MODULE Two : LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT

This module is made up of three units as:

Unit 1: Leadership traits
Unit 2: Management styles
Unit 3: Teamworking

Unit 1: Leadership traits

1.0 Introduction
2.0 Objectives
3.0 Main Content
3.1 Concept and meaning of leadership
3.2 Qualities of a leader
3.3 Types of leaders
3.4 Leadership traits
4. Conclusion
5. Summary
6. Sample questions
7. References

Concept and Meaning of Leadership

Numerous writers have defined leadership in different dimensions. Among which include:

―Leadership is a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a

common goal‖. Northouse (2004, p 3)

―Leadership is the ability to not only understand and utilize your innate talents, but to also
effectively leverage the natural strengths of your team to accomplish the mission. There is no
one-size fits all approach, answer key or formula to leadership. Leadership should be the humble,
authentic expression of your unique personality in pursuit of bettering whatever environment you
are in‖ – Katie Christy, founder, Activate Your Talent

―Leadership is about having a selfless heart and always being willing to reach out and lend a
helping hand‖ – Bob Reina, CEO and founder, Talk Fusion

―Leadership is about playing to strengths and addressing weaknesses in the most productive
and efficient way possible. It's about knowing your team and yourself, and doing your best job to
set both up for success‖– Sammy Cohen, co-founder, Neon Bandits
―Leadership is the ability to see a problem and be the solution. So many people are willing to
talk about problems or can even empathize, but not many can see the problem or challenge and
rise to it. It takes a leader to truly see a problem as a challenge and want to drive toward it. That

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is what causes people to want to follow, and a true leader has a following‖ – Andrea Walker-
Leidy, owner, Walker Publicity Consulting

―Leadership is having the humility to put your employees first so that the company can grow.
Leaders should invest time [in] employees and make sure that they feel comfortable in the
workplace. This increases the functionality and efficiency of the company‖ – Matthew Adams,
director of communications, Tru-Colour Bandages

―A leader is someone [who] leads by example and has the integrity to do the right thing even
when it is not popular. A good leader has positive influence over others, inspiring them to
become a better person and example for others to model their life against, as well‖ – Mark Little,
founder and president, Diversified Funding

―Leadership is serving the people that work for you by giving them the tools they need to
succeed. Your workers should be looking forward to the customer and not backwards, over their
shoulders, at you. It also means genuine praise for what goes well and leading by taking
responsibility early and immediately if things go bad‖ – Jordan French, president, BNB Shield

―Leadership is the ability to unapologetically express and see out your business vision.
Leadership is using your intuition to guide you, and inspiring your team to come along for the
ride. Leadership is listening to that ‗inner voice‘, even when it is risky, scary, and challenging
the status quo‖ – Makenzie Marzluff, founder, Delighted By

―Leadership is the ability to help people achieve things they don't think are possible. Leaders
are coaches with a passion for developing people, not players; they get satisfaction from
achieving objectives through others. Leaders inspire people through a shared vision and create an
environment where people feel valued and fulfilled‖ – Randy Stocklin, co-founder and CEO

―Leadership is having a vision, sharing that vision and inspiring others to support your vision
while creating their own‖ – Mindy Gibbins-Klein, founder, REAL Thought Leaders

―Leadership is the ability to guide others without force into a direction or decision that leaves
them still feeling empowered and accomplished‖ – Lisa Cash Hanson, CEO, Snuggwugg

―Effective leadership is providing the vision and motivation to a team so they work together
toward the same goal, and then understanding the talents and temperaments of each individual
and effectively motivating each person to contribute individually their best toward achieving the
group goal‖ – Stan Kimer, president, Total Engagement Consulting by Kimer

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―Leadership is the art of serving others by equipping them with training, tools and people as
well as your time, energy and emotional intelligence so that they can realize their full potential,
both personally and professionally‖ – Daphne Mallory

―Leadership is being bold enough to have vision and humble enough to recognize achieving it
will take the efforts of many people — people who are most fulfilled when they share their gifts
and talents, rather than just work. Leaders create that culture, serve that greater good and let
others soar‖. – Kathy Heasley, founder and president, Heasley & Partners

