Groups, Teams, and Conflict

Groups, Team Formation and Conflicts Name: Instructor: Date: Team Strategy Riordan Manufacturing will continue to the production of plastic parts, but the production of heat valve will be a new venture for the company. This will require organizing a new team composed of employees working in the main plant and also new employees, the team must also work to attain the same goal. For this venture to succeed there is a need to create a team strategy plan which will have benefits and challenges in adoption. The creation of these new teams is likely to be challenging and the team leaders need to have good negotiation skills in order to minimize conflicts among team members. Equally, the implementation of a conflict management plan has inherent strength and weaknesses in team building. The team strategies ought to complement the company’s objectives and should also be understood by all team members. The objectives should in turn be complementary to the company’s mission which is to continue being the leader in plastic manufacture, with the provision of solutions to existing customers whilst also enlarging the customer base (Riordan Manufacturing, 2009). As a superintendent in Riordan Manufacturing there are numerous strategies including clear expectations of goals, conflict resolution, consequences, channels of communication and celebrating achievement as a team. Nonetheless, there are barriers to team formation including lack of appropriate communication channel, power struggles and personality conflicts. The clear expectation of goals is the most appropriate for Riordan Manufacturing. This is because the team has people from diverse backgrounds who ought to identify with similar goals. In the Clear expectation goals strategy members understand project goals additionally; it is possible to determine whether the team achieves set objectives. The main challenge is that all team members must agree to the same ideals for this strategy to be effective. Open Channels of communication minimize the likelihood of conflicts and enhance better working relationships among team members. Team members get to understand there clearly defined roles when there is open communication. This strategy puts so much emphasis on relationships and may relegate efficiency to the peripheral. Another appropriate strategy is when team members know consequences they are inspired to be innovative. Additionally, team members are held accountable in case of neglect. The main drawback is that when members are not held responsible for there actions they can avoid consequences. Conflict resolution minimizes mistrust among team members as they are likely to work harmoniously in future ventures. This strategy may be hard to implement due to diverse cultural backgrounds, work experiences and personalities. Nonetheless, there might be tension and resentment among team members when not handled properly. Celebrating achievement as a team motivates team members and thus enhances productivity in the company. However, this strategy ignores individual success and input. There may also be lack of cooperation in future when individuals feel that they are not duly recognized. Conflict management plan There is no generally accepted definition of conflict, but according to Miller (2009) many definitions point out that conflicts occur where there incompatible goals between people or parties. Conflicts in Riordan manufacturing new team could take numerous forms. This could be due to diverse value orientations, labor relations, and distribution of roles, payroll and benefits. Nonetheless, incompatibility mainly breeds conflict when the behaviors of team members are interdependent. There are five ways to resolve conflicts between David and James in Riordan Manufacturing including avoidance, accommodation, compromise, collaboration and competition (Zartman & Faure, 2005). In order to have a successful productive team it is essential that conflicts are well managed, whereby David and James should be encouraged to collaborate to build long term working relations. Alternatively, the team ought to encourage collaboration between the two employees as this builds trust. Accommodating is high in competition and low in assertiveness, the strategy also works when a party chooses inaction and thus indirectly satisfies the interests of the other. It is best when there are short time limits and short term goals. The main challenge is that it inhibits innovation and creativity. Competing is the complete opposite of accommodation; it is low in competition and high in assertiveness. One party dominates the other to the extent that they perpetuate self interests over the other party. This strategy is best suited when decision making ought to be quick. Competition provides motivation for the winners as it is challenging. The main challenge is that it ignores the decisions and input of one party. It is based on a winner takes all basis which ignores other possible alternatives. Another strategy parties is through compromise where one party is reasonably cooperative and assertive. This strategy is likened to collaboration but resolution must be reached where none of the parties appears to have an upper hand as the solution must be mutual exclusive. It is mostly applicable where parties have similar interests and goals; the main weakness of this strategy is that neither party is completely satisfied about the outcome. Avoiding shuns and ignores conflict as there is little cooperation and assertiveness. A member of the team refuses to engage in conflict resolution to the extent that interests of the other party remain unattained. This could take the form of either postponing conflict situations or completely withdrawing. This is mostly applicable for inconsequential matters; it may worsen tension in a team When there is Collaboration, one party works with other in order to find a solution suitable for the mutual interests of both parties. The main benefit of this strategy is that there is lack of emotive confrontations between team members. The main challenges are that the strategy leads to mistrust as it allows confli...