CIMA E2 Syllabus B. Managing people performance - Types of Groups - Notes ^{1 / 10}

According to Schein, a group is any number of people who interact with one another, are psychologically aware of one another, and perceive themselves to be a group. 

A group is formed to fulfil organisational functions. Other benefits of a group are improved problem solving, increased creativity, effective communication, etc.

Synergy can be explained as the combined activity of a group being greater than the sum of the
activities of each member.

There are 4 types of groups:

1. Formal groups - These groups are created by the management to achieve specific organisational objectives.

2. Informal groups - These groups are formed by individuals themselves based on common interests and to meet social and security needs like safety, sense of belonging, etc.

   When making business decisions managers should always consider how these decisions will impact on informal groups.

3. Reference group - This is the group that an individual is not currently a part of but wishes to join.

4. Self-directed/Autonomous group - Self-directed groups are like a division of an organisation and follow their own internal processes. The interaction of task with an individual is often best served by a group process. A team leader in this type of group is appointed using psychometric tests.

What is a team?

A team is a kind of group. All groups are NOT teams.

Teams also enjoy synergies which cannot be achieved by individual workers.

Members of a team DO NOT have identical roles.