Cross-functional Project Teams Research Articles

THE FUNCTIONAL POSITION IN THE INDONESIAN NATIONAL POLICE

This paper describes the implementation of functional position conception by the INP. The literature discussing the concept in specific and near terms is investigated. The functional position is widely discussed in the Indonesian literature. However, the direct term (the functional position) is hardly found in Western literature. The near term is the professional. The term discussion is associated with changing from a hierarchical to a flat and agile organisation. The flat and agile structure facilitates the work of cross-functional project teams (CFTs) and professionals. Moreover, the flat and agile structure means fewer managers, enlarging the professionals' roles. However, the police of some countries have not yet streamlined their structures to flat and agile organisations (including the Indonesian National Police [INP]). This study is conducted through a literature review and document analysis. The global literature is reviewed narratively to explore the functional position concept. Subsequently, the functional position application in the INP is studied from the act, regulations and other documents. The INP has developed various functional positions within the organisation since the inception of the Police Act 2002. Besides, the INP develops supporting elements for functional positions. The INP's units, officers, and CFTs may be more capable of handling policing problems by applying for the functional position initiative.  This study introduces the concept of the functional position of the INP to the global literature. The concept may be studied further to understand its mechanism and effectiveness in improving policing.

Strengthening Collaboration through Perception Alignment: Hybrid Workplace Leadership Impact on Member Awareness, Understanding, and Learning Agility

The recent development of cross-functional project initiatives and implementation of remote technology applications is changing the leader and team member working environment that influences their interaction and collaboration with other teams/customers/stakeholders/ providers/any related parties to compete in the rising digitalization and VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity) situation. This research wants to dissect how the influence of hybrid workplace leadership capabilities on the awareness, understanding, and learning agility of cross-functional project team members to foster team perception alignment and achieve strengthened collaboration. Researcher dissects individual team members' mental processes (awareness of the intended purpose, understanding of self-others, and learning agility) that connect leadership capability and team perception alignment to enhance collaboration during hybrid workplace implementation. This study is a quantitative research methodology, collecting data through a questionnaire survey and then analyzing data from 99 respondents using Partial Least Squares Structural Equations Model (PLS-SEM). Based on the result of this study, hybrid workplace leadership impacts the awareness of purpose. Then awareness affects the understanding of self and others, and both affect the learning agility of each team member, which influences the alignment of perceptions in the work team. This alignment of perceptions contributes to the collaboration process with other teams/organizations.

A Systematic Literature Review about Team Diversity and Team Performance: Future Lines of Investigation

This study aims to identify the different research paths that help us understand the emerging aspects explaining how team diversity influences team performance. We also present future lines of investigation that could help us to understand this theme. The study is a systematic literature review (SLR) of articles collected from the Web of Science (WoS) database, within management or business categories, published between 1996 and 2020, considering knowledge diversity, team heterogeneity, team wisdom, cross-functional project teams, and team composition. This study enables the systematization of the existing literature. The framework presented is based on the reviewed articles and explains the articulation of the concepts of team diversity and team performance based on three literature clusters, namely: (1) Team Knowledge Diversity, (2) Diversity Effects and (3) Desirable Outcomes of Diversity. Therefore, this work enriches the systematization of the academic literature on this topic, providing an original framework and a future research agenda organized by literature cluster.

Why We Can't Always Establish Shared Goals on Projects

For a project to be successful team members must be aligned with each other on their goal. The purpose of this study was to understand how a cross-functional project team engages in accepting a project goal as real. We framed our study using shared reality theory and a qualitative approach to analyze the video and audio recorded meetings of three cross-functional project teams over a four-month period in a mid-sized private fintech firm. We proposed that the establishment of a goal as a project teams reality requires the integration of functional and organizational identity for the project team to align. We found that when teams faced events of uncertainty related to their goal, the team that had integrated their goal as reality had reconciled identity. Teams that had not accepted their goal as reality engaged in continuous interpretations of an events meaning and challenged each other’s functional identity. Given this validation we then examined how the goal aligned with the organization’s identity in the form of their mission statement. We found that the team’s inability to create a shared goal was because the goal itself conflicted with the organization’s identity. Functional team members have an identity that is partially supported by this identity rendering the integration of the goal as reality impossible. The findings of this study contribute an important understanding about the interrelationship between organizational goals and identity alignment. It exposes the critical role goal formation plays in maintaining a coherent organizational story so that functional team members may correctly act their part. This research also extends goal theory by considering the implications of the relational context of a goal within the organizational context.

