Deck 10: Understanding Work Teams

Question 1

Compared to traditional departments, teams tend to be less flexible and less responsive to changing events.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

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

A) Today, work teams are rarely used in organizations.
B) Work teams are less flexible than traditional departments.
C) Work teams generate positive synergy through coordinated effort.
D) Work teams are less responsive to changing events than are traditional departments.
E) Work teams impede employee participation in decision making.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Work groups typically generate more positive synergy than do work teams.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Teams differ from groups because ________.

A) teams have no limits on the number of members, while groups have a restricted membership
B) members of teams work independently of each other, while those in groups show greater dependence on each other
C) members of teams work toward individual goals that may or may not be related, while groups have a common goal
D) members of teams have a specific task-related purpose, while groups do not
E) teams have a no fixed duration, while groups have a fixed duration

Question 5

________ results in a level of performance that is greater than the sum of the individual inputs.

A) Synergy
B) Positive affect
C) Emotional labor
D) Cognitive dissonance
E) Emotional dissonance

Question 6

Discuss the difference between a work group and a work team.

Question 7

The primary goal of a work team is information sharing.

Question 8

Which of the following is true of teams?

A) A team consists of two or more people who work independently, with distinct goals and strategies.
B) A team works over some time period to accomplish common goals related to some task-oriented purpose.
C) Groups are formed with a specific purpose in mind, while teams do not have a specific goal.
D) The members of a team operate relatively independently of each other, and other members are not essential to their accomplishment of goals.
E) Interactions among members within teams are more personal and informal than interactions between people in groups.

Question 9

One of the dangers of teams is that ________.

A) someone might be a slacker
B) the same people end up doing all the work
C) team members can be swayed by fads
D) they are not truly effective
E) there are no dangers of teams

Question 10

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

A) Critical
B) Self-managed work
C) Cross-functional
D) Problem-solving
E) Task

Question 11

Which of the following types of teams is most likely to be assembled to improve the efficiency of a company's production process?

A) cross-functional
B) problem-solving
C) self-managed
D) critical
E) task

Question 12

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

A) Individuals working in a work group work on different objectives and are not dependent on each other.
B) Work groups primarily engage in collective work that requires joint effort.
C) Work groups do not generate any positive synergy through coordinated effort.
D) Information sharing is not the primary function of a work group.
E) The performance level of the work group is greater than the summation of each group member's individual contribution.

Question 13

Self-managed teams typically consist of ________ employees.

A) two to four
B) four to eight
C) ten to fifteen
D) twenty to thirty
E) forty to fifty

Question 14

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 ________ team.

A) cross-functional
B) virtual
C) self-managed
D) problem-solving
E) task

Question 15

Research has shown that having a positive experience working within a team can also influence one's ________.

A) attitudes toward diversity
B) abilities
C) job satisfaction
D) views on management
E) personal decision making

Question 16

Teams are an effective means for management to democratize organizations and increase employee motivation.

Question 17

Which of the following statements best defines a work group?

A) A work group's performance is generally greater than the sum of its inputs from individual members.
B) A work group interacts primarily to share information, rather than to engage in work that requires joint effort.
C) A work group consists of 5 or more people who work collaboratively.
D) A work group has a positive synergy and no active group dynamics, resulting in greater outputs.
E) A work group is a group comprised of 10 or more people who belong to the same department.

Question 18

In the case of a work team, individual efforts result in a level of performance greater than the sum of those individual inputs.

Question 19

Laski United is a rock group that has been around for 5 years and has just had their first #1 hit. This band would be best described as a ________.

A) work group
B) work team
C) problem-solving team
D) cross-functional team
E) self-managed team

Question 20

After a successful 20 year career as a rock band, and 10 years apart, Laski United has reunited for a tour. Their lead singer, Chuck Corcoran, has returned to the band after a fairly successful solo album. In this scenario, Laski United could be most likely classified as a ________.

A) work group
B) work team
C) problem-solving team
D) cross-functional team
E) self-managed team

Question 21

Which type of team is permanent, meets at a regular time, and addresses quality standards?

A) Action teams
B) Quality-control teams
C) Cross functional teams
D) Virtual teams
E) Manufacturing teams

Question 22

Virtual teams tend to be less task-oriented than face-to-face teams.

Question 23

The Boeing Company created a team made up of employees from production, planning, quality control, tooling, design engineering, and information systems to automate shims on the company's C-17 program. This team is most likely to be an example of a ________ team.

