Chapter 6: Perceptions and Individual Decision Making

Summary:
Individuals base their behavior not on the way their external environment actually is, but
rather on the way they see it or believe it to be. An understanding of the way people make
decisions can help us explain and predict behavior, but few important decisions are simple or
unambiguous enough for the rational model’s assumptions to apply. We find individuals looking
for solutions that satisfy rather than optimize, injecting biases and prejudices into the decision
process, and relying on intuition. Managers should encourage creativity in employees and
teams to create a route to innovative decision making.

Slides:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES: After studying this chapter, you should be able to:
1. Explain the factors that influence perception.
2. Describe attribution theory.
3. Explain the link between perception and decision making.
4. ---
5. Explain how individual differences and organizational constraints affect decision making.

LO1) Explain the Factors That Influence Perception

● Perception​ is a process by which individuals organize and interpret their sensory
impressions in order to give meaning to their environment.
○ Goal: Align perception with reality
○ It is important to the study of OB because people’s behaviors are based on their
perception of what reality is, not on reality itself.
○ Perception is a combination of a number of factors.
● Factors that influence perception:
○ Factors in the perceiver
■ Attitudes
■ Motives
■ Interests
■ Experience
■ Expectations
○ Factors in the situation:
■ Time
■ Work setting
■ Social setting
○ Factors in the target
■ Novelty
■ Motion
■ Sounds
■ Size

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 ■ Background
■ Proximity
■ Similarity

LO2) Explain Attribution Theory

● Attribution theory​ suggests that when we observe an individual’s behavior, we attempt
to ​determine​ whether it was internally or externally caused.
○ Internally caused​ – those that are believed to be under the personal control of
the individual.
○ Externally caused​ – resulting from outside causes.

● Determination depends on three factors:

○ Distinctiveness: How distinctive the action was
■ Shows different behaviors in different situations
○ Consensus: Responds the same as others to same situation
○ Consistency: Responds in the same way over time
● Exhibit 6-2 Attribution Theory:

● Fundamental attribution error

○ We have a tendency to ​underestimate the influence of external factors​ and
overestimate ​the influence of​ internal or personal factors.
● Self-serving bias
○ Individuals attribute their ​own successes​ to ​internal factors​.
● Common Shortcuts in Judging Others
○ Selective perception
■ Any ​characteristic​ that makes a person, object, or event ​stand out will
increase the probability that it will be perceived.
■ Since we can’t observe everything going on around us, we engage in
selective perception.
● Halo effect
○ The halo effect occurs when we draw a general impression on the basis of a
single characteristic.
● Contrast effects

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 ○ Occurs when we do not evaluate a person in isolation.
○ Our reaction to one person is influenced by other people we have recently
encountered.
■ Ex: We compare one person to another. The second looks better or
worse in light of the first.
● Stereotyping
○ Judging someone on the basis of our perception of the group to which he or she
belongs.
■ We have to monitor ourselves to make sure we’re not unfairly applying a
stereotype in our evaluations and decisions.
● Self-fulfilling prophecy: ​The Pygmalio effect suggests that people’s expectations
determine their behavior.
● Applications of Shortcuts in Organizations
○ Employment Interview Expectations
■ Evidence indicates that interviewers make perceptual judgments that are
often inaccurate.
● Interviewers generally draw early impressions that become very
quickly entrenched.
● Studies indicate that most interviewers’ decisions change very
little after the first four or five minutes of the interview.
○ Performance Expectations
■ Evidence demonstrates that people will attempt to validate their
perceptions of reality, even when those perceptions are faulty.
● Self-fulfilling prophecy, or the Pygmalion effect​ characterizes
the fact that people’s expectations determine their behavior.
● Expectations become reality.
○ Performance Evaluation
■ An employee’s performance appraisal is very much dependent upon the
perceptual process.
● Many jobs are evaluated in subjective terms.
● Subjective measures are problematic because of selective
perception, contrast effects, halo effects, and so on.

LO3) Explain the Link Between Perception and Decision Making

● Individuals make ​decisions​ – choosing from two or more alternatives.
● Decision making occurs as a reaction to a ​problem​.
○ There is a discrepancy between some current state of affairs and some desired
state, requiring consideration of alternative courses of action.
○ One person’s problem is another’s satisfactory state of affairs.

