/ MOR 570– Leading Effective Teams
Section 16721R
JKP 102, Wednesdays6:00 – 10:00 pm
Summer 2013

Terance J. Wolfe, Ph.D.

Email:

Office:Bridge 307-F

Phone:213.740.0765

FAX:213.740.3582

Office Hours:by appt

Course Overview

GOAL:

The goal of this course is to enhance participant understanding of the nature and the processes of effective groups, and what it takes to build and lead them as high performance teams.

Teams are an endemic aspect of culture and society. Whether playing sports, singing choir, playing in the orchestra, performing ballet, or parenting, one is engaged in team-based activities.

Organizations increasingly rely upon teams as a primary work unit. Whether you are in supply chain management, customer relationship management, marketing and sales, new product development, manufacturing engineering, project management, information systems, cross-functional task forces, or consulting, you will inevitably be solicited to contribute to team-based organizational initiatives.

Despite their ubiquity and our collective competence in building and leading sports and performance teams, there is often little understanding of what it takes to build a cohesive and effective work team. Members are assigned, objectives are given, resources (if you’re lucky) are allocated, but beyond that there is scant guidance or direction provided as to how to actually pull a specific set of individuals together to function as an integrated and high performing work team. That unmet need is what this course is all about.

There are useful theories, frameworks and concepts based upon decades of social science research that inform our understanding of high performance teams. These will be used as the backdrop for our activities. This course will be guided by theory, but it will focus on practice.

This course is very applied in nature. It is based on the premise that there are a set of finite, specific, learnable skills essential to effective work team performance. The focus of this class is the identification and development of those skills. As such, the majority of class time will be engaged in experiential skill-building activities.

Organizations are always in pursuit of competitive advantage – at least they should be! High performance teams, as an aspect of organizational culture, can provide an organization with a unique and extremely difficult to imitate source of competitive advantage.

1

Su 2013 – Syllabus 570-16721

OBJECTIVES:

The objectives of this course will focus on the requisite knowledge and skills to build and lead high performing teams. At the conclusion of this course, participants should:

  1. Know and understand critical underlying theories and concepts that guide the formation, development and leadership of high performance work teams.
  2. Know and understand eight essential skills necessary for superior work team performance.
  3. Demonstrate practice mastery of the eight essential high performance work team skills.

Instructional Philosophy

The key to acquiring knowledge is involvement. As a graduate student, you are expected to participate actively, responsibly, and competently. Involvement will be in the form of discussion, questioning, active engagement and experimentation, analysis, reports, and problem-solving. I have high expectations for your participation. You must take the initiative to prepare adequately for each session through reading, exploring, and analyzing assigned material.

Each student can achieve the course objectives through the following process:

  1. Competent preparation -- demonstrated by active participation in assigned activities, including case and activity preparation, analysis, and discussion.
  2. Integration of subject matter -- demonstrated through in-class behavior, and oral and written reports.
  3. Professional approach -- demonstrated by reflecting a mature, responsible, and managerial perspective to the analysis and understanding of organizations and the concepts under review. This may be evidenced by respect for the thoughts and contributions of your classmates as well as the instructor.
  4. Punctuality -- demonstrated by timely arrival for each class session, as well as timely delivery of course assignments.

Course Values

Several values will be useful for orienting yourself to this course. These include the following:

  1. Attitude of experimentation
  2. Orientation towards risk
  3. Transcending boundaries and self-imposed limits

Course Format

The course will employ a variety of pedagogical approaches including lecture, discussion, in-class and ELC exercises, case analyses, videos, and team presentations.

Required Texts

Lencioni, Patrick (2002) The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Arbinger Institute (2002) Leadership and Self-Deception, San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler.

Course Reader. A set of Harvard materials (articles and cases) available through USC Bookstore.

1

Su 2013 – Syllabus 570-16721

Requirements & Grading

Each participant must satisfactorily complete and pass each of the following requirements:

  1. Advanced preparation of class assignments
  2. Class participation15%
  3. Self-assessment (due July 24)20%
  4. Compare and Contrast (due July 3)15%

Subtotal Individual Evaluations 50%

  1. Team case analysis: Overhead Reduction Task Force10%

(due July 10)

  1. Group Project (due August 7)

Professor Evaluation 20%

Peer Evaluation10%

Class Ranking10%

Subtotal Group Evaluations 50%

TOTAL100%

Your score is a function of your relative performance on each of these requirements.

EVALUATIONS

Assessments of student performance fall into two broad classes of evaluation: individual contributions, and group analyses and presentations.

A.Individual Contributions (50%)

Each student has direct and complete control over fifty (50) percent of her/his final grade. There are three basic components of this grade: class participation (15%), self-description assessment (20%), and a compare and contrast (15%). You must receive a passing grade on each of these for overall individual success.

Class Participation (15%):

The primary instructional vehicle is discussion and engagement in classroom and ELC exercises and cases. The majority of class time will be devoted to these activities. Class participation is essential to course success. It is imperative, therefore, that students thoroughly prepare in advance of each class.

