People, Groups and Their Leaders

WHY DO PEOPLE JOIN GROUPS?

The are  2 type of groups:

Formal Groups: One that is usually governed by the formal structure of the organization. e.g basketball teams, student government

Informal Groups: One that is formed around common interests, habits, and personality traits.

People join groups to fulfill needs that can't be fulfilled when acting alone.

• Affiliation

• Attraction

• Activities

• Assistance

• Proximity

WHAT MAKES A GROUP

A group is defined as two or more people who ;

• Interact

• Share common goals

• Have unspoken or formal rules or norms

• Maintain stable role relationships

• Form subgroups.

FORMAL GROUPS AND THEIR DEVELOPMENT

The development of a formal group goes through a group process, a way group members deal with each other while working on a task.

1.  Forming    In this initial stage, members take a look at their task, adjust themselves in terms of what behaviors are expected of them, and begin
                      accepting each other

2. Redefining  Group members examine the task as a group problem

3. Coordinating The groups begins to collect information and translating it into group objectives.  This stage takes the longest.

4. Formalizing  This is the point where the group works smoothly in its roles and can accomplish its objectives

STATUS AND CONFORMITY IN GROUPS

Status is the rank an individual holds within a group

Six sources of status:

1. Interpersonal status

2. Personal charm

3. Educational Level

4. Physical appearance

5. Persuasive ability

6. Formal position

Conformity is a willingness to behave in a way that meets a specific standard, in coordination with a group

A problem with too much conformity is that:  It can kill creativity and discourages people from saying what is really on their minds.

INFORMAL GROUPS

Leaders of informal groups are appointed 2 ways:

1. By appointing themselves

2. The group chooses the leader by consensus

The 4 basic qualities that informal groups have in common:

• They fulfill the needs of members

• They are usually necessary to an organization

• They are always changing

• They are not affected by formal boundaries

BARRIERS TO GROUP EFFECTIVENESS

Groupthink: a problematic type of thinking that results from a group members who are overly willing to agree with one another because of time pressure, stress, and low collective self-esteem.

There are a number of reasons for ineffective groups- groupthink, conflict, lack of creativity, one-member domination, and resistance to change,

To improve  group effectiveness:

• Change ineffective norms

• Identifying Problems

• Improving the composition of the group

Some groups are also effecting by members with hidden agendas

Hidden agenda - are secret wishes, hopes, desires, and assumptions, hidden from the group. People often try to accomplish hidden agendas while pretending to care about the group goals.

LEADERSHIP: WHAT IT IS AND WHAT IT REQUIRES

Leadership: Is the ability to influence others to work toward the goals of an organization

Without effective leadership, groups function poorly or not at all

LEADERSHIP STYLES

1. Autocratic leaders  are leaders who make all the decisions and use authority an material rewards to motivate

2. Consultative leaders tend to delegate authority and confer with others in making decisions

3. Participative leaders encourage the group to work together toward shared goals

4. Free-Rein leaders set performance standards, then allow followers to work creatively to meet standards

Leaders and the Use of Power and Authority

Power is the ability of one person to influence another.

Authority is the vested power to influence or command within an organization

Sources of Power

• Legitimate Power is the effective only when followers beleiev in the structure that produces this power

• Reward Power comes from the user's ability to control or influence others with something of value to them

• Coercive Power depends on the threat of possible punishments

• Networking Power is attained by gaining contracts and knowing the right people

• Expert Power comes from a person's knowledge or skill in areas that are critical to the success of the firm

• Charismatic Power is based on the attractiveness a person has to others.

1. Strong emotions in other members

2. Contradictions between verbal and nonverbal signals

3. Themes that keep coming up, perhaps disguised, even after the formal topic has been changed

4. Agenda conflicts that involve a group member's self esteem

1. Strengthen your legitimate power

2. Strengthen your reward power

3. Strengthen your coercive power

4. Strengthen your networking power

5. Strengthen your expert power

6. Strengthen your charismatic power

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