―My perspective of a leader is an individual who knows the ins and outs about the business so
they can empathize with followers. In addition to being a positive influence on the people they
are leading, leadership is about setting the tone, motivating, inspiring, thinking big, and never
[giving] up when others feel like quitting‖ – Alexis Davis, founder and designer, Hoo-Kong by
Alexis Davis

―A true leader is secure in creating a framework that encourages others to tap into their own
skills and ideas and freely contribute to the whole of the project or company.‖ – Judy Crockett,
owner, Interactive Marketing & Communication

―In my experience, leadership is about three things: To listen, to inspire and to empower. Over
the years, I've tried to learn to do a much better job listening actively, making sure I really
understand the other person‘s point of view, learning from them, and using that basis of trust and
collaboration to inspire and empower. It‘s about setting the bar high, and then giving them the
time and resources to do great work.‖ – Larry Garfield, president, Garfield Group

―Leadership is knowing when to be in front to lead and guide a team during the journey, and
when to step back and let others take the lead. Much like an athlete who knows exactly what
position to move to on the field at any given time, a true business leader understands the delicate
balance of how to help others become leaders, fuel career ambitions, then give them the chance
to shine.‖ – Dan Schoenbaum, CEO, Redbooth

Too many people view management as leadership. It's not. Leadership comes from influence,
and influence can come from anyone at any level and in any role. Being open and authentic,
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helping to lift others up and working toward a common mission, build influence. True leadership
comes when those around you are influenced by your life in a positive way‖ – Kurt Uhlir, CEO
and co-founder, Sideqik

―Leadership is when someone is willing to stand up front to be either the target or the hero to
take responsibility for the success or failure of a given goal. Not everyone has the guts to be a
leader and [take] personal risks that they may encounter.‖ – Darlene Tenes, founder and designer,
CasaQ

―Leadership is stepping out of your comfort zone and taking risk to create reward‖ – Katie
Easley, founder, Kate Ryan Design
―A leader is someone who has the clarity to know the right things to do, the confidence to know
when she's wrong and the courage to do the right things even when they're hard‖ – Darcy
Eikenberg, founder, RedCapeRevolution.com

―Leadership is the behavior that brings the future to the present, by envisioning the possible and
persuading others to help you make it a reality.‖ – Matt Barney, founder and CEO, LeaderAmp

―Leadership is caring more about the cause and the people in your company than about your
own personal pain and success. It is about having a greater vision of where your company is
trying to go while leaving the path open for others to grow into leaders.‖ – Jarie Bolander, COO
and co-founder, Lab Sensor Solutions

―A leader is a person who takes you where you will not go alone.‖ – Susan Ascher, CEO,
founder and president, SusanAscher.com

―Leadership means using one's influence to help guide others in successfully achieving a goal
without desire for recognition, without worry of what others think and with awareness of issues,
internal or external, that might change the results sought." – Marie Hansen, dean of the college of
business, Husson University

―Leadership is not about finding ways to lead better or to motivate your team. It's about being
there from the beginning as equals and becoming a mentor when they need you to be one." –
Michael Womack, co-founder, hovelstay.com

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"Leadership styles differ, but at the core, good leaders make the people they are leading
accomplish more than they otherwise would. The most effective leaders do this not through fear,
intimidation or title, but rather by building consensus around a common goal." – Tom Madine,
CEO and president, Worldwide Express

"Leadership is inspiring others to pursue your vision within the parameters you set, to the extent
that it becomes a shared effort, a shared vision and a shared success." – Steve Zeitchik, CEO of
Focal Point Strategies

"For me, leadership is an act — a decision to take a stand, or step, in order to encourage, inspire
or motivate others to move with you. What's more, the most effective leaders do not rely on their
title, or positional power, to lead. Rather, their ability to use their own personal power combined
with their use of strategic influence are what make them effective." – Kendra Coleman,
consultant, Sheppard Moscow

"Leadership is the ability to take an average team of individuals and transform them into
superstars. The best leader is the one who inspires his workers to achieve greatness each and
every day." – Jonas Falk, CEO, OrganicLife

"Leadership is influencing others by your character, humility and example. It is recognizable

when others follow in word and deed without obligation or coercion." – Sonny Newman,
president, EE Technologies