LO5) Individual Differences, Organizational Constraints, and Decision Making

● Individual Differences
○ Personality

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 ■ Conscientiousness
■ High self-esteem
○ Gender
■ Rumination
○ Mental Ability
○ Cultural Differences
○ Nudging
● Organizational Constraints
○ Performance Evaluation Systems
○ Reward Systems
○ Formal Regulations
○ System-Imposed Time Constraints
○ Historical Precedents

Implications for Managers

● Behavior follows perception, so to influence behavior at work, assess how people
perceive their work.
○ Often behaviors we find puzzling can be explained by understanding the initiating
perceptions.
● Make better decisions by recognizing perceptual biases and decision-making errors we
tend to commit.
○ Learning about these problems doesn’t always prevent us from making mistakes,
but it does help.
● Adjust your decision-making approach to the national culture you’re operating in and to
the criteria your organization values.
○ If you’re in a country that doesn’t value rationality, don’t feel compelled to follow
the rational decision-making model or to try to make your decisions appear
rational.
○ Adjust your decision approach to ensure compatibility with the organizational
culture.
● Combine rational analysis with intuition.
○ These are not conflicting approaches to decision making.
○ By using both, you can actually improve your decision making effectiveness.
● Try to enhance your creativity.
○ Actively look for novel solutions to problems, attempt to see problems in new
ways, use analogies, and hire creative talent.
○ Try to remove work and organizational barriers that might impede your creativity.

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QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW
1. What are the factors that influence our perception?
○ The process used for organizing and interpreting the impression of senses so
that the environment is given importance is known as perception.
■ What one perceives may be different in reality
■ This can be described as an employee feels that the firm he is working
with has favorable working conditions, good job assignments, good pay
scale, excellent benefits, understanding and responsible management;
but in reality, it is very difficult to find such agreements.
■ Perception is given more importance as people trust on their perception
rather than what reality is.
○ The factors that influence perception are the perceiver, the target, and the
situation.
■ Perceiver factors include attitudes, motives, interests, experiences and
expectations.
■ Target factors include novelty, motion, sound, size, background,
proximity, and similarity.
■ Situation factors include time, work setting, and social settings.
2. What is attribution theory?
○ Attribution theory ​tries to explain the ways we judge people differently,
depending on the meaning we attribute to a behavior.
○ Attribution theory suggests that when we observe an individual’s behavior, we
attempt to determine whether it was internally or externally caused.
■ That determination depends largely on three factors: (1) distinctiveness,
(2) consensus, and (3) consistency.
■ It attempts to understand the people’s behaviour to interpret the behavior
of others.
3. What is the link between perception and decision making?
○ Perception is the process of interpreting the behavior of the individual.
■ It may be different from reality.
■ It is the interpretation of the individual’s sensory impression which is used
to provide meaning to the situation
○ Decision-making is the process of choosing the best among the alternatives.
○ The decision and choices of a person depends on his/her perception regarding
the alternatives.
■ Every decision requires the interpretation and evaluation of the
information or choices that is available to an individual.
■ Perception allows the user to evaluate the information related to a
person’s choice.
○ Perception is the base for decision-making
■ The person will choose based on his/her perception.

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4. How do individual differences and organizational constraints influence decision making?
○ Individual differences influence decision making, because every person is
different from another person.
■ So decision making is also different from person to person, on the basis
of their personality, gender, mental ability, cultural differences and many
more.
○ Personality includes thinking of a person’s self-respect, ego, dedication to work
and many more.
■ Decision making is also influenced by an individual’s gender.
1. Before making any decisions, women think a lot more than men,
2. Women carefully analyze the decision once made
■ Sometimes it is good to think and analyze the decision once made, but
sometimes it can create problems
○ Decision making is very quick and accurate, if a person is intelligent and has a
high mental ability.
○ Cultural differences also affect the decision making, especially in the selection of
problems and depth of analysis of a problem,
■ Different cultures have different beliefs and those beliefs play a role in
decision making.
○ Organization constraints influence decision making by the system imposed time
constraints, performance evaluation, reward system, formal regulations, and
historical precedents.
○ Reward systems also affect decision making.
■ In reward systems, manager makes a decision has a great personal
payoff.
■ In historical precedent, past decisions affect current decision making.
■ Formal regulations include rules and regulations which constraints that
make a freedom decisions and choices from limited alternative