A) command
B) cross-functional
C) self-managed
D) problem-solving
E) task

Question 24

One advantage of cross-functional teams is that they are easy to manage.

Question 25

________ teams are an effective way to allow people from diverse areas within an organization to exchange information, develop new ideas and solve problems, and coordinate complex projects.

A) Self-managed
B) Problem-solving
C) Cross-functional
D) Task
E) Command

Question 26

Describe and discuss self-managed work teams.

Question 27

Jack, your director of manufacturing, has created a team of eleven employees from quality control. Jack gives the team members the responsibility of planning and scheduling their own work, and making operating decisions. Also, members of this team evaluate each other's performance. This is an example of a ________ team.

A) problem-solving
B) self-managed
C) cross-functional
D) virtual
E) task-resolution

Question 28

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

A) A cross-functional team is made up of employees from different hierarchical levels.
B) A cross-functional team is made up of employees from the same department.
C) Today, cross-functional teams are rarely used in well-established organizations.
D) In the case of a cross-functional team, the early stages of development are typically very short.
E) Cross-functional teams are used for developing new ideas and coordinating complex projects.

Question 29

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

A) Self-managed work teams typically consist of forty to fifty employees.
B) Self-managed work teams typically manage conflicts well.
C) Members of self-managed work teams typically report lower job satisfaction.
D) Self-managed work teams are typically composed of employees from different departments who work independent of each other.
E) In the case of self-managed work teams, supervisory positions take on decreased importance.

Question 30

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

A) problem-solving
B) self-managed
C) cross-functional
D) task
E) rapid action

Question 31

Cross-functional teams are not easy to manage because power is shifted due to the need for different expertise in different areas. What does this situation create?

A) counterproductive work behaviors
B) virtual teams
C) leadership ambiguity
D) lack of diversity
E) citizenship behaviors

Question 32

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

A) problem-solving teams
B) self-managed teams
C) task teams
D) virtual teams
E) command teams

Question 33

Eva is not getting the results she needs from her data base administration team. She believes that this problem is occurring because the administration team is a virtual team. Which of the following is one of the things that Eva should do to create an effective virtual team?

A) Conduct training for improving interpersonal skills.
B) Allow more independence among members.
C) Monitor progress of the team closely.
D) Include peer evaluation in the appraisal system.
E) Avoid publicizing team successes company-wide.

Question 34

Your company has recently landed a contract to design and manufacture a new state-of-the-art electronic device for the military. This will be a very complex project, requiring many different types of skills. Which of the following types of teams is most suited for the project?

A) problem-solving
B) self-managed
C) cross-functional
D) virtual
E) task-resolution

Question 35

Janice is your director of sales. Since her team members are located in Europe, Asia, and North America, she has decided to use instant messaging to tie her team members together in order to develop a marketing strategy for a new product line. This is an example of a ________ team.

A) problem-solving
B) self-managed
C) cross-functional
D) virtual
E) task-resolution

Question 36

Leadership is especially important in ________, in which different teams coordinate their efforts to produce a desired outcome.

A) technical teams
B) self-managed teams
C) problem-solving teams
D) management teams
E) multi-team systems

Question 37

You are a member of a team of eight individuals from the same department who meet for a few hours each week to discuss ways of improving quality, efficiency, and the work environment. You are most likely a member of a self-managed work team.

Question 38

Leadership of multiteam systems is not much different than standalone teams.

Question 39

Research suggests that when members feel confident to ________ without fear of punishment, ________ can be beneficial and boost team performance.

A) speak up; training sessions
B) complain; training sessions
C) complain; conflict
D) speak up; conflict
E) speak up; gossip

Question 40

You are vice-president of a division of a large, multi-national company that makes electronic equipment for consumers and the military. Your company has several teams and there are several managers managing those teams. Joan, your director of accounting, has created a team of seven employees from the accounts payable department who meet for three hours a week to discuss ways of improving quality, efficiency and the work environment. This is an example of a ________ team.

A) problem-solving
B) self-managed
C) cross-functional
D) virtual
E) task-resolution

Question 41

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

A) team efficacy
B) large size
C) adequate resources
D) member flexibility
E) leadership and structure

Question 42

Teams that are composed of people who score high on ________ are more creative and innovative.

