ORGANIZATION TEAMS QUESTIONS 2

Organization Teams Questions

What are the advantages and disadvantages of a cross-functional and a cross-departmental
team?
Advantages
 There is increased effectiveness in performance of tasks because team members possess
different knowledge and skills.
 There is better communication in the team if they are centrally organized

Disadvantages
 There is lack of ownership of mistakes as there is no specific responsibilities for each of
the departments involved in the team.
When resources are scarce and one group in the equation meets their goals at the expense
of the other failing due to lack of resources, how would you address the conflict that could
arise?
The best way to address the conflict that may arise from skewed distribution of resources
in a team is to encourage teamwork and resource-sharing. The two groups should be made to
understand that they either succeed all or fail all. With such mentality, they will be ready to share
resources so that they all succeed.
When creating the objectives for the team, how should the target goals be set? Should the
team members play an active role in setting the target goals for each group within the
team? Explain.

ORGANIZATION TEAMS QUESTIONS 3
When setting goals there should be one or two ultimate goals that all team members
should strive to achieve. Then there should be minor sub-goals whose achievement helps in the
attainment of the ultimate goal. The overall goal should be set by the manager or leader of the
team. However, for the mini-goals that help in the achievement of the overall goal, team
members should contribute in their formulation. Their participation in setting such goals is
important because it creates strong buy-in from team members.
What conflict resolution techniques do you believe would be the most effective in a cross-
departmental or cross-functional team? How would you alter these techniques for a virtual
team?
The best conflict resolution technique for cross-departmental or cross-functional teams is
effective communication. Most conflicts in such teams arise from lack of clear directions and
expectations of each group. With proper communication, everyone will know what is expected
of them within the team. The communication should be done through regular joint meetings. The
technique is effective even when dealing with virtual teams. The only change would be the
means of communication. Instead of face-to-face communication, the communication will be
conducted via phones and Skype.