Scenario

Large Technology Corporation (LTC) recently acquired the company Small Technology Company (STC). You currently work on a team of four members at LTC. But, with the acquisition, your team is expected to expand to 10 members.

The new team members have a diverse demographic makeup as well as varying levels of professional experience, both in their careers and at the company. Since STC was a small company, the employees did not have a great amount of oversight, but were instead primarily responsible for their own actions, rather than accountable to a manager. In addition, the employees were responsible for dividing up tasks among themselves and generally were able to complete the variety of tasks required at the company, allowing them to step into any role necessary.

At LTC, all employees work at the company's headquarters, but STC has three remote employees who will continue to be remote with the acquisition. As LTC does not currently have any remote employees, it will need to develop strategies for effectively collaborating with them.

In a recent meeting, your manager explained the importance of ensuring the teams can blend as seamlessly as possible. To assist with this, your manager has asked that you develop a team management plan detailing how you will lead the newly formed team. It is important to show not only the recommendations, but also the reasoning behind these recommendations.

Directions

Team Management Plan For this project, you will create a team management plan to determine how to effectively lead a team that combines employees from LTC and STC. To begin, you will analyze the characteristics of the specific individuals on the team for their potential impact on team dynamics and group behavior and performance. For information about the team and specific individuals, please refer to the scenario and the Employee Personas document, which describes some key characteristics of the team members. Next, you will evaluate theories and technologies to determine which theory and which technology will best support the team and its specific needs. In addition, you will provide examples for how the selected theory and technology will be used in various situations.

1. Team Dynamics: Before you can create a plan on how to lead your new team, you must determine how the merger of the two teams might impact group behavior and performance of the larger team. Specifically, you must determine the characteristics that may impact team dynamics and explain how these characteristics might positively and negatively impact group behavior and performance.
2. Theories: To provide substantial guidance and justify your plan, you should ground your recommendations in theory. You may use the Theories Template to guide you as you choose a theory. As you determine an appropriate theory, be sure to address the following:
   1. Compare theories to determine how they support your leadership of the team.
   2. Select the theory most appropriate for leading your team and explain how it supports cohesive team dynamics and positively impacts group behavior and performance.
   3. Provide examples of how the selected theory may be used to lead the team in various situations. For example, how might the application of the theory vary in an environment where team efficiency is critical to the company's profitability?
3. Technologies: Select an appropriate technology to facilitate effective teamwork and support the specific team dynamics. Evaluate two technologies of your choice for how they can assist the team. You may use the Technologies Template to guide your evaluation and select the technology that is most appropriate to assist you in leading the team. Be sure to address the following:
   1. Compare technologies for how they support your leadership of the specific team.
   2. Select the technology most appropriate for leading the team, justifying your selection for how it facilitates effective teamwork and positively impacts group behavior and performance.
   3. Provide examples of how the selected technology may be used to lead the team in various situations. For example, how will the technology support a remote workforce?
   4. Explain how the previously selected theory supports the selection of the technology.