A) emotional stability
B) agreeableness
C) openness to experience
D) extraversion
E) conscientiousness

Question 43

In addition to evaluating and rewarding employees for their individual contributions, management should consider using ________ to reinforce team effort and commitment.

A) personalized incentives
B) consistent wages for all team members
C) individual performance evaluations
D) fixed hourly wages
E) profit sharing

Question 44

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?

A) adequate resources
B) conflict level
C) team efficacy
D) performance evaluation system
E) personality of team members

Question 45

________ suggests that attributes such as age or the date of joining should help us predict turnover.

A) Employee mobility
B) Organizational demography
C) Residential mobility
D) Demographic environment
E) Population dynamics

Question 46

What is a cross-functional team?

Question 47

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

A) Elements of diversity do not interfere with team processes.
B) Culturally homogeneous teams have more difficulty learning to work with each other than culturally heterogeneous teams do.
C) Generally, newly formed culturally diverse teams underperform when compared to newly formed culturally homogeneous teams.
D) Cultural diversity within a team is not advisable for those tasks that call for a variety of viewpoints.
E) Solving problems is more difficult for culturally homogeneous teams than it is for culturally heterogeneous teams.

Question 48

During an interview with one team member, you learn that several members of the team have had conflicts regarding the content of a task to which the team was recently assigned. Are these conflicts likely to be reducing the group's productivity?

A) Yes, because interpersonal conflicts always hurt a team's performance.
B) No, because conflicts based on personal animosity rarely affect team operations.
C) Yes, because task-related conflicts lead to poor team decisions.
D) No, because task-related conflicts usually benefit the performance of a team.
E) Yes, because disagreements about tasks usually lessen groupthink.

Question 49

Teams that consist of team members that score ________ are more likely to perform poorly.

A) high on conscientiousness
B) high on openness to experience
C) high on emotional stability
D) low on extraversion
E) low on agreeableness

Question 50

What are some special challenges that virtual teams face? For virtual teams to be effective, what should management ensure?

Question 51

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 back after the meetings. Members are constantly monitoring the other members' work, looking for mistakes to point out in a meeting. According to the information provided, which contextual factor is most likely hindering the success of Araceli's team?

A) adequate resources
B) climate of trust
C) team structure
D) performance evaluations
E) leadership

Question 52

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

A) leadership and structure
B) team efficacy
C) member flexibility
D) performance evaluation and reward systems
E) abilities of members

Question 53

In a ________ team, the manager's job becomes more about managing outside the team.

A) technical
B) self-managed
C) problem-solving
D) task
E) virtual

Question 54

With reference to the team effectiveness model, what does the personality factor of team composition focus on?

A) members' knowledge and skills
B) members' leadership qualities
C) members' conscientiousness and openness to experience
D) members' role allocation
E) members' cultural and demographic diversity

Question 55

Amohalko Consulting is an independent consulting firm specializing in offering financial advice to companies in need. Amohalko operates in an independent contractor fashion, providing name recognition to consultants as well as basic needs such as office space and computers but nothing much past that. Amohalko Consulting has been losing business over the last three quarters and the average stay of a consultant is less than one year. Most likely, Amohalko Consulting is suffering from which problem?

A) inadequate resources
B) poor Leadership
C) flawed structure
D) climate of mistrust
E) poor reward system

Question 56

Diversity is an asset for teams where tasks ________.

A) require a variety of viewpoints
B) are simple
C) involve emotional labor
D) are highly technical
E) required for completing the work are highly interdependent

Question 57

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

A) conscientiousness
B) positivity
C) emotional stability
D) agreeableness
E) openness to experience

Question 58

You are the manager of a software design firm that develops software programs for clients using teams of specialists. One of your most successful teams has been together for nearly 5 years. In the past, this team has performed effectively, and you have been very satisfied with the team's output. Recently, however, you have noticed a marked decrease in the team's performance. You investigate to determine the problem. After interviewing all 7 team members, you determine that one of the team members performs routine administrative tasks that are rarely visible to any of the other team members. You suspect that this team member may be loafing off and lagging in his duties. You could most likely improve that team member's output by ________.

A) encouraging him to work more independently
B) making his work clearly visible to the other team members
C) empowering the team member to make decisions
D) providing him with administrative training
E) giving him additional assignments to complete

Question 59

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?

A) team efficacy
B) climate of trust
C) common purpose
D) social loafing
E) specific goals

Question 60

According to studies, when team members share an accurate mental model they ________.

