Understanding communication,

teambuilding and motivation

Diploma in Management NVQ Workshop 2

14th April 2016

Bev Gilder and Diane Eaton

Objectives for workshop• Review how you communicate at work • Understand how teams grow and develop• Understand how to build an effective team• Understand the Belbin team type diagnostic• Understand what motivates people at work• How to deal with demotivation• Understanding change and its effect on motivation• Understand how deal with conflict in the workplace

Links to relevant mandatory units

• M & L L3 Unit 15 • M & L L5 Unit 26 Unit 24• Plus additional optional units through out

Communication – linear model

‘transmission of information, ideas, attitudes, or emotion from one person to another, primarily through symbols’.

… is dependent on the quality of the linkages between the various elements in the process

(Shannon and Weaver 1949)

Linear model of communication (Shannon and Weaver )

Linear model – a ‘done to’ process• Sender: the message creator.• Encoding: the process of putting thoughts into messages

through the creation of content and symbols.• Decoding: the process of interpreting and assigning meaning

to a message.• Message: the transmitted information.• Channel: the medium through which the message passes.• Receiver: the target of the sender and collector of the

message.• Noise: those distractions which interfere with the

transmission of the message

Transactional model… a ‘do with’ process ‘both people involved in the interaction are communicators, and instead of the process illustrated as linear, it becomes circular in its function. Thus the process is an exchange. The two people engaged constantly respond to each other by initiating messages and sending responses back and forth’ (DeFleur, 2005).

Transactional model

Communication cycle

Exercise- 4 Identify blockages …and devise ways to over come them• Group 1 – Written from the readers

perspective• Group 2 – Written from the writers

perspective• Group 3 – Face to face or phone from listeners

perspective • Group 4 – Face to face from speakers

perspective

Body Language

Body Language… look for shifts

• Facial Expressions

• Gestures

• Posture

• Body position

• Use of space

Body Language… look for

• Context…..history, physical environment ?• Clusters….look and listen to the whole person.• Congruence…..is there a discrepancy with

words and non verbal message ?

Rapport

Is being able to relate to others in a way that creates a climate of trust and understanding What signals do we look for in others when we communicate with them?

How we use language ?

• Big picture v small picture ?• Visually – what you see• By sounds – what you hear• By feelings – what you sense and can feel,

taste or smell.• By how you talk to yourself • Language is subjective !!

Representational system quiz

Visual thinkers• Talk quickly• See memories as pictures• Breathe from top of lungs• Need minimum detail• Get bored quickly• Interested in how things ‘look’• Think in bigger picture• Like to be ‘shown things’• Will change subject • Use words like

See how you go….

Looking on

the bright

side….

Its very clear to see…

Things look a bit

foggy to meImagine winning…..

Catch a glimpse of…

Take a peek at…

In view of……

Tunnel vision

Auditory thinkers• Easily distracted by noise• Love the phone and music• Breathe from middle of chest• May talk to themselves.• May repeat what you have said to them• Tone of voice is very important• Like steps and procedures• Love to be told how they are doing• Love stories • Use words like……….

I want to hear what you have to say….

I think they are very tuned in…

I really want to be heard

That sounds great

To tell the truthUnheard of

Utterly useless

Loud and clear

KINAESTHETIC- FEELINGS THINKERS• Includes taste and smells• Want to know how things feel• May talk slowly• Breathe lower• Respond to physical rewards• Memorise by doing something or walking it

through.• Speak deliberately• Will want the details• Think things through

I feel this is the right thing to do

I need to get a hold of this

Lets tap into….

This is a solid idea

It may have slipped through the net

I got into a scrape

It will catch on soon

Analytical thinker• Spend time processing internally• May talk to themselves out loud• Will look for things to make sense• Logical and process driven• May want extensive details• May talk in long sentences• Memorise by steps• Often uses the language of logic and business

Exercise…

• Consider who you communicate with• Is it informal or formal ?• Is it a stakeholder ?• How do you communicate ?• Is that the only and best way?• What could be the advantages or

disadvantages of how you do so .