"Leadership is the collective action of everyone you influence. Your behavior — your actions
and your words — determines how you influence. Our job as leaders is to energize whatever
marshals action within others." – David Casullo, president, Bates Communications

Qualities of leaders

Contemporary studies have shown that there is a consistent set of traits, characteristics and
qualities of good leadership that people look for in their leaders. 75,000 people, on six continents
over a period of 15 years were asked to identify the characteristics and qualities of good
leadership ( Kouzes & Posner, 2002, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass). These were the results:

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  Honesty: The number one quality identified by this researcher is honesty. The
respondents explain that a good leader must be honest to the oath of office that saw him
to power and also to his numbers of followers. They added that a good leader must be
morally upright, unpretentious, reasonable in situations and impartial.

 Forward Oriented: A good leader must be forward oriented. He must always see the
goal to be achieved and the challenges ahead. He must have the ―Can Do‖ behaviour
within him. This quality is very close in comparison with the Conceptual skill of
leadership. This means seeing things before others and the ability to predict or forecast
what tomorrow will bring.

 Competence: A good leader must be competent technically, human relation wisely. He

must not be a specialist in a field but a generalist. He must be able to lead others to the
very rightful part. He must have the ability to propel others to achieve results.

 Inspiring: A good leader must be able to inspire his followers to attain goal and
objectives. He must be able to stimulate others to do things and make things happen.

 Intelligent: A good and effective leader must be intelligent. He must be sensible and
rational. He must be a first class decision maker; he must be able to correct anomalies
within his team.

 Fair Minded: He must be able to keep a par between rigidity and flexibility. That is, he
must not be too hard in his policies and decision and not be too easily discourage to
change his painstakingly predetermined made decisions.

 Broad -Minded: A leader must be vast in thought and deed. He must be wide and expose
to both challenges and opportunities ahead.
 Self -control: Another very important quality of a good leader is self control or self-
discipline. He must train himself to have a comfortable and proper behaviour which will
carry others along and sustain the module operandi of the organization.

Type of Leaders
The following have been identified as notable six types of leaders. These include:

 Charismatic leader: This is a leader who gains influence mainly from strength of
personality. The difficulty with charismatic leadership is that few people possessed the
exceptional qualities required to transform all around them into willing followers.
Another issue is that personal qualities or traits of leadership cannot be acquired by
training; they can only be modified by it.

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 Traditional leader: This is a leader whose position is assured by birth e.g. kings, queens
and tribal chieftains. This is another category to which few people can aspire. Except in
the small family business, there are few opportunities for traditional leadership at work.

 Situational leader: This is a leader whose influence can only be effective by being in the
right place at the right time. The kind of leadership is temporary in nature to be of much
value in a business. What is looked for is someone who is capable of assuming a
leadership role in a variety of situations over a period of time.

 Appointed leader: This is a leader whose influence arises directly out of his position e.g.
most managers and supervisors. This is the bureaucratic type of leadership where
legitimate power springs from the nature and scope of the position within the hierarchy.
The problem here is that, although the powers of the position may be defined, the job-
holder may not be able to implement them because of weak personality, lack of adequate
training or other factors.

 Functional leader: This is a leader who secures their leadership positions by what they
are. In other words, functional leaders adapt their behaviour to meet the competing needs
of the situation.

 Principle-Centered leader: This is a leader, whose approach to leadership is influenced

by moral and ethical principles, involving consideration of equity, justice, integrity,
honesty, fairness and trust.

4.0 CONCLUSION
This unit provides a comprehensive understanding on the subject of leadership, qualities
of good leaders and Types of leaders. While the use of force (autocratic) is viewed as the
best of leading to many, leading through others (democratic) is much appreciated by
others. It has also been discovered that great leaders abound in every stage in life and that
leadership does not only exist in the top organizational hierarchy. The emphasis of
leadership is on interpersonal behaviour in a broader view.

5.0 SUMMARY

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 Leadership is the act of commanding obedience of others. This act is often exhibited
through democratic, autocratic or laissez-faire ways. Additionally, there are several other
ways of describing leadership such as, dictatorial, unitary, charismatic, benevolent,
consultative and participative. The major leadership styles can be classified into three
broad categories: autocratic (authoritarian) style, democratic style and genuine laissez-
faire style.

