Exploring what makes peer interaction effective In leadership teams

Date
2017-03
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Abstract
ENGLISH SUMMARY : This study focuses on the fundamental conditions that allow effective task processes within teams in their natural and fully situated context to emerge and that cause members to engage in them wholeheartedly, with the aim of identifying the emerging themes seen to be the real source of a team’s great success and providing higher quality, context-specific guidance, specifically on the role of peer interaction in teams, to organisations that complements the extant theoretical models on team effectiveness. As business becomes more defined by complexity, diversity, uncertainty and continuous cycles of change, leaders are increasingly relying on the diverse strengths and effectiveness of individuals working together in teams to tackle the challenges of driving business effectiveness and performance. This increasing reliance on teams, together with the observation that individuals working consistently and effectively together in a team is not an easily predictable phenomenon, makes understanding the conditions that support effective peer interaction in teams a salient need. In an attempt to understand these conditions, specifically among leaders currently working in teams in the workplace, an Interactive Qualitative Analysis (IQA) approach was used to explore the conditions as experienced by these leaders. The central assumption in IQA is that people closest to the phenomenon are in the best position to report about the phenomenon. This IQA approach to research postulates that the ideal of qualitative research is to create a process that invites participants to produce data while minimising the effect of the research process on the content. Participants in this type of research are empowered to generate and analyse their own data. Twenty three leaders were engaged in the current research project. The results of this study indicate that the individual leaders play an important role in the effectiveness of peer interaction in teams. A positive focus on developing self-awareness, an internal locus of control and appropriate skills training in shaping an effective, assertive interpersonal leadership style would be conducive to developing and shaping a positive leadership presence and contribution. In addition, the importance of shaping a culture that develops the skill level of their people, provides recognition to their people and their teams, and enables teamwork and creativity, as people rally around a common goal, was identified. A total of ten conditions for shaping effective peer interaction, with cause-and-effect relationships between the conditions, were identified to guide leaders on where to focus first as they engage in consciously shaping effective teams in their organisation.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING : Hierdie studie fokus op die fundamentele voorwaardes wat effektiewe taakprosesse binne spanne in hul natuurlike en en ten volle gesitueerde konteks moontlik maak en veroorsaak dat deelnemers heelhartig daarin deelneem, met die doelstelling om die ontluikende temas te identifiseer wat gesien word as die werklike oorsprong van die span se besondere sukses, en om hoe kwaliteit, konteks-spesifieke leiding aan organisasies te verskaf met betrekking tot die rol van portuurinteraksie in spanne en sodoende die bestaande kennisbasis omtrent spaneffektiwiteit aanvul. Namate die besigheidsomgewing meer gedefinieer word deur kompleksiteit, diversiteit, onsekerheid en voortdurende siklusse van verandering, vertrou leiers toenemend op die diverse sterkpunte en die effektiwiteit van individue wat in spanne saamwerk om die uitdagings te takel wat besigheidseffektiwiteit en -prestasie bepaal. Hierdie toenemende afhanklikheid van spanne, tesame met die waarneming dat individue wat volhardend en effektief in ‘n span saamwerk nie ‘n maklik voorspelbare fenomeen is nie, maak dat die verstaan van die voorwaardes wat effektiewe portuurtinteraksie moontlik maak, ‘n dwingende behoefte is. In ‘n poging om hierdie voorwaardes te verstaan, spesifiek onder leiers wat in spanne in die werkplek werk, is Interaktiewe Kwalitatiewe Analise (IKA) gebruik om die voorwaardes, soos ervaar deur die leiers, te eksploreer. ‘n Sentrale aanname van Interaktiewe Kwalitatiewe Analise is dat diegene wat die naaste aan ‘n fenomeen is in die beste posisie is om verslag te doen omtrent die fenomeen. Die IKA-benadering tot navorsing postuleer dat dit die ideaal van kwalitatiewe navorsing is om ‘n proses te skep wat deelnemers uitnooi om data te produseer, terwyl die effek van die navorsingsproses op die inhoudelike daarvan geminimiseer word. Deelnemers aan hierdie tipe navorsingsproses word bemagtig om hul eie data te skep en te ontleed. Drie-en-twintig leiers het aan die huidige navorsingsprojek deelgeneem. Die resultate van die huidige studie het aangetoon dat individuele leiers ‘n belangrike rol in die effektiwiteit van portuurinteraksie in spanne speel. ‘n Positiewe fokus op die ontwikkeling van selfbewussyn, ‘n interne lokus van beheer, en toepaslike vaardigheidsopleiding, met die oog op die vorming van ‘n effektiewe en assertiewe interpersoonlike leierskapstyl, word as bevorderlik beskou vir die ontwikkeling en omvorming van ‘n positiewe leierskapsteenwoordigheid en bydrae. Hierbenewens is die skep van ‘n kultuur wat die vaardighede van mense ontwikkel, erkenning verleen aan mense en hul spanne, en spanwerk en kreatiwiteit bevorder, terwyl mense saamspan om ‘n gemeenskaplike doelwit te verwesenlik, as belangrik geidentifiseer. ‘n Totaal van tien voorwaardes vir die skep van effektiewe portuurinteraksie, met oorsaak-en-gevolg-verhoudinge tussen die voorwaardes, is geidentifiseer ten einde leiding aan leiers te bied met betrekking tot waarop hulle eerste moet fokus in hul pogings om bewustelik effektiewe spane in hul organisasie te ontwikkel.
Description
Thesis (MCom)-- Stellenbosch University, 2017.
Keywords
Peer interaction, Peer groups -- Psychological aspects, Leadership teams, Teams in the workplace -- Management, UCTD
Citation