| Course | OML-6100 Organizational Management and Leadership I |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 2 |
| Paper type | Module 2 written assignment: team leadership |
| Length | About 625 words, 5 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Thomas Edison State University |
| Program | M.S. in Management in Organizational Leadership |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for OML 6100 Module 2
When a Team Stops Talking: Rebuilding Norms and Safety on a Support Team
Student Name
M.S. in Management in Organizational Leadership, Thomas Edison State University
OML-6100: Organizational Management and Leadership I
Mentor Name
Month Day, Year
When a Team Stops Talking: Rebuilding Norms and Safety on a Support Team
The Team and the Problem
My team of nine analysts answers insurance agents' questions about policy software. Last year two teams were merged into mine. Since then, analysts solve problems alone: when one finds a fix for a recurring error, others do not hear about it and solve it again from scratch. Average handling time has risen 18 percent, and two analysts told me they hesitate to ask questions because "the other team" will think they are slow.
Diagnosis
Lussier and Achua (2022) describe a team as people with complementary skills who depend on one another, share a purpose and hold one another accountable. By that definition we are a group, not yet a team. Our analysts share a queue but not a purpose beyond their own numbers.
Tuckman (1965) described groups moving through forming, storming, norming and performing. The merger restarted that sequence. We passed through a quiet storming stage, with tension between the two original teams that no one discussed, and never reached norming. The norms that formed were individual ones: protect your handling time and do not reveal what you do not know.
In the work teams Edmondson (1999) studied, psychological safety, the shared expectation that speaking up or admitting a gap will not be held against anyone, predicted learning behaviors, such as asking for help, seeking feedback and talking through errors, and that learning behavior in turn predicted performance. The analysts' fear of looking slow points to thin psychological safety on the team, and the fixes nobody shares are is the learning behavior it suppresses.
Hackman (2002) argued that teams succeed when leaders put certain conditions in place: a bounded, real team, a direction worth pursuing, a structure that enables the work, a supportive context and skilled coaching. Our weakest conditions are direction, since goals are individual, and structure, since nothing in our work design rewards sharing.
Decision Making
The team's decision making also changed after the merger. Lussier and Achua describe a continuum from leader decisions to consultative, participative and delegated ones, and recommend matching the style to the decision's importance and to members' knowledge. Since the merger I have made most decisions alone to avoid taking sides between the old teams. That kept the peace but taught analysts that their knowledge did not matter. Under the plan, decisions about the knowledge base and the fix review will be delegated to the analysts who own each product area, while I keep decisions about schedules and targets.
The Leader's Plan
The weekly review matters most. Edmondson's research suggests that leaders signal safety by admitting their own errors and inviting input, so I will open each review with something I got wrong.
| Condition | Current state | Action |
|---|---|---|
| Compelling direction | Individual handling time targets | Add a team goal: cut repeat contacts on known issues by 30 percent |
| Enabling structure | No place to record fixes | A team-owned knowledge base, with each analyst owning one product area |
| Norms | Do not reveal gaps | A weekly 20-minute fix review where I share a mistake first |
| Psychological safety | Fear of looking slow | Questions in the team channel answered within the hour, and thanked publicly |
| Coaching | Monthly one-on-ones about numbers | One-on-ones that include what each analyst learned |
Measuring Progress
I will track repeat contacts on known issues, knowledge base entries per week and handling time, and I will ask the team a short anonymous question each month: "Is it safe to ask for help on this team?"
Conclusion
The team's problem is not skill but norms formed during an unfinished merger. By setting a shared goal, building a structure for sharing and modeling the safety I want to see, I can help the group become a team.
References
Edmondson, A. (1999). Psychological safety and learning behavior in work teams. Administrative Science Quarterly, 44(2), 350-383. https://doi.org/10.2307/2666999
Hackman, J. R. (2002). Leading teams: Setting the stage for great performances. Harvard Business School Press.
Lussier, R. N., & Achua, C. F. (2022). Leadership: Theory, application, and skill development (7th ed.). Sage.
Tuckman, B. W. (1965). Developmental sequence in small groups. Psychological Bulletin, 63(6), 384-399. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0022100
OML 6100 Module 2 instructions, in plain terms
Five written assignments, one per module topic, make up a quarter of the OML-6100 grade. This one covers team leadership. Expect to analyze a team you are part of, as leader or member, using concepts such as team development, norms, cohesiveness, decision making and the conditions for team effectiveness, and to explain what a leader should do. Ground the diagnosis in specific behaviors and data, cite the textbook and research, and make your recommendations concrete enough that a reader could carry them out. Describe the team's problem with evidence, such as a metric, a pattern of behavior or what members have said, before you apply any concept. Address how the team makes decisions as well as how it feels, since both are part of team leadership.
How this OML 6100 Module 2 example is built
The paper opens with the team and its problem, with a figure and quotations. A diagnosis section applies the textbook's definition of a team, the stages of team development, research on psychological safety and the conditions for team effectiveness. A table sets out each condition, its current state and an action. A paragraph explains why the weekly review matters most. A measurement section and a conclusion close the paper. A section on decision making explains how the leader's habit of deciding alone after the merger taught analysts that their knowledge did not matter, and sets out which decisions will be delegated under the plan. Every action in the table traces to a diagnosed cause.
Where the marks sit in the OML 6100 Module 2 rubric
Credit goes to accurate use of the course's team concepts, analytical depth, backing from the textbook and studies, recommendations a manager could act on and clear prose. Papers that diagnose a team's problem with several concepts that fit together, rather than one, show command of team leadership. Linking each action to a diagnosed condition demonstrates sound reasoning. A way to measure progress, including the team's own view, shows that the plan can be tested. Analysis of the team's decision making, matched to the textbook's continuum of styles, shows that the paper covers structure as well as relationships. Specific evidence, such as the 18 percent rise in handling time and the analysts' own words, makes the diagnosis convincing.
OML 6100 Module 2 help: mistakes that cost marks
Students lose points by describing a team without diagnosing it, by applying concepts loosely or by recommending generic team building. Others ignore the leader's own role. Describe the team's problem with evidence. Use two or three concepts that explain it. Tie each action to a cause. Say what you, as leader, will do differently. Address decision making as well as morale, and say which decisions you will share with the team and which you will keep. Plan how you will know the team has changed, including asking members directly. A free first sample on your own OML-6100 team leadership assignment is available on request.
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OML 6100 Module 2 questions, answered
Where can I find a free OML 6100 Module 2 sample paper?
A support team lead's plan to rebuild norms and psychological safety is the assignment above.
What is the difference between a group and a team?
A team's members are interdependent, share a common purpose and hold themselves mutually accountable.
What are Tuckman's stages of team development?
Forming, storming, norming and performing.
What is psychological safety?
A climate in which team members can raise doubts, ask for help or admit errors and expect no punishment for it.
What conditions make teams effective, according to Hackman?
Being a genuine team, having a direction worth pursuing, working within a structure that helps, having organizational support and receiving skilled coaching.