Which of the following correctly distinguishes work groups and work teams?

The current popularity of teams can be attributed to the fact that ________.

they represent a better way to use employee talents

Which of the following statements best defines a work group?

A work group interacts primarily to share information, rather than to engage in work that requires joint effort.

Work groups are characterized by ________.

the goal of sharing information among members

The goal of work groups is ________.

sharing relevant information

Which of the following statements is true regarding a work team?

Work teams generate positive synergy through coordinated effort.

A work team is characterized by ________.

the availability of complementary skills among members

Which of the following accurately differentiates between work groups and work teams?

Work teams generate a potential for an organization to generate greater outputs with no increase in inputs, while work groups cannot perform this function.

The extensive use of work teams benefits organizations by ________.

generating a potential for creating greater outputs without increasing inputs

A team consists of employees from the same department who meet for a few hours each week to discuss ways of improving the work environment but they do not have the authority to unilaterally implement any of their suggestions. This is most likely to be a(n) ________ team.

problem-solving

Problem-solving teams can ________.

provide recommendations after a discussion amongst department members

The supervisors of the production division of one of the branches of Georgia Mills have been informed of some irregularities noticed in inventory of raw materials by some trusted subordinates. To get a clearer picture, the supervisors had a quick meeting with the subordinates who reported the matter over lunch. The subordinates recommended rotating the schedule of employees who account for the incoming and used up stock so as to pinpoint the defaulting employee. The supervisors agreed that this was a good strategy but admitted that the matter must be escalated to the production manager before such a change can be implemented. They followed up this meeting with subsequent sessions to evaluate how the change worked. The supervisors and subordinates form a(n) ________ team in this scenario.

problem-solving

________ teams are defined as groups of employees who perform highly related or interdependent jobs and take on many of the responsibilities of their former supervisors.

Self-managed work

Nick, the director of manufacturing at a large electronics company, has created a team of eleven employees from quality control for working on high priority projects. Nick gives the team members the responsibility of planning and scheduling their own work and making all functional decisions. Also, members of this team evaluate each other’s performance. This is an example of a ________ team.

self-managed work

Which of the following statements is true regarding self-managed work teams?

In the case of self-managed work teams, supervisory positions take on decreased importance.

Which of the following teams is more likely to be made up of employees from about the same hierarchical level but different work areas?

cross-functional

To retain its edge in the organic health food market, Natura has established a high-priority team comprised of senior executives from the company’s production, marketing, and research divisions. These employees work together closely to study consumer attitudes about organic health foods and come up with a closely monitored development and marketing strategy for new products. This ensures that each division is informed of the specific needs, timelines, and expected outcomes of the strategy. It also makes Natura a company that adapts to changes in market trends swiftly. The team Natura uses here is of the ________ type.

cross-functional

GoAir, a low-cost airline, has created a team made up of employees from production, planning, quality control, tooling, design engineering, and information systems to automate the company’s C-17 program. This team is most likely to be an example of a ________ team.

cross-functional

Which of the following statements is true regarding a cross-functional team?

Cross-functional teams are used for developing new ideas and coordinating complex projects.

Which of the following types of teams allows for collaboration between team members who are physically dispersed?

virtual teams

Virtual teams are characterized by ________ in comparison to teams which interact face-to-face.

low social rapport and direct interaction

Which of the following is desirable when a crucial project is delegated to a virtual team?

engaging in close monitoring of the work being done by the team throughout the project

Which of the following statements is not true regarding multiteam systems?

They perform better when lines of communication are restricted.

