CQIA Team Dynamics 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which of the following is MOST likely to cause a quality improvement team to fail?
- Using too many quality tools simultaneously
- Lack of clear goals, defined roles, and management support (Correct answer)
- Having too many meetings to discuss progress
- Including members from different departments
Correct answer: Lack of clear goals, defined roles, and management support
Teams most commonly fail when they lack clear direction, undefined member roles, and visible support from organizational leadership.
Question 2: The 'adjourning' stage in Tuckman's model involves:
- Initial role negotiation and uncertainty
- Team disbandment and recognition of accomplishments after project completion (Correct answer)
- Resolving interpersonal conflicts to establish norms
- Peak performance with full team autonomy
Correct answer: Team disbandment and recognition of accomplishments after project completion
Adjourning is the final stage where teams wrap up activities, celebrate achievements, and transition members back to regular assignments.
Question 3: A quality improvement team wants to prioritize which of 12 problems to address first. The MOST appropriate tool is:
- Affinity diagram
- Pareto chart (Correct answer)
- Scatter diagram
- Control chart
Correct answer: Pareto chart
A Pareto chart displays problems in descending order of frequency or impact, helping teams focus on the 'vital few' issues using the 80/20 principle.
Question 4: What is the key advantage of using a structured agenda for quality team meetings?
- It eliminates the need for a team leader during meetings
- It ensures focused discussion, efficient use of time, and clear action items (Correct answer)
- It prevents any unplanned topics from ever being discussed
- It replaces the need for ground rules
Correct answer: It ensures focused discussion, efficient use of time, and clear action items
A structured agenda keeps meetings focused, helps manage time effectively, and ensures the team leaves with clear next steps.
Question 5: When assigning action items at the end of a team meeting, best practice requires capturing:
- Only the task description
- The task, the person responsible, and the due date (Correct answer)
- The task and the full team's agreement
- The task and the related quality tool to be used
Correct answer: The task, the person responsible, and the due date
Effective action items always include what must be done, who owns it, and by when—creating clear accountability.
Question 6: Which behavior MOST undermines trust in a quality improvement team?
- Raising concerns about a proposed solution
- Agreeing during meetings but acting against decisions afterward (Correct answer)
- Asking clarifying questions during discussions
- Proposing alternative solutions to a problem
Correct answer: Agreeing during meetings but acting against decisions afterward
Publicly agreeing but privately undermining team decisions destroys trust and team cohesion, as members cannot rely on each other's commitments.
Question 7: In quality improvement, a 'process owner' on a project team is BEST described as:
- The team member who owns the most shares in the company
- The individual accountable for the performance of the process being improved (Correct answer)
- The external consultant leading the improvement effort
- The team member who maintains the project documentation
Correct answer: The individual accountable for the performance of the process being improved
The process owner is accountable for the ongoing performance and results of the specific process being studied and improved.
CQIA Team Dynamics 5
Which of the following is MOST likely to cause a quality improvement team to fail?