Business Process Management Journal

Work system design to improve the economic performance of the firm

James R. Maxwell
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James R. Maxwell, (2008),"Work system design to improve the economic performance of the firm",
Business Process Management Journal, Vol. 14 Iss 3 pp. 432 - 446
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BPMJ
14,3 Work system design to improve
the economic performance
of the firm
432
James R. Maxwell
Richard E. and Sandra J. Dauch College of Business & Economics,
Ashland University, Ashland, Ohio, USA
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Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to look at job design, motivation and teamwork. As the
market gets more competitive, companies must change their plan of attack on almost a daily basis.
They need to answer the question: what is the best way to do business? As employers look at job
design they will find that it is not the only factor that indicates how productive employees are in the
workplace. Motivation also determines how much energy employees will expend, as well as what tasks
will be accomplished, and in what amount of time it will be completed.
Design/methodology/approach – Increasing productivity among employees is the key to a
successful work group and firm. This paper will look at job design, motivation in the workplace and
teamwork as they continue to be the major factors that determine the amount of work an individual
does within a firm. Job design includes three main categories: job enlargement, job rotation, and job
enrichment. The job characteristics model, a more recent approach to job design, includes five core job
characteristics that include skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and job feedback.
Findings – The paper presents plenty of evidence that organizations are increasingly relying on
teams to handle work once taken on by one person. Self-managed teams are given the authority to
make decisions that were once reserved for managers. Cross-functional teams are used to improve
coordination among different departments involved in carrying out a joint project. Many organizations
are implementing these teams successfully into their structure. The result is that they are finding them
to be more productive and prosperous than the work of single individuals.
Practical implications – Work teams such as self-directed teams and cross-functional teams are
becoming increasingly popular among firms in today’s work environment. Teams can work together
in a dynamic business world to gain an edge over the competition.
Originality/value – Overall, job design, motivation, and teamwork tie together and create a work
environment that can either help or hurt an organization. If a proper plan is implemented, then the firm
should be more productively successful.
Keywords Job design, Team working, Performance management, Job enlargement, Multiskilling
Paper type Literature review

Business Process Management
Journal
Vol. 14 No. 3, 2008
pp. 432-446
q Emerald Group Publishing Limited
1463-7154
DOI 10.1108/14637150810876715
Motivation starts with a need, vision, dream, or desire to achieve the seemly impossible.
Employers want their employees to have the mindset that creates the idea that they can
achieve anything. Once the employees have this, productivity will increase. More employees
working together means more great ideas brought to the table and more solutions to current
or forecasted problems. They provide individuals with the chance to solve problems,
increase productivity, ensure customer satisfaction, and manage an entire operation.
Work system job design
The “re-engineering” of jobs has been an important labor market phenomenon over the
past 20 years. There have been substantial changes in the design of jobs regarding
 the extent of worker participation, job flexibility, and worker and work group Work system
autonomy. The past 20 years have seen a substantial increase in the use of many, newer design
human resource practices, including employee involvement programs such as quality
circles, more use of job rotation and flexibility, job enrichment, job enlargement, and
more work-team self-management. Accompanying this has been greater use of
incentive pay systems such as gain sharing, piece rates, and profit sharing:
Job design, also referred to as job redesign, refers to any set of activities that involve the 433
alteration of specific jobs or interdependent systems of jobs with the intent of improving the
quality of employee job experience and their on-the-job productivity (Kreitner and Kinicki,
2001, p. 215).
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Companies may incorporate different methods of job design, but the end result focuses on
increasing satisfaction and performance. Companies may choose two different methods in
order to achieve this common goal. First, the company finds employees that will match the
job. This implementation of job design was used in many traditional businesses.
Businesses had the general belief that people would eventually become accustomed to the
job, improve their productivity, and be satisfied. However, in more recent years, businesses
are adapting jobs to people (Kreitner and Kinicki, 2001, p. 215). Employees bring a wealth
of knowledge and creativity to a firm, this option allows people to be fully utilized and not
forced to perform a standard job. The job may change with each individual. Jobs are
tailored to the workers. This belief requires the use of methods such as job enlargement, job
rotation, job enrichment, and job characteristics when using this assumption.

