Groupthink

No one lives in a vacuum. We all have to engage with others. At work, we are often asked to collaborate
in teams to solve problems or make decisions. However, some work collaborations can lead to
groupthink, or the tendency of a group to make bad decisions because everyone wants to get along
instead of challenging group ideas. This can happen because people don't want to rock the boat or
because they believe that others in the group know more than they do.

For more on groupthink, take a look at the lesson Groupthink: Definition & Examples. Once you have a
handle on the concept of groupthink, reflect on the scenario below.

Scenario: The Team

Joanna is a marketing associate at Tibbett Widgets, Inc. She's been given her first chance to lead a team
on a multi-departmental project to bring together sales, marketing, and customer service. Her team
needs to come up with a plan for how to educate the public about the superior quality of Tibbett
widgets. Besides Joanna, the team consists of the following people:

Louie, an older sales associate who prefers that things be done in traditional ways. Louie likes the way
that they've always done things at Tibbett Widgets and doesn't really want to change anything. At the
same time, Louie is very respectful of authority and doesn't want to speak out against a team leader.

Geraldine, who has been a customer service rep for about a decade. She's very in tune with Tibbett's
current customers, including how they think and what they want and need. However, because Geraldine
never went to college, she is often timid about speaking up around others. She believes that she has less
to offer than people who have a college degree.

Mirza, another marketing associate. He has a little more experience than Joanna and has led teams
before. He recognizes that this initiative is very important to Joanna and is her first chance to really
show what she can do. He doesn't want to screw anything up for her, so he's decided he'll just back
anything that Joanna comes up with.

Scenario: The Problem

At their first meeting, Joanna lays out her plan for reaching out to the public about Tibbett widgets. She
says she thinks that the best way to do that would be to send out flyers in the mail. She also wants to
commission a white paper, which is a long, scientific paper about a particular company or product.
Finally, she says that they should avoid pushing the new message too hard on social media, instead, stick
to the general pithy one-liners about widgets that they have traditionally done.

After explaining her plan, Joanna asks for opinions from her team. Mirza silently thinks that most people
don't read white papers, but doesn't want to interfere with Joanna's big shot. Geraldine silently wonders
if mailing flyers is really the best way to reach people, but reminds herself that Joanna has a Master's
degree in marketing. Louie doesn't know much about social media but thinks they should probably
reach out everywhere with their quality message. However, he worries that because Joanna is younger
she knows more about social media than he does and that if he speaks up it will be seen as
insubordination.

Scenario: Reflection

Take a few minutes to think about Joanna's situation and jot down your answers to the following
questions.

What elements are contributing to groupthink in Joanna's group?

Joanna started the meeting by explaining her plan. How might this have contributed to groupthink?

How might asking for others' ideas before giving her own helped prevent groupthink?

What are some specific things that Joanna can do to help her team avoid groupthink?

How might she encourage each person to speak up and voice his or her ideas?

Look back through your answers to Joanna's scenario and think about your own organization. Be as
specific as possible.

Are there things you could do to help avoid groupthink?

Are there things you are doing that without realizing it can lead to groupthink?