PART 2
The Innovative Personality and Skill Sets
Inquisitiveness
15 minutes or more
Purpose
The purpose of this exercise is to build the participants’ skills in asking questions and building curiosity.
Materials
An object
A burning sense of curiosity
Worksheet #6
Procedure
1. Divide the larger group into smaller groups of 4 to 7 participants. This can also be an individual exercise.
2. Distribute Worksheet #6.
3. Give participants a “thing” to examine. This might be an orchid, a pine tree, a potted plant, a car, an air conditioning unit.
4. Each person or group has to develop a list and of 25 questions about the item. The questions can be practical or whacky or anything in between. Help the participants by giving them sample questions. For instance, for the pine tree, questions might include:
a) How many birds have nested in you?
b) Have you witnessed any murders?
c) Do they put Christmas lights on you?
d) What is the most interesting conversation that you have overheard?
e) How does photosynthesis work?
5. Have the participants return to the larger group and ask each participant to share one or two of their questions.
6. If this is just a warm-up exercise, have the smaller groups go on to the task at hand and develop the 25 questions for their topic.
a) For instance, this author was once working with a military group trying to reduce the testing time for a hydraulic system for a large piece of equipment. We started by asking 25 questions about the hydraulic system.
b) For instance, this author was once working with a television station, trying to develop new programming. We started by asking 25 questions about our target demographics (stay-at-home mothers, for instance).
Curiosity is the imperative for innovation. If you wish to be more innovative, start by being inquisitive and asking questions about the world. Recent research suggests that the most innovative executives are the ones who ask the most questions. Great creative geniuses have always asked questions. Leonardo da Vinci found shells at the top of a mountain in Italy and asked why. He also asked why birds could fly and other such “mundane” questions.
Worksheet #6 |
Build your curiosity by asking questions. Develop 25 questions on a topic: a tree, an on-boarding process, social media, whatever.
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Building Networks
60 minutes
Purpose
The purpose of this exercise is to give participants practice in building networks, which is a key trait of innovative leaders.
Materials
Flipchart paper
Markers
Laptop computers with Internet access
A global vision
Procedure
1. Divide the larger group into smaller groups of 3–7 participants.
2. The task of each of these groups is to create a “ghost hunting” business. The parents of Baby Boomers are dying off and Baby Boomers desire to communicate with them. You, the would-be proprietor, have always been fascinated by ghosts. You have played around with ghost hunting paraphernalia. You have gone on ghost tours in New Orleans. You have read many books about them and have even thought that you have spotted one or two.
3. If you were going to give this business your best effort, what networking would be useful for you? What organizations would you connect with and/or form partnerships with to build a pattern of success? How might you use social media tools to build this business? Create a media strategy to build your network of success.
4. Have the groups spend 30–45 minutes searching the Internet for organizations and people who are engaged in ghost searching, ghost running, ghost exposing, and ghost busting.
5. Have the small groups report-out their media and networking plans to the larger group.
The groups should have some fun with this exercise. The key learning includes the following:
• Successful innovators know how to network with the right organizations and people.
• They know what the holes in their skill and resource sets are and know that they need partners to fill them.
• Networking is more than a coffee or a lunch; it is a series of mutually beneficial activities and arrangements. For instance, if you create a blog, you might want to mention someone else’s similar blog. You might want to mention other organizations of interest to ghost hunters, for example, on your Facebook page.
The key to social media success is getting the buzz about you going in other organizations. It is creating an ecosphere around, for example, ghost hunting with you at the center. This requires intensive networking.
The Rebel
60 minutes or more
Purpose
The purpose of this exercise is to get participants to feel comfortable in challenging the norms and assumptions at their organizations.
Materials
Flipchart paper
Markers
Worksheet #7
Invisible sword and shield
Procedure
1. Tell the group that this exercise is often called “assumption testing.” Explain that the best and most innovative managers are constantly testing and challenging the norms, assumptions, and status quo.
2. Divide the larger group into smaller groups of 4 to 8 participants.
3. Distribute Worksheet #7 to the participants for use in this exercise.
4. Ask each group to develop a list of two to three deeply held assumptions.
5. Ask them to challenge those assumptions, one at a time. What if they were not true or necessary? If these assumptions were not true, what could we do differently? What if they could be reversed? What if the opposite were true? Each group should develop a list of implications as if the assumptions were not true. What could be the upside of some of these implications?
6. If the groups are having a hard time thinking about deeply held assumptions, here are some ideas to spur their thinking:
a) Employees have to be at their desks to be good workers.
b) Employees have to have suits and ties on to be considered professional.
c) The only people who want our products are over 50 years old.
d) We need an internal HR department.
e) We should not hire people without college degrees.