Which of the following is not one of the key components of effective teams?

company reputation

With reference to the team effectiveness model, which of the following is one of the key components of an effective team, included under the category of contextual factors?

climate of trust

The team effectiveness model classifies the key components of effective teams into three general categories: context, composition, and process. Which of the following variables belongs to the composition category?

personality of team members

According to the team effectiveness model, which of the following is a process variable that influences effectiveness of a team?

team efficacy

Jean Wills, a trainer with Leverage Inc., is infuriated because the conference hall that she had booked for her morning session with a new batch of trainees will be occupied by the HR team for the day. Jean feels that the company only superficially commits to training and that it is not a priority as this lack of facilities for training is a recurring phenomenon. Recently, she had asked the HR department to supply printed copies of her material for the orientation and training modules to the new trainees, and HR refused, saying the soft copies available on the systems would suffice. Which of the following contextual areas is the source of problem between the training department and the HR department in this scenario?

adequate resources

Araceli is a team member in a large corporation. She never speaks in team meetings because she has seen members talk behind each other’s backs after the meetings. Members are constantly monitoring the other members’ work and looking for mistakes to point out in a meeting. According to the information provided, which contextual factor is lacking in Araceli’s team?

climate of trust

In which of the following teams is leadership of most importance to coordinate the efforts of various teams in order to produce a desired outcome?

multiteam systems

Which of the following reward systems is likely to reinforce team effort and commitment?

gainsharing

Which of the following pairs of personality dimensions contribute to high team effectiveness?

conscientiousness and openness to experience

People scoring high on ________ are valuable in teams because they’re good at backing up fellow team members and at sensing when their support is truly needed.

conscientiousness

Which of the following statements is true regarding team composition?

In successful teams, members should be selected to ensure all the various roles are filled.

The controller role in a team is responsible for ________.

examining details and enforcing rules

The adviser role in a team is responsible for ________.

encouraging the search for more information

Which of the following terms describes the degree to which members of a work unit share a common demographic attribute, such as age, sex, race, educational level, or length of service?

organizational demography

Organizational demography suggests that attributes such as age or the date of joining should help the organization in ________.

predicting employee turnover in the company

According to the concept of organizational demography, if team members have dissimilar experiences, it will lead to ________.

higher employee turnover

Which of the following is true with regard to the impact of diversity on team effectiveness?

Cultural diversity serves as an asset for tasks that call for a variety of viewpoints once the team has worked out its differences.

Which of the following statements is true regarding a culturally diverse team?

Generally, newly formed culturally diverse teams underperform as compared to newly formed culturally homogeneous teams.

Cultural diversity is an asset for teams where tasks ________.

require a variety of viewpoints

Which of the following statements is true regarding size of teams?

When teams have excess members, cohesiveness declines

Which of the following statements represents a strategy that is desirable for making effective teams?

The preference of individual members to work as a part of groups must be considered when forming teams.

Which of the following statements is true with regard to team processes?

Effective teams invest time and effort to discuss and agree on a purpose that belongs to them both collectively and individually

________ illustrates a process loss from using teams.

Social loafing

Gerald Murphy is a manager at Wright & Wayner, a publishing house which is a very employee-friendly company. The demarcation between managers and subordinates is flexible and the nature of these reporting relationships is flexible and informal. Gerald recently assigned five of eight of his subordinates to work on a new publication project with a fairly tight deadline because he believed that these efficient employees would function even better with each other’s support. A week before the deadline, however, Gerald realized that the group had been shirking work as each of the members thought that the project was not just his or her responsibility. Additionally, under the guise of working together, the team was actually doing their personal work, surfing the Internet, or just socializing. This scenario reflects ________.

social loafing

A team that has a good plan but is also willing to adjust its master plan and adapt when conditions call for it demonstrates high ________, an important variable in successful team processes.

reflexivity

While discussing their marketing campaign for a new product, the members of the cross-functional team responsible for Carver Inc. realized that a couple of changes relating to their prior plan would be beneficial. The offer of a franchising that had earlier been brushed off by the company head was discussed thoroughly, and it was decided that it would be implemented on a trial basis initially and on full scale if found to work well. From the information provided, it can be concluded that this cross-functional team has a high degree of ________.

reflexivity

Hank Murphy was selected to develop an advanced personal communication device with his own self-managed work team. Hank was assured that resource allocation and timelines were flexible for this project provided the work was a cut above that provided by the rest of the employees. As a part of the project guidelines, Hank included the demand that the device being developed by the team should also be marketed exclusively by them without resorting to franchising or cobranding. This was to ensure that customers recognized the product as reflecting the values of their company. Work on this project began with a lot of vigor and once the device was developed, Hank’s team implemented their marketing strategy. However, even three months after the product’s release, visibility remained low in the market and many reviewers did not consider the device to be much of an innovation. Which of the following statements, if true, would indicate a lack of reflexivity in Hank’s self-managed work team?

