Recently revised and updated! Effective teamwork and group communication are essential for your professional and personal success. In this course you will learn to: make better decisions, be more creative and innovative, manage conflict and work with difficult group members, negotiate for preferred outcomes, improve group communication in virtual environments, develop a better overall understanding of human interaction, and work more effectively as a team. Our goal is to help you understand these important dynamics of group communication and learn how to put them into practice to improve your overall teamwork.

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Teamwork Skills: Communicating Effectively in Groups
This course is part of Business Communication Specialization

Instructor: Matthew Koschmann
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What you'll learn
Recognize how hidden forces of context, systems, institutions, and interactions design affect group interaction
Develop decision making practices in order to become more creative and innovative
Learn how to communicate to resolve or diffuse group conflicts
Make better decisions about using technology for group work based on key practical and conceptual considerations
Skills you'll gain
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There are 4 modules in this course
Most people go through life running on the “factory-installed” version of communication: the transmission model. It works for simple exchanges, but it’s like trying to run the latest apps on outdated software—it just can’t keep up. In Module 1, you’ll get the upgrade. By exploring communication as social construction, you’ll see how meaning, understanding, and interpretation are the real drivers of group life. You’ll also uncover the hidden forces—like context, systems, and design—that shape every interaction. By the end, you’ll start seeing communication not as a background process, but as the engine of group success.
What's included
9 videos1 reading1 assignment
Groups don’t just “happen”—they grow, adapt, and sometimes crash. Module 2 shows you how. You’ll learn how roles, norms, and group cultures take shape, and how decision-making can go very right—or very wrong. We’ll explore common decision traps and how to avoid them, while also giving you tools to spark more creative, innovative outcomes. Think of this module as upgrading from “default group settings” to a more intentional, high-performance way of working together.
What's included
11 videos1 reading2 assignments
Conflict is often seen as a problem, but in Module 3 you’ll discover it’s actually one of your group’s most powerful resources—if you know how to handle it. You’ll practice strategies for turning disagreement into productive dialogue, and explore how difference and diversity make groups smarter and stronger. With a close look at identity and gender, this module helps you shift from avoiding or “managing” difference to leveraging it as a core advantage. It’s like unlocking the advanced features of your communication operating system—the ones that help you work better across differences and build more inclusive teams.
What's included
12 videos1 assignment
Technology isn’t just a tool—it’s now the environment where most group work happens. In Module 4, you’ll learn how to navigate this digital landscape with confidence. From Zoom calls and hybrid meetings to AI tools and collaboration platforms, we’ll look at both the opportunities and the complications technology brings. You’ll also explore cutting-edge frameworks, like sociomateriality, to rethink how the social and material are entangled in modern teamwork. Think of this as upgrading to the pro version of your communication system—where you can handle complex, tech-mediated collaboration without losing the human connection that makes groups work.
What's included
9 videos1 reading2 assignments
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Reviewed on Apr 23, 2020
I learned many things from this course. I feel better to manage conflict and negotiation. Group communication was challenging for me and I will be in a better place to deal with it after this course.
Reviewed on Oct 11, 2020
This is a well crafted and, considering the pandemic world situation which is having an effect on us all, it is prescient in its teaching. Well worth the time spent. Thank you Professor Koschmann.
Reviewed on May 5, 2020
One begins to immediately observe the benefits of this course from week one, as it instantly improves how you communicate with others in groups and in everyday life.I absolutely recommend this course.

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