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- De Oliveira, Eider Arantes, et al.
(författare)
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Characterizing Cross-Functional Teams in Service Companies : A Case Study from Telecom Industry
- 2015
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Ingår i: Managing Intellectual Capital and Innovation for Sustainable and Inclusive Society: Proceedings of the MakeLearn and TIIM Joint International Conference 2015. - : ToKnowPress. - 9789616914130 ; , s. 2139-2148
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The concept of cross-functional integration is based on the synchronization between different functions to meet organizational goals. One of the main elements identified in the literature within this theme is the cross-functional team (CFT), which is a group composed by members with different functional knowledge and experiences, from different parts of the organization, and under a leadership to accomplish a specific task. The objective of this paper is to characterize the internal dynamics of CFTs in different processes, such as: strategy development, product development, portfolio management, sales channels management, and business evaluation. Through a literature review, four basic dimensions were identified: Team’s Constitution; Task Drivers; Behaviors and Attitudes; Environmental Factors. A case study in a Brazilian service company was conducted in order to analyze these four dimensions in several teams. In-depth interviews, observation and documentary research were used for data collection. The results point out the necessity to invest time and attention in the constitution of the CFT, in order to select the appropriate functions it should be composed of, based on performance expectations. When the constitution of the team is characterized by a massive presence of senior members, positive impacts can be generated, such as: collaboration and team cohesion. This helps to reach team’s internal goals without frequent help from top management. This paper also presents implications related to the four studied dimensions, indicating ways to mitigate risks of failures and to avoid conflict within teams, and by that obtaining a superior performance.
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| 2. |
- De Oliveira, Eider Arantes, et al.
(författare)
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Integration through cross-functional teams in a service company
- 2016
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Ingår i: European Business Review. - 0955-534X .- 1758-7107. ; 28:4, s. 405-430
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to characterize the internal dynamics of cross-functional teams (CFTs) in different organizational processes in a service company.Design/methodology/approach: A case study from a Brazilian service company was conducted. CFTs in five different organizational processes (strategy development, product development, portfolio management, sales channels management and business analysis) were analyzed through in-depth interviews, documents and non-participant observation.Findings: A framework with four pillars was constructed: constitution of the CFT, task drivers, behavior and attitudes of the team and personal motivators. It was possible to analyze the process of how a group acts and reacts under changing circumstances based on the pillars included in the framework.Research limitations/implications: The study is focused on creating analytical generalizability. Several insights in the 12 propositions presented in this study may be investigated in future research to validate the identified relationships among the pillars included in the framework. Moreover, the proposed framework allows the teams to be analyzed through a multidimensional view: structure, processes and impacts.Practical implications: If the semantic boundaries of the communication are not well delineated, the differences in understanding can generate manifest conflicts. Moreover, the workload in a CFT seems to be larger and more complex than working in a functional activity; however, members perceive that it reduces the risk of unemployment and increases motivation.Originality/value: The present study contributes to the extant literature with the proposal of a set of new exploratory propositions that can support future quantitative research about the use of CFTs in the service industry context.
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