The device was later marketed as a part of a national level tie-up with E-store outlets and did remarkably well in its second stint in the market.

Effective teams translate their common purpose into ________ goals

specific

The belief that effective teams have in their ability to succeed is called ________.

team efficacy

Alberto’s team is developing a database for the water pollution data of three cities. Before he begins on this intensive project, he wants to improve the team efficacy of his team. Which of the following actions can Alberto take to increase team efficacy before the project starts?

provide client’s software and database training for all the team members

Which of the following is most likely to increase team efficacy?

helping the team achieve small successes

________ are defined as organized mental representations of the key elements within a team’s environment that team members share.

Mental models

Managers facing job candidates who lack team skills should do all of the following except ________.

choose the individual with the best technical skills regardless of his or her ability to perform as a member of a team

With a deadline approaching, all seven members of Sharon’s product development team were working round-the-clock and still the work was not completed in time. After the project was completed, Sharon spoke individually with the members to determine the cause for this delay. Many members complained, saying the work given to them was not in accordance with their roles. Some were unclear about which team member to approach when faced with a problem, and many underestimated the time and effort the project demanded. This team is characterized by ________.

dissimilar mental models

Which of the following is not a common characteristic of an effective team?

The team is the right size for the task—about 15-20 people.

When teams are performing nonroutine activities, ________ stimulate discussion, promote critical assessment of problems and options, and can lead to better team decisions.

task conflicts

Which of the following is an example of a task conflict?

Linda and Dorothy had a disagreement over which of their employees should be assigned to work on a high-priority project.

Which of the following must be avoided if one wants to create and maintain an effective team?

relationship conflicts

When individuals engage in ________, they coast on the group’s effort because their particular contributions cannot be identified.

social loafing

Shane Dermott is a manager at a software design firm that develops software programs for clients using multiple teams of specialists. One of his most successful teams has been performing very well for years and so it came as a surprise to Shane when he noticed a sharp drop in the team’s performance. He decided to speak with the team members individually and find a solution. After interviewing all 7 team members, he determined that one of the team members performed routine administrative tasks that were hardly visible to any of the other team members and understood that this was a case of social loafing which demotivated the entire group. Which of the following would most likely improve the performance of the employee who was social loafing?

making him individually responsible for definite and crucial tasks

Jason Jones has been asked to assemble an eight-member self-managed work team of experienced employees to work on a project that combines the functional areas of research, production, marketing, and distribution. Jason is apprehensive about managing a team so large; he knows from prior experience that larger teams do not always result in greater productivity. Jason has also been informed by the management that this team is being established as the project must progress according to the predetermined timeline. The work lagging behind by one division will cause a cumulative delay in all the successive stages of the project’s execution. Which of the following measures, if adopted by Jason, would best ensure that the team members are working efficiently?

assigning the specific tasks of the project to each team member by keeping in mind their preferences and abilities

Jason Jones has been asked to assemble an eight-member self-managed work team of experienced employees to work on a project that combines the functional areas of research, production, marketing, and distribution. Jason is apprehensive about managing a team so large; he knows from prior experience that larger teams do not always result in greater productivity. Jason has also been informed by the management that this team is being established as the project must progress according to the predetermined timeline. The work lagging behind by one division will cause a cumulative delay in all the successive stages of the project’s execution. Jason plans to implement a group-based incentive that he feels would motivate each of the team members to work efficiently. Which of the following is an assumption made by Jason in implementing this plan?

Each employee in the team is motivated to work equally hard to ensure that the group’s performance is satisfactory.

