Describe self-managed teams.

Answers will vary. Self-managed teams, also called self-directed teams or autonomous work groups, are teams that make decisions that were once reserved for managers. Self-managed teams are one way to implement empowerment in organizations. Even though self-managed teams are self-directed, that fact does not negate the influence of managers. In fact, managers have an important role in providing leadership and influence. There is strong support for the use of soft-influence tactics in managers' communication with self-directed teams, which yields more positive results. Please see the section "Empowerment and Self-Managed Teams" for more information.