In light of the growing worldwide competition among industrial manufacturers as developing nations become more technologically viable, it becomes imperative that we, as a nation, become more conscious than ever of quality and productivity. Our most serious competitors, the Japanese, have developed a nationwide sense of quality consciousness and have evolved a management and manufacturing system to achieve their goals of superior quality that is currently unrivaled. One important element of their productive system is the concept of Quality Control (QC) circles; generally described as a problem solving group of working people, who as members of a team, identify, solve, and implement solutions to work-related problems. Circles have served to tap a vast reservoir of energy, productivity, and ingenuity among the Japanese workforce, aiding them in their quest for manufacturing and quality superiority. We must learn more about these circles, what they are, how they operate, what they can do for us, and how we, as a nation can apply them to our manufacturing problems. They have already been successfully transplanted into America by many firms and are achieving excellent gains in productivity, quality, and worker-management relations.

Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2001. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Team effectiveness will be crucial to the success of managers and their organisations in the twenty first century. Managers will have to determine the effectiveness of their teams with the help of valid and reliable measurement instruments. This study project was undertaken to design and develop a team effectiveness assessment instrument that has been proven to be internally valid and reliable, for use by managers in order to identify and develop team effectiveness in their work teams. The construction of the Team Effectiveness Measure (TEM) depended largely on the identification of the elements that are needed for a team to be effective. This was achieved by researching existing literature and extracting a list of elements that was common to effective teams. The resultant Team Effectiveness Criterion Instrument, used in conjunction with practical experience, was then used to construct the Preliminary TEM. The methodology used in constructing and validating the TEM consisted of five steps. The concept of team effectiveness was specified, by using the results of the literature study, which identified eight discernible dimensions of team effectiveness. These dimensions are: balanced composition, clear objectives and focus, positive climate, dynamic culture, effective relationships, open communication, sound procedures and effective leadership. The next step was to create a pool of items by using the findings of the literature study. This resulted in a total pool of one hundred items, which were included in the Preliminary TEM. The format of the TEM was then constructed, consisting of demographic information and a Semantic Differential Scale, with a seven point bipolar rating scale. The next step was to determine the construct validity of the TEM. Applying the Preliminary TEM to a sample group of one hundred and ninety six people, and subjecting the results to statistical analysis achieved this. The Item Total Correlation and Coefficient Alpha was determined, followed by a Factor Analysis, which led to the refinement of the Preliminary TEM. The end result was the final TEM, which consisted of three main factors and a total of thirty elements. The results of the analysis of the final TEM, being an extremely high Cronbach Coefficient -Alpha of 0.94, and a consistently high Item Total Correlation, is evidence of the internal consistency of the TEM. The results of the factor analysis, a loading of more than 0.6 on all items, reflect positively on the construct validity of the TEM. Only the items with the highest level of reliability were retained. The final conclusion, based on the results, was that the contents of the TEM were sufficiently validated and was usable as an instrument for assessing team effectiveness. This means that the results obtained from the use of the instrument can be trusted and used for making recommendations on the development of a team. It must however, be noted that the TEM needs to be subjected to further reliability and construct validity testing. This does not however, detract from the fact that the TEM can be used effectively as a measure for managers for team effectiveness, team functioning, identifying symptoms of poor team work that prohibits performance and for measuring the "temperature" of the team. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die sukses van bestuurders en organisasies in die een-en-twintigste eeu is deels afhanklik van die sukses en die effektiwiteit van hul werkspanne. Bestuurders sal geldige en betroubare meetinstrumente nodig hê om te bepaal op watter vlak van effektiewe werking hulle spanne is. Die doel van hierdie studie projek was om 'n meetsinstrument vir spaneffektiwiteit te ontwerp en ontwikkel, wat getoets is vir interne geldigheid en betroubaarheid. Die meetinstrument moet gebruik kan word deur bestuurders om spaneffektiwiteit te indentifiseer en ontwikkel. Dit was belangrik om eers die elemente wat nodig is vir spanne om effektief te funksioneer, te identifiseer, deur gebruik te maak van 'n literatuurstudie oor spaneffektiwiteit. Die bestaande literatuur is gebruik om 'n lys van elemente te identifiseer wat algemeen in effektiewe spanne voorkom. Hierdie lys van elemente, sowel as praktiese ervaring, is gebruik om die Voorlopige Spaneffektiwiteits Meetinstrument (TEM) op te stel. Die metedologie wat gebruik is, is om 'n vyf stap benadering te volg in die ontwikkeling van die TEM. Eerstens is die konsep van spaneffektiwiteit gespesifiseer, deur gebruik te maak van die resultate van die literatuur studie. Agt dimensies is as volg geidentifiseer: Gebalanseerde samestelling, duidelike doelwitte en fokus, positiewe klimaat, dinamiese kultuur, effektiewe verhoudinge, oop kommunikasie, gevestigde prosedure, en goeie leierskap. In die volgende stap is 'n poel van items saamgestel deur gebruik te maak van die bevindinge van die literatuurstudie. In totaal is 100 items ingesluit in die Voorlopige TEM. Volgende aan die beurt was die opstel van die formaat van die TEM, wat bestaan het uit demografiese inligting, sowel as 'n Semanties Differensiële Skaal met 'n sewe punt bipolêre skaal. Dit is gevolg deur die vastelling van die konstruk geldigheid van die TEM, deur die toepassing van die vraelys op 196 mense en die statistese verwerking van die resultate. Die Item Totaal Korrelasie en die Koëffisient Alfa is bepaal en dit is gevolg deur 'n Faktor Analise. Hierdie resultate is gebruik om die TEM te verfyn tot 'n instrument met drie hoof faktore en 'n totaal van dertig items. Bewyse vir die interne konsekentheid van die TEM is verkry deur die hoë Cronbach Koëffisient van 0.94, en 'n deurlopende hoë Item Totaal Korrelasie. Die resultate van die Faktor Analise was 'n deurlopende hoë telling van meer as 0.6, wat positief reflekteer op die konstruk geldigheid van die TEM. Slegs die items met die hoogste vlak van betroubaarheid is gekies vir insluiting in die finale TEM. Dit alles dui daarop dat die resultate wat vekry gaan word deur die toepassing van die TEM op spanne, vertrou kan word en gebruik kan word om aanbevelings te maak vir die ontwikkeling van die span. Daar moet egter genoem word dat verdere betroubaarheid en konstruk geldigheid studies nodig sal wees op die TEM, aangesien die TEM slegs vir interne geldigheid getoets is. Die resultate van die analise is egter bevredigend genoeg dat die TEM met vertroue gebruik kan word deur bestuurders om die vlak van ontwikkeling en effektiwiteit van hul spanne te kan bepaal.

Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: As organisations expand internationally and continue to conduct business across different time zones and geographical boundaries, distributed project and organisational teams have become increasingly prevalent. Rather than meet face-to-face, developments in information and communication technology have made it possible for these team members to interact electronically thereby creating an alternative means for team member collaboration. Teams that collaborate in this manner are called virtual teams. This study explored effective leadership practice in virtual teams. The process of exploration started with discovering those core competencies considered essential to virtual team leadership. These competencies were then operationalised and tested for their respective contributions to effectiveness in virtual teams as measured by team performance and personal satisfaction. It was suggested and subsequently confirmed by the results of this study that as virtual team leaders begin to display essential leadership competencies, the virtual teams they lead become more effective. Four leadership competencies were identified as integral to effective leadership practice. These were: an ability to coordinate task delivery, an ability to communicate, an ability to build trust and an ability to manage multicultural diversity. In addition, it was determined that virtual team leaders tended to emphasise the more transactional forms of leadership over the more transformational forms with the strongest emphasis on task and communication as predictors of performance rather than satisfaction. In contrast, team members emphasised the more transformational forms of leadership with the strongest emphasis on trust and diversity management as predictors of satisfaction rather than performance. It was also apparent that for team members, task coordination was weakly correlated with performance. These differing results illustrate a distinction in leadership emphasis, which if misunderstood or incorrectly managed, could lead to conflict and low levels of team trust. For team leaders, a desire to perform and deliver against team objectives has an associated risk of inadvertently emphasising task at the expense of fostering healthy team relationships. By comparison, team members emphasise personal satisfaction over performance and are potentially at odds with a strongly taskorientated team leader. This does not mean that team members are disinterested in team performance. On the contrary, performance is important to team members but it would seem that performance follows as a result of first experiencing satisfaction as a virtual team participant.

