Project Management
Yes, I agree that too much control is counter productive for the project performance. The reasoning for it is given below:
Small group dynamics have been an interesting area of inquiry in academic research. Because usually different groups are in charge of working and coordinating different activities of a project, the question of empowerment and control becomes pertinent to understand how the effectiveness of the project outcome can be improved.
For example, in software development, a firm usually organizes its work in small projects that is assigned to teams and workgroups.
These small groups work on a project for a period of time to meet the goals of the company for bringing out a new product in the market far more quickly than that of its competitors. Creating an environment that minimizes conflict, encourages creativity, and enhances the quality of the final work product is of utmost importance to delivering a quality product in a timely and cost efficient manner.
A large body of research indicates that the quality of a project outcome is dependent on the open communication rather than control. Fisher (39) argues that the challenge of working in a project stems from the efficiency and emotional concerns. If management tries to deal with excessive control, hoping that it could gain the returns from efficiency, it, however, looses the gains of group interactions and feelings. In other words, too much control may lead to the group dysfunction. On the other hand, too much concern for harmony or closeness leads to groupthink or the inability of group members to think critically and vocalize disagreements with others (Wills, 69-71). Therefore, management tasks become to create a balance between too much control and too much harmony between the group members (Gardenwartz, and Rowe, 38-41). The management requires that does not inhibit group members' creativity and problem solving ability through close monitoring and supervision, rather, it should create a supportive climate that compels project members to look deeper into the problems and look for innovative solutions of the problems so that they can complete a project within the time.
References
Fisher, B.A. Small Group Decision Making (2nd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill 1980.
Gardenwartz, L., and A. Rowe. Diverse Teams at Work: Capitalizing on the Power of Diversity. Chicago: Irwin Professional Publishing, 1994..
Wills, G. Certain Trumpets: The Nature of Leadership. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1994.
