Managing Effective Work Teams, 70-318

Spring, 2000

Tu Th 1:30 - 2:50 p.m. A22 PH

Professor Susan Straus

Office: 238 Posner Hall

Phone: 268-8839

E-mail: sstraus@andrew.cmu.edu

Office Hours: by appointment

Teaching assistant: Claudia Ferrante, 237 Hamburg Hall, 268-3032

Secretary: Work Processing Center, 233 Posner Hall, 268-1320

Course web page: http://grumpy.gsia.cmu.edu/courses/70-318/index.html

Course Objectives

Groups and teams are pervasive in organizations. Task forces, product development teams, and autonomous work groups are a few examples of the types of groups that are used to perform work. The use of work group structures is increasing in organizations from the factory floor to the executive suite.

The goal of this course is to provide you with the knowledge and skills to enhance your ability to work in and manage groups. To accomplish these goals, we will review theories and empirical findings from the behavioral and management sciences. We will apply these concepts and research results to analyze (a) case examples of effective and ineffective groups across a variety of contexts (b) class exercises, and (c) your own experiences working in a group for the course.

Some of the specific questions addressed in the course are:

How do you determine if groups are effective?

What factors influence effectiveness? For example, what are the effects of factors such as group size, type of group task, group composition, new technologies, and environmental forces?

What are strategies for improving communication among group members?

How can meetings be more productive?

When should you use groups versus individuals?

What are the advantages and disadvantages of using participative work systems?

What are the behaviors of effective team leaders?

The class format will consist of lectures, discussions, in-class exercises, and cases. The reading material and lectures will emphasize theoretical concepts. Discussions, exercises, and cases will integrate the conceptual material with real-world applications.

Readings

The textbook for the course is Making the Team by Thompson, 2000, and a coursepacket of articles and cases. Both are available at the bookstore. Additional required and optional readings will be distributed in class.

Course Requirements

Class participation (10%). Participation is a very important aspect of this course. Participation will be based on being prepared for and attending class. Much of the class time will be spent doing exercises and analyzing cases. The success of this course depends on all students being prepared for in-class activities. Therefore, it is critical that you read all assigned material before class and complete any required advance preparation. In addition, your experience in groups in a variety of contexts has already given you practical experience in the topics we will be covering. You can enhance class discussions by sharing relevant experiences and insightful comments about them with the class. Participation will be evaluated not only on taking part in class exercises and discussions, but also on the quality of your contributions. Quality comments are those that offer relevant, original, and insightful points, integrate concepts from the reading assignments, move the discussion forward, and build on the ideas of others.

Group participation (5%). You will work in groups of 4-5 members on the group cases as well as on most class exercises. I will assign students to groups. The value of each member's participation on the project will be assessed by written peer evaluation, which is due on April 25. The peer evaluation form can be accessed from the course web page. Failure to turn in your peer evaluations will result in zero points for group participation.

Midterm (20%). A closed-book midterm consisting of multiple choice and short answer questions will be given in class on Thursday, March 2. The exam will cover material presented in the textbook, readings, lectures, and class exercises and discussions. Make-up exams will be short/answer essay exams. You must notify me prior to the scheduled exam if you need to take a make-up exam.

Quizzes (10%). There will be two closed-book quizzes during the second half of the semester. Quizzes will consist of multiple choice and short answer questions and will cover material presented in the textbook, readings, and class exercises and lectures/discussions. You will be quizzed on material assigned since the midterm or previous quiz, up to and including material that has been assigned for that day in class. Quizzes will be given at the beginning of class. No make-ups or extra time will be given due to tardiness. Make-up quizzes will be short answer/essay and will be given only under extenuating circumstances. You must notify me in advance if you need to take a make-up quiz.

See the course web page for examples of quiz and exam items.

Individual Book Review (20%). For this assignment, you are to read one book from the following list: Golding, Lord of the Flies; Kidder, Soul of a New Machine; or Read, Alive. Your task is to prepare an in-depth analysis of the group featured in the book. I suggest that you use the McCaskey model in Framework for Analyzing Groups or another model of groups as a starting point. You will want to incorporate material from other course readings in your analysis. The best papers will also integrate material that is not assigned -- either material that you find on your own or readings that I can suggest.

Your paper should not exceed 12 pages in length, excluding references, Papers should be double-spaced, using 12-point type. Your report should answer two basic questions:

1) How would you evaluate the effectiveness of the group depicted in the book?

2) What factors contributed to the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of the group?

In addition, if you analyze either Lord of the Flies or Alive then you should also address the following questions:

3) Identify some specific examples of teams in organizations that have dealt with crisis situations. What are the similarities and differences between these teams and the group in the book? How can the experience of the group in the book be applied to these organizational teams?

The report is due on May 5 by 4:00 p.m. Late papers will not be accepted

Group Assignments (30%). There are a variety of group assignments over the course of the mini. The purpose of these assignments is to learn about groups in context (e.g., a group in a case) and to learn about groups by reflecting on your own group's processes. All members of a group will receive the same grade on group assignments. Group assignments are due at the beginning of class.

