EFFECTIVE TEAM MANAGEMENT AND PERFORMANCE SID# 1031489 Table of Content Introduction 1 What are Interpersonal Skills? 2 Listening Skills 3 Assertiveness 3 Communication Skills 4 Decision Making 4 Stress Management 5 Problem Solving 5 Developing Interpersonal Skills 6 Factors Affecting Interpersonal Interactions 8 Leadership 9 Skills of a Good Leader 9 Trait Theories of Leadership 11 Level 5 Leadership 11 Concepts of Leadership 12
Transcript
EFFECTIVE TEAM MANAGEMENT AND PERFORMANCE
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Table of Content
Introduction 1
What are Interpersonal Skills? 2
Listening Skills 3
Assertiveness 3
Communication Skills 4
Decision Making 4
Stress Management 5
Problem Solving 5
Developing Interpersonal Skills 6
Factors Affecting Interpersonal Interactions 8
Leadership 9
Skills of a Good Leader 9
Trait Theories of Leadership 11
Level 5 Leadership 11 Concepts of Leadership 12
Definition of Leadership 12
Four Factors of Leadership 13
Bass' Theory of Leadership 13
The Two Most Important Keys to Effective Leadership 14
The Process of Great Leadership 14
Conclusion 16
Reference 17
Bibliography 18
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Introduction
With the task ahead the researcher will try to understand Interpersonal Skills, the different types of Interpersonal Skills and how it I applied within the group and organization. The researcher will also determine what makes a person thrive to do their best, what motivates people and what are some of the stresses of everyday life. By comprehending this task the researcher will gain the knowledge required to be a better person to his family, workers, peers and members of society.
The researcher will also try to understand Leadership and how it is applied within a group and organization. What are the different steps in becoming not a good leader but a great leader, one who can motivate his group members and who would develop his trust among the members of the group and organization.
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What are Interpersonal Skills?
Interpersonal skills are the life skills we use every day to communicate and interact with other people, individually and in groups.
Interpersonal skills include not only how we communicate with others, but also our confidence, and our ability to listen and understand. Problem solving, decision making and personal stress management are also considered interpersonal skills.
People with strong interpersonal skills are usually more successful in both their professional and personal lives. They are perceived as more calm, confident and charismatic, qualities that are often endearing or appealing to others. Being more aware of your interpersonal skills can help you improve and develop them. We provide an extensive library of articles to help you learn about and improve your interpersonal skills.
Interpersonal Skills Include;
(1) Listening Skills(2) Assertiveness(3) Communication Skills(4) Decision Making(5) Stress Management(6) Problem Solving
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Listening Skills
“The most basic and powerful way to connect to another person is to listen. Just listen. Perhaps the most important thing we ever give each other is our attention.”Rachel Naomi Remen.
Listening is not the same as hearing. Hearing refers to the sounds that you hear, whereas listening requires more than that, it requires focus. Listening means paying attention not only to the story, but how it is told, the use of language and voice, and how the other person uses his or her body. In other words, it means being aware of both verbal and non-verbal messages. Your ability to listen effectively depends on the degree to which you perceive and understand these messages.
The researcher grasps the very knowledge of this interpersonal skill and knows that listening is very important with any group. Being able to listen to every group member is important, that way you will be able to comprehend what each member is trying to express.
The researcher group member sees the researcher as a good listener and knows with this skill the researcher is able to understand her view and once understood the researcher would be able to help her with the task at hand. The group member enjoys being around the researcher mainly because out of all the members the research understand her points and from this she knows that the researcher is always listening and paying attention.
Assertiveness
“Forthright, positive, insistence on the recognition of one's rights” The Concise Oxford Dictionary.
Assertiveness means standing up for your personal rights expressing thoughts, feelings and beliefs in direct, honest and appropriate ways. It is important to note also that by being assertive we should always respect the thoughts, feelings and beliefs of other people, this is an important interpersonal skill. In all your interactions with other people, whether at home or at work with employers, customers, colleagues, assertiveness can help you to express yourself in a clear, open and reasonable way, without undermining the rights of yourself or others.
