GSGM7223 Managing Organisation

Group Dynamics and Managing Teams

Link (to Course

TOPIC 6 SUB-TOPIC(s)
Learning Outcome)
Group Dynamics 6.1 Definition of Groups & Teams CLO1 - Articulate
and Managing 6.2 Team Development in 5 stages the essential
Teams 6.3 Building Effective Teams and which one is the ideal one, Small Teams principles of
or Large Teams? management in an
6.4 Group Roles & Norms and Why these Norms are Imposed organisational
6.5 Cohesiveness, Groupthink, and Conflict setting.
CLO2 - Analyze
behavior
dimensions
affected by
organisational
dynamics.
CLO3 - Assess the
need for
developing
synergetic forces in
the organisation in
the spirit of
cooperation
instead of
competition.

6.1 Definition of Groups & Teams

Group is defined as two or more freely acting persons who share mutual norms, shared goals, and have a common character

Team is defined as a small group of individuals with paired and complementary abilities and skills who are devoted to a
shared objective, performance purposes, and attitude for which they hold themselves jointly responsible.

There are two forms of groups including Formal versus Informal Groups. They are defined and further explained as follows:

Formal Groups are formed to accomplish something productive for the company and usually are led by a leader.
Informal Groups are created by individuals looking for a relationship and have got no formally chosen leader, even though
a leader may appear later on in these types of groups.

Watch the following videos for the explanation of Groups & Teams:

Title: “Teams Versus Groups”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uG-FLOi4OOU

Title: “The Difference Between a Group and a Team”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ME1ppZ9WaKU

Title” Groups and Teams”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B0GuNAV5SjY

6.2 Team Development in 5 stages

Five Stages of Team Development are as follows:

© UNITAR International University Page 1 of 5

 GSGM7223 Managing Organisation
Group Dynamics and Managing Teams

Forming is the first step that includes the process of becoming oriented and becoming familiar. Leaders must make available
time for individuals to come to be familiar and mingle.

Storming is the second step that is described by the advent of personal traits, characters, and roles and disagreements within
the group. Leaders should urge participants to propose suggestions, express differences and disagreements, and work
through their disagreements regarding duties and objectives.

Norming is the third step in which disagreements and conflicts are settled, close connections build, and harmony and
coherence appear. This is called group cohesiveness. Leaders must put emphasis on harmony and assist finding the team
objectives, beliefs, and values.

Performing is the fourth step in which participants focus on resolving issues and challenges as well as fulfilling the designated
duties. Leaders must permit participants to have the liberation they require to do their duties and tasks.

Adjourning is the fifth step in which participants get ready to disband. Leaders can assist and facilitate the shift by ceremonies
honoring “the end” and “new beginnings”.

Watch the following videos for Five Stages of Team Development:

Title: “5 Stages of Team Building - What You Should Know When Developing Teams or Groups”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtpY9zwuzFM

Title: “The Five Stages of Team Development

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZbmIg0c2s4

Title: “Work Project on the Tuckman Model”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7tOALvmv_Q

Title: “The Tuckman Model - Tuckman Team Development Model”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nlMJcTAz_g

6.3 Building Effective Teams and which one is the ideal one, Small Teams or Large Teams?

Building Effective Teams includes the following elements as follows:

Cooperating is defined as attempts which are thoroughly incorporated to accomplish a shared and mutual goal.
Trust is defined as mutual belief in others’ behaviors and intentions.
Cohesiveness is defined as propensity of a group or team to stay together.

Now the question is, are Small Teams more effective than Large Teams? The following information covers advantages and
disadvantages of both small and large teams.

Small teams are usually between 2 to 9 members. They are having better collaboration and better ethical standard in
comparison to large teams but on the other side they have less resources, perhaps less creativity as well as unjust job
allocation.

© UNITAR International University Page 2 of 5

 GSGM7223 Managing Organisation
Group Dynamics and Managing Teams

While Large Teams are usually between 10 to 16 members. They are having additional resources and labor division in
comparison to small teams but on the other side, they have less collaboration, less ethical standards, and social loafing.

