THE IMPORTANCE OF GROUP/ORGANIZATION

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Please help me with this essay. Thnx a lot.

Topic:
Groups or organizations are an important part of some peoples
lives. Why are groups or organizations important to people? Use
specific reasons and examples to explain your answer.

Essay:
Each of us belongs to many kinds of group or organization: family,
school or office. It is undeniable that the role of groups and
organizations in our lives are vital. They are important to us because
they give us the opportunity to learn teamwork, socialize and have
competition.

To begin with, we learn to cooperate with others when we are
members of a group. Imagine if you are an actor in the cast of a film,
you not only have to study your part but also have to learn to play
your part in harmony with others. By living in groups, we gradually
come to realize that sometimes we have to sacrifice our own
advantages in order to maintain the group's work. In other words,
groups help us to learn teamwork.

In addition, groups offer us the chance to interact with others and
learn useful life skills. For example, we can learn how to state and
defend our opinion before others when we are members of a group.
People who don't belong to any group don't have this advantage,
which usually results in that their behavior before others is very
awkward and unnatural.

Last but not least, we have the opportunity to compete with others
when belonging to a group. This is especially true if the group is a
selective one that only choose people with a special characteristic.
In such groups, we have to compete with others in order to maintain
our positions. I used to be the member of an honor class in my junior
high school and my memory of this time was still very clear. In order
to stay in this class for four years, I had to strive so much that I didn't
have time to spare for watching TV or anything else.

In conclusion, we humans can't live without belonging to some
kinds of group or organization. They teach us teamwork, social skills
and put us in competitions. It would be a true disaster for anyone
who isn't the member of any group.

Topic:
Groups or organizations are an important part of some peoples
lives. Why are groups or organizations important to people? Use
specific reasons and examples to explain your answer.

Essay:
Each of us belongs to many kinds [different types --- I am not
cutting marks though for this]of groups or organizations: family,
school or office. It is undeniable that the role of groups and
organizations in our lives are vital. They are important to us because
they give us the opportunity to learn teamwork, socialize and have
competition.
[Descent starting]

To begin with, we learn to cooperate with others when we are
members of a group. Imagine if you are an actor in the cast of a film,
you not only have to study your part but also have to learn to play
your part in harmony with others. By living in groups, we gradually
come to realize that sometimes we have to sacrifice our own
advantages in order to maintain the group's work. In other words,
groups help us to learn teamwork.
[Perfect]

In addition, groups offer us the chance to interact with others and
learn useful life skills. For example, we can learn how to state and
defend our opinion before others when we are members of a group.
People who don't belong to any group don't have this advantage,
which usually results in that their behavior before others is very
awkward and unnatural.
[Logical]

Last but not least, we have the opportunity to compete with others
when belonging to a group. This is especially true if the group is a
selective one that only choose people with a special characteristic.
In such groups, we have to compete with others in order to maintain
our positions. I used to be the member of an honor class in my junior
high school and my memory of this time was still very clear. In order
to stay in this class for four years, I had to strive so much that I didn't
have time to spare for watching TV or anything else.
[Good]

In conclusion, we humans can't live without belonging to some kinds
of group or organization. They teach us teamwork, social skills and
put us in competitions. It would be a true disaster for anyone who
isn't the member of any group.

Informal Group Dynamics
Formation of informal work groups
Individuals are employed by an organization to perform specific
functions. Although the whole person joins an organization, attention
is usually focused on the partial person, the part of the individual
doing the job. Because people have needs that extend beyond the
work itself, informal groups develop to fill certain emotional, social,
and psychological needs.
The degree to which a group satisfies its members needs
determines the limits within which individual members of the group
will allow their behavior to be controlled by the group.
Sense of belonging
Several major functions are served by informal groups. For example,
the group serves as a means of satisfying the affiliation needs of its
members for friendship and support. People need to belong, to be
liked, to feel a part of something. Because the informal group can
withhold this attractive reward, it has a tool of its own to coerce
compliance with its norms.
Identity and self esteem
Groups also provide a means of developing, enhancing, and
confirming a person's sense of identity and self-esteem. Although
many organizations attempt to recognize these higher needs, the
nature of some jobs-their technology and environment-precludes this
from happening. The long assembly line or endless rows of desks
reinforce a feeling of depersonalization.
Stress reduction
Another function of groups is to serve as an agent for establishing
and testing social reality. For instance, several individuals may share
the feeling that their supervisor is a slave driver or that their working
conditions are inadequate. By developing a consensus about these
feelings, group members are able to reduce the anxiety associated
with their jobs.
All for one, one for all
Finally, the informal group serves as a defense mechanism against
forces that group members could not resist on their own. Joining
forces in a small group makes the members feel stronger, less
anxious, and less insecure in the face of a perceived threat.
As long as needs exist that are not served by the formal
organization, informal groups will form to fill the gap. Since the group
fills many important needs for its members, it influences member
behavior.
GROUP FORMATION AND DEVELOPMENT
by Phil Bartle, PhD