published_or_final_version / Real Estate and Construction / Master / Master of Science in Construction Project Management

<p>The use of one form or another of team based work organization (TBWO) management policies and practices by firms with the aim of improving organizational performance and employee morale is well documented in popular literature. Empirical research has however found that the implementation of TBWO management policies and practices such as TB training, TB incentive schemes, participation in decision making, work teams etc. had minimal influence on the performance of firms (Locke and Schweiger, 1979).<br /> This research investigated the factors, which account for the effective implementation of TBWO management policies and practices with specific emphasis on three firms in the metal fabrications sector. The reason behind the choice of the three firms in the metal fabrication sector in the Western Cape was that these sites offered a rare opportunity to study the process of the implementation of TBWO. It was a rare opportunity because not many firms have embarked on implementing TBWO in South Africa. It was envisaged that the lessons that emerged from this study would be invaluable for firms that intended implementing workplace change. The level of analysis was the shop floor level at the firms as research has shown that this is the level that plays a critical role in the effectiveness of the TB management policies and practices implemented by the firms.</p>

This thesis investigates whether certain practices improve the use of video-mediated communication; specifically video-mediated gazing (the act of looking directly into the camera) and face-to-face familiarisation prior to video-mediated meetings. This is done through comparisons of conditions where such practices are employed and control conditions. The successful adoption of these practices is assessed using a multi-level approach: investigating the communicative process, participant perceptions and task outcome. Participant perceptions are directed towards assessing the media, assessing other participants using the media, perceptions of task performance and communicative success, and perceptions of social co-presence. In cases where task outcome is assessed, an objective measurement of performance is taken. Communicative process is assessed through investigating participants use of gazing behaviour and verbal aspects of process: for example turn length, dialogue length and the numper of interruptions. Verbal aspects of process are also measured using Conversational Games analysis, where the functions of participants' utterances are assessed. The results show that participants who gaze at the camera are perceived more favourably. Accompanying speech with video-mediated gazing also results in improved recall of information. Face-to-face familiarisation alters participant perceptions of others using the media and feelings of social co-presence. It is concluded that for certain applications (specifically social tasks) and with an appropriate level of training (specifically with the use of video-mediated gazing) the use of such strategies benefits video-mediated communication.

A popular approach to operating organizations in the 1990s is the implementation of work teams. The current literature offers little information on the use of performance management techniques in work team settings. This case study examined the effects of employing a performance improvement strategy on employee performance in a work team environment comprised of part-time graduate students. The performance improvement strategy included composing job descriptions, job aids (e.g., work organization charts), task request logs and posting weekly and monthly performance feedback. Improvements were observed in some aspects of team performance. Some of the improvement was due to task clarification and improved scheduling produced by the antecedent interventions. Performance feedback had little effect on measured performance but seemed to facilitate discussion and problem-solving.

In the study of team-based organizations most of the research has focus on the internal make-up and structure of teams. Recently there has been more interest in the effects that environment has on teams. With this new focus Support Systems in organizations have become an area of interest. Examining the perceptions of workers with respect to support systems of organizations could give insight into performance. This study specifically examines the interaction between a team's shared perception of the support in their environment and the level of support in their environment. The interaction between the two does seem to have a strong relationship with perceived performance. How do the two concepts interact, and what does this mean for organizational designers? Both questions are discussed.

Using a manufacturing setting that is organized into self-managed teams, the current study identified and measured key leadership behaviors within the teams. Questions that were asked include: are some team leadership behaviors more critical to a team's level of functioning than other behaviors? and do successful self-managed teams rely on formal leadership to a lesser extent than members of less successful teams? These questions were asked in the context of leadership as a process, not an individual.

An abundance of theories exists on what constitutes appropriate team leadership; What seems to be lacking is how the "followers" react when exposed to their tenets. This particular study involves testing a contemporary model (Stewart & Manz, 1995) via interview statements that seem to indicate that a certain form of team leadership is taking place. Once determined, the effectiveness of the leadership "style" that is in effect is assessed using ten different performance dimensions to determine if that style is successful (or detrimental) in any of those areas. Leadership "tools" from other theories and models are examined as well.