Group contract (3%). Your group’s first assignment is to prepare a group contract. Your group should meet and prepare a one-page, formal contract that states your group's goals for the course and identifies the expectations for each member in terms of behaviors and products. That is, what do members "owe" the group, and what, in turn, can they expect to receive? All members should sign the contract. The contract is due in class on Thursday, January 27. Examples of group contracts can be found on the course web page.

Cases. There are three cases to analyze: The Team that Wasn’t (6%; due Tuesday, February 1), Office Technologies (15%; due Thursday, April 6), and The Empowerment Effort that Came Undone (6%; due Thursday, April 20). The first case and the third case are limited to 3 pages, double spaced; the second case is limited to 5 pages, double spaced. For the Guidelines for Analyzing Cases, see the course web page. This document describes the format and criteria for analyzing cases.

For the first two cases, your team may use any process you chose to collaborate on the case (subject to the policies of the course; see below). For the third case, The Empowerment Effort that Came Undone, all work must be done in your group without any face-to-face interaction. You may use email, chat, electronic file sharing, telephone communication, and videoconferencing (if you have access to it), but there is to be no face-to-face communication about this case. Consequently, I recommend that you begin working on this case at least 1 week before the due date, although I would encourage you to give yourselves even more time.

I recommend that your group experiment with some different group activities or techniques over the course of the mini. These experiences can help your group operate more effectively, will provide insights about how groups function, and will offer interesting material to address in the individual assignment (see below). Your group is free to choose which, if any, of these activities to pursue. The more your group experiments with these techniques, the more you will learn. Some suggestions include:

Keep minutes of all meetings. Make the minutes available to the members, for example, by posting them on a web page or an electronic bulletin board. I will arrange to have a bulletin board created for your group upon request.

Using the techniques described in the Problem Solving Tools handout when you work on each case, available from the course web page.

Conduct one meeting without assigned meeting roles and the following meeting with assigned roles.

Audio or video tape one or more of your group meetings. Use the tape as a source of data for your individual reflection.

Get together socially with members of your group. I recommend that you do this early in the semester.

Have a facilitator observe a group meeting and give feedback to your group. I will provide a facilitator at your group's request.

Individual Reflection (5%). After your group turns in the The Empowerment Effort that Came Undone, each member will write an analysis of the group process. Your analysis should address the following topics and questions, and you are free to make additional observations of relevance to the course:

Briefly describe how your group worked on the case (what media did you use, who was involved, how often, etc.)

How would you evaluate the group’s process and effectiveness? What worked, and what didn’t work?

In what ways did the process/group members’ behavior (including your own) differ from the process used to analyze the first and second cases? What might account for these differences?

If your team was distributed on a permanent basis, what changes, if any, would be needed in your group’s contract? Why?

Put yourself in the shoes of a manager who is responsible for a distributed team. What actions should you take to ensure that the group is effective?

What are the implications for managing distributed teams that are distributed continuously versus those that have occasional opportunities to meet face-to-face?

Be sure to provide specific examples or critical incidents to support your analysis, including examples from email, chat session transcripts, and so forth. The assignment should be 3-5 pages, double-spaced. It is due on Tuesday, April 25.

Grading Criteria

Criteria for the individual reflection and individual book review include:

understands dynamics of the group; accurate, insightful, and thorough analysis (see also guidelines for writing cases for analysis criteria)

provides specific examples to support points

application of course material -- applies appropriate readings and demonstrates understanding of concepts

comprehensive; answers assigned questions

accurate grammar and spelling; organized and well-written

Course Policies

1. Each group written case analysis is to be completed in consultation with members of one's own team, without the aid of other teams. You should not discuss the assignment with members of other teams or with students from other classes.

2. Individual assignments are to be completed independently, without consultation with other people. You may not copy the assignments or portions of the assignments of other students, and you may not collaborate with others in writing individual assignments.

3. You should not make use of any case write-ups prepared by current or previous students or case notes prepared by students or instructors here or at other universities. Use of such notes interferes with the learning process and will be considered a violation of the GSIA honor code.

4. All assignments are due at the beginning of class on the due date (with the exception of the book review). Late assignments will not be accepted.

5. All group members will receive the same grade on group assignments.

Grades

Letter grades will be based on a curve. The curve will be determined by the average of the top 3-5 (depending on course enrollment) for each assignment. Letter grades for each assignment and the exam will be based on straight scale using this average as the 100% point (i.e., A = 90% and above, B = 80%-89%; C = 70%-79%, D = 60-69%).

Here is a summary of the group and individual assignment due dates:

Assignment	Due Date
Group contract	Thursday, Jan. 27
The Team That Wasn’t (Group case)	Tuesday, Feb. 1
Midterm Exam	Thursday, March 2
Quiz 1	Thursday, March 23
Office Technologies Case (Group case)	Thursday, April 6
The Empowerment Effort that Came Undone (Group case)	Thursday, April 20
Individual Reflection and Peer Evaluations	Tuesday, April 25
Quiz 2	Thursday, April 27
Individual Book Review	Friday, May 5, by 4:00 p.m.