Group work in organizations has become an ever-present resource in business today. However, are two heads better than one? What are the advantages and disadvantages of group work? How can management control conflict among group members? Possibly the most basic and relevant question to ask is; how are groups created successfully? In this essay, we will answer these questions and be able to assist someone who has to work in a group or one that has to manage the group as a whole.

First, we will begin by simply defining what a group is. “A group is defined as two or more people who interact regularly to accomplish a common purpose or goal. The purpose of a group or team may range from preparing a new advertising campaign, to sharing information informally, to making important decisions, to fulfilling social needs.” (Griffin 7th ed. p.584) In general, there are three different types of groups. “A functional group is a permanent gr

oup created by the organization to accomplish a number of organizational purposes with an indefinite time horizon.” (Griffin 7th ed. p.584) The second type of group is an informal or interest group. “An informal or interest group is created by its own members for purposes that may or may not be relevant to organizational goals. It also has an unspecified time horizon.” (Griffin 7th ed. p.584) The third type of group is a task group. “A task group is created by the organization to accomplish a relatively narrow range of purposes within a stated or implied time horizon.” (Griffin 7th ed. p.584) A specific task group that has become increasingly popular in organizations is a team. “A team is a group of workers who function as a unit, often with little or no supervision. Their job is to carry out work-related tasks, functions, and activities. Teams are also called self-managed teams, cross-functional teams, or high-performance teams. Many firms are using teams to carry out most of their daily operations without involvement from supervisors or upper management.” (Griffin 7th ed. p. 586)

Along with role structure, there are other “structures” that can be used in creating successful groups. Status structure can be broken down into two categories: Formal status, and Social status. “Formal status is a collection of rights and obligations associated with a position, as distinct from the person occupying the position. Social status is the relative ranking that a person holds in the group as measured by the group.” (Class Notes) In a power structure, individuals use social power as influences over one another. “Influence is defined as a change in the cognition, behavior, or emotion of the second person which can be attributed to the first. Liking structure is the fourth major structure that will be discussed. “Liking structure is a technique to display patterns of relationships in groups. These relationships depend on personal choice of members in the group.” (Class Notes) The fifth type of structure is called a Leadership structure. A study was done by Lewin, Lippit, and White about three different leadership styles in the 1950's. “Autocratic leadership, when one leader usually dictates the particular work task and work companion of each member. Democratic leadership, when the members are free to work with whomever they choose, and the division of tasks is left up to the group. Laissez-faire leader, occurs when there is little participation of the leader in determining tasks and companions. Moreover, members have complete freedom for group and individual decisions making.” (Class Notes) Understanding how to create the correct group structure by management could be the backbone to a successful, productive group.

After these stages of group development have taken place, monitoring the teams contributions and functions will help a manager working in teams. In the best circumstances, teams will become very cohesive groups with high performance norms. To achieve this state, the manager can use many techniques, especially techniques in cohesiveness that will be later discussed. “If implemented properly, and with the support of the workers themselves, performance will likely be relatively

Some topics in this essay:
Title Drawing, Notes Understanding, Visual Aid, Class Notes, Lippit White, 7th ed, griffin 7th ed, griffin 7th, 7th ed p597, ed p597, performance norms, role structure, ed p584, processes dynamics, low performance, 7th ed p584, Word Count, teams manage teams, low performance norms, manage teams, class notes,