Reference Document
Introduction:
The tips included here are intended to supplement the skills and
experience that you already have as a community mobilizer. What is
emphasized here is not the traditional kinds of mobilizing for
communal or community wealth generation, but mobilizing to form
and activate groups that will handle credit for individual small scale
entrepreneurs.
This document has four parts to it: (1) forming groups, (2) managing
groups, (3) training in groups, and (4) meetings.
1. Getting Together:
This section provides some tips and ideas on forming groups for the
purpose of wealth generation.
Groups are needed (a) to organize and guide the action, (b) for
promoting and encouraging savings and investment, (c) for training
members in necessary skills, and (d) for channelling the finance
needed for the individual micro enterprises.
Definition of a Group:
For our purpose here, a group means some people (minimum of
five) who come together on a free and voluntary basis, and with a
spirit of co-operation expressed by mutual love and assistance,
sister/brotherhood, justice and honesty; to work together for mutual
social and economic benefit. In this case a group might be a women
group registered with National Council of Women, District
Community Development Department, a traditional credit rotation
group, or an informal development group of individuals in a
community.
The Need for Groups:
There are several reasons why people want to come together:
In a group, members have access to goods and services
more easily than they would have on an individual basis;
Group members pull together scarce resources, own and
manage them themselves in order to fight against poverty,
food shortage, powerlessness of an individual person
against market forces, unemployment and low self
esteem;
Groups can be learning laboratories, promoting skills such
as enterprise management and problem solving;
Groups are useful receiving mechanisms for resources
from Government and NGO development agencies;
The group allows more small women entrepreneurs to be
reached;
It reduces on administrative transaction costs of lending;
A group reduces default through collective risk taking; and
Groups provide a channel for information.
It is therefore important that people in low-income communities be
motivated and educated to recognize the significance of collective
efforts in solving problems that seem impossible with individual
efforts, by voluntarily deciding to put their efforts together to help
increase their access to training in business management skills,
credit facilities, marketing facilities and appropriate technology.
Your job as mobilizer is to promote that motivation and action.
Forming a Group:
The main reason for a group to form is physical interaction based
upon a common need or problem. The greater the extent to which
individuals share activities the more they will interact and the higher
the probability that they will form a group. Interaction enables people
to discover common interests, likes and dislikes, attitudes, or
sentiments.
There are other important factors which encourage group formation.
Physical proximity: People who live in the same village are
likely to form a group than people who live in different
villages;
Physical attraction: Individuals who attract to each other
physically might form a group, eg young and energetic
boys and girls;
Rewards: satisfaction of economic and social needs; and
Social support: perhaps provided by members of a group
in times of crisis.

To form a group for wealth generation, the following should be well
established:
Membership should be open and voluntary;
There should be no political or religious interference;
Members must together feel that they need to form a
group in order to achieve their common objectives;
The group should be democratically controlled by the
general membership; and
Members should be informed and aware.

Personal skills and attitudes of you, the mobilizer, in forming a group
are also crucial to success.
The following are a few pointers. As a mobilizer, you need:
Patience (People tend to change slowly; do not try to hurry
the process up too much);
Empathy (You need understanding of community
members and their problems; the ability to see things as
they do)
Business Knowledge (You need a thorough understanding
of the business side of the group's future activity, and an
ability to explain it in simple terms);
Commitment (You must be thoroughly convinced of the
value of what you are doing, and willingness to do it well);
Realism (You must be able to give practical help in a
realistic way);
Respect (People may be poor but they are not stupid and
resent the "big master" approach and may be suspicious
of any tendency to a "know-it-all;" approach); and
Honesty and Integrity (Your reputation is your most
important asset as a mobilizer).