In addition, major qualities of a great leader include: broad mindedness, self-control, self-
confidence, intelligent, inspiring and determined will. However, from this review, it has
been discovered that there is no best way of leading people or subordinates and that there
is no best leadership style that can be apply to all situation in an organization. Therefore,
contingency approach to leadership should be applied.

7.0 REFERENCES/FURTHER READING

Goffee, R and Jones, G (2001), Why should anyone be led by you? Harvard Business Review,
January.

Khaliq Ahmad (2008) Management from Islamic Perspective Principles and Practices,
International Islamic University Malaysia, pp161-190

Luthans, F and Doh, J.P (2012) International Management: Culture, strategy and behaviour,
eight edition by McGraw.hill international pp454-486

Lawal, K.A.A and Oludimu,O.L (2014) Leadership Competence for Cooperative Society
ST
Renewal: in Resources Management in the 21 Century: Emerging Issues: FMSNOUNpp117-
128

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Lawal, K.A.A and Oludimu,O.L (2011) Management principles, practices and focus, Revised
edition, Asogun Published, Ibadan pp 50-82

UNIT 2: LEADERSHIP STYLES

CONTENTS

1.0 Introduction

2.0 Objectives

3.0 Main Content

3.1 Autocratic leadership style

3.2 democratic Leadership Style

3.3 Laissez-faire leadership style

3.4 Other types of leadership styles

4.0 Conclusion

5.0 Summary

6.0 Tutor-Marked Assignment

7.0 References/Further Reading

1.0 INTRODUCTION

There are as many leadership styles as there are leaders. Business people and psychologists have
developed useful shorthand ways of describing the main leadership styles. Whatever capacity

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you find yourself, your leadership style is crucial to your success. Consciously or
subconsciously, everyone use some leadership styles features, at least some of the time.

2.0 OBJECTIVES

At the end of this unit, students should be able to understand various leadership styles. I.e

(1) Autocratic leadership style

(2) Democratic leadership style

(3) Laissez-faire leadership style

(4) Other types of leadership styles

3.0 MAIN CONTENT

Basically, there are three main types of leadership styles used in an organization and they are;

Autocratic, Democratic, Laissez-faire leadership styles:

3.1 Autocratic Leadership Style: It is a leadership situation where there is one-way

communication, denial or conflict, an absolute monarch with unlimited authority. It is also a
situation where the enterprise is run in a very autocratic, directive manner and the entire decision
making process center around the entrepreneur under authoritarian leadership, the leader is the
sole determiner of what is done. Autocratic leadership style calls for high goals and means
control.

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In other words, it implies a job-centered style. This focuses on the issue of close supervision,
legitimate and coercive power, meeting schedule and evaluating work performance. This leader
is very much likely to rely on the power of his position, more punishment centered and more
tasks oriented. He gets works done through fear. He however, gets short-run and output gains,
that is, while he is around. Thus, again in fear subordinates under this style do what they are told
to do, so as not to lose the means of satisfying their daily needs and wants. This leader tells a
worker what to do and how to do it. He takes all decisions, issues, instructions and expects
subordinates to follow sheepishly without questions.

The autocratic leadership is dogmatic, positive and leads by ability to withhold or give rewards
and punishment. The hallmark of autocratic leader is that he does not allow subordinates to
participate in decision making process. It is used when leaders tell their employees what they
want to do and how they want it accomplished, without getting the advice of their followers. This
kind of leadership style instills fear and at times confusion in subordinates. The focus of attention
usually is on work progress, work procedures and road blocks that are preventing goal
attainment. Autocratic is also defined as someone who holds all authority and responsibility with
communication usually moving from top to bottom.

In conclusion, the style sees people as commodities to be us up and replaced as needed.

Manager using this style has complete responsibility for direction and decision making.

Employees are expected only to sheepishly follow orders and loyalty is expected.

3.2 Democratic Leadership Style: The leader is characterized by employee oriented and
democratically supportive behaviors. He uses general supervision and is considerate of his
subordinates. He is group centered and non-directive. Under this form of leadership, the leader
consults with subordinates on proposed actions and decisions and encourages participation from
them. He holds final responsibility but also delegate authority to others, who participate in

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determining work assignments, communication is active i.e. upward and downward. It also
involves the leader including one or more employees in the decision making process.