The researcher know that by being assertive with his belief and understanding to a particular topic or task he would be able to win the respect of his group members but this must be done carefully, the researcher must not over step his boundaries. The researcher understands that every individual is different and must also comprehend the feelings and belief of all members in the group. This interpersonal skill is also very important and once understood you would be able to avoid conflicts within the group.
The researcher group member sees him as a very assertive individual, expressing what he has to say about his thought and feelings but at the same time being respectful to all members in the group. The group member feels comfortable about being able to talk to the researcher about certain topics and if right or wrong the researcher always respects her input.
Communication Skills
Interpersonal communication is the process by which people exchange information, feelings, and meaning through verbal and non-verbal messages, it is face-to-face communication. Interpersonal communication is not just about what is actually said, the language used, but how it is said and the non-verbal messages sent through tone of voice, facial expressions, gestures and body language.
This interpersonal skill is very important to the researcher, being able to communicate with all members within the group the researcher would be able to earn the trust of all members. The researcher also understands when someone in the group isn’t being treated fairly or upset about something, the researcher notices certain body language or movement, facial expression just to name a few. Once understood the researcher will be able to focus much more attention on that person and understand the input from that member.
The researcher group member sees him as a very easy going person and communicates well with the researcher. The group member communicates a lot with the researcher mainly because the researcher understands her point of view and body language. The group members knows that being able to communicate with the researcher properly he would be able to understand what is needed and how he can help her with the task.
Decision Making
Decision making is the act of choosing between two or more courses of action. However, it must always be remembered that there may not always be a 'correct' decision among the available choices. There may have been a better choice that had not been considered, or the right information may not have been available at the time. Because of this, it is important to keep a record of all decisions and the reasons why decisions were made, so that improvements can be made in the future. This also provides justification for any decision taken when something goes wrong. Hindsight might not be able to correct past mistakes, but it will aid improved decision making in the future.
Interpersonal skill is very important to the researcher, he knows that every decision has an outcome. Making the right decision is based on what information the researcher has at the point of time. Being able to gather all information from each group member and making a decision is a very difficult task, however when a decision is made he gets the approval of all members moving forward.
The group member sees the researcher as a fair member in the decision making process. The group member notices that the researcher gathers all information from all members before the researcher actually makes a decision. By doing this the group member knows that the researcher is truly taking into consideration all information given by the members.
Stress Management
Tension and anxiety are very common problems in society today, and many people will suffer from symptoms of stress at some time in their lives. You may encounter stress from a number of sources including; Personal Stress which may be caused by the nature of your work, changes in your life or personal problems, stress in family or friends, and stress in your colleagues. As the effects of stress can be, at the very least, unpleasant at time, we must learn how to overcome our stress and deal with our problems.
The researcher knows that stress is a very important topic with all members of the group. Each members of the group have different stresses to deal with. In addition to that they have to meet in order to fulfill their task which is an additional stress. The researcher tried to relieve some stress from the members by making the meetings much more enjoyable and also tries to motivate the members so that it will ease the stress.
The group member sees the researcher as a motivational person, which help to take away the stress of group members. The group member notices that the researcher looks at the bigger picture and tries to motivate himself and his members by taking the time out to lets each member know what is at the end of the tunnel and how we could deal with certain stresses of work.
Problem Solving
Problem solving is generally designed for an organisation or group context, but can also be adapted to work with indivduals.All problems have two features in common; goals and barriers.
Goals - Problems involve setting out to achieve some objective or desired state of affairs and can include avoiding a situation or event.
Barriers - If there were no barriers in the way of achieving a goal, then there would be no problem. Problem solving involves overcoming the barriers or obstacles that prevent the immediate achievement of goals.
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Effective problem solving usually involves a number of steps:
Identification: Detecting and recognising that there is a problem; identifying the nature of the problem; defining the problem.
Structuring: A period of observation, careful inspection, fact-finding and developing a clear picture of the problem.
Looking for Possible Solutions: Generating a range of possible courses of action, but with little attempt to evaluate them at this stage.
Making a Decision: This stage involves careful analysis of the different possible courses of action and then selecting the best solution for implementation. Also see our section on decision making.
Implementation: Accepting and carrying out the chosen course of action. Monitoring/Seeking Feedback: Reviewing the outcomes of problem solving over a period of
time, including seeking feedback as to the success of the outcomes of the chosen solution.
The researcher understands that problems will arise in groups and what must be done if certain problem arises. The researcher must first understand the goal at hand and what problems might affects us from reaching that goal. Once this is done the researcher will then know how to move forward.
The group member sees this as a problem for the researcher, although the group member thinks the researcher has a plan or action in case problems arises the group member doesn’t think this is being carried out in the best manner. With this being a problem the group member is always willing to help the researcher in finding better solutions to deal with different problems that may arise.
Developing Interpersonal Skills
Communication starts with good interpersonal skills. You must express yourself freely and effectively in a way that empowers you without compromising the rights of the others. The following steps shows how conflict resolution, and anger management are all interpersonal skills that you can master to improve your relationships with others.
Resolution
Ask yourself how the conflict affects you and why it is important. This answer will determine what you will say during the confrontation.
Maintain a positive attitude and communicate positive intentions. Always include the other party.
Discuss the problem, giving the other party time to speak. Employ good communication and listening skills. Respect the needs of the other party.
Consider alternative solutions to the problem at hand. Choose the solutions that are beneficial to both parties. Ensure that the solutions are fair and specific.
Plan a follow up evaluation of the solutions. You want to make sure the solutions are working to the satisfaction of all parties.
Anger Management
Become more attuned to your feelings. Learn to recognize the anger as it occurs.
Avoid misdirecting your anger towards others who are not causing you to be angry. Be aware if the cause is from someone, something or inside yourself.
Diffuse your anger by first taking a deep breath. Walk away from the situation until you've had a change to calm down.
Express yourself responsibly and appropriately to the person who is causing you to be angry. Help the person to understand why their behavior is causing you to react with anger. Do not accuse the other person. Instead use "I statements" to express yourself in a non-threatening way.
Participate in daily activities that help you to deal with anger. Try exercising and mediating.
EFFECTIVE TEAM MANAGEMENT AND PERFORMANCE
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EFFECTIVE TEAM MANAGEMENT AND PERFORMANCE
SID# 1031489
Factors Affecting Interpersonal Interactions
Some factors that affect Interpersonal Interactions are;
Poor Listening
Emotional Arousal
Lack of Time
Differences in objective
Communication
The researcher knows that there are factors that will hamper the group in achieving the task but is willing to look for alternatives that will enhance the group and its members. Although the researcher knows that this will be difficult to achieve, it is quite possible once the researcher gains the trust on the group. Once given that trust he will be able to motivate each member to achieve the task given to them.
EFFECTIVE TEAM MANAGEMENT AND PERFORMANCE
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Leadership
The ability to lead effectively is based on a number of key skills. These skills are highly sought after by employers as they involve dealing with people in such a way as to motivate, enthuse and build respect. Ideally a leader wants people to follow them because of the trust and respect they have earned, not because they are told to. Leadership roles are all around us, not just in a work environment, and it is focused on leadership skills from the perspective of working in an organisation, the skills can be applied to any situation where you are required to take the lead.
Skills of a Good Leader
Perhaps the most important skill a leader needs is to be able to make decisions; leadership is all about having a vision of where you want to be and making decisions along the way to get closer to achieving this vision. Decision-making in leadership however involves other people as leaders need followers, so the decision-making process will usually have an impact on your team of followers. With this in mind, a good leader also needs strong ‘people skills' since a leader needs to be able to communicate the vision and motivate the team to follow.
Along the way to achieving the vision the leader will come upon many problems, hence problem solving is therefore another key leadership skill. Problems come in all shapes and sizes, from those related to the people in your team when mediation skills may be needed, to those of a more strategic nature and everything in between. A good leader will not be afraid of problems and, with trust and respect, followers will not be afraid to discuss problems or potential problems. With a positive attitude, problems can become opportunities and learning experiences. A leader’s biggest asset is information as the more information a leader possesses about the how to achieve the vision or individual goals along the way, the more the leader learns about the direction needed to get there. Problems provide information and therefore good problem solving is a very powerful skill for the leader.
As with anything in life, things do not always go according to plan and leadership is no exception. The direction a leader takes in order to realise their vision is likely to change. Strong leaders embrace change and can adapt quickly and efficiently to new situations since they learn to balance opportunity and risk while being aware of their (and their team’s) strengths and weaknesses.
A leader also needs to be a strong facilitator - that is providing the support necessary for the team to achieve their goals. Support may be as simple as words of encouragement or a specific tool needed to perform a task. By listening to team-members, a leader can often learn about the barriers preventing a goal from being achieved and, through facilitation, find a way to an appropriate solution.
A common mistake of a leader is to try to do everything themselves. A good leader will delegate responsibility to team members and, with the help of motivation and facilitation, aim to enable
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success. Delegation also allows the leader to learn more about the strengths and weaknesses of the team members and therefore make better informed decisions about individual roles and responsibilities.
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Trait Theories of Leadership
Before World War II, leadership theories and research focused on identifying the personal traits of leaders that differentiated them from followers. The traits identified included intelligence, dominance, self-confidence, level of energy and activity, and task relevant knowledge. While reviews of this suggest that such traits are not reliable predictors of who will emerge into leadership roles (Stogdill, 1948; Mann, 1959), other reviews have shown that traits influence our perceptions of whether someone is a leader (Lord, 1986).
Level 5 Leadership
“Level 5 Leadership,” by Jim Collins (2001), represents one of the more recent traitapproaches to leadership. Level 5 Leadership proposes that leaders who “build enduring greatness” for their organizations possess seemingly contradictory characteristics, including modesty, shyness, personal humility, and timidity, on the one hand, and professional will,
EFFECTIVE TEAM MANAGEMENT AND PERFORMANCE
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unwavering resolve, ferociousness, and fearlessness, on the other. According to Collins, these characteristics are driven by needs to build, create, and contribute to something larger and longer lasting than oneself (as opposed to needs for fame, fortune, power, and adulation). In turn, these characteristics promote the implementation of a number of practices associated with building enduring greatness in an organization, including creating and reinforcing a “Culture of Discipline.” The following model provides a visual summary of these premises:
Good leaders are made not born. If you have the desire and willpower, you can become an effective leader. Good leaders develop through a never ending process of self-study, education, training, and experience (Jago, 1982).
Definition of Leadership
Leadership is a process by which a person influences others to accomplish an objective and directs the organization in a way that makes it more cohesive and coherent. This definition is similar to Northouse's (2007, p3) definition — Leadership is a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal.
Leaders carry out this process by applying their leadership knowledge and skills. This is called Process Leadership (Jago, 1982). However, we know that we have traits that can influence our actions. This is called Trait Leadership (Jago, 1982), in that it was once common to believe that leaders were born rather than made. These two leadership types are shown in the chart below (Northouse, 2007, p5):
Leader - You must have an honest understanding of who you are, what you know, and what you can do. Also, note that it is the followers, not the leader or someone else who determines if the leader is successful. If they do not trust or lack confidence in their leader, then they will be uninspired. To be successful you have to convince your followers, not yourself or your superiors, that you are worthy of being followed.