7. Variation: This exercise can be tailored for different groups. For instance, if the group consists of design engineers for autos, some assumptions that may be tested are:
a) Cars need four wheels
b) Cars have to cost more than $10,000
c) Steering wheels need to be round
It is often difficult to convince employees that they will not be shot if they challenge deeply held assumptions. Just because we challenge the roundness of steering wheels does not mean we are going to immediately change them. Fanciful, bizarre ideas can often lead to productive ones.
It is important to get employees to push the boundaries of traditional thinking. Innovation rarely happens inside narrowly defined lines. Big, game-changing innovations occur by taking big leaps.
Worksheet #7 |
“Assumptions are maintained by the hug of history. Yet, history does not guarantee their validity, nor does it ever reassess their validity.”
—Michael Michalko
Thus, we must challenge their validity. In this segment, we will challenge the validity of important organizational assumptions.
Blueprint:
1. State a challenge:
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2. List your assumptions:
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3. Challenge your fundamental assumptions:
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4. Reverse each assumption. If you can, write down the opposite of each one:
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5. Ask yourself, how might I accomplish each reversal?
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6. Obtain as many differing viewpoints as you can:
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Personality Trait: The Next Box #1
60 minutes
Purpose
The purpose of this exercise is for participants to see that being innovative often requires “get into the next box” thinking rather than “out of the box” thinking.
Materials
Flipchart paper
Markers
Worksheet #8
Procedure
1. Ask the larger group what they think the phrase “getting outside the box” means. Discuss why that phrase is so popular.
2. Ask what “getting into another box” might mean. How might this process be different? How might one “get into another box”? You might ask, “What other boxes are worth getting into?”
3. You might give examples of organizations that have gone into another box for ideas:
a) The Bellagio Hotel management went to Italy for ideas on how to innovatively decorate a hotel.
b) The Rainforest Café management went to a rainforest to build a theme for their chain of restaurants.
c) The Minnesota Department of Corrections consulted with Target stores to figure out a way to inventory their convicted but released felons.
d) The Como Park Conservatory personnel went to Japan for ideas on how to design a meditative garden.
e) Howard Schultz, founder of Starbucks, hung out in Italian coffee bars while developing his idea for Starbucks in the United States.
4. Divide the larger group into smaller groups of 4 to 7 participants. Give the participants a copy of Worksheet #8. Ask them to work with one of their organizations or divisions/departments of their organizations to brainstorm what they might be able to learn by going into one of the “boxes” on the worksheet. Or they can think of other boxes (not on the worksheet) to visit and glean ideas from.
5. After 30 to 45 minutes, ask each group to report out an interesting idea or two.
6. Optional: Have the participants get back into their small groups. After having heard the ideas from the other groups, ask each participant to claim one high value “box” that they intend to visit in the next six months that might give them valuable ideas.
7. The smaller groups will report out these ideas to the larger group.
Debrief
This is one of the more difficult exercises because it stretches cognitive abilities.
The main point of this exercise is innovation is not just about creating something entirely new. It is about taking someone else’s idea and adapting it to your circumstances. You do not need to “reinvent the wheel” in order to be innovative. Look what Schultz of Starbucks did. Coming up with a completely new product often requires engineers, but this kind of “getting into another box” requires just curiosity, acute observation, and seeing with new eyes.
Some of the processes or events on Worksheet #8 will have no relevance for the organization in question. Some of them might have connections. It is important to get the participants to stretch their imaginations in order to make the connections.
Worksheet #8 |
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Starbucks coffee delivery system UPS package delivery system University student registration system Target store’s return policy system Marine Boot Camp Disney World (or another amusement park) McDonald’s food delivery system House-building process Art museum preservation, selection, and display Minor league baseball entertainment system NFL draft process Senator or governor selection, campaign, or election process Funeral/memorial service, burial process Roller coaster operation Golf course management Cruise ship management Scavenger hunt Boston marathon event planning Library management Preparing a Thanksgiving dinner Getting child ready for first day of first grade |
Personality Trait: The Next Box #2
60 minutes
Purpose
The purpose of this exercise is to give participants another method to get into another productive box.
Materials
Flipchart paper
Markers
Laptop computer with Internet access (preferably 2 or 3 per group)
Procedure
1. Ask the larger group what they think the phrase “getting outside the box” means. Discuss why that phrase is so popular.
2. Ask what “getting into another box” might mean. How might this process be different? How might one “get into another box”? You might ask, “What other boxes are worth getting into?”