Getting a group formed takes time and skills. Mobilizers must pay
frequent visits to the community where the group is to be formed and
devote time to talk to the people and getting to know them. Attempts
to move fast could result in failure. Successful and sustainable
groups are hard to form.
The following steps should be followed to identify interested people
to form a group in the community:
1. Meet with Local Councillors and Elders: (Approach local
council chairperson, and elders to introduce your mission
and request a meeting with all interested community
members);
2. Meet Community Members: (Meet with community
members to discuss fully your mission; what you intend to
do, the nature and form that it takes); and
3. Meet with Interested Members: (Fix another date to meet
with members (men and women) of the community
interested and willing to participate in the programme.
Write down their names, addresses, ages, activities
engaged in including their current levels of operation).
Membership Requirements:
Members of a group may be of either gender, at least 18 years, with
common objective (eg to become independent entrepreneurs),
engaged in similar or related activity, and willing to come together
and work together.
A group will be more viable and strong if its members are:
already engaged in an activity;
acceptable to other group members;
committed, understanding and share the objective of
poverty eradication;
honest and of good conduct; and
hard working.

People with the following characteristics may contribute to the decay
and failure of a group:
drunkards;
drug addicts;
bad debtors;
disrespectful individuals;
idlers; or
dishonest individuals.
It is not your job to dictate who should and should not belong to a
group. You guide the group in forming itself. Using a system of
forming trust groups helps here. You ask the participants to write five
or six other persons that they would be willing to trust with their
money./p>
Persons with negative characteristics tend to be left our of such
formed trust groups, and those with the positive attributes tend to be
included. When any individual complains that they have net been
included in any trust group, then you simply let them know that the
reason is because they have not appeared on anybody's ballot.
2. Managing a Group:
How is a group managed? Forming a group is usually not difficult;
the problem is how to manage the group to survive and grow to be
strong, self-sustaining and permanent, leading to obtaining legal
status.
A group has two categories; ordinary members and committee (or
executive) members. It requires active participation both all these to
co-ordinate and manage a group's business. Members may consider
themselves outside the management. It is your job as mobilizer to
ensure that they know the group is theirs, and that the leadership of
the group is controlled by them collectively. Members are owners
who delegate their powers of management to the group's executive
or committee.
Let them know the following reasons why they must see themselves
as part of the management of a group:
Members contribute resources to finance groups
businesses;
Members outputs are handled by the group; and
Members enjoy the fruits of the groups businesses
(profit/loss).
If members consider themselves outside the management of the
group, this contributes to loss of transparency, and therefore to
mismanagement and lowering of trust that will eventually destroy the
group.
Members contribute input resources (funds, labour, products). They
also formulate policies (eg what income generating activity to be
taken on, amount of money to be contributed or borrowed and how
to share profits).
A committee implements policies and plans for the members.
Returns of the micro enterprises are passed on to members for
consumption or re-investment elsewhere and strengthening them for
future returns to the group business.
3. Group Training:
There are two targets (beneficiaries) in group training:
Training all group members; and
Training management or executive leaders.
As a mobilizer, you must train or arrange for the training of the whole
group. The following are some, but not all, of the skills that must be
transferred to all members of the group.
To support the best services to members and ensuring smooth
running of business affairs, a group must perform some duties,
including:
a group must have some registered address to which all
forms of communication and notices would be sent;
a group must keep copies of bye-laws and members
register; and
a group must work out a period work plan confirmed by all
members.
The small scale enterprises should be income and employment
generating, viable and environmentally friendly. Members should be
aware of their right to have the authority to control their group.
Your job as mobilizer is to let them know the following:
Members have the right to attend all general meetings of
their group and to vote on every issue on the basis of
universal suffrage (one member one vote);
Every member of a group has a right to participate in the
election of the committee and to be elected on the
committee if s/he qualifies;
A certain number ( ) of membership has a right cause a
special general meeting be called by the committee; and if
it fails, then the members demanding may call the
meeting;
Every member has a right to share in the group's profits;
Every member has a right to inspect the group's property
or business activity;
When there are funds and a member qualifies, s/he has a
right to borrow; and
Every member when not indebted to the group has a right
to withdraw his/her membership. S/he may transfer his/her
share(s) to another member.
Members are liable for a group's debts in case the group fails to
meet its financial obligations. When a member borrows, the rest of
the group's membership co-guarantee that member and they are all
liable for recovery of the loan.
Members' Role in Management:
Members participate in management in several ways, including:
attending the general meetings for making broad policies
and plans;
electing or removing committee members;
adopting and amending by laws;
financing group activities through agreed savings and
contributions (weekly or monthly);
supervising group activities; and
defending the group.
Training Executive or Committee Members:
Executive or committee members need training in their special
functions which involve special skills. Group members should be
aware of matters pertaining to the committee of the group.
Members who become executive of the group are expected to
conform to:
Qualities required of a committee member; and
Duties that are required of an executive committee
member in a group.
What is an Executive or Committee?
An executive or committee is a central body in a group which is
elected by general membership to direct and manage the affairs of a
group. It may include chairperson, vice chairperson, treasurer,
secretary and ordinary committee members, usually not exceeding
four.
Committee members should have or learn skills which will enable
them to:
Organizing and implementing group activities;
Conducting meetings and writing minutes;
Developing group policy and procedures;
Maintaining and keeping books of accounts; and
Conducting negotiations and doing business with other
organizations.
Leadership:
Leading means guiding and influencing people so that they can
contribute to the organization and group goals. The task of leading is
undertaken by a leader. See Leadership. Your job as mobilizer is to
identify and encourage local leaders from the start.
A good leader has roles. Group leaders should be able to:
provide guidance for group activities;
obtain information from group members;
communicate information to the group;
define problems and identify solutions;
appraise group performance;
offer ideas and opinions;
encourage others to offer ideas and opinions;
arbitrate disputes between group members; and
represent the group's interests to outside bodies.