Followers - Different people require different styles of leadership. For example, a new hire requires more supervision than an experienced employee. A person who lacks motivation requires a different approach than one with a high degree of motivation. You must know your people! The fundamental starting point is having a good understanding of human nature, such as needs, emotions, and motivation. You must come to know your employees' be, know, and do attributes.
Communication - You lead through two-way communication. Much of it is nonverbal. For instance, when you “set the example,” that communicates to your people that you would not ask them to perform anything that you would not be willing to do. What and how you communicate either builds or harms the relationship between you and your employees.
Situation - All situations are different. What you do in one situation will not always work in another. You must use your judgment to decide the best course of action and the leadership style needed for each situation. For example, you may need to confront an employee for inappropriate behavior, but if the confrontation is too late or too early, too harsh or too weak, then the results may prove ineffective. Also note that the situation normally has a greater effect on a leader's action than his or her traits. This is because while traits may have an impressive
stability over a period of time, they have little consistency across situations (Mischel, 1968). This is why a number of leadership scholars think the Process Theory of Leadership is a more accurate than the Trait Theory of Leadership.
Bass' Theory of Leadership
Bass' theory of leadership states that there are three basic ways to explain how people become leaders
(Stogdill, 1989; Bass, 1990). The first two explain the leadership development for a small number of
people. These theories are:
Some personality traits may lead people naturally into leadership roles. This is the Trait Theory.
A crisis or important event may cause a person to rise to the occasion, which brings out extraordinary leadership qualities in an ordinary person. This is the Great Events Theory.
People can choose to become leaders. People can learn leadership skills. This is the Transformational or Process Leadership Theory. It is the most widely accepted theory today and the premise on which this guide is based.
The Two Most Important Keys to Effective Leadership
According to a study by the Hay Group, a global management consultancy, there are 75 key components of employee satisfaction (Lamb, McKee, 2004). They found that:
Trust and confidence in top leadership was the single most reliable predictor of employee satisfaction in an organization.
Effective communication by leadership in three critical areas was the key to winning organizational trust and confidence:
o Helping employees understand the company's overall business strategy.
o Helping employees understand how they contribute to achieving key business
objectives.
o Sharing information with employees on both how the company is doing and how
an employee's own division is doing — relative to strategic business objectives.
In a nutshell you must be trustworthy and you have to be able to communicate a vision of where
The road to great leadership (Kouzes & Posner, 1987) that is common to successful leaders:
Challenge the process - First, find a process that you believe needs to be improved the most.
Inspire a shared vision - Next, share your vision in words that can be understood by your followers.
Enable others to act - Give them the tools and methods to solve the problem.
Model the way - When the process gets tough, get your hands dirty. A boss tells others what to do, a leader shows that it can be done.
Encourage the heart - Share the glory with your followers' hearts, while keeping the pains within your own.
The researcher grasp the knowledge and understanding what is it to become a great leader and
how to motivate his group members to become better players and more dedicated to the group.
The researcher knows that the other group members looks at his traits and once he gains the
trust among his members the researcher will be able to lead his members in achieving the task.
The group member sees the researcher as a good leader, one who tries to get the best out of his
members and friends but the group members doesn’t think that the researcher is a great leader
and has a lot more to learn in order to achieve this task. The group member thinks that the
researcher will one day achieve this task because the researcher is determine to be a leader
within the organization and society but this will take some time. The group member is willing to
lend a hand to the researcher to achieve this task mainly because the group member think that he
was born a leader, this was visible to the group member because of the way the researcher took
charge within the group, how each member held on to every word the researcher was saying and
the members was willing to vote the researcher as group leader at once.
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Conclusion
After reviewing the task the researcher fully comprehend and grasp the knowledge what is
required to become a great Leader and have better Interpersonal Skills. Both topic are linked and
once fully understand the researcher will know how to motivate his members, have better
listening skills etc. and with that he would’ve gain the trust of his members which in turn will
create a stigma among his members making the researcher a dominant force within the group.