The Role of Identity in Supporting a Shared Reality On Cross-Functional Project Teams

Project structures have become a dominating form to organize and accomplish work in firms today. This study focused on firms that source the functional expertise needed to support project implementations on a temporary basis from their organizational hierarchy. In this matrixed structure, individuals reside in two social worlds, that of the project team and that of their functional team. The purpose of this quantitative study was to understand the effect of social identity on cross-functional project teams’ communication and their ability to develop a shared reality with other project team members. In this study, we surveyed 212 members of cross-functional project teams in the financial services sector. We found that a strong functional identity was positively related to the ability of an individual to understand what is being communicated from another discipline. The ability to understand someone from another discipline was positively related to a successful project outcome. This study contributes to the literature on team social identity by demonstrating how it is mediated by effective communication across functional boundaries to create successful project outcomes.

Personality configurations in teams: a comparison of compilation and composition models

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the facilitating and inhibiting influence of team-level negative affectivity and conscientiousness on a dyad of emergent states, adopting and comparing both the composition and compilation perspectives.Design/methodology/approachData were collected over three time points from 410 undergraduate students nested within cross-functional project teams (N= 62). The data, including individual self-reports and judges’ ratings of team performance, were aggregated to the team-level using both composition (mean) and compilation (skewness) approaches.FindingsThe findings indicate that mean-levels of negative affectivity were associated with decreased psychological safety. The use of skewed conscientiousness counterintuitively suggests too many highly conscientious members can also be detrimental to psychological safety. Psychological safety influences team potency and ultimately performance.Originality/valueThe results of this study highlight that the aggregation approach used is important. For example, the use of skewed (but not mean-level) conscientiousness brought an undetected and counterintuitive relationship to light. Future research should use compilation approaches in addition to composition approaches.

Dynamics of after-sales managers’ strategizing work: What, why and how

The strategizing work of After-sales managers is understudied. This paper therefore investigate how after-sales strategies actually come about in early phases of product development. The study builds on three month observations and 68 interviews. This paper studies a radical vehicle platform project where the participating organizations organized product development through cross-functional project teams. First, this paper penetrates the “black box” of activities that after-sales managers must avail themselves, and the strategy work that after-sales managers perform in practice. Second, we develop a framework explaining and defining the dynamics of after-sales strategizing work. Third, we develop a process model capturing the activities of after-sales strategizing process. Four, after-sales has been given a marginal role in strategy and strategizing. This paper therefore contributes to the strategy-as-practice research stream where we show and elaborate upon the mechanisms in the dynamics of strategy work.

From Conflict Styles to Behaviours - a Research of Team Relationship Conflict, and Research Agenda for Indian Infrastructure Projects

Globally, 80% of projects fail to meet either schedule or budget, and about 50% of such failures are due to human factors. Conflict is inevitable between people working in crossfunctional project teams; further, task-oriented conflict is constructive and is needed to make progress. However, personoriented or Relationship Conflict can be destructive - arising from differences in beliefs, values, attitudes and communication styles. Relationship Conflict is found to cause counterproductive work behaviour and affect team cooperation, creativity, cohesion, learning, even mood & sleep, leading to schedule delays and budget increases, accounting for up to 27% of the variation in project performance. Several antecedent factors are identified, including team diversity, personality and leadership, with a focus on aspects of behaviour and processes which may be more amenable to control. Among the resolution approaches, the Project Management Institute’s style-based proposals are studied, along with later developments which emphasise communication, mediation and negotiation of interests, rather than rights or power. Focussing on behaviour, both destructive and constructive, and the “hot buttons” to control, has been found to provide helpful tools to grow conflict resolution behaviours & skills, with the necessary organisational commitment. Actual studies of Relationship Conflict behaviour in project teams per se and its impact on performance are limited; particularly in the context of Indian infrastructure projects. A survey is envisaged to assess the current practices and improvement possibilities. The basis and method for conducting such a detailed study are described, with the objective of better management of the phenomenon, enhancing teamwork and improving project performances.