Characteristics of a good leader: A good leader should be:
trusted,
reliable;
respected in the community;
willing to serve;
able to show initiative and drive; and
willing to listen and make decisions based on what
members say.
4. Meetings:
Group meetings include times when members gather either
periodically or at short notice to discuss an agenda.
A group that fails to meet ceases to be functional. Meetings should
be regular, held at the same time and on the same day each week.
All activities in the group revolve around the weekly meetings at
which members share experiences, learn from each other and also
receive education and training.
Meeting notes should be kept by secretary to remind the group of
activities and discussions at previous meetings. It should be kept in
simple language. You may suggest the format given below, or
modify it according to local conditions.
Possible Meeting Structure
(Never conduct a meeting because, "That is the way it is always
done; it is tradition, or it is the orthodox way." Organize your
meetings according to the most effective method to obtain decisions
by the group as a whole, or for effective action)
1. Date of meeting _________________________

2. Meeting chaired by ______________________

3. Prayers * by ____________________________

4. Attendance:
o List of members present;
o List of member late;
o List of members absent with and/or without
apology.

5. Agenda (Can be modified as needed):
o Confirmation of the agenda;
o Communication from the chair;
o Review and confirmation of previous minutes,
and matters arising therefrom;
o Business of the day;
Wherever possible, the items to be dealt with should be
listed in writing
on the agenda and circulated prior to the meeting. This is
the essence of
the agenda (all else is decoration or structure). Include
reports from
treasurer, sub committees, any members or others who
have been given
assignments at previous meetings.
o Any other business (AOB);
o Closing by prayers. *
* The use of prayers must be done with sensitivity for community
values and beliefs. Prayers should not be only those of the elite,
educated or dominant faction of the community. They may be
Christian, Muslim, Traditional, or combinations, depending upon the
whole community. Where there is religious conflict, it sometimes is
better to avoid prayers, saying that the mobilizing is a secular
activity. On other (formal) occasions, it may be wise to invite more
than one religious official, representing the various beliefs in the
community. Be prepared for some sophisticated groups who find
prayers (of any sort) offensive.




Building an Umbrella Organization: