Case 7: The Forgotten Group Members The OB course for the semester appeared to p

Question

Case 7: The Forgotten Group Members

The OB course for the semester appeared to promise the opportunity to learn, enjoy, and practice some of the theories and principles in the textbook and class discussions. Christine Spencer was a devoted, hard-working student who had been maintaining an A- average to date. Although the skills and knowledge she had acquired through her courses were important, she was also very concerned about her grades. She felt that grades were paramount in giving her a competitive edge when looking for a job and, as a third-year student, she realized that she’d soon be doing just that. Sunday afternoon. Two o’clock. Christine was working on an accounting assignment but didn’t seem to be able to concentrate. Her courses were working out very well this semester, all but the OB. Much of the mark in that course was to be based on the quality of groupwork, and so she felt somewhat out of control. She recollected the events of the past five weeks. Professor Sandra Thiel had divided the class into groups of five people and had given them a major group assignment worth 30 percent of the final grade. The task was to analyze a seven-page case and to come up with a written analysis. In addition, Sandra had asked the groups to present the case in class, with the idea that the rest of the class members would be “members of the board of directors of the company” who would be listening to how the manager and her team dealt with the problem at hand. Christine was elected team coordinator at the first group meeting. The other members of the group were Diane, Janet, Steve, and Mike. Diane was quiet and never volunteered suggestions, but when directly asked she would come up with high-quality ideas. Mike was the clown. Christine remembered that she had suggested that the group should get together before every class to discuss the day’s case. Mike had balked, saying “No way!! This is an eight-thirty class, and I barely make it on time anyway! Besides, I’ll miss my Happy Harry show on television!” The group couldn’t help but laugh at his indignation. Steve was the businesslike individual, always wanting to ensure that group meetings were guided by an agenda and noting the tangible results achieved or not achieved at the end of every meeting. Janet was the reliable one who would always have more for the group than was expected of her. Christine saw herself as meticulous and organized and as a person who tried to give her best in whatever she did. It was now week five into the semester, and Christine was deep in thought about the OB assignment. She had called everyone to arrange a meeting for a time that would suit them all, but she seemed to be running into a roadblock. Mike couldn’t make it, saying that he was working that night as a member of the campus security force. In fact, he seemed to miss most meetings and would send in brief notes to Christine, which she was supposed to discuss for him at the group meetings. She wondered how to deal with this. She also remembered the incident last week. Just before class started, Diane, Janet, Steve, and she were joking with one another before class. They were laughing and enjoying themselves before Sandra came in. No one noticed that Mike had slipped in very quietly and taken his seat unobtrusively. She recalled the cafeteria incident. Two weeks ago, she had gone to the cafeteria to grab something to eat. She had rushed to her accounting class and had skipped breakfast. When she got her club sandwich and headed to the tables, she saw her OB group and joined them. The discussion was light and enjoyable as it always was when they met informally. Mike had come in. He’d approached their table. “You guys didn’t say you were having a group meeting,” he blurted. Christine was taken aback. We just happened to run into each other. Why not join us?” Mike looked at them noncommittally. “Yeah . . . right,” he muttered, and walked away. Sandra Thiel had frequently told them that if there were problems in the group, the members should make an effort to deal with them first. If the problems could not be resolved, she had said that they should come to her. Mike seemed so distant, despite the apparent camaraderie of the first meeting. An hour had passed, bringing the time to 3:00 p.m., and Christine found herself biting the tip of her pencil. The written case analysis was due next week. All the others had done their designated sections, but Mike had just handed in some rough handwritten notes. He had called Christine the week before, telling her that in addition to his course and his job, he was having problems with his girlfriend. Christine empathized with him. Yet, this was a group project! Besides, the final mark would be peer evaluated. This meant that whatever mark Sandra gave them could be lowered or raised, depending on the group’s opinion about the value of the contribution of each member. She was definitely worried. She knew that Mike had creative ideas that could help to raise the overall mark. She was also concerned for him. As she listened to the music in the background, she wondered what she should do.

Required:

1.How could an understanding of the stages of group development assist Christine in leadership situations such as this one? Write 150 words.

2.What should Christine understand about individual membership in groups in order to build group processes that are supportive of her work group’s performance? Write 150 words

3. Is Christine an effective group leader in this case? Why or why not? Write 150 words.

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Explanation / Answer

According to Tuckman, the five stages of group development include forming, storming, norming, performing and adjourning. In this case, Christine has successfully understood the group members Diane, Janet, Steve, and Mike. They get to know each other and share their interests as in the forming stage. Christine starts to work with the group but faces obstacles on conducting meetings after the class hours with mike deviating from her plan. Christine is able to separate the roles and responsibilities of the group members and their tasks in the case as in the storming stage. Christine understands the individuals in the group in a better manner and respects each other's opinions. They meet informally and discuss their work progress as in the norming stage. When it comes to the performing stage, Christine plays the role of an effective leader monitoring the progress of the case in the group as the deadline is due in a week. All group members except Mike are working on their assigned tasks. Finally, Christine has the task of Mike pending with his rough notes to finish the case as in the adjourning stage.
The group meets informally and speaks casually. The group members join together to have fun in the campus and canteen. Based on these incidents, Christine is able to understand the individual behavior to a certain extent. Diane was quite without volunteering but had ideas on asking her. Janet was reliable and does her job perfectly. Steve was businesslike and wants the group to meet often. Christine faces a problem with mike but he conveys that he works and has troubles with her girlfriend. Mike seems distant from the group. After analyzing each individual performance in the case, Christine understands the problem of Mike and must help him with his work in order to perform as a successful group. Christine must understand the individual performance in a group is enhanced with helping behavior such as altruism, interpersonal helping, courtesy, peacemaking, cheerleading, conscientiousness, civic virtue and self-development. These are essential for building group processes and succeed as a group solving the case.  
Christine is an effective group leader as she communicates with all members and understands their interests. Christine is able to meet the group members whenever time permits in an informal manner. She is able to assign tasks to each group member. She understands the group members well and knows their strengths. She is able to unite them as a group in several incidents. She gets the casework done from the group members except for Mike. Christine wants to utilize the creative ideas from Mike. She shows patience and shows empathy towards Mike after listening to his problems. She handles other group members with respect and guides them through the group work and updates the progress made in the case. She is transparent to the group members. These are all qualities of an effective leader. All of the group members including the conflicting Mike report to Christine during the last stage of the case, indicating that she has become an effective leader in taking up the responsibility.

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