Improving relationships between sales and marketing: the relative effectiveness of cross-functional coordination mechanisms

ABSTRACTThe importance of effective sales and marketing working relationships is well known and this article examines the effectiveness of various coordination mechanisms used to improve this cross-functional relationship. Six coordination mechanisms are measured to identify their effect on sales and marketing conflict and collaboration, which in turn influence business performance. The results reveal that not all coordination mechanisms are equally effective. Structuring sales and marketing as a single unit and creating cross-functional project teams improve the interface, as do providing opportunities for job rotation and establishing cross-functional meetings. However, employing cross-functional training and co-locating sales and marketing do not influence this working relationship. Finally, reducing conflict and increasing collaboration between sales and marketing is shown to independently, and positively, influence business performance.

When and how cognitive conflict benefits cross-functional project team innovation

PurposeThis research aims to comprehensively investigate when and how cognitive conflict benefits team innovation in cross-functional project teams (CFPTs), by exploring the moderating role of knowledge leadership and dual mediation mechanisms of elaboration of task-related information/knowledge and affective conflict.Design/methodology/approachAll hypotheses have been empirically tested by using structural equation model to analyze the quantitative data from a questionnaire survey covering 73 CFPTs in China.FindingsResults indicate that knowledge leadership positively moderates the relationship between cognitive conflict and CFPT innovation. This moderating effect is directly or indirectly revealed by the dual mediating roles of task-related information/knowledge elaboration and affective conflict, which are two processes manifesting whether cognitive conflict can or cannot be incorporated into team innovation.Research limitations/implicationsDespite the external validity of results limited by convenient sampling method, the findings offer implications for promoting CFPT innovation. This can be achieved by developing competent knowledge leadership into team sensegiver, dissent reconciler and facilitator to accentuate benefits of cognitive conflict in information/knowledge elaboration and attenuate the likelihood of escalating to affective conflict.Originality/valueThis study advances the understanding of why cognitive conflict has an equivocal effect on team innovation in the context of CFPT by originally revealing how leaders’ role in information/knowledge management acts as a contingency and suggesting the dual mediating mechanisms that reflect the contingent impact. Project-based teams or organizations, characterized by cognitive clashes, can enhance innovation performance by shaping the meaningfulness of information/knowledge activities triggered by cognitive conflict.

Enabling knowledge diversity to benefit cross-functional project teams: Joint roles of knowledge leadership and transactive memory system

Team members’ knowledge diversity has a “double-edged sword” nature within cross-functional project teams (CFPTs), showing an inconsistent relationship with team performance. For realizing this diversity’s potential benefits, leadership is usually an essential enabler. However, little is known about how knowledge leadership achieves this. This study proposed that knowledge leadership moderates the effect of knowledge diversity on team performance through a transactive memory system (TMS). By empirically testing survey data from 96 CFPTs, we found that knowledge leadership enables a positive linkage of knowledge diversity-CFPT performance by successively breaking down barriers to communication and cooperation in TMS development and functioning.

Intra-firm causal ambiguity on cross-functional project team’s performance

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the negative effect of intra-firm causal ambiguity on the project team’s performance—efficiency and effectiveness, and also examine the moderating role of openness and the integrative capabilities.Design/methodology/approachThe population in this study is teams that come from a variety of companies which work with cross-functional teams or matrices, such as advertising agencies, recreational or amusement parks, television companies, production houses, radio stations, private education providers, manufacturing enterprises and IT companies. The sample population was chosen based on their tendency to form creative teams to respond to environmental/market dynamics by involving employees from different backgrounds and levels in the planning and implementation of projects.FindingsAs hypothesized, intra-firm causal ambiguity negatively influenced the project team’s efficiency and effectiveness, while openness moderated the effect of intra-firm causal ambiguity to efficiency, but not to effectiveness, and the team’s integrative capabilities did not moderate the above relationship.Research limitations/implicationsFirst, the sample in this study only focused on teams with creativity doing a project. Any future research is expected to focus more on the selection of sample types which also have a tendency to apply openness, and focus their activities on improving their integrative capabilities. Second, there are no data about the background experience of the members of the teams in working together on previous projects, so future studies need to discover whether that experience also affects the variables included in this study. Third, the category of the time horizon samples for the project’s implementation, which were between one month and two years, is still too wide. It may have contributed to the overlapping of the moderating effect, so future studies need the sample project’s categories to have a much narrower range (one to three months, four to six months, or one year). Fourth, the regression results for the moderating variables are partially not supported. This may relate to the characteristics of the respondents. To obtain the data and a more complete knowledge, further research can be done into creative on-going team types, such as an interior design team, a company’s production performance team and others.Practical implicationsA practical implication based on the research that has been done is that, when the condition of intra-firm causal ambiguity occurs, strategies to reduce the condition are needed. First, before a project starts, all the team members must understand the systemic process of the project’s resources related to the environment and the objectives. Systemic understanding of the resources system can help the team to effectively manage any causal ambiguity in the resources system. Second, referring that the higher the intra-firm causal ambiguity is, the efforts to codify the resources and the systemic process of the project should also be higher as well. So the second strategy is to codify/create tools that guide the project, in order to make it easily understandable, accessible and always up to date, over the lifespan of the project.Originality/valueThe results of research into the impacts of intra-firm causal ambiguity on the organizational performance are still inconsistent. Some researchers claim that intra-firm causal ambiguity has a negative effect on performance, but there are also studies that show the opposite result. This research accommodates these inconsistencies by examining the effects of a moderating variable on the impact of intra-firm causal ambiguity on a cross-functional team’s performance, in its contextual and internal aspects. The contextual aspect is represented by the openness of the team, while the team’s ability to integrate the diversity of knowledge, i.e. its integrative capability, is represented as the internal aspect.