Self-Assessment and Goal Statement – due electronically prior to first class session,

May 27 and hard copy May 29, start of class

Complete a two-paragraph (<1-page double-spaced) goal statement that includes a brief statement of your strengths and weaknesses as a team member (~1 paragraph), and a declaration of a personal goal – what you want to get out of the course (~1 paragraph).

Learning Experiments and Personal Self-Assessment (20%) – due July 24

Personal Self-Assessment. Successful C-level executives consistently indicate that the single most important activity contributing to their overall effectiveness is the development of self-insight, and the translation of that into their management and leadership practice. This assignment represents an opportunity for you to do just that!

You will receive a cross-section of personal individualized feedback through a variety of self-assessment instruments. These include the Learning Style Inventory (LSI), Decision Style Inventory (DSI), Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Management Inventory (TKI), and the FIRO-B. Each of these instruments is deemed useful in better understanding yourself broadly, but as a team member, specifically. Together, they present you with invaluable tools for personal reflection, building self-awareness and understanding, and advancing your personal development.

Learning Experiments.Each participant will design and conduct at least three (3) personal learning experiments intended to improve or enhance your performance as an effective team member. A learning experiment is derived from reflection upon an “as is” condition, where an “as is” condition is linked to “concrete experience” (to be defined and illustrated in class). A learning experiment is based upon an “if – then” hypothesis about behavior and its consequences that is derived from an “as is” condition. It might take the following form: “If I try new behavior X, then outcome Y will happen”. Your experiment will be a test of the validity of the hypothesis. The setting for a learning experiment is any situation or activity that presents you with a meaningful opportunity to engage as an effective team member.

For each experiment, specify the following:

  • The purpose or objective of the experiment
  • Your hypothesis: “If…, then…”
  • The action or behavior undertaken
  • The relevance or personal meaning of the experiment
  • An assessment of your effectiveness in executing the experiment
  • A statement of the outcome of the experiment
  • A statement as to how, if at all, your first learning experiment informed the design and execution of your second learning experiment
  • A statement as to how, if at all, your second learning experiment informed the design and execution of your third learning experiment

The Deliverable: An integrated assessment of self as effective team member with a developmental action plan. If you attend the optional Ropes Course, feel free to draw upon that experience in relation to any aspect of this deliverable – learning experiments, personal style, developmental action plan. Briefly address each of the following:

PART A – Self-Assessment Instrument Feedback and Impact/Influence of Demographics and Experience

  • Review and reflect upon various life, educational, career experiences. How do these, combined with your demographic profile, shape and influence your personal style, as well as your approach to teams.
  • Review and reflect upon your self-assessment feedback.
  • What patterns, relationships, connections do you see?
  • How would you characterize yourself as a team member given this feedback? In what types of teams would you see yourself as more effective? Less effective?
  • What do you now see as the strengths of your style? Its shortcomings?
  • How might your style interfere with your ability to achieve the outcomes you desire?

PART B – Learning Experiments

  • Restate (modifying as appropriate) the learning goals you submitted at the second class session.
  • Briefly describe each of your three team effectiveness learning experiments in terms of its goal, hypothesis, design, implementation, and outcome. Include a statement of your perception of each experiment’s effectiveness.
  • What did you learn?
  • How, if at all, have your experiments affected your performance/ability as an effective team member?

PART C – Personal Development Plan

  • Rate your personal effectiveness as an effective, contributing team member.
  • Given your self-identified strengths and shortcomings as a team member, what new learning goal(s) can you formulate for yourself?
  • Construct a specific, behaviorally-oriented personal action plan to address your identified areas for development.

Be sure to also apply relevant course concepts presented through texts or in-class lecture and discussion to understand your style and behavior. This paper should be about8 pages, double-spaced, Times Roman 12 font. It is due at start of class, July 24.

Compare/Contrast (15%)

Compare/contrast (15%). Each participant will submit a 3-5 page, double-spaced, 12-point font paper that compares and contrasts the consensus and devil’s advocate approaches to team decision-making as you experienced them in the “Growing Pains” and “The Case of the Unhealthy Hospital” case studies. What specific insights do you get about (1) yourself, (2) team and interpersonal dynamics, and (3) team decision-making as a result of this exercise? Ground your assessment in specific behavioral illustrations that occurred in each approach (may be useful to review video recording of team decision process for each situation. What could you personally do to effect different – and more satisfying – outcomes in the future? Be sure to reference appropriate readings and lectures, as appropriate. DueJuly 3.

B.Group Analyses and Presentations(50%)

Fifty (50) percent of each individual’s grade is a function of her/his ability to work with others and make contributions toward collective performance through analyses and presentations. An essential attribute of organizational success, and a quality often stressed by recruiters, is the ability to work effectively with others. This course allows you to develop your skills in contributing to task groups and collective performance. It does this through a written case assessment, and a group project and oral presentation.

Participants will form themselves into groups of 5-6 students each (Everest criterion).

Overhead Reduction Task Force Case (10%) – due July 10

Each team, as a team, will develop an assessment and brief write-up (~5 pages, double-spaced) of the Overhead Reduction Task Force Case. In your team preparation, imagine that you are Dixon, and then imagine you are Williams, respectively. Given what you are learning about team dynamics, how would you handle their respective situations?