6
 Chapter 9: Foundations of Group Behavior

Summary:
We can draw several implications from our discussion of groups. First, norms control
behavior by establishing standards of right and wrong. Second, status inequities create
frustration and can adversely influence productivity and willingness to remain with an
organization. Third, the impact of size on a group’s performance depends on the type of task.
Fourth, cohesiveness may influence a group’s level of productivity, depending on the group’s
performance-related norms. Fifth, diversity appears to have a mixed impact on group
performance, with some studies suggesting that diversity can help performance and others
suggesting the opposite. Sixth, role conflict is associated with job-induced tension and job
dissatisfaction. Groups can be carefully managed toward positive organizational outcomes and
optimal decision-making.

LO1) Distinguish Between Different Types of Groups

● A ​group ​is defined as two or more individuals, interacting and interdependent, who have
come together to achieve particular objectives.
● Groups can be either formal or informal.
○ Formal groups:​ those defined by the organization’s structure.
○ Informal groups: ​alliances that are neither formally structured nor
organizationally determined.
● Social identity theory:​ considers when and why individuals consider themselves
members of groups.
○ People have emotional reactions to the failure or success of their group because
their self-esteem gets tied into the performance of the group.
○ Social identities help us understand who we are and where we fit in with people.
● Ingroups and Outgroups
○ Ingroup favoritism ​occurs when we see members of our group as better than
other people, and people not in our group as all the same.
○ Whenever there is an ingroup, there is by necessity an ​outgroup​, which is
sometimes everyone else, but is usually an identified group known by the
ingroup’s members.
● Social Identity Threat
○ Ingroups and outgroups pave the way for ​social identity threat​, which is akin to
stereotype threat.
○ Individuals believe they will be personally negatively evaluated due to their
association with a devalued group, and they may lose confidence and
performance effectiveness.

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LO2) Integrating Cohesiveness and Diversity for Group Effectiveness

● Diversity: ​degree to which members of the group are similar to, or different from, one
another.
○ Increases group conflict, especially in the short term.
● Culturally and demographically diverse groups may perform better over time.
○ May help them be more open-minded and creative.
● Fault Lines

LO3) Group Decision Making

● Strengths of group decision making:
○ More complete information and knowledge
○ Increased diversity of views
○ Increased acceptance of solutions
● Weaknesses of group decision making:
○ Time consuming
○ Conformity pressures
○ Dominance of a few members
○ Ambiguous responsibility
● Effectiveness and efficiency of group decisions:
○ Accuracy
○ Speed
○ Creativity
○ Acceptance
● Groupthink:​ situations in which group pressures for conformity deter the group from
critically appraising unusual, minority, or unpopular views.
● Groupshift: ​a change between a group’s decision and an individual decision that a
member within the group would make.
● Most group decision making takes place in ​interacting groups
○ Members meet face-to-face and rely on both verbal and nonverbal interaction to
communicate with each other.
● Interacting groups often censor themselves and pressure individual members toward
conformity of opinion.
● Brainstorming ​can overcome pressures for conformity.

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 ○ In a brainstorming session:
■ The group leader states the problem.
■ Members then “free-wheel” as many alternatives as they can.
■ No criticism is allowed.
■ One idea stimulates others, and group members are encouraged to “think
the unusual.”
● The ​nominal group technique: ​restricts discussion or interpersonal communication
during the decision making process.
○ Group members are all physically present, but members operate independently.
○ Permits the group to meet formally but does not restrict independent thinking, as
does the interacting group.
● Nominal groups outperform brainstorming groups.
○ Steps for a nominal group:
■ Each member independently writes down his/her ideas on the problem.
■ After this silent period, each member presents one idea to the group.
■ The ideas are discussed for clarity.
■ Each group member rank-orders the ideas.
■ The idea with the highest aggregate ranking determines the final decision.