A) have an indifferent attitude toward their work
B) have frequent interactions
C) face acute stress
D) work independently
E) display increased social loafing tendencies

Question 61

When teams are under acute stress, they are particularly likely to have ________.

A) inaccurate mental models
B) high team efficacy
C) goal congruence
D) a self-serving bias
E) high reflexivity

Question 62

Not only is a climate of trust important within a team but so is ________.

A) that teams have complete trust in their supervisor
B) that trust levels are balanced in favor of the hardest working individuals
C) that trust levels are symmetrical and balanced between team members
D) that team members trust one another but are suspicious of the supervisor
E) that teams form a coalition against other teams within the organization.

Question 63

Cultural diversity seems to be ________ for tasks that call for a variety of viewpoints; also, these teams have ________ learning to work with each other and problem solving.

A) difficult; collaboration while
B) an asset; difficulty
C) difficulty; collaboration while
D) collaborative; indifference
E) indifferent; difficulty

Question 64

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

A) goal specificity
B) goal congruency
C) social loafing
D) diversity
E) reflexivity

Question 65

The term "Hives" refers to which group?

A) ingroup team members
B) outgroup team members
C) freelancers
D) organizational citizens
E) management teams

Question 66

Members of successful teams put a tremendous amount of time and effort into discussing, shaping, and agreeing on ________ which then provides direction and guidance under any and all conditions.

A) the level of individual contribution
B) allocation of resources
C) a common purpose
D) allocation of roles
E) developing team efficacy

Question 67

Individuals with a positive ________ identity but without a positive ________ identity can become fixed to their teams and unwilling to coordinate with other teams within the organization.

A) organizational; self-efficacy
B) self-efficacy; virtual
C) virtual; individual
D) individual; team
E) team; organizational

Question 68

Generally speaking, the most effective teams have ________ members.

A) two to four
B) three to five
C) five to nine
D) ten to fifteen
E) fifteen to twenty

Question 69

Diversity of members includes all of the following except ________.

A) age
B) sex
C) marital status
D) race
E) educational level

Question 70

If team members have similar mental models then it means that the team members have similar ________.

A) roles within the team
B) self-efficacy
C) knowledge and skills
D) beliefs about how the work gets done
E) attitudes towards social loafing

Question 71

Coasting on the group effort is termed ________.

A) emotional labor
B) cognitive dissonance
C) social loafing
D) positivity offset
E) self-concordance

Question 72

Effective teams begin their work by ________.

A) allocating roles to team members according to their personalities and preferences
B) analyzing the team's mission
C) developing a climate of trust among team members
D) developing team efficacy
E) discussing individual goals

Question 73

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

A) providing measurable goals
B) helping the team achieve small successes
C) improving the reflexivity of the team
D) ensuring that team goals are challenging
E) reducing the number of members on a team

Question 74

Which of the following terms indicates the degree to which members of a work unit (group, team, or department) share a common attribute, such as age, sex, race, or educational level?

A) demographic environment
B) residential mobility
C) organizational demography
D) population dynamics
E) employee mobility

Question 75

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

A) Generally speaking, the most effective teams have twelve to fifteen members.
B) When teams have excess members, cohesiveness declines.
C) As team size increases, social loafing decreases.
D) When teams have excess members, mutual accountability increases.
E) As team size increases, coordination problems tend to decrease.

Question 76

Alberto's team is evaluating and developing the database for the water pollution data of three cities. 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?

A) plan a team outing for the team members
B) make sure that his team is not comprised of more than nine people
C) spend considerable time evaluating team members and allocating proper roles for each
D) provide client's software and database training for all the team members
E) create team goals that are very challenging

Question 77

Effective teams have confidence in themselves and believe they can succeed. This confidence is called ________.

A) social facilitation
B) goal congruence
C) social loafing
D) team efficacy
E) self-serving bias

Question 78

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

A) increased employee satisfaction
B) decreased level of conflicts
C) higher employee motivation
D) higher employee turnover
E) higher team efficacy

Question 79

Which type of conflict is almost always dysfunctional?

A) task conflict
B) efficacy conflict
C) relationship conflict
D) resource conflict
E) goal conflict

Question 80

In the case of a team, when each member's contribution is not clearly visible, ________.

A) team efficacy tends to increase
B) team cohesiveness tends to decrease
C) motivation of the team members tends to increase
D) team members tend to decrease their efforts
E) mutual accountability of the team members tends to decrease