Title: Groups, Teams, and Teamwork
Course: Question Banks

Q: Paul looks forward to working with his team. They are a good group that looks out for each other and the success of the group. Paul’s team is an example of
- social dynamics
- social loafing
- social cohesion
A: social cohesion

Q: When Joel and Frank pulled on a rope alone, each exerted a force of 100 pounds. Next, they were asked to pull together. Each is given enough room on the rope to avoid accidental coordination problems. But when they pull together, their combined effort is 160 pounds. This may be due to
- social dynamics
- social cohesion
- social loafing
A: social loafing

Q: Bill Gore was the inventor of Gore-Tex, a fabric popular in many sports. When building his company, he wanted to harness the fast decision-making, diverse perspectives, and collaboration of small teams. His approach was that "We're all in the same boat," sharing risks and rewards and committed to what's best for the company and its long-term success. One advantage of teams is
- shared risk
- groupthink
- better communication
A: better communication

Q: A new investment product, housing revenue bonds, requires expertise in back-office processes, accounting policy, legal issues, and, of course, a portfolio manager's judgment on value. Difficulties at any step will influence the value of the investment. The opinions of the experts are interdependent, so the portfolio manager recommends a team approach for
- more efficacy
- more groupthink
- more efficiency
A: more efficiency

Q: A portfolio manager liked a new product that included a swap, a financial derivative. Since he had the authority, he proceeded without asking any other departments about it. A year later, he learned that the back-office was upset with the difficulty of handling the swaps. A team approach would have improved communication and
- social efficacy
- task significance
- team motivation
A: team motivation

Q: Gary works in a team with strong opinions. He decides not to rock the boat with an issue. A new issue will cause a storm of discussion, and the team is working well now. This is the negative side of social cohesion, called
- group polarization
- group dynamics
- groupthink
A: groupthink

Q: An investigation of the safety issues with the Chevrolet Cobalt car blamed GM’s company culture in part. Mary Barra, the CEO, described the “GM Nod” as when everyone nods in agreement to a proposed plan of action, but then leaves the room expecting someone else to handle it. The GM Nod is a form of
- groupthink
- social expression
- social loafing
A: social loafing

Q: Congress created a task force to study infrastructure projects and funding. A task force is
- a SWAT team charged with ending a difficult situation
- a team that pulls its members from across the different functional areas of an organization.
- a group or committee, usually of experts or specialists, formed for analyzing a specific problem
A: a group or committee, usually of experts or specialists, formed for analyzing a specific problem

Q: Procter & Gamble needs many different skills to put together a new product launch. They need
- a committee
- a task force
- a cross-functional team
A: a cross-functional team

Q: Lumen Learning works with professors all over the country to edit its new biology textbook. The professors interact through Google Docs, commenting on the text and its revisions. The professors don’t need to meet in person. They are a
- cross-functional team
- self-managing team
- virtual team
A: virtual team

Q: Pivotal Labs, a software firm, never tried to reduce or get rid of managers or create ________. Instead, CEO Rob Mee, who co-founded Pivotal in 1989, based his culture on extreme programming and designed the most efficient project team structure for getting things done fast and well. Managers were never part of the mix. And it worked.
- a hierarchy
- virtual teams
- self-managed teams
A: self-managed teams

Q: In 1999, Wired magazine reported a story entitled “Metric Math Mistake Muffed Mars Meteorology Mission.” A NASA review board found that the problem was in the software controlling the orbiter’s thrusters. The software calculated the force the thrusters needed to exert in pounds of force, but a second step assumed the data was in the metric unit: newtons. Oops! The software developers needed better
- science education
- beta testing
- communication
A: communication

Q: Baseball is not an inherently safe sport. Whenever several players are involved in a play, the risk for collisions is high. Teamwork and ________ dramatically reduce the risk of mishaps.
- clarity of purpose
- positive conflict
- communication
A: communication

Q: The way team members function as a group is as important to the team's success as the quality of the individual efforts. Therefore the goals should encourage members
- to do their best work in their own tasks
- to finish their own tasks before helping anyone else
- to be attentive to how they interact and collaborate with each other
A: to be attentive to how they interact and collaborate with each other

Q: Some companies use a 360-degree feedback process, which includes feedback from an employee's subordinates, peers (colleagues), and supervisor(s), as well as a self-evaluation by the employee him or herself. This approach would be particularly useful in a
- accounting department
- sales department with commissioned salespeople
- self-managing team
A: self-managing team

