Reference no: EM132156638
Example from the textbook:
1. One company had 40 percent of its workers and 20 percent of its managers resign during the first year after it reorganized from a vertical hierarchy into teams. What might account for this dramatic turnover? How might managers ensure a smooth transition to teams?
2. Suppose that you are the leader of a team that has just been created to develop a new registration process at your college or university. How can you use an understanding of the stages of team development to improve your team's effectiveness?
3. Imagine yourself as a potential member of a team responsible for designing a new package for a breakfast cereal. Do you think interpersonal skills would be equally important if the team is organized face to face versus a virtual team? Why or why not? Might different types of interpersonal skills be required for the two types of teams? Be specific.
4. If you were the leader of a special-purpose team developing a new computer game and conflicts arose related to power and status differences among team members, what would you do? Which of the styles to handle conflict described in the chapter do you think might be most effective? Explain your answer.
5. Experts say that for teams to function well, members have to get to know one another in some depth. What specifically would you do to facilitate this in a co-located team? What about in a global, virtual team?
6. Some people argue that the presence of an outside threat correlates with a high degree of team cohesion. Would you agree or disagree? Explain your answer.
7. Discuss how the dilemma of teamwork vs. individual work might be intensified in a virtual team. What dilemmas do you encounter when you have to do class assignments as part of a team? Discuss.
8. If you were the leader of a newly formed team, what might you do to make sure that the team developed norms of high performance?