Ineffective and effective groups: organizational dynamics

¶ … Groups

I sent you a message about citation, but didn't hear back. I've done an outline of how your title page and references page should look. Also, please see the in text parathentical citations).

What makes an effective group? Sociologists have identified several key components to effective groups, and also have identified what can make groups fail to attain success in whatever endeavor they may have. Whether in a family, a work situation, a sport or community activity - the majority of human activities include working as a group. What, then, differentiates an effective group from an ineffective one? Researchers have identified several characteristics of effective groups; upon reflecting upon my personal experience, these have been lacking in some groups. In the groups that have been effective, most, if not all, of the characteristics of an effective group have been present. A collaborative climate, a unified commitment, and standards of excellence dominated in the effective team; a lack of these elements characterized the unsuccessful one.

To make a restaurant successful, it takes more than excellent food and fine decor; it takes a unified team. I've had the opportunity to work at the same restaurant under two different managers with two different teams, and the failure of one team compared to the success of the other was striking. Both teams were faced with the problem of solving how to best insure client satisfaction during the busy holiday season. In this, both teams were secondary groups, with aspects of both problem-solving groups and quality circles. Regardless of the type of group, five things can be done to enhance the effectiveness of a team, in short: Clarifying of group expectations and setting ground rules, learning the strength of each team member, identifying barriers that keep the team from reaching its goal, developing a plan and putting it in action, and evaluating the team and team procedures (-cite here-).

The reason the first problem-solving/quality circle "holiday rush" group I had worked with failed read like a textbook case of the disadvantages of group work. The manager, who led the group, was feared by many in the team as being quick to fire. As a result, participation in the group included saying what the manager wanted to hear, not necessarily what was the best or most feasible idea for the team. Even if an alternative suggestion to how to handle the holiday rush was offered (and, as I recall, maybe only one was), it was quickly squashed by the others who cared more about keeping their position rather than ensure customer satisfaction. Upon analyzing whether one individual dominated the discussion, that, indeed was the case in this group. As (cite author's name here____) says, "When all is said and done (that individual) insists that his or her position on the issue is the best one." That was, regrettably, the case in my first "holiday rush" group; the manager, who had assembled the team with the idea of brainstorming solutions, still insisted that the way things had been done in prior years was the most effective. Needless to say, the results were the same as in prior years, and productivity, nor revenue, increased as far as I could discern. Fortunately, by Memorial Day, that manager was no longer in charge of the franchise where I worked.