The researcher knows once he masters the different types of Interpersonal Skills he would
become a great leader, someone who will be better in the organization as well as society.
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Reference
Collins, J. (January 2001). Level 5 Leadership: The Triumph of Humility and FierceResolve. Harvard Business Review, pp. 66-76.
Lord, R. G., De Vader, C. L., and Alliger, G. M. (August 1986). A Meta-Analysis of theRelation between Personality Traits and Leadership Perceptions: An Application ofValidity Generalization Procedures. Journal of Applied Psychology, 407.
Mann, R. D. (July 1959). A Review of the Relationship between Personality andPerformance in Small Groups. Psychological Bulletin, pp. 241-270.
Stogdill, R. M. (1948). Personal Factors Associated with Leadership: A Survey of theLiterature. Journal of Applied Psychology, pp. 35-71.
Bass, Bernard (1990). From transactional to transformational leadership: learning to share the vision. Organizational Dynamics, 18, (3), Winter, 1990, 19-31.
Ivancevich, J., Konopaske, R., Matteson, M. (2007). Organizational Behavior and Management. New York: McGraw-Hill Irwin.
Jago, A. G. (1982). Leadership: Perspectives in theory and research. Management Science, 28(3), 315-336.
Kouzes, James M. & Posner, Barry Z. (1987). The Leadership Challenge. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Lamb, L. F., McKee, K. B. (2004). Applied Public Relations: Cases in Stakeholder Management. Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Routledge.
Mischel, W. 1968. Personality and Assessment . New York: Wiley.
Newstrom, J. & Davis, K. (1993). Organization Behavior: Human Behavior at Work. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Northouse, G. (2007). Leadership theory and practice. (3rd ed.) Thousand Oak, London, New Delhe, Sage Publications, Inc.
Rowe, W. G. (2007). Cases in Leadership. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications
Stogdill, R. M.(1989). Stogdill's Handbook of Leadership: A Survey of Theory and Research. Bass, B. (ed.) New York: Free Press.
U.S. Army. (October 1983). Military Leadership (FM 22-100). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.
Bibliography
Collins, J. (January 2001). Level 5 Leadership: The Triumph of Humility and FierceResolve. Harvard Business Review.
Lord, R. G., De Vader, C. L., and Alliger, G. M. (August 1986). A Meta-Analysis of theRelation between Personality Traits and Leadership Perceptions: An Application ofValidity Generalization Procedures. Journal of Applied Psychology.
Mann, R. D. (July 1959). A Review of the Relationship between Personality andPerformance in Small Groups. Psychological Bulletin.
Stogdill, R. M. (1948). Personal Factors Associated with Leadership: A Survey of theLiterature. Journal of Applied Psychology.
Bass, Bernard (1990). From transactional to transformational leadership: learning to share the vision. Organizational Dynamics, 18, (3), Winter, 1990.
Ivancevich, J., Konopaske, R., Matteson, M. (2007). Organizational Behavior and Management. New York: McGraw-Hill Irwin.
Jago, A. G. (1982). Leadership: Perspectives in theory and research. Management Science.
Kouzes, James M. & Posner, Barry Z. (1987). The Leadership Challenge. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Lamb, L. F., McKee, K. B. (2004). Applied Public Relations: Cases in Stakeholder Management. Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Routledge.
Mischel, W. 1968. Personality and Assessment . New York: Wiley.
Newstrom, J. & Davis, K. (1993). Organization Behavior: Human Behavior at Work. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Northouse, G. (2007). Leadership theory and practice. (3rd ed.) Thousand Oak, London, New Delhe, Sage Publications, Inc.
Rowe, W. G. (2007). Cases in Leadership. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications
Stogdill, R. M.(1989). Stogdill's Handbook of Leadership: A Survey of Theory and Research. Bass, B. (ed.) New York: Free Press.