Some good examples and perspectives when team size is concerned are as follows:

There is a rule called “two pizza” that says if two pizzas are not enough to feed a team with it, that team is probably too large
or there is this famous quote from a Harvard business school professor that says there must not more than six members in a
team for it to be effective and at the end, this a subjective matter and many corporations have their own ideal sizes of
effective teams.

Watch the following videos for Building Effective Teams:

Title: “Characteristics of Effective Teams”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwJzVmTR92s

Title: “Team Effectiveness Model”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3b-RPldhSOQ

6.4 Group Roles & Norms and Why These Norms are Imposed

Roles are a publicly established and defined prospect and expectation of how a person must act in a particular situation.
They consist of task roles, maintenance roles.

On the other side, Norms are broad and common regulations that the majority of members in group or team follow and
adhere to.

The following are the main reasons why Norms are Enforced:

• To assist the group to stay alive.

• To spell out role prospects and expectations.
• To aid people not to be in any uncomfortable ad awkward positions.
• To put emphasis on the group’s crucial and vital principles and identity.

Watch the following videos to understand Roles & Norms and Why these Norms are Imposed further:

Title: “Group Roles”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XesZipjhbI

Title: “Establishing Team Behavior Norms - Team Development”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-TM6kINcUs

6.5 Cohesiveness, Groupthink, and Conflict

Groupthink is a unified and blind group’s reluctance to think about other available options. The symptoms of groupthink are
as follows:
• Invulnerability, labelling of opposition party, and innate ethics
• Justification and self-editing

© UNITAR International University Page 3 of 5

 GSGM7223 Managing Organisation
Group Dynamics and Managing Teams

• Wrong Sense of unity and harmony, cohort pressure, and mind shields (mind guards).
• Groupthink versus “the wisdom of the crowds” (the insight of the gathering crowds and people)

The following consequences are the end results of Groupthink:

• Decrease in alternate and different ways of thinking
• Restricting of further data and information

The following solutions are the way we can avoid Groupthink

• Permit and accept blame and criticism.
• Permit and agree to other viewpoints

Conflict is defined as process in which one group realizes that its concerns are being resisted or adversely impacted by
another group. Conflicts can be functional and dysfunctional as follows:

Dysfunctional Conflict is a conflict that impedes the company's performance or endangers its benefit

Functional Conflict is a conflict that promotes the main objectives of the company and helps serving its benefits

There are Three Kinds of Conflict as follows:

• Personality Conflict which is interactive disagreement based on individual hatred, dispute, or different ways,
personality disagreements, battle for limited and rare resources, pressure of time, interaction malfunctions and failure.
• Intergroup Conflicts which is incoherent objectives or incentive schemes and systems, vague jurisdictions, differences
in position and status.
• Multicultural Conflicts which is a kind of conflict that arises when various cultural beliefs and values collide.

There are Five Conflict-Handling Styles that can be explained as follows:

• Avoiding – it can be easily explained in this following quote that says the conflict by itself will be solved. “Maybe the
problem will go away”
• Accommodating – it is allowing the other party’s way of doing things and opinion to overcome and prevail. “Let’s do
it your way”.
• Forcing – It is one part forcing another party to its specific way. “You have to do it my way”.
• Compromising – it is when both parties accept some level of adjustments. “Let’s split the difference”.
• Collaborating – It is when both parties work together to get and reach the mutual benefit. “Let’s cooperate to reach
a win-win solution that benefits both of us”.

Watch the following videos to understand Cohesiveness, Groupthink, and Conflict:

Title: “Group Cohesion”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VvwuH5sQ77o

© UNITAR International University Page 4 of 5

 GSGM7223 Managing Organisation
Group Dynamics and Managing Teams

Title: “Causes of Conflict and Groupthink”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVbRyUSrl5w

Additional Reading Materials

Article Titled: “Steps in Successful Team Building”

https://www.managers.org.uk/~/media/Files/Checklists/CHK-088-Steps-in-successful-team-building.pdf

Article Titled: “Groupthink and Project Performance: The Influence of Personal Traits and Interpersonal Ties”
https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/53302953.pdf

- end of topic –

© UNITAR International University Page 5 of 5