly as you possibly can.
2.Supporting the team in identifying and resolving work performance problems.

Ans: Here are seven-steps for an effective problem-solving process.

1. Identify the issues.

 Be clear about what the problem is.

 Remember that different people might have different views of what the issues are.

 Separate the listing of issues from the identification of interests (that's the next step!).

2. Understand everyone's interests.

 This is a critical step that is usually missing.

 Interests are the needs that you want satisfied by any given solution. We often ignore our true
interests as we become attached to one solution.

 The best solution is the one that satisfies everyone's interests.

3. List the possible solutions (options)

 This is the time to do some brainstorming. There may be lots of room for creativity.

 Separate the listing of options from the evaluation of the options.

4. Evaluate the options.

 What are the pluses and minuses? Honestly!

 Separate the evaluation of options from the selection of options.

5. Select an option or options.

 What's the best option, in the balance?

 Is there a way to "bundle" several options together for a more satisfactory solution?

6. Document the agreement(s).

 Don't rely on memory.

 Writing it down will help you think through all the details and implications.

7. Agree on contingencies, monitoring, and evaluation.

 Conditions may change. Make contingency agreements about foreseeable future circumstances.

 How will you monitor compliance and follow-through?

 Create opportunities to evaluate the agreements and their implementation.

3.Ensuring own contribution to work team serves as a role model for others and enhances the
organisations image for all stakeholders.
Ans: A role model manager is one who inspires those who work for him or her, as well as exhibits
managerial excellence in many aspects of the business.

1. Present a Positive Attitude: No one is saying that you aren’t allowed to have a bad day now and then,
but if you can exhibit strength, calm and perseverance even during stressful times and a good, positive
attitude overall, you will install the same within your employees.

2. Earn and Build Trust: A role model manager must be trustworthy. Your team won’t feel inclined to
show you much respect if you aren’t true to your word and honest with your employees.

3. Exhibit Integrity: A good manager will make decisions for the betterment of the business and not just
for him or herself. Employees will respect a manager that genuinely cares about the business and those
who work within the organization.

4. Lead and Inspire: Take care to always lead by example in a responsible manner, and your employees
will follow suit. A good leader motivates his team rather than criticizes them and strives to inspire team
members to reach their full potential.

5. Make Time for Employees: Communication is always important for any organization to run smoothly.
Make sure you always have time for employee concerns or questions and offer your advice and wisdom
if applicable.

6. Learn About Your Employees: Your employees are your biggest assets and they have lives outside of
the workplace. They have families, interests and occasionally problems that might interfere with their
performance.

7. Offer Support and Encouragement: Just as you might have a bad day, so too might some of your
employees. Offer support and encouragement by creating a healthy workplace environment and taking
the time to understand any problems or difficulties your employees may be having.

Activity 4:
1.Establishing and maintain open communication process with all stakeholders.

Ans: No matter how your communication is now, there are always ways to improve. Here are six key tips
on how you can maintain effective communication with all your employees.
1. Have Open Communication
When you have open communication with your employees, it builds trust and makes them feel valued.
On the other hand, if you simply delegate tasks and don’t get your employees’ input, they won’t perform
at their best.

2.Ensure that Your Attitude Makes You Approachable

Most of our communication is nonverbal and telling employees they can talk to you means nothing if
your body language says otherwise. It’s important to always be conscious of your attitude and what
you’re projecting to your employees.

3.Be Clear and Concise

Effective communicators get to the point and make their messages clear. Your goal should always be to
get your message across clearly with as little technical jargon as possible, whether you’re talking to an
employee in person or sending an email.

4.Welcome Feedback and Take It Seriously

Employee feedback is great for your business. You never know when your employees will notice
something that you didn’t – perhaps there’s a flaw in that product that didn’t cross your mind but was
obvious to an employee right away.

5.Set the Right Culture

Communication isn’t some task that you can check off your list. It’s part of your company’s culture, and
you’ll be the one to set that culture.

6.Keep Your Employees Updated Regularly

All too often, business leaders keep their employees in the dark about what’s going on with the
company. This leaves employees feeling like they’re only there to do a job, and it creates a barrier
between the management and everyone else.

2.Communicating information from line manager/management to the team.

Ans: Effective line management requires a blend of leadership skills, team-building know-how, and
excellent communication. Industry studies show that many managers are still not confident about
overcoming their communication skill gaps. They can also struggle with their role in reducing employee
change fatigue and shaping a corporate culture.

1. Shape a healthy and positive culture: Line managers are in the perfect position to create a
culture that bridges the gap between upper levels and employees. By building trust and
gathering information about staff engagement and interests, they can suggest ways to improve
performance and strengthen the workplace environment.

2. Assess your current communications: If your comms still follows the traditional, rigid approach
of C-suite to employees with strict guidelines and no discussion, you might find they aren’t as
effective as they once were. Engagement can be very low with this method. And as staff
performance is linked to this, it can affect the financial performance of your company.
 3. Seek to engage your team: It’s not enough these days to deliver a message just the once, then
hope for the best. Managers need to show passion and enthusiasm in their communications and
provide data and relevant examples so that their messages are remembered.

3.Communicating unresolved issues, concerns and problems raised by team members and follow up with
line manager/management and other relevant stakeholders.

Ans: In management communications, you will act as a conduit for passing information to the team; it
also means representing the needs of the team in the workplace.

Position of knowledge should never be abused, and information should be carefully considered and
relayed, to organisational requirements.

Communicate unresolved issues, concerns and problems raised by team members and follow up with
line manager/management and other relevant stakeholders.

Any work or team issues that cannot be resolved through a first approach directly with the team will
need to be addressed to ensure a resolution is reached. It is important to tackle issues to ensure a team
harmony and balance is maintained, and work objectives can be met.

4.Evaluating and take necessary corrective action regarding unresolved issues, concerns and problems
raised by internal or external stakeholders.

Ans: Evaluations may include: Determining ownership or responsibility for managing certain tasks or
external stakeholder relationships. Setting a date for the problem/issue to be resolved by. Performing a
review on work activities. Deciding a process to monitor work activities.

After issues have been fully discussed and investigated within the team and/or with management, action
should be taken in a timely manner to complete the process. This will apply to both external and internal
stakeholder problems.

Assessment task 2
1. Explain how group dynamics can support or hinder team performance.
Answer: Team dynamics can strongly influence how a team performs. Interactions can be both
positive and negative and altogether they can affect the performance of the team. Poor group dynamics
can damage morale, undermine productivity and lead a team to make bad decisions or possibly be left
with unproductive and unsuccessful outcomes. Positive team dynamics help teams get things done as
team members know their roles and responsibilities and can assist each other with completing activities.
2. Outline the strategies that can support team cohesion, participation and performance.

Answer: Two strategies that can support team cohesion, participation and performance are open
communication and mutual accountability. Open communication allows team members to express
ideas and raise issues to be openly discussed in conversation or debates. Mutual accountability
develops commitment and trust within a team, which in turn produces positive performance.
3. Explain strategies for gaining consensus.

Answer: Two stragies for gaining consensus with the team are brainstorming and multi-voting. Both
Brainstorming and Multi-voting allow team members to suggest ideas relating to problems or topics.
The team can discuss positives and negatives then refine the list and prioritise to determine the most
effective to the least, then vote for the option they wish to use.

4. Explain issue resolution strategies.

Answer: Issue resolution strategies are developed to help the manager/team leader/staff member
resolve issues in a timely way to prevent the impact of problems from growing or imposing on future
opportunities for the team.