Team Development

OLCU-414: Team Building

Team Denim
Travis Mahaffey
Walter Robles
Joaquin Fuentes
Javerrick Austin
Innovation Activity

In groups, generate come up with all the possible uses of a red solo cup. Teams will have 10 minutes
to complete the task. Every idea will be worth a point. Same ideas will cancel each other out. Team
with the most points wins.
What is Innovation?

As defined by Merriam-Webster (2020) “a new idea, creative thoughts, new imaginations in form of
device or method”.
Ways to Think Divergently

Guilford (1967) mentions four ways of thinking divergently:

● Fluency - Ability to to produce a large number of ideas for understanding and solving problems
● Flexibility - Creating ideas in different categories
● Originality - Ideas that are unique or unusual
● Elaboration - Developing ideas by generating details and depth
Creativity Through Brainstorming

Osborn (1953) observed four traits of successful brainstorming:

● Minimal criticism of ideas

● Frequent free expression
● Large quantity of ideas
● Proposed ideas used as a catalyst for more ideas
Divergent and convergent thinking styles
Divergent
● The ability to generate multiple
perspectives and unconventional ideas
● The ability to be able to think outside the
box and apply to
● Less rigid and less structured internal
categories
Convergent
● There is only one right way to go about
things
● Decisions are based on what is learned
and previous experience.
● Can prevent thinkers from not seeing
outside of preconceived notion
Benefits and challenges of Diversity

Benefits Challenges

1) Diversity can aid in the forming of ideas
when minority input is valued and taken
into account.
2) A greater variety of perspectives will allow
for more free flowing ideas insight more
discussion and greater communication
3) The more diverse a team the more tools in
your tool box.
1) There is a higher turnover in diverse
groups and lower levels of satisfaction
2) Overcoming initial problems when forming
a team and being able to accept the roles
given
3) Members may receive lower evaluations
than other partners
Diversity, although
faced with challenges
in unit cohesion can
create discussions
that spark innovation.
Diversity
There are seven differentiating factors
that distinguish culture.

Five of those differences have to do with

how people relate to one another, one has
to do with attitudes about time, and one
relates to perceptions of the environment.

One of the ways cultures differ from

one another is in how members relate
to one another. Relationship norms are
modeled, taught and passed down
from one generation to the next.

Each of those cultural norms exists on

a spectrum between two opposite
extremes.
Visible vs Non-visible Diversity

Visible Diversity Non-visible Diversity

● Race ● Experience
● Age ● Training
● Gender ● Personality
● Ethnicity ● Beliefs
 Seven differentiating factors that distinguish culture

1. Universalism vs. Particularism

2. Individualism vs. Collectivism
3. Neutral vs. Emotional
4. Specific vs. Diffuse
5. Achievement vs. Ascription
6. Attitudes about time
7. Attitudes about the environment
 Universalism vs. Particularism
Describes the degree to which members adhere to societal norms and values

Universalism - Particularism -

Universalist believe in universal rules that apply Willing to bend the rules based on the
to everyone. circumstances that give special treatment to
those who are deemed worthy.
 Individualism vs. Collectivism
Describes whether people define themselves primarily as individuals or as members of a
group.

Individualism - Collectivism -

Individualist give priority to the individual. Collectivist regard the community as more
important than any one person.
 Neutral vs. Emotional
Describes the appropriate level of emotion in interpersonal transactions.

Neutral - Emotional -

In neutral culture emotions such as anger and In emotional culture it is appropriate to show
sadness are not displayed. such feelings.
 Specific vs. Diffuse
(Describes the degree in which members include their personal lives in business
relationships).

Specific - Diffuse -

Some cultures are task oriented (specific) and To diffuse is to invite people to share their lives
require little in regards relationship-building. with each other and welcome social
connectedness.
 Achievement vs. Ascription
Describes how people within a culture define status

Achievement - Ascription -

Achieved status is granted on the basis of Ascribed status is awarded on the basis of
personal accomplishments. other attributes such as age, education, kinship,
and personal connections.
 Attitudes About Time
(and environment are additional dimensions that differ among cultures
and influence individual worldviews).

Past orientation - Future orientation - Present orientation -

Cultures with past orientations, Future orientation attempts to Present orientation tends to
valued traditions, time–tested create a more desirable future minimize the value of tradition
institutions, and procedures. by being progressive, and does not necessarily strive
innovative, and idealistic. to improve the future. Instead, it
focuses on present activities
and enjoyments.
In addition to these general orientations to time, are the norms regarding the role that time plays in daily
life. In some cultures, for example, a 3pm appointment should start exactly on time while in others it
may mean somewhere between 3:00 and 3:30pm.
 Attitudes about the environment/Natural
World that vary by Culture

Some cultures attempt to control the environment, while others view it as something that should be
honored and respected.

Cooperative orientation understands Whereas a controlled oriented

events as products or culture places the source of good
natural/supernatural forces worthy and bad events within human
of respect. These cultures attribute control related to effort planning
events such as a booming economy and ability.
or a catastrophic earthquake to
external forces such as fate, luck, or
a divine force.
 Why is Diversity important?

● Diversity presents challenges as group members interact with other members of diverse
backgrounds.
● People have a tendency to correlate positive characteristics to their own cultural group and they
often associate negative characteristics with other groups.
● If group members are not aware of these ingroup and outgroup biases, an atmosphere of
distrust and conflict can emerge, creating a suboptimal working environment.
 Why is Diversity important?

● Diversity in work teams can increase productivity due to the benefit of the multiple perspectives
and skill sets.
● Members of cross functional work teams have more exposure to employees outside of their
particular workgroup, they have the ability to generate a wider range of perspectives and
produce higher-quality solutions than do functionally non-diverse groups.
● People have different (toolboxes) with different sets of cognitive skills and perspectives. The
more diverse a team is, the more tools it has to accomplish any given task.
 Final Thought

● Diversity is based on cognitive differences, meaning the way people think and process
information is the real benefit of diversity.
● Diversity based on demographic differences such as gender, race, sexual orientation, or religion
may have little or no impact on team performance.
● In other words, when diverse perspectives are not relevant to the specific tasks the team is
engaged in, diversity may not impact performance.
References

1. Griffith, B. A., & Dunham, E. B. (2015). Working in teams: moving from high potential to high
performance. Sage. Los Angeles, CA.

2. Guilford, J. P. (1967). The nature of human intelligence. New York: McGraw-Hill.

3. Innovation. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/innovation

4. Osborn, A. (1953). Applied Imagination. New York, NY: Scribner.