However, the leader maintains the final authority in decision making. Using this style is not a
sign of weakness; rather it is a sign of strength that employees will respect. It is also a very open
style of running a team. Ideas move freely amongst the group and the style is needed in dynamic
and rapidly changing environments where very little can be taken as a constant. The democratic
leadership style means facilitating the conversation, encouraging people to share their ideas and
then synthesizing all the available information into the best possible decision.

When situations changes frequently, democratic leaders offers a great deal of flexibility to ways
of doing things. Democratic style can bring the best out of an experienced and professional team.
It capitalizes on their skills and talents by letting them share their views, rather than simply
expecting them to conform. The democratic leader welcomes team input and facilitates group
discussion in decision making. This leadership styles share plans with the group and offers
multiple options for group consideration. It also encourages members to work freely with each
other and embrace division of tasks to the group. This leader is objective in praise and criticisms
and joins group activities without over-participating.

A democratic leadership style allows for multiple view points, inputs and participation while still
maintaining control and the leadership role. A qualified democratic leader recognizes each
member‘s strengths and effectively elicits the best performance from each member, all the while
guiding and leading effectively. A challenge for the democratic leader is to recognize that not all
tasks need to be handled by the group, that the leader should appropriately address some issues
alone. Also, leader announces principles and sets forth methods of decision making, permits
ideas, questions and discussion from followers.

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3.3 Laissez-faire Leadership Style: This is the type of leadership in which the leader uses hi or
her power very little, if at all. It involves given subordinates a high degree of independence in
their operations. Under this type of leadership, leaders depend largely on subordinates to set their
own goals and the means of achieving them. Leaders perceive their role as one of facilitating the
operations of followers by furnishing them information and acting primarily as a contact with the
group‘s external environment. It should be noted that there is no best form of leadership as the
situation will determine the most appropriate form at a point in time.

Generally, the style of leadership adopted will depend on the forces operating in the manager‘s
personality including his or her value system, confidence in subordinates, inclination toward
leadership style and feelings of security in uncertain situations. Forces in the subordinates that
will affect the manager‘s behavior and forces in the situation such as organization values and
traditions, how effectively subordinates works as a unit, the nature of a problem and whether
authority to handle it can be safely delegated and the pressure of time. In this style, the dealer
allows the employees to make decisions.

However, the leader is still responsible for the decisions that are made. This is used when
employees are able to analyze the situation and determine what needs to be done and how to do
it. This is used when employees are able to analyze the situation and determine what needs to be
done and how to do it. This is not a style to use so that you can blame others when things go
wrong, rather this is a style to be used when you fully trust and have confidence in the people
below you.

A laissez-faire leadership style works best when group members are highly skilled and motivated
with a proven track record of excellence. This hands-off approach can allow these capable
members to be productive and effective. The laissez-faire style is interpreted by the members as
a sign of confidence and trust in their abilities and further empowers them to be successful and
motivated.

The laissez-faire leader allows the group complete freedom for decision-making without
participating himself. The leader type provides materials and offers to assist only by request. The

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laissez-faire leader does not participate in work discussions or group tasks. This leader does not
offer commentary on members‘ performance unless asked directly and does not participate or
intervene in activities. Also, it is the use of work-centered behavior coupled with a protective
employee centered concern. This leadership style expects everyone to work hard and the
employees will be guaranteed employment and given security benefits such as medical and
retirement programs. Also represents problems with some boundaries and let followers make
final decisions. Leader allows followers as much freedom as leader has to define the problems
and make decisions. It involves non-interference policy, allows complete freedom to all workers
and has no particular way of attaining goals.

3.4 Other types of leadership styles

Other types of leadership styles have emerged from these three main types among which
included:

1. Benevolent Leadership style

2. Charismatic leadership.

3. People-oriented leadership/relations-oriented leadership.

4. Servant leadership.

5. Task-oriented leadership.

6. Transactional leadership.

7. Transformational leadership

(1) Benevolent leadership style: They ensure that their staff follows procedures exactly. This is
a very appropriate style for work involving serious safety risks or where large sums of money
are involved.