Antecedents of Relationship Conflict in Cross-Functional Project Teams

Relationship conflict is a pervasive phenomenon in cross-functional project teams. Although previous studies have demonstrated the dysfunctional effect of relationship conflict, the direct drivers of relationship conflict in cross-functional project teams remain unclear. To address this gap, a literature review and an advisory group discussion were performed to identify the antecedents of the relationship conflict framework. Afterward, a structural equation model (SEM) was used to confirm the influence of such antecedents on relationship conflict. Intrapersonal diversity, uncertain project task, organizational culture diversity, and inappropriate behavior positively influence relationship conflict. These findings help researchers better understand the drivers of relationship conflict as well as open a gateway for practitioners to control and manage relationship conflict for a successful cross-functional project.

Cooperating without Co-laboring

I examine how different distributions of ownership and governance rights in firms affect the optimal organization of cross-functional project teams for knowledge-intensive work. I analyze multi-method data from two competing automated manufacturing equipment engineering firms with contrasting formal power structures, one a worker cooperative with ownership and governance rights distributed across occupations and the other a conventional firm with ownership and governance rights concentrated in the hands of several senior workers in one occupational group. Contrary to prior research, my findings suggest that when collective tasks are uncertain and complex, the benefits of cross-functional interactions depend on organizations’ formal power structure: cross-functional interactions improve teams’ productivity in the context of concentrated ownership and governance rights but not when ownership and governance rights are widely distributed among workers. Fieldwork at the two firms revealed three mechanisms by which dispersed formal power decreases the productivity benefits of cross-functional interaction: it reduces status distinctions among team members, increasing the labor hours required to resolve conflicts; boosts participation in oversight and coordination processes outside teams so that workers have more access to information and less need for cross-functional interactions; and increases the distribution of knowledge-management technology, which increases workers’ autonomy and reduces the value of cross-functional interactions.

The impact of commitment and climate strength on the relationship between trust and performance in cross-functional project teams

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to shed more light on the complex relationship between trust and performance in the context of cross-functional project teams. This study presents a moderated mediation model that investigates the impact of team trust on team performance mediated by project commitment and moderated by climate strength (the consensus among team members on the level of trust).Design/methodology/approachTo test the proposed model, data were collected from 179 project team members in 31 Norwegian construction project teams.FindingsResults indicated that project commitment fully mediates the relationship between propensity and trustworthiness and team performance, while it partially mediates the relationship between cooperation and team performance. For monitoring, there results showed no mediation. The results yielded no support for the moderation effects of climate strength, suggesting that the mean-level approach to studying trust at the team level still is important.Research limitations/implicationsCross-sectional survey data suffer from being unable to test causality and samples are relatively small. Future research should test the models on other samples and in combination with data other than self-report. Longitudinal and multilevel studies are also warranted.Practical implicationsThe results suggest that trust has an impact on project commitment and both directly and indirectly on team performance. Interventions to develop a high trust climate in project teams can thus contribute to improved project performance.Originality/valueThis study offers new insight into the complex relationship between trust and performance and improves our understanding of trust in cross-functional project teams.

