Using SDWT for MBA Man Com

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Using SDWT for MBA Man Com

• Or, How Self Directed Work Teams Make the Leap
  from Industry to University

Aline Wolff Stern School of Business New York
University
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• Teamwork is the fuel that allows common people to
  attain uncommon results.
• Wearing the same shirts doesnt make you a team.
• The goal is not to have a team, but to increase
  productivity and employee satisfaction.
• Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence
  wins championships.

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• Teamwork is the quintessential contradiction of a
  society grounded in individual achievement.
• Self-Directed Work Teams rely on impact factors
• Self - interest
• Belief in the teams vision
• Support and cooperation
• Shared goals
• New member integration
• Authenticity and recognition
• Quotes from Grant M. Bright

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What about organizations today?

• We used to think that we knew how to run
  organizations. Now we know better. They need to
  be global and localsmall but bigcentralized and
  decentralized. They expect workers to be
  autonomous and more of a team, managers to be
  more delegating and more controlling.
• CB Handy, The Age of Paradox

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What we know about teams in industry

• Fortune 1000 Companies
• 87 use teams for functional purposes quality
• 98 use project teams (cross-functional, short
  and long term)
• 47 use permanent work teams as their
  organizational structure
• Source Lawler and Cohen, 1992!

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What is a self-directed work team, anyway?

• A small number of people (5-9, optimally)
• Complementary skills (diversity a plus)
• Common purpose (starts with a mission)
• Performance goals (establish, track, meet,
  evaluate)
• Common approach (agreement about work style,
  rules)
• Mutual accountability (not the boss but
  ourselves)
• Source Katzenbach and Smith

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Applying SDWT to the MC curriculum

• Team rights and responsibilities
• Assignments for MC goals
• Point values for team and individual assignments
• Similarities to workplace teams multi- tasking,
  diversity, electronic communication
• Results?

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Defining teams rights and responsibilities

• Rights
• Self-defined missions
• Ability to fire free-loaders
• Self-determined meetings time, place, duration,
  mode
• Responsibilities
• Team executive summaries
• 30 of grade teamwork
• Rotating leadership
• Ongoing communication team-mates, class,
  instructor

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MC goals for class teams

• Active listening
• Non-verbal communication
• Communication climate
• Meeting management
• Agenda
• Pre-meeting documents
• Written meeting records
• Follow up, minutes, preparation loop
• Brainstorming techniques
• Electronic meetings and tools

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How the class works

• Course outline include teams
• Team and individual assignments
• Team points
• Individual points

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Technology to help teams
6. Heres the final version -- with a clear
readability score
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Faculty teamwork walking the talk

• Pre-semester meetings
• Consensus, cooperation, commitment
• Bi-weekly meetings during the semester
• Focusing, improving, comparing notes
• Constant e-mail dialogue
• Bulletin boards and broadcast messages
• Idea, assignment and resource sharing

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Results the students speak

• My overall experience with my team has been very
  positive. We have not only helped each other
  become better communicators, but have also become
  friends outside of class.
• I definitely gained the most in this class though
  the interactions and work with my team members.
  You have to rely on your teammates.
• As a team member, I learned to trust other
  members. Without this mutual trust, group work
  would be impossible.

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• I learned how to contribute to my team according
  to my strengths while allowing others to
  contribute with their strengths.
• In this group, my personal goal was to let the
  group organize as a team and not always jump in
  and take charge -- it really made a difference in
  the team experience.
• It is natural for me to be the leader of whatever
  group I am in. But I wanted my teammates to
  assert themselves so we could get their ideas.
• We taught each other and offered insight for
  improvement.