Q: The National Football League controls the performance-based pay for professional football players. For example, Tom Brady received $14,102.25. His annual salary is $20 million, so he may not have noticed when this hit his checking account. Since the way team members function as a group is as important to the team's success as the individual effort, the NFL performance pay
- is a motivator for team communication
- improves team social cohesion
- is not giving the right incentives
A: is not giving the right incentives

Q: Effective teams know how their work contributes toward an organizational goal. The team leader reminds members of how each team member makes business success possible. In other words,
- open and accurate communication both between the team members and between the team and the larger organization is critical to keep members informed, motivated and focused.
- effective teams use conflict to improve decision-making and problem-solving processes.
- the purpose of the team must be clearly defined in concrete and measurable objectives.
A: the purpose of the team must be clearly defined in concrete and measurable objectives.

Q: Jeff Bezos, CEO and founder of Amazon, has his own rule for the right-sized teams: the team should only be as big as can be fed with ________ pizzas.
- four
- three
- two
A: two

Q: If a team is too small,
- communication becomes more challenging
- groupthink may occur and positively affect team performance
- it may not have enough resources or skills
A: it may not have enough resources or skills

Q: The ________ involves a period of orientation and getting acquainted. Uncertainty is high during this stage, and people are looking for leadership and authority.
- storming stage
- norming stage
- forming stage
A: forming stage

Q: In the ________, consensus develops around who the leader or leaders are, and individual member’s roles. Interpersonal differences begin to be resolved, and a sense of cohesion and unity emerges. Team performance increases during this stage as members learn to cooperate and begin to focus on team goals.
- forming stage
- storming stage
- norming stage
A: norming stage

Q: In the________, most of the team’s goals have been accomplished. The emphasis is on wrapping up final tasks and documenting the effort and results. As the work load is diminished, individual members may be reassigned to other teams, and the team disbands.
- performing stage
- storming stage
- adjourning stage
A: adjourning stage

Q: Team norms set a standard ________ that all team members are expected to follow.
- in the control process
- for ethical behavior
- for behavior, attitude, and performance
A: for behavior, attitude, and performance

Q: Team cohesiveness is the extent that members are attracted to the team and are motivated to remain in the team. Members of highly cohesive teams
- are committed to their careers
- gain satisfaction from individual recognition like a promotion
- value their membership
A: value their membership

Q: Conflict will arise if neither party is willing to give way or compromise on their position. Arguments over things such as goals, tasks, and the allocation of resources are considered
- substantial conflict
- sustained conflict
- substantive conflict
A: substantive conflict

Q: Jack and Jill disagreed on how best to fetch water to the house, a daily task. They bickered every day and neither could compromise. Their conflict is
- substantive
- essential
- emotional
A: emotional

Q: Rob has made several successful investments. Each will earns $20,000 per year for the next 15 years. To expand the program, he will need an additional headcount. But Pat, another team member, wants additional headcount for a different investment. Management will only allow one hire. What does this situation illustrate?
- Management should avoid any conflict by making the decisions.
- Management is wrong to limit the number of hires.
- Competition over resources can cause conflict.
A: Competition over resources can cause conflict.

Q: Frank is angry and arguing with Jeff about procedures. Jeff wants to ignore the written policy because the accountants are not familiar with the procedure. The company is under investigation by regulators and the FBI for accounting fraud. External conditions may cause ________.
- extra effort
- long hours at work
- low team morale and conflict
A: low team morale and conflict

Q: When Motorola created the RAZR flip phone in 2003, they fought “contentious internal battles” over what a cell phone should look like. What does this show?
- Conflict damages social cohesion and hurts productivity.
- Stress damages the health of the individuals.
- Conflict can spark new ideas and generate creativity.
A: Conflict can spark new ideas and generate creativity.

Q: ________ is a positive reaction to stress that generates a desire to achieve and overcome challenges.
- Distress
- Neustress
- Eustress
A: Eustress

Q: Mustafa and Jeff argued about allocating the time of a junior team member. In the end, they agreed to split the difference and share his time equally. Mustafa and Jeff settled their difference by
- collaborating
- accommodating
- compromising
A: compromising

Q: Mustafa and Jeff argued about an investment in asset swaps. Mustafa believed that the back office could not handle a tricky transaction. Jeff argued that the investment was worth the extra time to create and practice the procedure. Mustafa agreed if he could do the training himself. The conflict was settled by
- compromising
- accommodating
- collaborating
A: collaborating