Types of listening Active Listening is when you are concentrating on the

message being given by the other person Passive Listening is when you find yourself waiting for

the other person to stop speaking so that you can say something yourself

Communication Activity

How good a listener are you?

Barriers to effective listening

Active listening

Open questions ….tell me about …explain more about …

Other communication challenges

• Cognitive• Learning disabilities• Physical impairments• Language barriers• Cultural nuances

……. Begin to think about how you solve them ?

Motivation

Exercise ….………why are you doing your job ?

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs• People are motivated to act in order to meet or satisfy a

need. • Understanding your motivation is part of self awareness• Understanding others helps build teams and understand

each other• Maslow believed that all humans have a drive to reach

their full potential, which he called self-actualisation. • It is hierarchical.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Physiological

Self-actualisation

HungerThirstSleep Warmth

Safety

SecurityProtectionShelter

Social

AffiliationBelongingAcceptanceSocialisingFriendshipLove

Self-esteem

PowerStatusRespectAppreciationRecognition

AchievementAttainmentCompetencePersonalDevelopmentCreativitySelf-fulfilment

Herzberg’s Two Factor Theory

• Company policy and administration

• Supervision• Working relationships• Status and security

• Achievement• Recognition• The work itself• Responsibility• Advancement and

growth

Hygiene Factors Motivators

Extrinsic / Intrinsic motivation

• Extrinsic motivators arise from outside the individual. We are motivated to perform to receive an award or avoid punishment

• Intrinsic motivators are from within the individual. We are motivated to perform because we find it personally rewarding / satisfying

Demotivation – What is it?

• What demotivates you / your team?

• Identify 10 demotivators for you and your team. Rank them 1 -10 (1 being most important).

Why are we cautious about change ?......

Because we know people (ourselves and others) can react badly and it cause disruption and upset and often the future feels uncertain

Why people resist change• Loss of control• Personal uncertainty• Concern about competence• More work / less work• Past resentments• Real perceived threats• Past experiences of change• Lack of information or skill• Not understanding why ?

Types of change• Enforced change – we don’t choose it at the

time • Willing change – we choose to make the

change

The Transition Curve

The transition curve - the emotional response

People have four main areas of need:• They must understand the changes• They must be given the opportunity to

learn new skills• Communication is very important • They need to be supported and encouraged

to deal with problems• They need empathy and understanding

Ways we often show resistance

• Disagree with the plan• Criticise the change and or the plan• Fail to actually do the changes• Argue amongst ourselves• Shut down and withdraw from past

behaviours

Some responses to change at work

• Entrenched – “if I sit tight this may never happen”

• Overwhelmed – anxious and feel powerless• Posers – confident but may not be self aware

or able.• Learners – prepared to give it a go, still feel

stretched, resilient

Teams need to be resilient too

• Positive• Focused• Flexible• Organised• Proactive • Building and combining on strengths of all

members

A definition of a team

A team is a small number of people with complementary skills who are committed to a common purpose, performance goals and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable.

As defined by Katzenbach and Smith

Types of teams• project teams: teams set up to plan and

control a project which may carry on for months or even years

• ad-hoc teams: teams set up as taskforces or working parties to deal with specific issues

Types of teams• organisational teams: any fairly loose

groupings in an organisation, e.g. top management team

• work teams: teams formed of people who are dependent on one another to deliver the specified results for which the team has been formed

Team effectiveness framework• Goals

Clear, understood and communicated, SMART• Roles

Understanding of individual’s tasks, responsibilities and limits of authority

• ProcessesCommunication, decision making, problem solving

• RelationshipsFeedback, integrity, trust, courtesy, valuing differences

Keys to an effective team• High success rate- achieves • Agrees clear, challenging

objectives- everyone contributes, shares understanding and commitment

• Has an effective leader: who adjusts their style

• Has a good mix of people: who contribute in different ways

• Balances concern for the task (the what) and concern for process (the how)