Scientific management
As manufacturing firms became larger and more complex in the late nineteenth century,
managers began to improve methods of production. Frederick Winslow Taylor, now
known as the father of scientific management, began his work on scientific management.
He focused on applying the concepts of science to improve production:
This relies upon the use of observation, measurement, analysis and improvement of
work methods, and economic incentives. He studied work methods in great detail to identify
the best method for doing each job. Taylor’s methods emphasized output. They were not
always popular with workers, who sometimes thought the methods were used to unfairly
increase output without a corresponding increase in compensation (Stevenson, 2002, p. 21).
Microsoft, Kodak, and Mattel are some successful firms that have benefited from the
application of scientific management today.
However, the boredom and the monotony of scientific management led to job
dissatisfaction and created many disgruntled employees, which caused job design to be
modified. Businesses, unlike in the past, needed to focus upon creating happy, satisfied
employees. By having content employees, they will be more likely to be loyal, expend
more effort, and increase their productivity. Job enlargement, job rotation, and job
enrichment are methods used to help to create an environment where employees feel
their job is meaningful and rewarding.

Job enlargement
Job enlargement involves putting more variety into a worker’s job by combining specialized
tasks of comparable difficulty. This technique was first used in the late 1940s in response to
complaints about tedious and overspecialized jobs (Kreitner and Kinicki, 2001, p. 216).
 BPMJ This method is generally referred to as horizontal loading. The objective is to make the
14,3 job more appealing and rewarding. Job enlargement allows employees to identify their
contributions to the overall production of products and goods:
Proponents of job enlargement claim it can improve employee satisfaction, motivation, and
quality of production. Unfortunately, research reveals that job enlargement, by itself, does not
have a significant and lasting positive impact on job performance. Researchers recommend
434 using job enlargement as part of a broader approach that uses multiple job design techniques
(Kreitner and Kinicki, 2001, p. 216).
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Job rotation
Similarly, job rotation involves creating more variety for employees. Job rotation allows
workers to periodically change jobs, by moving them from one specialty to another
specialty. Typically, rotational programs assign new hires to work for specified periods in
various departments, business units or geographic locations. The programs usually seek
to achieve numerous goals. First, job rotation allows employers to assess their employees’
interests and skills to determine their final placement. New employees, in particular recent
graduates, do not always have an inclination as to their likes and dislikes. Job rotation
allows employees to encompass many aspects of a business in a short period of time. Next,
it allows deep immersion into the organizational business and culture. This method helps
the employee to learn many aspects about the business and allows new employees to
become acquainted with more people in the organization. Employees may be acclimated
to foreign environments by the use of job rotation. By placing employees in the foreign
environment, this allows people to become familiar with the culture and customs of
foreign countries without a permanent move. This may prevent unhappy employees.
Finally, job rotation may be preparing future managers and executives (Frase-Blunt,
2001, p. 46). This allows the future managers to experience many aspects of the business.
This knowledge will be applicable in the future when they are in the managerial position.
It is important to gain on-the-job experience before supervising others. Job rotations may
last for any duration, but tend to last six to eight months. If shorter than this time,
employees may not learn the skills necessary:
General Electric Company is a corporate veteran of rotational training. Recent college
graduates and MBAs are hired directly into one of the company’s seven rotational programs,
not into a specific position. The company’s seven Leadership Development Programs include
communications, engineering, financial, information management, operations management,
technical sales and human resources. Over the course of the two-year program, GE trainees
are transferred across locations and businesses, and, perhaps out of the country. They earn a
professional salary and can garner raises based on frequent evaluations by their direct
manger or local program leader. GE trainees quickly find themselves challenged. Four
rotations of six to eight months each, plus classroom instruction, provide trainees with
intensive, accelerated experiences that would take years to gather in a standard corporate
career (Frase-Blunt, 2001, p. 46).
New York Life and Eli Lilly and Company both have successfully used job rotation:
A study of Eli Lilly and Company’s financial workforce not only shows what the training and
career-development advantages of job rotation are, but also the pitfalls. The study confirmed
that job rotation can be used as a proactive means of enhancing the value of work experience
for the goals of training and development (Cheraskin and Campion, 1996, p. 31).
 The finance department consists of nearly 500 workers. At the time of the study, most Work system
job rotations at Eli Lilly and Company consisted of lateral moves rather than vertical design
moves:
Unlike many firms, the average number of years professional employees spent in each job
was 3.1. The average number of years between promotions was 7.1. However, those who
reached manager or executive positions averaged 2.7 years in each rotation and 4.6 years in
each job between promotions (Cheraskin and Campion, 1996, p. 31). 435
In addition, this method helps to reduce stress among employees:
According to the 1997 National Study of the Changing Workforce by the Families and Work
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Institute in New York City, jobs are the biggest stressor for most Americans. In fact, job and
workplace stress are three times more likely to affect a person’s emotional well-being than
children, aging parents, spouses, commuting, housework or any other personal demands.
Despite this, employers appear to be doing very little (Caudron, 1998, p. 21).
However, many companies use job rotation to lower the stress and increase the
productivity among employees:
Simply put, as job pressure rises, productivity drops. While everyone can handle a certain
amount of stress, if employees experience too much for too long, they will not be producing at
their peak (Caudron, 1998, p. 21).
The underlying benefits of job rotation increases motivation among employees,
productivity, flexibility, work experiences, and increases the ability to handle change. It
also reduces absenteeism, lowers turnover rates, and reduces stress. Although job
rotation exhibits many positives, there are consequences associated with this technique
as well. The primary problems involve changing the work structure, workplace culture,
and employee behavior. Experienced workers do not want to learn new types of work.
There are also practical problems of moving from one job to the next. Constant training
becomes boring for employees. Also, it may be difficult to identify appropriate jobs for
an employee.
By evaluating the benefits and drawbacks, the study of Eli Lilly and Company
revealed interesting results concerning which employees are most willing to rotate jobs:
The study disclosed that the employees’ career stages, defined in terms of either tenure or age,
are strongly related to their actual rotation rates. Interest in job rotation was much greater
among early-career managers, defined as having less than 10 years of tenure as a manager.
This study determined that approximately 75 percent of early-career managers wanted
rotations. Whereas 42 percent of later-career managers and 27 percent of executives exhibited
interest in job rotation (Cheraskin and Campion, 1996, p. 31).
Job rotation has the potential for horizontal or vertical movement within an organization.
Promotion is an underlying theme as a result of job rotation. This technique has many
benefits but has not been adequately researched as to the effects upon the success of the
implementation of this method (Kreitner and Kinicki, 2001, p. 217).

