1. Consequences of Dissimilar Group Members Advantages –richer pool of information –greater opportunity for learning from difference –potential division of labor –lower risk of group-think –broader buy-in Disadvantages –higher start-up costs –time consuming –greater conflict –potential marginalization –ambiguous responsibility

2. Consequences of Similar Group Members Advantages –lower start-up costs –more group cohesion –greater “efficiency” –greater validation of solution –less conflict Disadvantages –fewer unique perspectives –solution-mindedness –tendency to groupthink –limited capacity to learn from differences

3. Individual Strategies for “Minority” Influence Express yourself--you owe it to your group. Differentiate your position clearly and provide solid justifications for it Demand a full explanation of alternative positions Refer to group, rather than personal, outcomes Consider your own motives. Choose your fights.

4. Group Strategies for Surfacing Unique Perspectives Develop norms that require universal participation (e.g., check-in at beginning of meeting) Encourage disagreement (but not acrimony) View defining problem as a critical task Recheck opinions of all members before finalizing a decision

5. Common Group Decision Biases Common information effect: little time for sharing unique information Abilene Paradox: group agreements don’t coincide with any individual preference Groupthink: group cohesion valued over quality of decision outcome Risky Shift: group judgments are more extreme than individual judgments

6. Important Issues for Teams: Team Handbook Who are we? What do we want to accomplish? How can we organize ourselves to meet our goals? How will we operate? How can we continuously learn and improve?

7. Organizing Our Team Work structure –Specify task, deadlines, and goals –Allocate work, responsibilities, and deliverables Roles –process: facilitating, timekeeping, recording –task: planning, overseeing outputs, managing contingencies Norms –meetings, leadership, communication, decision-making –norms around changing norms (ongoing and periodic feedback)

8. Operating as a Team Agenda: time, place, purpose, items to be covered, preparation needed, outputs expected Brainstorming: allow time, encourage creativity, record all ideas, don’t evaluate Decision-making: agree on method and on mechanisms and times for changing method Communicating across differences: –use check-ins and check-outs –use visual displays and notes –recognize different cultures and languages

9. Critical Clues *** Rick Rooney Exonerates Mickey Malone (3-4) Millie Smith (at coffee shop & golf course) *** Dave Daniels Exonerates Billy Prentice (1) (quiet car drops wallet) *** (next) Marion Guion Implicates Eddie Sullivan (2) (truck not in carport, 6:40 a.m.) *** (next) Billy Prentice Implicates Eddie Sullivan *** (truck in carport, 8:00 a.m.)