• Creates a supportive environment where people are happy to take risks, say what they think, develop each other’s ideas, commit to group action

• Learns from experience by reviewing and improving performance: successes and failures

• Works hard and plays hard: enjoys itself whilst achieving objectives and results

Stages of group development • Forming: testing and dependence

• Storming: inter-team conflict

• Norming: development of team cohesion

• Performing: high performance team!Tuckman

FormingTask orientation Group processes Ways of assisting

what is task?grumbling about the settingmutual exchange of information little work

anxietysuspicionexcitementpridefearoptimismPoliteness

what must we do?visibility of leaderwhat are we expected to achieve?ask: why are we here?

StormingTask orientation Group processes Ways of assisting

resisting the validity of the tasksetting of unrealistic goals

conflict emerges between sub-groups

open recognition of conflict/angerallow members to challenge in a constructive wayleadershipteambuilding work

NormingTask orientation Group processes Ways of assisting

asking and giving opinionsability to express feelings to help the taskplans are made and work objectives identified

group cohesion developsnorms emergegroup full of energytalk about how to get things done

allow time for members to worktalkassign challenging problems

PerformingTask orientation Group processes Ways of assisting

strong goal orientationinsight and understanding

clear but flexible rolesfrequently examines the process of workingsatisfactionteam closes to new members

let them do it and join in if appropriate

Team Roles

The self-perception inventory

Developed by Dr Meredith Belbin and based on extensive studies of teams at the Administrative Staff College, Henley

Belbin’s team roles

May have problems where:

• there are gaps in the team• one person is taking on too many roles• a person is taking on the wrong role

How to use Belbin’s team roles positively

• review roles descriptions

• identify examples of roles being taken in your team

• identify the gaps, i.e. any roles that appear to be missing in your team

• identify what you can do to “plug” these gaps, (e.g. developing skills)

What is conflict?

 

• Disagreement between two or more parties who perceive they have incompatible concerns

• Exists whenever an action by one party is perceived as preventing or interfering with goals, needs or actions of another party

Dysfunctional Conflict What are the causes?What is the damaging effects?Can you eliminate the causes?Can you prevent them in the future prevent them re-occurring in the future

Functional Conflict Can stimulate resolution of problems Can drives up quality and standards. Keeps people and organisations from slipping into complacency

Conflict – useful or not ?

What are causes of conflict?

• Personality clashes / warring egos• Stress• Heavy Workload / inadequate resources• Poor leadership at top of organisation• Lack of honesty and openness• Poor line management• Lack of role clarity / differing expectations • Resistance to changes

CONFLICT MANAGEMENT STYLES

COMPETING COLLABORATING

AVOIDANCE ACCOMMODATING

Assertive

Unassertive

Uncooperative Co-operative

COMPROMISING

Management styles for dealing with conflict

• Competing (one party assertive and uncooperative)

• Collaborating (both parties assertive and co-operative)

• Avoiding (one party unassertive and uncooperative)

• Accommodating (one party unassertive and co-operative)

• Compromising (both parties are mid-range on both dimensions)

Source: Thomas, K (1976)

Handling conflict: a problem solving approach

• Getting agreement on what the problem is

• Jointly analysing the causes of the conflict

• Identify alternative means for dealing with the issue

• Jointly evaluating the merits of each alternative from the perspectives of both parties

Handling conflict: a problem solving approach

• Working through the alternatives to find the one closest to meeting the needs of everyone concerned

• Agreeing how the preferred solution can be implemented to the satisfaction of both parties

Common Sense Motivation• ENCOURAGE initiative and responsibility • INFORM people about the job as a whole. Keep

them in the picture • Explain why the task is being done.• INVOLVE people in decisions relating to their work

PRAISE work well done and show that you have confidence in people.

• SET STANDARDS of quality and quantity • LISTEN to each other• DEMONSTRATE EMPATHY for each other and the

customers.

Next workshop …

• 17th May • Communicating with stakeholders• Planning and prioritising• People management- Performance

management, HR , compensation and benefits well being , skills development