4.1 Group Behavior and Nature of Groups

In an organization there are different groups and these groups act distinct to each other. A group is a number of people or things that are placed together. However there are different definitions given by different authors in defining what a group is.

According to author Charles Handy he defined a group as ‘any collection of people who recognizes themselves to be a group.’(1993)

On the other hand Marvin Shaw, he defined a group as ‘a group is defined as two or more people who collaborate with one another in a sense that each person persuades and is persuaded by each other.’(1981)

Generally groups are categorized into two main types named as Formal and Informal groups. Formal group is a type of group that is well-structured and a group established by management, subordinates or by representatives of an organization. These types of groups are established to take care of a particular task. The prime function of a formal group is to further the objectives and aims of the organization as introduced in mission statements and policies. Normally these types of groups work under a single supervisor. The following are the types of Formal groups,

* Command Groups; this is a type of group in which individuals report to a given manager. In other words this is a group containing both managers and their subordinates. * Committee Groups; Committee groups are more of a formal working group. In this type of formal group individuals are appointed to carried out to perform function on behalf of a large group. A function would be that they are appointed to resolve any issues or matters. For example; Advisory Committee, Standing Committee etc.

* Task Forces; this is a type of formal group that is formed to carry out an exact task. This group also consists a group of professionals in specified areas of knowledge.

Informal groups are groups that tend to be employee centered groups whose intentions may be distinct to those of the organization. In other words this is a group created by employees of an organization without a decree from management. These types of groups aren’t formally structured. In other words it consists of a loose structure and here the relationship between employees of the group are strong. For example if an employee is kicked out of his job, the individuals would go on a protest to support him. 4.1.1 The five-stage model
Any groups’ pass through the Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing and Adjourning stages. This is known as five-stage model.

1. Forming; this is the stage in which for the first time the group comes together. The individuals might know each or they can be total strangers. 2. Storming; this is the stage in which, when individuals are safe to share their opinion they tend to be more convincing and more opinionated. In other words it means there could be conflicts between the individuals

3. Norming; in this stage conflicts between individuals of the group are solved and standards are developed in this stage.

4. Performing; in this stage individuals have the capability of performing work independently as a total unit or in subgroups. Roles and authorities of the individuals adjust dynamically according to changes of needs of groups and individuals.

5. Adjourning; in this stages it individuals relationships between each other are disengaged and task behaviors are terminated.

4.2 Factors that promote development of effective teamwork in organizations

There are different factors that promote development of effective teamwork in an organization. These factors can be internal or external factors. The factors that promote development of effective teamwork are,

1. Communication; for effective and efficient teamwork to happen there has to be effective communication. This is because the individuals must know the responsibilities and targets of the business so when a challenge or conflicts arise, teams will use effective communication to engage and overcome the challenge or conflict.

2. Diversity; this factor promotes innovation and creativity and it raises awareness. Here teams embrace the diversity of cultures, personalities and talents. However due to the differences of the individuals can raise conflicts and if these conflicts aren’t managed properly it can be harmful.

3. Leadership; Leadership supports teamwork. This is because individuals are motivated by leaders and decisions are taken based on

4. Team-building exercises;

4.2.1 How to Promote Effective Teamwork in the Workplace.

Effective teamwork in an organization achieves more than an individual who does work on his/her own. This is because due to arising of challenges in work tasks and in order to resolve this you have to depend on different people with a wide range of expertise.

However in these kind of organizations factors such as diversity can create barriers to effective teamwork in the organization. So in order to solve this barrier the techniques that can be used are,

1. Give the power to make decision; Here when making decisions, normally leaders depend on knowledge of team members. Due to this reason collaboration is an ingredient for success. Giving the team to make decisions can be a great motivation for effective teamwork.

2. Clearly sharing the defined team objectives; if an organization wants to move towards one direction, individuals of the team need to know and clearly understand the destination.

3. Promote efficient and effective team meetings.

4. Showing individual progress to the whole team.