Job enrichment
In addition to job enlargement and job rotation, job enrichment is critical to
maintaining worker enthusiasm and productivity over the long-term. Workers seek
jobs that require activities such as decision making, autonomy, variety, and challenge.
 BPMJ “Job enrichment involves an increase in the level of responsibility for planning and
14,3 coordinating tasks. This is sometimes referred to as vertical loading” (Stevenson, 2002,
p. 310). The most effective job enrichment approaches either change the employee’s
day-to-day job or increases the individual’s participation in decisions affecting his or her
work. “Job enrichment is the practical application of Frederick Herzberg’s
motivator-hygiene theory of job satisfaction” (Kreitner and Kinicki, 2001, p. 217). Many
436 people assume that a good way to motivate employees is to increase their job satisfaction.

Herzberg’s motivator-hygiene theory

According to Frederick Herzberg, however, the relationship between job satisfaction
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and motivation is more complicated than it seems:

Herzberg’s theory is based on a landmark study in which he interviewed 203 accountants and
engineers. These interviews sought to determine the factors responsible for job satisfaction
and dissatisfaction. Herzberg found separate and distinct clusters of factors associated with
each (Kreitner and Kinicki, 2001, p. 217).
Motivator factors are aspects of job content that create positive feelings among
employees. Challenge of the work itself, responsibility, recognition, achievement,
advancement, and growth are all motivator factors. These factors determine whether a
job is exciting and rewarding.
Additionally, Herzberg found job dissatisfaction to be associated primarily with
factors in the work context or environment. These non-task characteristics that create
job dissatisfaction are called hygiene factors:
Specifically, company policy and administration, technical supervision, salary, interpersonal
relations with one’s supervisor, and working conditions were most frequently mentioned by
employees expressing job dissatisfaction (Kreitner and Kinicki, 2001, p. 217).
It is important for businesses to study the motivator factors and the hygiene factors in
order to reach optimal motivation and productivity among employees.
Likewise, job enrichment relies upon the work of Herzberg and the motivator-hygiene
theory. Rather than giving employees work of similar difficulty, job enrichment allows
vertical expansion, which increases the depth of the organization. In addition, employees
have a greater responsibility. They are performing tasks and duties that their managers
and supervisors previously performed. This added responsibility increases the
independence and the self-assessment. These characteristics of job enrichment lead to
benefits for the organization such as less absenteeism and less turnover. However, there
can be serious problems if job enrichment is applied and employees are not prepared.
This can be a disaster to the organization. Businesses need to study and train individuals
very carefully before implementing this technique.