Your assessment should address the following questions:

  • If you were Williams, what would you seek to accomplish in your noon meeting with Dixon?
  • If you were Dixon, how would you prepare for the first task force meeting? What would be your objectives (what would you hope to accomplish)?
  • Given ORTF’s composition and purpose, what should Williams expect at the first meeting of the task force?
  • How should Willaims prepare for that meeting, and how, specifically, should the first meeting be conducted?
  • What, if any, discussion format should be implemented?
  • Justify your answers using appropriate course concepts

Team Term Project – Team Analysis and Consultation (40%) – due Aug 7

The purposes of the group project are to enable each student, through individual effort and group interaction, to observe, analyze, understand and feed-back an assessment of a real team’s problem-solving and decision-making process. Group projects will be jointly evaluated by the professor (50% of the project, 20% of the total grade),team members (25% of the project, 10% of the total grade), and the rest of the class (25% of the project, 10% of the total grade).

Requirements: See Handout: “Teams_Getting Acquainted”.

Team Project Topic. Each team will identify and define a meaningful team term project topic (due June 19). The final term project should entail the specification of a suitable deliverable. This includes a description of the organization, situation, problem/issue to be addressed, the approach, the solution/outcome and, most importantly, a reflective account of your team’s approach to include its own structure, roles, process, conflict and decision-dynamics.

The paper and presentation should address relevant team concepts and processes; in particular, as they apply to your own team’s process and dynamics as it set out to achieve the outcomes of your term project. It should also address specific individual and team learnings about the formation, development and leadership of effective teams. The final paper should be about 20 pages (due Aug 7). Allow forty-five (45) minutes for final team presentation and Q&A (Aug 7).

Sample topics from previous classes:

  • Analysis of Naia Kete and the Christopher Brothers: Making a Name on 3rd Street Promenade
  • lululemon athletica : Observation, Analysis and Team Performance Feedback
  • Heal the Bay Beach Clean-up: Team Formation, Development, and Project Implementation
  • Riordan Volunteer Leadership Development Program: Identifying, Defining and Reaching Out to New Target Markets
  • Functional or Dysfunctional? Observation and Analysis of an Executive Leadership Team

Written and Oral Report (20%). Each group will prepare a 20-30 page written report (typed, double-spaced, edited, spell-checked, paginated), and present it to the class as a whole. Each group will have 45 minutes to present. Groups should plan for approximately thirty-five(35) minute presentations, and ten (10) minutes of questions and discussion. Written projects are due from all groups at the start of class on Wednesday, August 7. Late submissions will be penalized (one full letter grade).

Class Rankings (10%). Each team presentation will be ranked by the rest of the class from most effective to least effective. The team ranked most effective will receive an A+; the team ranked least effective will receive a B-. The remaining teams will be distributed in between.

Peer Evaluations (10%). As one might expect, group assignments pose evaluation problems as to the contributions of individual members -- a problem well acknowledged in the literature on organizational economics. Specifically, this poses a problem of ``opportunism’’ or ``shirking’’ in team production. To control for such opportunism, each team member’s performance will be evaluated by every other member; that is, by those who are most likely to know, and therefore most capable of evaluating, individual contributions to group effort. Ten (10) percent of your total grade, and twenty-five (25) percent of your group grade, will be assessed through peer evaluation.

It is important to be aware that the distribution of ``A’s’’ within a group is constrained; this includes A+, A, and A-. You cannot assign A’s (of any form) to more than 60% of your total group members. Please review the peer evaluation form in advance so that you understand the criteria and the conditions of peer evaluations (see Attached).

A 4-person group cannot have more than two A’s, 5 person = 3 A’s,

6 person = 4 A’s, 7 person = 4 A’s.

Failure to observe this requirement will result in all team members receiving a “B”

for their peer evaluations.

BEGINNING THE COURSE

In preparation for our first class session, please do the following:

  • Think about your expectations and goals for this course, and submit your one-page assessment
  • Read Lencioni – ALL. The Five Dysfunctions of a Team (a very interesting, yet very easy, read)
  • Read Senge, The Fifth Discipline, Chapter 12, Team Learning, pps 233-269 (Course Reader)

1

Su 2013 – Syllabus 570-16721

Journals and Resource Materials

ACADEMIC / POPULAR PRESS
Academy of Management Journal
Academy of Management Review
Administrative Science Quarterly
American Sociological Review
Business Horizons
California Management Review
Harvard Business Review
Human Relations
Journal of Applied Behavioral Science
Journal of Management Inquiry
Journal of Organizational Change Management
Management Science
Organizational Dynamics
Organization Science
Organization Studies
Sloan Management Review / Barons
Business 2.0
Business Week
Fast Company
Forbes
Fortune
Inc.
The Futurist
Wall Street Journal

1

Su 2013 – Syllabus 570-16721

Academic Integrity Policy

The Marshall School is committed to upholding the University’s Academic Integrity code as detailed in the SCampus Guide. It is the policy of the Marshall School to report all violations of the code. Any serious violation or pattern of violations of the Academic Integrity Code will result in the student’s expulsion from the degree program.