Analysis of business models and strategies of innovation development of logistics service providers

As a result of synthesis of theoretical development of foreign and domestic scientists, ordering experience of international and national logistics companies, basic characteristics of typical business models of logistics operators are established, relationship of internal and external factors and their impact on the individualized business models and corresponding strategies for innovation are defined. Double-pyramid model of relationship of innovative development factors is proposed for logistics service providers, optimum combination of which allows individualized business model and strategy of the company. The necessity of coordination these factors with target strategic guidelines of logistics service customers and led to the idea and a roadmap for formation of integrated logistics strategies to integrate operational and administrative processes of suppliers and customers in the supply chain, and create cross-functional project teams that generate synergies of knowledge, ideas, processes and effects. It is proved that the new business models of various types of logistics service providers require extensive use of modern information and communication technologies and business tools in the electronic environment. The emergence of new mobile and cloud technologies, social networks and large volumes of structured and unstructured data resulted in the birth of a «new style of IT», which enhances the flexibility and speed of information sharing, formation of collective experience, operational detect problems and make right management decisions. The proposed structure of information support systems of inter-organizational and cross-functional interaction in the implementation of integrated logistics strategies of innovation development determines the level of intellectualization of logistics activities, possibility of coordination of logistics processes along the supply chain, harmonization of relations between partners and their mutual loyalty.

The influence of informal governance mechanisms on knowledge integration within cross-functional project teams: a social capital perspective

This paper aims to explore the influence of informal governance mechanisms (IGMs) on knowledge integration (KI) within cross-functional project teams (CFPTs). In order to achieve this objective, we provide a novel and distinct perspective – social capital (SC). From this perspective, we analyse three dimensions of IGMs, that is, social interaction, social trust and social cognition. Propositions on underlying influencing mechanisms of the three dimensions on KI are then empirically tested using qualitative data from semi-structured interviews and quantitative data from questionnaire surveys. Results indicate that strong social ties, mutual trust and formation of shared vision facilitate KI within CFPTs. In addition, communication platforms are encouraged to provide more opportunities for team members to exchange knowledge. This paper provides suggestions for both knowledge governance theory and project management practice.

Prior ties and trust development in project teams – A case study from the construction industry

The limited duration and the high time constraints facing projects may pose challenges to the development of working relationships in project teams. Relationships can be influenced by the history of interactions and prior ties between team members. Development of trust is crucial but challenging in the context of cross-functional project teams and prior ties can have imperative influence on the team’s ability to create trust. Through a case study in the construction industry, we explore how prior ties between team members influence the development of trust. We identify four important aspects; early formation of integrative work practices, development of a common philosophy, open communication, early and clear role expectations, all contributing to development of trust in an early phase. Our findings offer new, empirical insights into the complex nature of temporary project work and underscore the significance of prior ties in facilitating early trust and integration within project teams.

Managing a Big Data project: The case of Ramco Cements Limited

Currently many organizations are in the process of implementing Big Data related projects in order to extract meaningful insights from their data for better decision making. Though there are various frameworks postulating the best practices which should be adopted while implementing analytics projects, they do not cater to the complexities associated with a Big Data project. In this paper our goal is two-fold: to develop a new framework that can provide organizations a holistic roadmap in conceptualizing, planning and successfully implementing Big Data projects and to validate this framework through our observation of a descriptive case study of an organization that has implemented such a project. Although the manufacturing sector has been slow in incorporating analytics in their strategic decision making, the situation is changing with increasing use of analytics for product development, operations and logistics. We explore the Big Data project at a manufacturing company, Ramco Cements Limited, India, describe the system developed by them and highlight the benefits accrued from it. We investigate the entire process by which the project is implemented using the lens of our proposed framework. Our results reveal that a clear understanding of the business problem, a detailed and well planned step-by-step project map, a cross functional project team, adoption of innovative visualization techniques, patronage and active involvement of top management and a culture of data driven decision making are essential for the success of a Big Data project.

Intragroup Conflict Transformation: How Task Conflicts Transform into Unproductive Conflicts

Interpersonal conflict is a ubiquitous feature in organizations that have cross-functional project teams. Intragroup conflicts about task ideas have been found to have positive benefits for team de...