Teams in Modern Organizations

What?

One of our assignments in "Elements of Team Leadership", was the Maroon-Orange Game. For this assignment Dr. Kaufman selected a leader for each project team in the class. We were only allowed to communicate with our team on scholar in the group forum section. Each team was paired with another team to conduct trades of either a maroon or orange card for each round. There were four rounds; the first three rounds only allowed communication within our team. For the final round, the team leaders were allowed to discuss the trade. Depending on which card was given and received, each team either gained or lost a certain amount of points.

So what?

As the leader of my team, it was my job to begin discussions on the group forum. According to Driskell, Radtke, and Salas, a virtual team is one whose member interactions are mediated by time, distance, and technology. With online communication the only type being allowed, we were considered a virtual team. Just as with any virtual team, there were advantages and disadvantages to the use of the internet for communication.

On one hand, using the group forum for discussion allows for anyone to have input any time they have a free moment. Not having to set up meeting times that work for everyone's busy schedule can help relieve stress on the group and make communication easier. On the other hand, the biggest disadvantage is that it can hurt the team when some members do not or cannot give their input. With a system like the group forums on scholar, internet access is required and motivation to post. In my project team, hours would sometimes pass before a post was answered leaving nothing to do but wait between posts. One member was unable to comment in any round, which made it impossible to have full cooperation.

Now what?

In future projects with virtual teams, we need to find solutions to make the group more efficient. If my team was able to communicate in other ways than through scholar, we could have accomplished our tasks faster and with full cooperation. If we could have talked to team

members through phone conversations, email, facebook, or texting, we would not have had to waste time waiting for responses. We also would have been able to find out that our one teammate could not get on scholar and could have found other ways for him to give his input.

When Levi discusses virtual teams, he talks about how virtuality is a matter of degree. Such teams do not have to be completely virtual. Looking forward, it is best to use virtual aids as a helpful tool rather than the only form of communication. Teams should not be limited to one form of communication. They must be able to work together the best way to accomplish tasks.

Issues Teams Face

What?

During the summer and on breaks from school I work at a gym, ACAC. Specifically, I work in the Kidz Zone, taking care of children while their parents workout. The Kidz Zone employees many people of different ages and backgrounds, so teamwork is a key factor in avoiding conflict. At work, I take care of many children, ages 0-12. There are two sections of the Kidz Zone, one for ages 5 and up and the other for ages 4 and younger. On the "little kid" side, there are play tubes, a kitchen, and many toys for the kids to play with. On the "big kid" side, there is a gym with basketball nets, a video game room, and a TV room with games and puzzles for the kids. On both sides I supervise, play with, and care for kids.

So What?

According to Levi, conflicts in teams can have either negative or positive effects depending on the task. Effects of conflicts about routine tasks tend to be negative, while non-routine tasks tend to be positive. At the Kidz Zone, one routine task is that we are supposed to keep the children on their respective side according to age. Conflicts arise when some employees don't enforce this rule. Some employees let certain children roam back and forth between the two sides. This doesn't become an issue until a particular employee disagrees with the breaking of the rule. When this happens, a conflict between the two employees must be resolved.
A non-routine task that occasionally occurs is when a child comes in with a disability. For example, there has been a child with Autism who has come in to the Kidz Zone. Not all of the employees know the best way to care for him while he is there, especially when he gets upset. The first time he came in crying it was hard to find a way to soothe him. One employee suggested blowing bubbles, another suggested giving him a snack, and another suggested giving him a toy. In the end, we found that giving him a red toy car would make him happy. Without our conflicting ideas, we might not have found a solution to the problem.

Now What?

For resolving the conflict over the routine task, we can use Dewey's Rational Problem-Solving Approach. First, we must recognize that the problem exists and define it properly. From there, we could generate solutions that we think would help and then select the best solution. If it works, the problem is solved. If not, we must try again until the problem is solved. For example, one solution could be letting a younger child who is upset go to the older side to see a sibling, in order to keep them from crying. The employee who wanted to stop the roaming will compromise because of the need of the child. The employee who allowed the roaming will compromise by only allowing the child to roam under certain circumstances.

With the non-routine conflict we followed Dewey's approach and found a solution quickly. In Levi's discussion of decision making, he concluded that it is important to have a variety of different resources when solving a problem. By coming up with different ideas for solutions, we were able to find one that worked.