Importance of Workplace Diversity in an Organization

Importance of Workplace Diversity in an Organization

University of Phoenix

Organizational Behavior and Group Dynamics

MGT 307

March 15, 2010

Difference between a Group and a Team

Work teams are becoming very popular to almost all different types of organizations. As Organizations restructure to compete efficiently, they are relying more on teams as a better way to use employee talents. Work teams are more responsive and perceptive to current events than other forms of groupings. A work team interacts and coordinates work activities through the cooperation of its member's individual inputs. In contrast, a work group exists primarily to share information and make decisions within their area of responsibility. A work group has minimal coordination with each other. In addition, work groups are not formally structured, and some exist in reaction to the need for social contact. For example, the friend one meet for lunch may not be a part of a team because he or she has no organizational purpose. Unlike work groups, a team holds each member accountable and strives for collective performance with complementary skills. Work groups are all about each member's individual contributions instead of cooperative integration; and thus their combined effect often is lesser than the sum of their individual effects. All teams are groups but not all groups are teams. People join work groups to complete a job task and archive a specific objective; whereas work teams can negotiate deals, coordinate projects, and offer advice.

Workplace Diversity and how it relates to Team Dynamics

An organizations success depends on the effectiveness and performance of its various teams. The model of team effectiveness considers context, composition, work design, and process. In term of context the factors related to team performance are: adequate resources, leadership and structure, climate of trust, performance evaluation, and reward systems. The effectiveness of the team depends on the adequate resources receive from the organization like proper equipment and administrative assistance, to name a few. Leadership is another important factor because managers need to delegate responsibilities so that teams work together instead than against one another. Members of effective teams exhibit trust in both their leaders and others. For example, team members are more likely to take risks when they believe they can trust others on their team. Finally management should consider group-based appraisals, profit sharing and incentives when rewarding employees for their team performance. The team composition category addresses