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(2) Charismatic Leadership Style: This can appear similar to a transformational leadership
style, In that the leaders injects huge doses of enthusiasm into his or her team and is very
energetic in driving others forward. However, a charismatic leader can tend to believe more
in him or her than in their team. This can create a risk that a project or even an entire
organization might collapse if the leader were to leave. As such, charismatic leadership
carries great responsibility and needs long-term commitment from the leader.

(3) People-Oriented Leadership Style: This style of leadership is when the leader totally
focuses on organizing, supporting and developing the people in the leader‘s time.

(4) Servant -Leadership Style: This occurs when someone at any level within an
organization, leads simply by virtue of meeting the needs of his or her team. In many ways,
servant leadership is a form of democratic leadership as the whole team tends to be involved
in decision making. Supporters of the servant leadership model suggest it is an important way
ahead in a world where values are increasingly important, in which servant leaders achieve
power on the basis of their values and deals. Others believe that in competitive leadership
situations, people practicing servant leadership will often find themselves left behind by
leaders using other leadership styles.

(5) Task-Oriented Leadership Style: A highly task-oriented leader focuses only on getting the
job done, and can be quite autocratic. However, the task-oriented leaders spare little thought
for the well-being of their teams, this approach can suffer many of the flaws of autocratic
leadership with difficulties in motivating and retaining staffs.

(6) Transactional Leadership Style: This style of leadership starts that team members agree to

obey their leader totally when they take a job on: the transaction is that the organization pays
the team members, in return for their effort and compliance. As such, the leader has the right
to punish team members if their work doesn‘t meet the pre-set standard. Team members can
do little to improve their job satisfaction under transactional leadership the leader could give
the team members some control of their income/reward by using incentives that encourages
even higher standards or greater productivity.

(7) Transformational Leadership Style: A person with this leadership style is a true leader
who inspires his or her team with a shared vision of the future. Transformational leaders are

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 highly visible and spend a lot of time communicating. They don‘t necessarily lead from the
front and they tend to delegate responsibility amongst their team.

(8) Situational Leadership Style: While the transformational leadership approach is often
highly effective, there is no right way to leadership or management style that suits all
situations. To choose the most effective approach, the following must be considered.

(a) The skill levels and experience of the members of the team.

(b) The work involved.

(c) The organizational environment

(d) The preferred or natural style by individual.

A leader who will find himself or herself switching instinctively between styles according to the
people and work they are dealing with. This is often referred to as situational leadership.

4.0CONCLUSION

During the course of this unit, it has been discovered that there is no best way of leading people

or subordinates and that there is no best leadership style that can be apply to all situation in an
organization. Therefore, contingency approach to leadership should be more appropriate.

5.0 SUMMARY

In the course of this unit, leadership styles have been mentioned and examined. The major
leadership styles can be classified into three broad categories: autocratic (authoritarian) style,
democratic style and genuine laissez-faire style. Other forms of leadership styles include:

(a) Benevolent Leadership style

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 (b) Charismatic leadership style.

(c) People-oriented leadership/relations-oriented leadership style.

(d) Servant leadership style.

(e) Task-oriented leadership style.

(f) Transactional leadership style.

(g) Transformational leadership style.

6.0 TUTOR-MARKED ASSIGNMENT

1. With examples, explain various major leadership styles you know?

2. List and explain five leadership styles as discussed under ‗other types of leadership styles‘ in

this unit?

3. Emeka and Tobi once argued that democratic leadership style is the best approach to leading
than autocratic. Do you agree with this argument? Discuss

7.0 REFERENCES/FURTHER READING

Luthans, F and Doh, J.P (2012) International Management: Culture, strategy and behaviour,
eight edition by McGraw.hill international pp454-486

Lawal, K.A.A and Oludimu,O.L (2014) Leadership Competence for Cooperative Society
ST
Renewal: in Resources Management in the 21 Century: Emerging Issues:FMSNOUNpp117-128
Lawal, K.A.A and Oludimu,O.L (2011) Management principles, practices and focus, Revised
edition, Asogun Published, Ibadan pp 50-82

Yalokwu P. O., (2006), Fundamentals of Management. Lagos: African Centre for Management
and Education.

