Imagine that you are playing the saxophone in a jazz band. You know when it’s your turn to lead and when to harmonize. You also know what should be the level of your pitch, and when other instruments join in to play their piece. Coordination flows seamlessly.
The perfect fusion of every instrument in the orchestra creates a magical rendition satisfying the senses of the players and the audience.
Be it Jazz, Rock, or Pop, the music sounds celestial when the individual contribution complements the group effort.
This is how group dynamics work.
Everyone is at the top of their game, improvising and fine-tuning for the perfection of the group objective.
What are Group Dynamics?
Kurt Lewin, a social psychologist and change management expert, coined the term “group dynamics” in the early 1940s. His theory explains that “people often take on distinct roles and behaviors when they work in a group”. Group dynamics analyses the effects of these specific roles and behaviors on other group members, and on the group as a whole.
In other words, group dynamics refers to the attitudinal and behavioral characteristics of a group. It is concerned with the structure and functions of the groups formed and the processes involved in the group’s dynamics.
Conceptually, group dynamics is a model of how a group can work by sharing authority. An individual within the group is just as important as the leader because leadership is shared for the greater benefit of the organization. Each member can become the leader, and each leader has the opportunity to become a supporter of the group.
Leadership with a collective effort should ensure that it fulfills the group objectives.
How can group dynamics be applied to management?
Two heads may not necessarily be better than one all the time because of the probability of a conflict of interest. And when there are many in a group, you can imagine the chaos it could make if there is no coordination or consensus.
People form groups to accomplish a larger objective in an organization. The strategies and policies formulated by the management may, at times, do not sync well with the group members causing disruptions and defer the end results.
This may be due to various reasons.
The group leaders are responsible to create a conducive work environment for the members to achieve the desired goals.
One skill you need as a manager is the ability to facilitate. It is all about facilitating a platform to solve business problems.
Some commonly known hurdles are conflicts and individual differences that are hindrances to a collaborative working condition. In working with groups, there are some techniques that the facilitator needs to know.
Let’s explore these to understand how group dynamics can be applied to management.
Resolving Conflicts
Just as every member of your team feels the heat of the work progress, conflicts and disagreement take its toll. It is seen that most of the conflicts and disagreements are primarily due to unrealistic goals, unsuitable roles, and unclear rules. Such a situation creates damaging bottlenecks in the progress.
Hence, you as a leader has to come into the forefront and resolve these conflicts.
An effective way of resolving conflicts is by regularly conducting a face-to-face meeting with the group. This improves the kinship between the leaders and the group members.
During the meetings, identify the issues and address all their concerns with empathy. Encourage the group to brainstorm for probable solutions. An open interaction with members can avoid conflicts.
Adapting to Individual Characteristics
Every member has its own set of values, experiences, and other traits that makes the person unique. As a team leader, set a friendly environment that recognizes and adapts to individual characteristics.
You can nurture the feeling of acceptance by encouraging your members to be open with others and to respect individual views and opinions. One way of relating cordially is by sharing your inner thoughts or feelings to others.
Opening up is a mutual process. Opening up also means listening to what others have to say or share about themselves. Once the member feels accepted, it will break open suppressive thoughts only to boost their confidence and self-esteem.
Fostering Effective Collaboration
When a team evolves to a group, it becomes dynamic and collaborative. You should foster an environment that invigorates every group members’ interaction. You can achieve this through regular brainstorming sessions, coaching team members on critical areas of their work, and frequent updates on their work progress.
An individual’s low self-esteem, paranoia, and depression are often associated with low productivity or lack of interest. This could then lead to low morale and reduced performance at work, adding to the group’s wish to alienate such members.
These are real problems rational discussion can deal effectively. A morale-boosting work culture will empower your team to work together most productively and focus on the group goals better.
Best ways to improve team dynamics
Let’s go back to our jazz group.
The last piece you played on the saxophone was truly romantic. It struck a chord and the audience really felt their heart soulfully humming to the wind skillfully blown into the piped instrument. The rendition is still lingering in their mind making them expect something more on your next.
But now you are to play a new note which is slightly complex than the usual and you are unsure of how well you would repeat that magic.
Instead of feeling excited about one more opportunity to display your talent and knowing that the group is just as excited about watching you grow, you now feel overwhelmed and insecure.
Such challenging situations could instinctively ignite negative thoughts and actions.
You become defensive and attack members of the group for shortcomings or hide your talent by giving lame excuses because you don’t trust the group to support you.
We formulate groups to serve or achieve a common interest. It is the interest that forms the objectives. One of the main features of group dynamics is introspecting your purpose and then develop your potential collectively to fulfill that purpose.
A major component of group dynamics is individual development.
The synergies of the group efforts help to amplify your own personal energy. With high energy comes clarity of purpose. Better the clarity about your purpose more confident you can be on your talents. You are willfully drawn closer to the objectives by exercising and displaying those talents with enthusiasm.
The group will recognize these talents encouragingly because everyone else will display their own and expects to be treated in the same manner.
By giving each member an opportunity to lead, they feel like an inseparable part of the group objectives.
What are the best resources for learning about group dynamics?
There are several resources to understand the fundamentals and procedures of group dynamics.
A popular ones is:
http://meetingsift.com/resources-group-dynamics/
If you are seeking a simpler yet exhaustive resource to learn about group dynamics, then you should register for this webinar conducted by Sylvia Henderson, CEO and Co-Founder of Mind Team Solutions.
Conclusion
As the manager leading a team, it is your job to allow the team members to be democratic in their decisions and give everyone a non-discriminatory role so that the group can operate as a whole and not as individuals.
It is the act of beginning to work together, manage any conflicts, and growing that has led to the commonly regarded 4 Stages of Team Growth: Forming, Storming, Norming, and Performing. And then there is the fifth stage that is equally significant in group dynamics, which is explained better in the webinar.
You are already on your way to becoming a Rockstar manager!