Question 1

In my organization,a number of us usually get together with no specific objective or purpose to discuss work-related and sometimes non-work-related matters.
The team type,according to this example,is which of the following?

Accepted Answer

group. 
There is no teamwork by a few individuals getting together.

Question 2

The team members are not taking our new self-directed status seriously,because they believe SMTs are just the latest fad and those in charge will drop it for the next hot topic.
Identify which guideline is implied by this statement.

Accepted Answer

top management support and commitment. Many managers who have become accustomed to traditional,autocratic management and jaded at management fads that come and go may resisit or undermine a team approach.

Question 3

Our organization discourages inter-team rivalries because of the potential for internal conflict.
Does this arrangement favor or lessen creativity?

Accepted Answer

may lessen team creativity. 
While there is potential for internal conflict,if managed properly inter-team rivalries can become a vortex of creativity.

Question 4

We are in the marketing department and our primary task is to deal with customer related problems.
Which type of team does this represent?

Accepted Answer

a functional team. 
A boss and subordinates within a department is a functional team.

Question 5

Members of my team are dispersed all over the country and even overseas,yet we conduct meetings and get our work done using the Internet and videoconferencing technologies.
Which type of team does this represent?

Accepted Answer

virtual team. 
Being geographically distributed and using information and communications technologies are characteristics of a virtual team.

Question 6

Based on Self-Assessment 8-1,list some things that a team could do to improve its level of teamwork.Use experiences associated with a present or past job.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Based on Self-Assessment 8-1,list some things that...

Question 7

Interview someone you have worked with or know who is a team leader. Ask him or her to provide specific examples for some of the roles discussed in the text.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Interview someone you have worked with or...

Question 8

Identify a team you were or are a part of and describe the advantages that you derived from being a member of the team.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Identify a team you were or are...

Question 9

I have been assigned to a team where leadership roles are rotated and shared,with team responsible for its own planning and execution of plans.
Which of the following describes your team?

Accepted Answer

self-managed team.
Self-managed team members share or rotate leadership responsibilities.

Question 10

I got frustrated with my team because no two team members could agree on what we were supposed to be doing or how we will be evaluated for compensation.
Identify which guideline is implied by this statement.

Accepted Answer

specific goals and incentives.
Not agreeing on basics such objectives and evaluation procedures is a sign the goals are not specific enough.

Question 11

During a meeting focused on resolving a serious problem,Billy was more interested in asking the group if they heard about the company owner and the mailroom clerk.
Which of the following group member problem types does Billy represent?

Accepted Answer

wanderer.
Talking about gossip going on is getting off the subject.

Question 12

In your group,David seems to enjoy challenging members' viewpoints on every issue so much so that other team members?are getting really frustrated with him.
Which of the following group member problem types does David represent?

Accepted Answer

arguer.
Challenging the ideas of others is often a characteristic of an arguer.

Question 13

At Solomon's Technology Solutions,an integrated team with members from R&D,design,finance,customer service,and quality control oversaw an ambitious information system for a big client.
What type of team does this describe?

Accepted Answer

A cross-functional team is made up of members from different functional departments who are brought together.

Question 14

A usually very active team member,Frank seems very absent-minded today and not very engaged in the discussion.The other members are doing all the discussing and volunteering for assignments.
Today,Frank can be described as which of the following group member problem types?

Accepted Answer

bored.
A silent type does not start talking and then later gets quiet.  This usually active member is not participating.  Therefore,this member is most likely bored.

Question 15

Think of a past or present job.Based on your knowledge of the distinction between a group and a team,would you say you were part of a team or a group? Explain.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Think of a past or present job.Based...

Question 16

Recall a team you have worked with that you would characterize as effective. Which of the characteristics discussed and listed in Exhibit 8.1 did you team possess?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Recall a team you have worked with...

Question 17

In your group,Charlie is always first or second to volunteer his ideas.He is long-winded in his presentations,which draws whispers from others about his "clueless" attitude.
According to this example,Charlie is which of the following group member problem types?

Accepted Answer

talker.
Charlie talks a lot and dominates the conversation.

Question 18

In our team,we have a suggestion box and team members can receive up to $500 in a gift certificate for good ideas.Does this arrangement favor or lessen creativity?

Accepted Answer

may lessen team creativity. 
This is individual-centered rather than team-centered reward program.

Question 19

We are developing a multi-specialty work team to speed up processing our orders,and we are including two other departments in the mix.
This team represents which type of team?

Accepted Answer

a cross-functional team. 
A team with members from outside the organization is a cross-functional team.

Question 20

There are still a lot of people in this organization who don't know why we operate differently from other traditional teams and thus are not very supportive of our efforts.We need someone to defend and promote us.
Identify which guideline is implied by this statement.

Accepted Answer

SMT Champion. 
An advocate who defends and promotes the SMT concept to other stakeholders.

Quiz 8: Team Leadership and Self-Managed Teams

In my organization,a number of us usually get together with no specific objective or purpose to discuss work-related and sometimes non-work-related matters. The team type,according to this example,is which of the following?

The team members are not taking our new self-directed status seriously,because they believe SMTs are just the latest fad and those in charge will drop it for the next hot topic. Identify which guideline is implied by this statement.

Our organization discourages inter-team rivalries because of the potential for internal conflict. Does this arrangement favor or lessen creativity?

We are in the marketing department and our primary task is to deal with customer related problems. Which type of team does this represent?

Members of my team are dispersed all over the country and even overseas,yet we conduct meetings and get our work done using the Internet and videoconferencing technologies. Which type of team does this represent?

Based on Self-Assessment 8-1,list some things that a team could do to improve its level of teamwork.Use experiences associated with a present or past job.

Interview someone you have worked with or know who is a team leader. Ask him or her to provide specific examples for some of the roles discussed in the text.

Identify a team you were or are a part of and describe the advantages that you derived from being a member of the team.

I have been assigned to a team where leadership roles are rotated and shared,with team responsible for its own planning and execution of plans. Which of the following describes your team?

I got frustrated with my team because no two team members could agree on what we were supposed to be doing or how we will be evaluated for compensation. Identify which guideline is implied by this statement.

During a meeting focused on resolving a serious problem,Billy was more interested in asking the group if they heard about the company owner and the mailroom clerk. Which of the following group member problem types does Billy represent?

In your group,David seems to enjoy challenging members' viewpoints on every issue so much so that other team members?are getting really frustrated with him. Which of the following group member problem types does David represent?

At Solomon's Technology Solutions,an integrated team with members from R&D,design,finance,customer service,and quality control oversaw an ambitious information system for a big client. What type of team does this describe?

A usually very active team member,Frank seems very absent-minded today and not very engaged in the discussion.The other members are doing all the discussing and volunteering for assignments. Today,Frank can be described as which of the following group member problem types?

Think of a past or present job.Based on your knowledge of the distinction between a group and a team,would you say you were part of a team or a group? Explain.

Recall a team you have worked with that you would characterize as effective. Which of the characteristics discussed and listed in Exhibit 8.1 did you team possess?

In your group,Charlie is always first or second to volunteer his ideas.He is long-winded in his presentations,which draws whispers from others about his "clueless" attitude. According to this example,Charlie is which of the following group member problem types?

In our team,we have a suggestion box and team members can receive up to $500 in a gift certificate for good ideas.Does this arrangement favor or lessen creativity?

We are developing a multi-specialty work team to speed up processing our orders,and we are including two other departments in the mix. This team represents which type of team?

There are still a lot of people in this organization who don't know why we operate differently from other traditional teams and thus are not very supportive of our efforts.We need someone to defend and promote us. Identify which guideline is implied by this statement.