Group skill

Group skills

The group process is a series of changes which occur as a group of individuals form into a cohesive and effective operating unit. If the process is understood, it can be accelerated.
There are two main sets of skills which a group must acquire:
Managerial Skills
Interpersonal Skills
and the speeding up of the group process is simply the hastened up acquisition of these.
As a self-managing unit, a group has to undertake most of the functions of a Group Leader - collectively. For instance, meetings must be organized, budgets decided, strategic planning undertaken, goals set, performance monitored, reviews scheduled, etc.

It is increasingly recognized that it is wrong to expect an individual to suddenly assume managerial responsibility without assistance; in the group it is even more so.

Even if there are practiced managers or highly educated skilled people in the group, you must all first agree on a method, and then convince and train the remainder of the group.

As a collection of people, a group needs to relearn some basic manners and people-management skills.
Again, think of that self-opinionated, cantankerous loudmouth; he/she should learn good manners, and the group must learn to enforce these manners without destructive confrontation.
We come from different backgrounds

The two basic foci should be the group and the task.
If something is to be decided, it is the group that decides it.
If there is a problem, the group solves it.
If a member is performing badly, it is the group who asks for change.
If individual conflicts arise, review them in terms of the task.
If there is initially a lack of structure and purpose in the deliberations, impose both in terms of the task.
If there are disputes between alternative courses of action, negotiate in terms of the task.

Clarification :In any project management, the clarity of the specification is of paramount importance - in group work it is exponentially so. If there are 8 members in the group then the chance of the group all working towards that same task is 0.17. And the same reasoning hold for every decision and action taken throughout the life of the group.


It is the first responsibility of the group to clarify its own task, and to record this understanding so that it can be constantly seen. This mission statement may be revised or replaced, but it should always act as a focus for the groups deliberations and actions.


The mouse : In any group, there is always the quiet one in the corner who doesn't say much. That individual is the most under utilized resource in the whole group, and so represents the best return for minimal effort by the group as a whole. It is the responsibility of that individual to speak out and to contribute. It is the responsibility of the group to encourage and develop that person, to include him/her in the discussion and actions, and to provide positive reinforcement each time that happens.

The loud-mouth : In any group, there is always a dominant member whose opinions form a disproportionate share of the discussion. It is the responsibility of each individual to consider whether they are that person. It is the responsibility of the group to ask whether the loud-mouth might like to summarize briefly, and then ask for other views.

The written record :Often a decision which is not recorded will become clouded and have to be re-discussed. This can be avoided simply by recording on a large display (where the group can clearly see) each decision as it is made. This has the further advantage that each decision must be expressed in a clear and concise form which ensures that it is clarified.

Groups are like relationships - you have to work at them. In the work place, they constitute an important unit of activity but one whose support needs are only recently becoming understood.
By making the group itself responsible for its own support, the responsibility becomes an accelerator for the group process.
What is vital, is that these needs are recognized and explicitly dealt with by the group.

Time and resources must be allocated to this by the group and by church, and the group process must be planned, monitored and reviewed just like any other managed process.