Implications for Managers

● Recognize that groups can dramatically affect individual behavior in organizations, to
either positive or negative effect. Therefore, pay special attention to roles, norms, and
cohesion—to understand how these are operating within a group is to understand how
the group is likely to behave.
● To decrease the possibility of deviant workplace activities, ensure that group norms do
not support antisocial behavior.
● Pay attention to the status aspect of groups. Because lower-status people tend to
participate less in group discussions, groups with high status differences are likely to
inhibit input from lower-status members and reduce their potential.
● Use larger groups for fact-finding activities and smaller groups for action-taking tasks.
With larger groups, provide measures of individual performance.
● To increase employee satisfaction, make certain people perceive their job roles
accurately.

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QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW
1. What are the different types of groups?
a. A ​group ​is defined as two or more individuals, interdependent, and interacting,
who have come together to attain particular objectives.
b. The different types of groups include:
i. Formal groups: Formal groups constitutes the one defined by the
organization’s structure; with designated work assignments ir established
tasks.
1. In formal groups, the behavior that the team members should
engage in are specified by and aligned towards the organizational
goals.
ii. Informal groups: In contrast, an informal group is neither formally
structured nor organizationally determined.
1. Informal groups are naturally formed in the workplace that appear
in retort to the need for social contact.

2. What are the key components of the punctuated-equilibrium model?

a. Punctuated-Equilibrium Model ​refers to the set of stages through which the
temporary group performs a process that involves transactions between inertia
and the activity.
b. The sequence of action is the key step in the punctuated-equilibrium model.It
includes
i. The initial meeting of temporary groups.
ii. The slower progress of the group activity from inertia
iii. Transactions takes place in the group when half of the allotted time is
over
iv. Changes due to transaction
v. The second phase of inertia
vi. The final group meeting
c. The temporary groups pass through the above-mentioned phases in the
punctuated-equilibrium model.
d. Punctuated-equilibrium model refers to the set of stages through which the
temporary group performs a process that involves transaction between the inertia
and the activity.
3. How do role requirements change in different situations?
a. Yes, role requirements change in different situations.
b. A role is defined as a set of anticipated behavior form accredited to someone
occupying a particular position in a public unit.
c. People react to the role requirements and their relationship to the other group
members.
d. Every being is required to play a number of varied roles, both on and off their
jobs.

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 e. Different groups enforce different requirements on people
f. Majority of these roles are compatible while some create conflicts.
g. Research indicates that people enact multiple roles, people learn roles from
stimuli around them, and that people have the capability to swap roles rapidly
when they identify that the situation and its demands noticeably require major
changes.

4. How do group norms influence an individual’s behavior?

a. A group is any number of persons sharing a common goal and work together in
achieving the set goal.
b. Group norms ​refer to the informal set of rules that influence and guide the
behavior of the individual in the group.
c. These are the forces that influence the workplace behavior and the actions of the
individuals in the group.
d. Norms tell the individuals the way of communicating, acting, and sharing the
resources among one another in the group.
e. Group norms vary from group to group depending on various factors.
f. Every group develops its own norms, habits, and patterns on how things are to
be done.
g. Group norms influence the individual’s behavior in the following:
i. The way of communicating with one another in social and workplace
gatherings.
ii. How to work and what level of performance standard is to be maintained
based on the group status
iii. How to share the common resources among one another
iv. How to physically move and work among the group
v. How one should look, physical appearance and dress code to be followed
vi. How much hard work one should undergo.
h. For example,
i. In case of a formal work group the individuals should abide by the rules in
the group such as reporting, talking, addressing them properly,
maintaining proper dress code and information sharing etc.
ii. In case of an informal group there are no such formalities. This includes
social gatherings where people come out in casuals, move freely with one
another, have dinner together and enjoy time without much formal rules.
i. Therefore, the group norms act as guidelines for individual’s behavior by
controlling their actions in the group.
5. How do status and size differences affect group performance?
a. Status ​refers to the socially defined rank to the groups or to the members of the
group.
i. It is a significant motivator
b. Size and status has a direct impact on the group performance

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 i. Understanding the status and size of the group helps the team members
improve the performance of the group.
ii. The status and size of the group defines the social interaction within a
group.
c. It helps the manager to manage the group effectively, if the group size is less.
i. The social status will motivate members to work hard in order to attain the
goals and to retain the social image.
d. Ability of the person or the capability of the group and the personal character
decides the status of the group.
i. Status and size of the group determines the performance of the groups
and determines the ability of the group.
6. How can cohesiveness and diversity support group effectiveness?
a. Group cohesiveness ​is the point at which the group members are attracted
towards each other and are motivated to stay in the group for the next task.
b. Group diversity ​is the degree to which the members of the group are similar or
different from one another.
i. It is the uniqueness of each individual
c. Cohesiveness and diversity of the group have greater impact on the productivity
of the group.
i. It affects the group’s efficiency
ii. A research states that high cohesive group is more effective and
productive than low cohesive group
d. The group that is lagging in diversity will lead to conflict within the group
members during the early stages of group formation.
i. Low cohesive group without diversity will increase conflicts between the
members.
ii. They will not be able to attain the goal efficiently.
e. The group members should take steps to make their group cohesive and diverse.
i. It will increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the group
ii. It will also increase the social status of the members. The group members
can attain the goal successfully
7. What are the strengths and weaknesses of group (versus individual) decision making?
a. Strengths of group (versus individual) decision making:
i. Access to more knowledge and information
1. Groups generate more comprehensive knowledge and
information.
2. By combining the abilities of several individuals, groups, bring in
more contribution as well as heterogeneity into the decision
process
ii. Increased diversity of views:
1. The group provides greater variety of views. This opens up the
prospect to consider more alternatives and approaches.
iii. Hamper creativity

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 1. Diversity can inflict performance even in the creative teams.
iv. Increased acceptance of solutions
1. Group decision result in increased approval of solutions.
2. Group members who have actively participated in decision making
are more likely to strongly support and influence others to accept
it.
b. Weakness of group (vs individual) decision making
i. Time consuming
1. Group decisions are time consuming because groups typically
take time to reach a solution
2. Conformity pressures
a. Conformity pressures exist.
b. The yearning by group member to be considered and
accepted as strength to the group can crush any explicit
disagreement
3. Dominance
a. The group discussion is likely to be dominated by one or a
few authoritative members.
b. If the group consists of members with low and medium
ability members, the group’s overall efficiency will suffer.
4. Ambiguous responsibility
a. Group decisions suffer from ambiguous responsibility.
b. In any individual decision, it is clear who is accountable for
the final outcomes. However, in a group decision the
accountability of any single member is weakened.

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 Chapter 10: Understanding Work Teams

Summary:
Few trends have influenced jobs as much as the massive movement of teams into
the workplace. Working on teams requires employees to cooperate with others, share
information, confront differences, and sublimate personal interests for the greater good of the
team. Understanding the distinctions between problem-solving, self-managed, cross-functional,
and virtual teams as well as multiteam systems helps determine the appropriate applications for
team-based work. Concepts such as reflexivity, team efficacy, team identity, team cohesion, and
mental models bring to light important issues relating to team context, composition, and
processes. For teams to function optimally, careful attention must be given to hiring, creating,
and rewarding team players. Still, effective organizations recognize that teams are not always
the best method for getting the work done efficiently. Careful discernment and an understanding
of organizational behavior are needed.

LO1) Analyze the Growing Popularity of Teams in Organizations

● Why are teams popular?
○ Teams can achieve feats an individual could never
Accomplish.
○ Teams are flexible and responsive to changing events.
○ They can quickly assemble, deploy, refocus, and disband.
○ They are an effective means to democratize organizations and increase
employee involvement.
○ They introduce a collaborative mindset.

LO2) Differences Between Groups and Teams

● Exhibit 10-1 Comparing Workgroups and Work Teams

LO3) Contrast the Five Types of Teams

● Exhibit 10-2 Four Types of Teams

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LO4) Identify the Characteristics of Effective Teams
● Exhibit 10-3 Team Effectiveness Model

● Team Context: ​What factors determine whether teams are successful?

○ Adequate Resources
○ Leadership and Structure
○ Climate of Trust
○ Performance Evaluations and Rewards
● Team Composition:​ How should teams be staffed?
○ Abilities of members
○ Personality
○ Allocating roles
○ Diversity
○ Cultural differences
○ Size of teams Member preferences
● Exhibit 10-5 Effects of Group Processes
● Identify the Characteristics of Effect

● Team Processes
○ Common Plan and Purpose
■ Reflexivity
○ Specific Goals
○ Team Efficacy
○ Team Identity
○ Team Cohesion
○ Mental Models
○ Conflict Levels

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 ○ Social Loafing

LO5) Explain How Organizations Can Create Team Players

● Creating Team Players
○ Selecting:​ hire team players
○ Training:​ create team players
○ Rewarding:​ incentives to be a good team player

LO6) Decide When to Use Individuals Instead of Teams

● When not to use teams...
○ Ask:
■ Can the work be done better by one person?
■ Does the work create a common goal or purpose?
■ Are the members of the group interdependent?

Implications for Managers

● Effective teams have adequate resources, effective leadership, a climate of trust, and a
performance evaluation and reward system that reflects team contributions.
○ These teams have individuals with technical expertise, and the right traits and
skills.
● Effective teams tend to be small.
○ They have members who fill role demands and who prefer to be part of a group.
● Effective teams have members who believe in the team’s capabilities, are committed to a
common plan and purpose, and have an accurate shared mental model of what is to be
accomplished.
● Select individuals who have the interpersonal skills to be effective team players, provide
training to develop teamwork skills, and reward individuals for cooperative efforts.
● Do not assume that teams are always needed. When tasks will not benefit from
interdependency, individuals may be the better choice.

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Questions for Review

1. How do you explain the growing popularity of teams in organizations?

a. As organizations have positioned themselves to compete more efficiently and
effectively, they have realized that forming teams is a better way to use employee
talent.
i. Teams in an organization are growing in popularity as companies realized
the significance of group effort.
ii. Teams are well organized and based on a structure of supporting
organizational goals and ongoing quality assurance measures.
iii. Teams assumer that many of the responsibilities of management and
leadership with greater efficiency.
b. Teams are more responsive and flexible to changing environments than the
permanent groupings or traditional departments
i. They can quickly assemble, deploy, refocus, and disband.
ii. Teams facilitate employee participation in operating decision.
c. Another explanation for growing team popularity is attributed to their effective
means for management to democratize firms and enhance employee motivation.
2. What is the difference between a group and a team?
a. A team is internally organized, with precise objectives and usually explicit roles
for different members of the team.
i. Teams generally consist of three to twenty five people who
1. Work toward a common set of objectives
2. Work cooperatively
3. Share common leadership
4. Hold joint responsibility for performance
5. Visualize themselves as being part of a team with common goals
and shared consequences
ii. A group is just a gathering of individuals having something in common,
such as being in the same place, university or having a common interest.
1. The group might share the work to execute it, but will do with less
focus than a team.
3. What are the five types of team arrangements?
a. A team refers to the group of individuals who work together for a common goal.
b. Five types of team arrangement:
1. Problem-solving team
2. Self-managed team
3. Cross-functional team
4. Virtual team

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 5. Multi-team systems
c. Problem-solving teams​: is a group of employees in every department who
address the problems of the department.
i. This team discusses the quality, efficiency, and other problems of the
organization and the employees.
d. Self-managed team​ is a group of employees who carry out the responsibilities of
former supervisors
e. Virtual team​ is the team in which the employees are separated by location and
they contact each other using computer technology
f. Multi-team system ​is a team of teams.
i. Here, a collection of two or more teams shares a superordinate goal.
g. Cross-functional team ​is a team that accomplishes a common task.
i. Here, the memebers of the teamaer from the same hierarchical level, but
different work areas.
h. Every process or activity of the organization depends on the performance of the
teams.
4. What conditions or context factors determine whether teams are effective?
a. The four contextual factors that are contextually related to team performance are
adequate resources of effective leadership, a climate of trust, and performance
evaluation and reward system that reflects team contributions.
b. Adequate resources
i. Teams that are part of larger organization system, and every work team is
dependent on the resources external to the group
ii. A paucity of resources directly decreases the ability of a team to perform
its job successfully and reach its goal
iii. One of the most important factors of effective work group is backing it
received from the firm which includes timely formation, proper equipment,
adequate staffing, encouragement and administrative assistance
c. Effective Leadership and Structure
i. Teams cannot function in case of ambiguity when they don’t agree upon a
common goal and allocate work accordingly.
1. Agreeing to the details of the assignment and how each member
fit together to incorporate individual skills requires leadership and
structure, either from the team members or from management
ii. Leadership is especially important to in multi-team systems, in which
diverse teams synchronize their efforts to produce a desired result
1. In this case, leaders need to endow power to the teams by
entrusting responsibility to them, and take up the role of facilitator,
to make sure that the teams work together rather than against one
another
2. Teams that institute shared leadership by efficiently entrusting it
are more effective than teams which follow the traditional
single-leader format.

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 d. A Climate of Trust
i. Members of effective team entrust each other and also their leaders
ii. Interpersonal trust within the members of the team enables cooperation,
reduces the need to monitor behavior, and bond members around the
belief that others on the team are trustworthy
iii. Team members are more likely to move ahead and take required risks
and expose liabilities when they believe they can trust others on their
team
e. Performance Evaluation and Reward Systems
i. Individual performance incentives and evaluations may interfere with the
development of high-performance teams
ii. Therefore, in addition to appraising and rewarding employees for their
individual contributions, management should alter the traditional and
individual oriented reward and assessment system to reflect team
performance and emphasize on hybrid systems that recognize individuals
for their exceptional performance and reward the entire group for positive
results.
iii. Group based appraisals, profit and gain sharing, small group incentives,
and other system changes can strengthen team effort and commitment
5. How can organizations create team players?
a. Organizations can create better team players through hiring people who exhibit
the ability of functioning well in teams, investing in training programs for team
management training for leaders, and offering team rewards and recognitions
b. Hiring team players
i. While hiring team members, the hiring manager should be sure that the
candidates can fulfill their teams’ roles as well as technical requirements
ii. Teams made up of members who like to work through difficult mental
puzzles also seem more effective in capitalizing on the multiple points of
view that arise from diversity in age and education.
c. Training: creating team players
i. Provide training to all members of the team on effectiveness of team
bonding and the importance of being a team player
ii. Training specialists conduct exercises and trainings that allow employees
to experience the satisfaction resulting from teamwork
iii. These trainings will help employees improve their problem-solving skills,
communication, negotiation, conflict-management, and coaching skills.
d. Rewarding: Providing incentives to be a good team player
i. An organization’s reward system must be designed to motivate
cooperative efforts rather than competitive ones
ii. Promotions, bonus, and other forms of recognition should be given to
individuals who work effectively as team members by training new
colleagues, sharing information, helping resolve team conflicts, and
mastering needed new skills.

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 iii. Provide intrinsic rewards such as camaraderie, that employees can
receive from team work.
6. When is work performed by individuals preferred over work by teams?
a. Individual work is more preferred than team work depending on the following
factors:
i. Complexity of the work
1. If the task is not complex and can be handled by a single person,
then there is no requirement of assembling a team to execute the
task.
a. It would waste time and resources
ii. Need for different perspectives
1. Simple tasks don’t need diverse inputs and are probably better left
to individuals
iii. Work creates common goals
1. Assess whether the work creates a common purpose or set of
objectives for the individuals in the group that is more than the
cumulative of individual goals
iv. Inter-dependency
1. DEtermine whether the members of the group are interdependent.
a. Using temas makes sense when there is interdependence
among tasks
i. The success of the task is dependent on the
success of each member, and the success of each
member on the success of other members
b. Work is preferred by individuals when the decision can be clearly made that there
are no sufficient short or long term benefits for engaging the team application.
c. The task should justify the investments of time and money for the entire team
d. In some cases, concerns of confidentiality and privacy require individual
accountability.

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