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 Unit 3: Teamworking
1.0 Introduction
2.0 Objectives
3.5 Main Content
3.6 Concept and meaning of Team and team work
3.7 Types of team
8. Conclusion
9. Summary
10. Sample questions
11. References

Teamwork Defined

The traditional workplace, with its emphasis on internal competition and individual star
performers, is undergoing a transformation. In U.S. businesses, a strong movement toward the
use of teams is occurring. Management experts and researchers suggest that a successful
organization is characterized by effective teamwork and leadership rather than management.
Organizations are realizing the importance of developing teams that can work in a coordinated,
efficient, and creative manner.

As a result, managers are responsible for creating, developing, and supporting the cooperative
efforts of individuals under their influence. Compiling honest, clear‐eyed evaluations of how
these individuals interact is a critical first step to building cohesive, long‐term working
relationships. Interactions among employees can be characterized in three ways:

Groups: A group exists almost anywhere two or more people interact or coexist. A group does
not have a unified purpose. Many people mistakenly expect that simply working in close
proximity to others is enough to allow an effective team to emerge. Not so. Although individuals
may be close physically, don't assume that their thought processes or levels of commitment are in
sync. Remember that an individual may work simply for a paycheck and exhibit a lack of

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concern for the organization, its activities, its mission, and its people that is obvious to even the
most casual observer. These individuals do just enough to get by, but not enough to make a
difference.

Mobs: Unlike groups, mobs have a unified purpose. Mobs of employees often form with the
focused intent to challenge, malign, or even sabotage the established order. Although many
people think of mobs as chaotic, disorganized, and unstructured, they are actually very
purposeful in their actions.

Team: Teams share a common goal. A team is composed of two or more people who interact
regularly and coordinate their work to accomplish a mutual objective. Some management experts
believe that highest productivity results only when groups become teams.

The major difference between groups and teams centers around how work gets done. Work
groups emphasize individual work products, individual accountability, and even individual‐
centered leadership. In contrast, work teams share leadership roles, have both individual and
mutual accountability, and create collective work products. In other words, a work group's
performance is a function of what its members do as individuals, while a team's performance is
based on collective results—what two or more workers accomplish jointly.

TYPES OF TEAMS

The development of teams and teamwork has grown dramatically in all types of organizations for
one simple reason: No one person has the ability to deliver the kinds of products and services
required in today's highly competitive marketplace. Organizations must depend on the
cooperative nature of many teams to create successful ventures and outcomes. Teams can be
vertical (functional), horizontal (cross‐functional), or self‐directed (self‐managed) and can be
used to create new products, complete specific projects, ensure quality, or replace operating
departments.

Functional teams: perform specific organizational functions and include members from several
vertical levels of the hierarchy. In other words, a functional team is composed of a manager and

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his or her subordinates for a particular functional area. Accounting, personnel, and purchasing
departments are examples of functional teams.

Cross‐functional teams: are made up of experts in various specialties (or functions) working
together on various organizational tasks. Team members come from such departments as
research and development, design, engineering, marketing, and distribution. These teams are
often empowered to make decisions without the approval of management. For example, when
Nabisco's executives concluded that the company needed to improve its relationship with
customers and better satisfy customers' needs, they created cross‐functional teams whose
assignments were to find ways to do just that. Although functional teams are usually permanent,
cross‐functional teams are often temporary, lasting for as little as a few months or as long as
several years, depending on the group tasks being performed.

Self‐directed work teams: or self‐managed teams, operate without managers and are
responsible for complete work processes or segments that deliver products or services to external
or internal customers. Self‐directed work teams (SDWTs) are designed to give employees a
feeling of “ownership” of a whole job. For example, at Tennessee Eastman, a division of
Eastman Kodak Company, teams are responsible for whole product lines—including processing,
lab work, and packaging. With shared team responsibilities for work outcomes, team members
often have broader job assignments and cross‐train to master other jobs. This cross‐training
permits greater team flexibility.

No matter what type of team is formed, the benefits of teamwork are many, including synergy
and increased skills, knowledge, productivity, flexibility, and commitment. Among the other
benefits are increased job satisfaction, employee empowerment, and improved quality and
organizational effectiveness.

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