It consists of a dynamic set of personal relationships, social networks, communities of common interest, and emotional sources of motivation.
Integration, as Follett defined it, means breaking down apparent sources of conflict into their basic elements and then building new solutions that neither allow domination nor require compromise.
Members of informal groups, however, share jokes and gripes, eat together, play and work together, and are friends-which contributes to personal esteem, satisfaction, and a feeling of worth.
Doubling the number of coffee breaks and the length of the lunch period may be desirable for group members but costly and unprofitable for the firm.
Role conflict can be reduced by carefully attempting to integrate interests, goals, methods, and evaluation systems of both the informal and formal organizations, resulting in greater productivity and satisfaction on everyone's behalf.
This can create all sorts of ill feelings toward the professor and even result in vengeful acts like "egging" the residence or knocking over the mail box.
Social control promotes and encourages conformity among informal group members, thereby making them reluctant to act too aggressively or perform at too high a level.
Faculty, staff, and student informal groups must cooperate in fulfilling the "spirit of the law" to effectuate an organized, sensibly run enterprise.
This encourages delegation, decentralization, and greater worker support of the manager, which suggests a probable improvement in performance and overall productivity.
When a professor perceives that students are conscientiously working on their term papers and group projects, there are likely to be fewer "pop tests" or important progress reports.
For instance, if a manager is weak in financial planning and analysis, a subordinate may informally assist in preparing reports through either suggestions or direct involvement.
The informal group provides a means for relieving these emotional and psychological pressures by allowing a person to discuss them among friends openly and candidly.
Perhaps a subtle benefit of informal groups is that they encourage managers to prepare, plan, organize, and control in a more professional fashion.