Job characteristics model

The job characteristics model is a more recent approach to job design. It is a direct outgrowth
of job enrichment and attempts to pinpoint those situations and those individuals for which
job design is most effective (Kreitner and Kinicki, 2001, p. 219).
Every job contains to some degree the five core job characteristics that include skill
variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and job feedback. These core job
dimensions determine whether the employee experiences meaningfulness of work
 completed, responsibility for the outcomes of the work, and knowledge of the actual Work system
results of the work activities. If these psychological states are fulfilled, the employee design
will experience motivation, satisfaction, improve productivity, and work effectiveness.

Motivation
Many individuals have varying ideas as to what motivation actually is, and how
people become motivated. In essence, motivation starts with a need, vision, dream, or 437
desire to achieve the seemly impossible. College students may think that they will
never be able to write that 20 page paper or answer that calculus problem without
wracking their brains for hours upon hours. However, they can do it by taking the
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initiative to research in advance or invest in a tutor. Initiative and motivation go hand

in hand, whether it is in school, the workplace, or inside oneself. In order to succeed at
one’s dreams, he/she must look at the goals set and decide what it will take to
accomplish them.

Operation now
College students are known for procrastinating, but this would not be a problem if they
were motivated in some way to do their work, just as employees need motivation in the
workplace to complete their work efficiently and effectively. Edmond (2002a) and his
article entitled: “Operation now: conquer procrastination in the new year” provides
motivational tips for preventing laziness. These tips are as follows:
Focus on what happens when you do, not on what happens when you don’t; put production
ahead of perfection; break the task into bite-sized measurable pieces; adopt the “if you feel like
it” rule [but do not abuse it]; [and] use distractions as rewards [but do not get too distracted]
(Edmond, 2002b, p. 2).
Edmond’s ideas capture the essence of motivation and tap into what has to be done in
order to accomplish the work that needs to be completed, whether for school or in the
workplace.

Current trend in motivation

In an article entitled “Motivating others, perhaps the most important skill for
managers,” by Lloyd (2003) of Joan Lloyd and Associates, a leadership development
organization, today’s managers need to understand their employees before they can
lead them effectively. The article advised a managerial client to remember that
motivating employees is “about them, not about you.” Current trends in the workplace
which will help managers meet a high level of economic performance involve these
common sense strategies as described in the article:
.
care about them as people – not just a cog in the wheel of production;
.
never miss an opportunity to tell people how they contributed to the goal;
.
let people bask in their accomplishment – even the small ones;
. do not compete with your staff – you have already won;
.
take the criticism but share the credit;
.
first, you are a teacher; and
.
engage people’s hearts and their minds.
 BPMJ As managers apply these concepts in their workplaces, they will be insuring a
14,3 proactive workforce and environment which will help to create employee loyalty,
satisfaction and productivity. As the changes are applied, a review of the profit-cost
relationship of the firm should illustrate a positive economic growth.

The motivation equation

438 In the article, “The motivation equation,” from Network Computing, the emphasis is on
the false notion that:
[. . .] one prescription cures all. Treating people fairly does not mean treating everyone the
same. To effectively motivate, you must understand what is important to the people who
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work for you and adapt their jobs to meet those needs (Molta, 1999, p. 2).
Therefore, this idea contends that everyone is different and everyone needs to be
motivated in different ways. This also brings about the point that the boss cannot
actually motivate; one has to motivate his/herself in order to produce something. The
following are two examples of motivational theories. The first is the “Seven rules of
motivation” from motivation-tools.com (2003) and the second is “The magic of
motivation” from www.workplaceissues.com (2003):
(1) Seven rules of motivation:
.
Set a major goal, but follow a path.
.
Finish what you start.
.
Socialize with others of similar.
.
Learn how to learn.
.
Harmonize natural talent with interest that motivates.
.
Increase knowledge of subjects that inspires.
.
Take risk.
(2) The magic of motivation:
. M – making up your mind to be happy.
.
A – attitude is everything.
.
G – goal setting and “go getting” and gratitude.
.
I – inspiration and perspiration.
.
C – celebrating yourself and your successes.

Everyone needs different motivation

Different types of things motivate different kinds of people. Some may be attracted to
only monetary rewards, like bonuses and monetary incentives. Others may only need
appraisal from a co-worker or boss to feel good about themselves. Individuals may
think of the outcome of an event before the event occurs in order to get motivated. They
may seek the benefits they know they are entitled to, such as, rewards, like a
promotion, at the end of a rigorous task.
Berman (2001, p. 2), leading futurist and CEO of The Market Segment Group, Inc.,
specializes in research related to the “demassification of the American marketplace”.
The Group’s report, entitled: “Portrait of the New America” (Berman, 2001), illustrates
“where market segments based on age, gender, behavioral lifestyle, income, and – in
 this instance – race and ethnicity represent the future of American business” (Berman, Work system
2001, p. 4). The research shows how ethnic and culturally diverse populations influence design
and produce long-term effects on businesses. It also helps “readers understand how
September 11 has had an impact on the purchasing habits and perceptions of American
consumers” (Berman, 2001, p. 5).
To develop and improve the economic performance of the firm, managers, need to
use marketing survey tools such as, Portrait of the New America, and, the market 439
segment research report entitled: “Multicultural marketing think tank” (Berman, 2003)
in order to learn more about the cultural diversity within their geographical region,
their employees and their clientele. Management can also learn more by developing
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focus groups and individuals who may interview and actively listen to the concerns of
employees and clients. The information acquire by managers may help the firm foresee
the direction of the consumers and respond to their needs appropriately. Being
proactive and aware of a variety of sources for information and data will help in
steering the company towards an upward economic climb.

Women motivate better than men

Not only should the issue of ethnicity be addressed, but the issue of gender should also
be addressed toward motivational concerns. A study by Lawrence A. Pfaff and
Associates (APA Monitor Online, 1999), a Kalamazoo, Michigan-based organization
and human resources consultancy, unveiled that female executives do a better job than
their male counterparts. “The population studied was 2,482 managers at all levels from
more than 400 organizations across 19 states” (APA Monitor Online, 1999, p. 1).
Women in this study did not only score better on the “softer” skills: communication
feedback and empowerment, but they also scored higher in the area of “decisiveness,”
planning, and facilitating change. The outcome was that women rated higher no matter
who did the evaluating – bosses or employees.

Motivated employees: what customers want

In general, customers like to associate with motivated employees; it brings them back
to the store. Unfortunately, in many companies, work has become a:
[. . .] place of disillusionment. Employees start with enthusiasm and creativity, but day after
day they feel more and more helpless, as if they don’t have any real choices. They are
overwhelmed, exhausted and bored (Weiss, 2002, p. 1).
Keeping a positive attitude toward work and satisfying the customer is a key to
success at Wal-Mart and Southwest Airlines.

Example of motivated workplaces

In order to motivate employees and keep them continually enthusiastic, employers
have to instill the company’s motivational beliefs. Two examples of motivated
workplaces that accomplish this task are Wal-Mart and Southwest Airlines. Wal-Mart
makes their employees do the special Wal-Mart chant or exercise before their shift
begins to get the energy level high and start the motivation process. Along the path to
success, “Wal-Mart has remained No. 1 by staying true to our basic values and beliefs:
respect for the individual, service to our customers, and strive for excellence” (Walmart
Stores, Inc., 2002).
 BPMJ Southwest Airlines gives their employees the freedom to perform humorous tasks
14,3 while they are doing their jobs. This allows the employee to be creative and
entertaining to their customers. Motivation comes from being creative and exploring
customer needs.

Self-managed work teams (SMWT)

440 Work teams are becoming increasingly popular in the American workplace. Teams are
being used to solve problems, increase productivity, ensure customer satisfaction, and
manage an entire operation. In 1992, Training Magazine reported that eight out of ten
US organizations with 100 or more employees have assigned employees to a team and
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in the largest organizations with 10,000 or more employees; the figure is closer to
90 percent (Proehl, 1996). There are also a wide variety of teams in which their
structure and purpose differ. Two examples of teams used in the workplace are
self-managed teams and cross-functional teams. Self-managed teams are delegated
most of the responsibility and authority that supervisors would normally handle.
Cross-functional teams involve workers from different departments who work together
on a joint project. These teams, if implemented the correct way, will lead to greater
results than would individuals working separately on projects.
SMWT are growing in number among American companies. These work teams are
given more freedom in the decisions they can make because they function without direct
supervision from management. Self-managed teams are used mostly for manufacturing
work or process production. The organization determines the amount of authority each
team is to have which varies considerably from organization to organization.
Self-managing teams are given authority for operating decisions such as setting
performance goals and quality standards, determining work schedules and procedures,
purchasing supplies and materials, dealing with customers, and evaluating team
member performance and handling performance problems. The teams are usually
allowed to make small expenditures for supplies and equipment without prior approval.
Sometimes, self-managed teams also make some personnel decisions. Lawler (2001)
reports, in his book entitled: Organizing for High Performance: Employee Involvement,
TQM, Re-engineering, and Knowledge Management in the Fortune 1000, that “in 1999,
72 percent of Fortune 1000 companies had at least one SMWT. This figure is up from 28
percent in 1987” (Yandrick, 2001).
Potential advantages of self-managed teams include stronger commitment of team
members to the work, improved quality and efficiency, greater job satisfaction, and
less turnover and absenteeism among employees (Yukl, 2002, p. 314). Self-managed
teams are changing managers’ roles in the workplace. They are no longer requiring
managers to command and control all the tasks of their employees. The manager is
now forced to give up some of his traditional responsibilities and to share them with
his teams of employees. This represents vertical loading of job enrichment which is to
create higher job satisfaction and generate more challenging work for employees
(Buhler, 1998, p. 22). Even though the manager’s role has changed, the teams, no matter
what type, still require an effective, competent leader to keep the group on track.
Pasmore and Mlot (1994, p. 15) define a self-managing team as a:
[. . .] stable, multiskilled, multifunctional group with responsibility for the completion of a
relatively whole piece of work and the control of all input, output, and supporting variables
and conditions that influence team performance.
 They then list five questions that all organizations should answer when considering Work system
SMWT because they may not work for all organizations. They are: design
(1) Are self-managed teams right for the organization? Self-managed teams are not
right for every organization. Before these teams are established, the company
should conduct an environmental analysis to determine if self-management
would be consistent with three basic considerations. The first consideration is
the organization’s requirements, such as, its competitiveness and 441
environmental factors; the more competitive the industry, the more likely it
will be ready to use self-managed teams. The second is the organization’s
principles; self-managed teams will work best in an organization that values
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participation from all members. The third consideration is the organization’s

competencies and capabilities.
(2) How do you design effective self-managing teams? There is no definite way to
design a self-managed team. There are choices that must be made, however,
which will affect the successfulness of the team.
(3) How do you effectively introduce these teams to the organization? Self-managing
teams go through a development period that may last from 12 to 18 months. The
company should not rush this period; they should allow enough time for the team
to develop properly. Also, the company needs to make sure that the technical and
team support systems are in line with the team’s goals.
(4) How do you support self-managing teams through different stages of their
development? Supporting these teams requires that the organization makes
sure they have the necessary skills throughout each stage so they can reach
their goals.
(5) What type of climate is necessary to keep the teams working over the long run?
To keep the teams operating efficiently they need proper supervision, rewards
that support the team’s efforts, measurement and information systems, and
training and development supports.

One company that benefited from the use of self-managed teams was Chrysler’s
machine-and-forge plant in New Castle, Indiana. The company was facing some hard
times in the mid-1980s when they almost “got the corporate ax due to layoffs, worker
disenchantment, and foreign competition” (Lienert, 1994, p. 39). So in 1986, the United
Auto Workers Union and Chrysler decided to save this company by forming
self-managed teams, with the help of consultants, Kepner-Tregoe, Inc.
Organizational change was started in six of the 38 Chrysler plants in 1986 by a new
blueprint called the modern operating system, which is what started the transformation
at the New Castle plant. Chrysler formed 71 small teams of workers on the factory floor
who motivate each other to perform at their best. The company went from 56 supervisors
down to 26, which now act as consultants to the teams. There are even some teams who
operate without supervision at all. Workers job classifications went from 50 unskilled
classifications down to four. Informal reward sessions are now a part of the New Castle
plant where workers can win pins and baseball caps due to their performance. A new
program was implemented where workers can earn more money if they volunteer to be
trained at different tasks.
 BPMJ After the development of self-managed teams, New Castle Plant Manager, Dennis
14,3 Mason, reports that plant revenue went up, the plant operates around the clock, new
employees are being added, absenteeism is down, the number of grievances fell
dramatically, and there has been a decrease in work related injuries (Lienert, 1994, p. 39).
Workers now can better themselves by being trained on computers or more simply
learning how to read and write. A new, more productive and satisfying, environment
442 was created at the New Castle plant because of the formation of self-managed teams.
Another company that was improved because of the formation of self-managed
teams was Henkel Corporation’s Analytical Services Group. The group had almost as
many supervisors as employees, did not know how to define a customer, had a backlog
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of requests for analysis, was under leadership in which the manager made all the
decisions on work assignments and work flow, and because there was little dialog
between the customer and the analyst it was hard to tell if the request was handled well
(Giordan and Ahern, 1994, p. 33).
In 1989, the group was changed into Henkel Corporation Research and Development.
Originally the group was funded by allocation but now they had to satisfy customer
needs in order to earn funding. Because of this change, the group wanted to reorganize
their structure. Giordan and Ahern (1994, p. 33) reported that over three months:
[. . .] the group began to function as a team and to define its customers. Once customers had
been defined, the team began to amass input on the needs of its customers. The team defined
with customers how to satisfy those needs; it defined metrics to assure that the needs were
being met or exceeded, and it took the necessary corrective actions.
Through all of this, the organization began to function as a self-managed team.
Outcomes of the new structure are: the group went from about 20 percent on-time
delivery to 94 percent on-time delivery within one and half years, funding increased,
staff level increased, and they are now able to provide customers with comprehensive
analysis packages that supply data along with solutions to their technical and
processing problems.
Despite the many advantages associated with self-managed teams, the teams still
face some potential challenges which include: how to resolve conflict between group
members, how to come to closure on topics, how to assure fair distribution of work, and
how to make sure that everyone is contributing equally with the same amount of
dedication and effort.
Self-managed teams require new work processes, attitudes, and behaviors. To
effectively implement self-managed teams into the workplace, organizations should
realize that they might face opposition from employees. By preparing employees with
the correct information, taking plenty of time to introduce the idea, and providing
adequate training sessions, organizations will see less resistance from their employees.
To keep these teams running smoothly, leaders are needed to check the group’s
progress, motivate team members, and keep the group focused on their team goals.

Cross-functional teams
Another type of team structure is the cross-functional team. It is estimated that of all
the employees who are members of teams, 30 percent are assigned to temporary project
teams and 18 percent are members of long-term, cross-functional teams (Proehl, 1996).
Unlike self-managed teams whose members usually have similar backgrounds,
 cross-functional teams take members from each department that will be involved in the Work system
task, which may even include workers from outside the organization. Cross-functional design
teams may be formed for many reasons, such as, to make complex decisions in an
organization, to develop new products, re-engineer organizational processes, and to
improve customer relationships and organizational performance. Most cross-functional
teams are temporary; they only exist until their task is complete.
“Ford and Randolph (1992) stated cross-functional teams offer many benefits to the 443
company” (Yukl, 2002). Cross-functional teams improve coordination of group
members along with the fact that many problems are avoided because of the different
backgrounds of the individuals participating in the teams. This diversity promotes
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creativity of ideas and solutions to problems. Also, members of the team may learn to
look at the problem from a different perspective.
Certain factors contribute to the successfulness of these teams. In her article entitled:
“Cross-functional teams: a panacea or just another headache?” Proehl (1996) states that
five themes are often cited in management readings as the factors for success. They
are: the membership of the team is critical; a skilled team leader is essential; the team
must have both the authority and accountability to accomplish its task; there must be
management support and adequate resources for the team; and adequate internal and
external communications systems must exist (p. 6).
To illustrate why some cross-functional teams succeed and others do not, Proehl
(1996) reported on an organizational case study on one of the largest transit companies in
the country. They needed to deal with some recent shortfalls. To overcome these, the
general manager wanted to rebuild their reputation. One of the first steps was for all
management to be enrolled in an 11 day, mandatory training program called Leadership
2000. At the end of the training, they participated in 35 cross-functional teams known as
projects for change. Despite the fact that all the teams received the same training in
project and meeting management skills and were given the same guidelines, only 42
percent of individuals in the study reported that their teams were successful.
What accounted for this difference in success rates? Four factors highlighting
characteristics of the successful teams emerged. The first was that the successful team
members, along with their sponsor and leader, viewed the project as a priority. The
second factor was these teams were task-oriented, completing their task in a timely way.
The third factor was the leader kept members informed and supported them. Lastly, open
communication was key. This study is just one example of how some cross-functional
teams can do well while others sometimes will fall short (Proehl, 1996, p. 6).
One organization that tried cross-functional teams was The Orlando Sentinel. This
newspaper office implemented these teams in their advertising and prepress
departments.
“Compare a cross-functional environment to the traditional newspaper
environment,” says Ray Eckhart, the Sentinel executive managing the
cross-functional team project:
In the traditional multishift environment the ad is sold on the first shift. Those people on the
second and third shift never know who the customer is: they only know what the ad is. They
may not even know who the sales representative is who sold the ad. Nobody really
understands what they are doing with the ad (Fitzgerald, 1999, p. 32).
 BPMJ With the use of cross-functional teams, the person who sells the ad, the service
14,3 representative who tracks the production of the ad, and the graphic designer who
created the ad are now all brought together.
In order to increase communication among different workers, the Sentinel created a
new work environment. They arranged workstations around one common area where
people could meet, which are about 1,600 square feet (Fitzgerald, 1999, p. 32). The
444 workstations now have low panels so everyone can see each other as opposed to the
higher cubicles they used to have. Also, a small quiet room is positioned off to the side.
Three teams are part of the Sentinel’s cross-functional team philosophy: an
automotive team in the downtown offices and two retail-oriented teams in the Seminole
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county bureau.
“The new environment has made all the difference,” says Diane Harris, a Client
Services Representative in the paper’s Seminole county bureau in Altamonte. “Morale,”
she says, “has improved considerably since the move to teams” (Fitzgerald, 1999).
Cross-functional teams are also a part of the industrial products environment, where
they value engineering excellence. This force drives design, product, and process
innovation, and customer satisfaction. Two models used to nurture excellence are the
skills generalist approach and the skills excellence approach (Berns, 2000, p. 53).
The skills generalist approach encourages team members to gain experience by
rotating job assignments in other fields such as manufacturing, marketing and finance.
By doing this, workers should gain an understanding of all departments, thus
minimizing conflict.
The Skills Excellence model understands that most engineers like solving problems
and are more productive when doing what comes naturally. This model incorporates
this need into its design. Teams are made up of individuals who excel in each of the
required skills needed for the project.
The results of these models bring more innovative products with higher quality and
value designed for manufacturability with maximum cost efficiency and speed to
market; and, employees gain an understanding of cross-functional processes.
Regardless of all these success stories, cross-functional teams do not always work.
Cross-functional teams are put together to make complex decisions and the teams’
tasks are not seen as complete until all the decisions have been made. Swamidass and
Aldridge (1996, p. 12) spent four years working with and studying cross-functional
teams and have found four impediments to decision making in such teams. These four
impediments are:
(1) seeking a consensus in all decisions;
(2) no sense of deadlines among all or some of the members of the team;
(3) seeking one global decision as opposed to making progress through incremental
decision making; and
(4) locking team into a data collection mode and never moving to a
decision-making mode.

A main way to overcome these impediments is having a strong team leader. The leader
should be able to recognize when teams are getting caught on these obstacles and
should not impede their efforts to make good, timely decisions.
 In his article, Chaudron (1995, p. 1) offers elements for managers to ensure that their Work system
teams have to improve cooperation. Some of the elements he mentioned are: design
.
Team effectiveness starts with the selection of the right team members.
.
The team should have a clear direction or purpose.
.
Teams should have achievable results; these results need to be defined ahead of time.
.
Team members should have ground rules everyone agrees to follow. 445
.
Intensive team building up front is necessary for cross-functional teams. This
works best when all members receive training at the same time.
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By having these elements management will be able to promote more effective cross
functional teamwork.

Teams vs individuals
Do the many types of teams developing in today’s workplace really out perform
individuals working alone? By many of the examples I have called upon in this paper it
would seem that the answer to that question is “yes.” Teams have their many
problems, such as, fighting with each other, siding with workers from their own
department, unequal contributions among all members of a team, and the list goes on.
But, “the fact is that satisfied customers and commercially successful new products do
not result from excellence in isolation” (Berns, 2000).
Teams are helpful in performing work that is more complicated and complex than one
person can handle. The possible advantages to teams over individuals are: greater
employee satisfaction and commitment, enhanced quality of products and services,
improved efficiency and productivity, and greater potential to achieve success. Therefore,
a group decision is potentially superior to a decision made by a single individual (Yukl,
2002, p. 335).
In conclusion, organizations are increasingly relying on teams to handle work once
taken on by one person. Self-managed teams are given the authority to make decisions
that were once reserved for managers. Cross-functional teams are used to improve
coordination among different departments involved in carrying out a joint project.
Many organizations are implementing these teams successfully into their structure.
The result is that they are finding them to be more productive and prosperous than the
work of single individuals.
Overall, management can improve an employee’s work environment by taking
simple steps to properly implement job design, motivational encouragement, and
exploring work teams. Employees can become more productive in the workplace
through improvement in processes which are sometimes thought of as commonplace.
Job design, motivation, and teamwork will truly determine the amount of productivity
employees expend.

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Corresponding author
James R. Maxwell can be contacted at: jrmaxwel@ashland.edu

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