Which of the following will be useful in creating team players?

negotiation training

Diane Fielding, owner of the famous Mint chain of restaurants, planned to revamp the whole concept and structure of her outlets. With this purpose in mind, she selected five managers from her existing outlets based on their performance in relation to targets, experience, and motivation. Each manager was asked to take up an aspect of the restaurant’s functioning like menu, décor, and customer service measures. Diane was sure that this group of high performers possessed a clear understanding of the ground realities, which made them the best candidates to contemplate and implement the required changes. In order to reward them, she announced a hefty bonus for their collective performance. Six months later, after the changes were implemented, Diane realized that the group had made many questionable decisions, which were resulting in problems. Which of the following, if true, would best explain this outcome?

Typically, these managers viewed each other as competition as Diane only rewarded the highest earning outlet with incentives.

A software development firm has witnessed substantial growth and seeks to expand and reorganize its structure to meet the demands from clients in a better manner. HR has been given a clear directive that one of the major criteria for selection of recruits would be the candidate’s ability to function as a team player. This is because the company is revamping all its major functions from the traditional departmental model to an arrangement of flexible teams. Joe Sanchez, one of the firm’s oldest and most experienced employees, has demonstrated considerable ability in developing the best programs, but he prefers to work alone. The company does not wish to lose resources like Sanchez and others who lack the ability to work in groups, but teamwork is essential to its reorganization. Which of the following strategies will help rectify this problem?

informing all employees that ability to work in teams will be a major determinant for promotions and bonuses

Which of the following is true with regard to use of individuals and teams?

Task complexity and requirement of different perspectives must be used as criteria when assigning work to teams over individuals and vice versa.

Work should be performed by an individual if ________.

he work is simple and does not require diverse input

The work of your group would be better done in teams if the members of the team are ________.

interdependent

More and more organizations are resorting to teams as they represent a better way to use employee talents. (T/F)

TRUE

Teams and traditional departments have the same level of flexibility and responsiveness to external changes. (T/F)

FALSE

The goal of a work group is to share information. (T/F)

TRUE

) Nancy is a part of a group at work that stresses collective goals and performance. Nancy is amazed at how well the members of the team use their skills to benefit themselves and their team members. Whenever a problem arises, the team, as a whole, works to provide reasons and solutions. She enjoys working in this group as there is a lot of positive energy. This group that Nancy is a part of is a work group. (T/F)

FALSE

Problem-solving teams discuss a problem, generate potential solutions, and implement them successfully. (T/F)

FALSE

In self-managed teams, supervisory positions may be eliminated. (T/F)

FALSE

Cross-functional teams consist of employees from about the same hierarchical level, but from different work areas, who come together to accomplish a task. (T/F)

TRUE

Low levels of virtuality in teams result in higher levels of information sharing. (T/F)

TRUE

A climate of trust among team members is a contextual factor relating to team effectiveness. (T/F)

TRUE

FDS is a government agency which holds its yearly appraisals in December and provides employees with merit-based incentives based on their individual performance ratings. Merit is the only criterion for incentives at FDS and this is likely to have a strong positive impact on group performance. (T/F)

FALSE

Lower-ability teams are more adaptable to changing situations than high-ability teams. (T/F)

FALSE

Conscientiousness and openness to experience are two personality dimensions of the Big Five personality model that predict better performance in teams. (T/F)

TRUE

Research has shown that the larger the team, the more effective its performance. (T/F)

FALSE

When teams have excess members, cohesiveness and mutual accountability decline. (T/F)

TRUE

Social loafing illustrates a process gain from using teams. (T/F)

FALSE

Specificity refers to the degree to which a team reflects on and adjusts its master plan when necessary. (T/F)

FALSE

For creating good team players, an organization’s reward system must be reworked to encourage competitive efforts rather than cooperative ones. (T/F)

FALSE

Problems such as lack of trust or lack of sharing information among team members in a competitive group can be swiftly changed by rewarding collective performance over individual performance. (T/F)

FALSE

Work that creates a common purpose or set of goals must be assigned to individuals, not groups. (T/F)

FALSE

Using teams makes sense when the assignment involves independent tasks. (T/F)

FALSE