3. You might give examples of organizations that have gone into another box for ideas.
a) The Bellagio Hotel management went to Italy to look for ideas on how to innovatively decorate a hotel.
b) The Rainforest Café management visited a rainforest to build a theme for their chain of restaurants.
c) The Minnesota Department of Corrections consulted with Target stores to figure out a way to inventory their convicted but released felons.
d) The Como Park Conservatory personnel visited Japan for ideas on how to design a meditative garden.
e) Howard Schultz, founder of Starbucks, hung out in Italian coffee bars while developing his idea for Starbucks in the United States.
4. Divide the larger group into smaller groups of 4 to 7 participants. Ask each group to develop a list of five “things” that they would find interesting to understand better. These “things” could be machines or processes or systems. Each group should have access to the Internet. Ask them to go to the website www.howthingswork.com. Call up their list of “things” and study how they work. Take notes on each of them.
5. Ask them to brainstorm what they might be able to learn by going into one of these “boxes.” After 30–45 minutes, ask each group to report-out an interesting idea or two.
6. Optional: Have the participants get back into their small groups. After having heard the ideas from the other groups, ask each participant to claim one high value “box” that they intend to visit in the next six months that might give them valuable ideas.
7. The smaller groups will report out these ideas to the larger group.
Debrief
The debrief for this exercise is similar to the last one. Once this author was working with a military group and trying to find a faster way to test a hydraulic system. We studied other hydraulic systems in www.howthingswork.com and were able to bring those findings into our problem at hand.
Innovators are curious. They are interested in the way things work. If you are not naturally curious, you probably will not be a natural innovator.
Personality Trait: The Next Box #3
1–3 hours
Purpose
The purpose of this exercise is to help participants naturally get into another box in order to be more innovative.
Materials
Flipchart paper
Markers
Post-it Notes
Vivid imagination
Worksheet #9
Procedure
1. Divide the larger group into smaller groups of 4–7 participants.
2. Ask each individual to focus on a business dilemma/problem/challenge/situation that warrants some focus. They might want to write these down on Post-it Notes.
3. Hand out Worksheet #9.
4. In the smaller groups, have one member present their business problem. Have the group choose a “forced associate” from the list on the worksheet.
5. Have members of the group list attributes of that “associate.” For instance, if they choose “garden,” they might list:
a) Flowers grow there
b) Deer eat the broccoli
c) Basil smells good in autumn
d) Needs water, mulch, sun, and good soil
e) Sometimes blighted by beetles and bugs
f) Some plants might overcome others
g) Ground might dry up
h) Attracts bees in august
i) And so on
6. Have group members connect the problem at hand with the association. For instance, they might say, “Our sales shortfall is like the garden because …” Make as many associations as possible. These connections might bring to light some solutions to the problem. Keep making the connections even if they seem far out or weird or laughable. You never know when a spark lands in the right place.
7. After the groups have tackled a couple of these problems, run a larger group “debrief.”
Debrief
This exercise is called forced association because it forces participants to make connections. It is not optional. The connections may see extreme or silly at first but may yield some valuable insights. These people have presumably tackled these problems for many hours before this exercise. They have probably used linear, left-brain thinking to solve them, without success. This exercise takes them into nonlinear, right-brain, creative thinking that may be more productive, given the chance.
When conducting the debrief, help the group see the connections and honor those connections even though they might not yield a practical solution, at this point.
Worksheet #9 |
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| Garden | |
| Bar | |
| Amusement park | |
| Restaurant | |
| Professional sports contest (baseball, football) | |
| Vineyard | |
| Mountain village | |
| Shopping mall |
Design an Experiment
30–60 minutes
Purpose
The purpose of this exercise is to give participants practice in designing experiments.
Materials
Notebook paper
Pens
Flipchart paper
Markers
Laptop computer with Internet access
Procedure
1. Divide the larger group into smaller groups of 4–7 participants.
2. Talk with participants about the importance of experimentation in the innovation process. Only when we test our ideas do we get an idea of how good they might be.
3. Have each group choose processes from one of their organizations—a process that might need improvement.
4. Have the smaller groups design experiments around these processes to test new ways of doing them.
5. At each experiment, participants should ask, “What are the unintentional consequences of this procedure?”
6. For each experiment, ask, “What can be learned from this experiment?” “Would the results be the same if we rolled it out to a larger audience?”
7. Have the smaller groups explain their experiments to the larger groups and have all participants ask clarifying questions.
8. Ask participants what it would take to run these experiments.
Debrief
Car companies smash cars into walls to see how crash test dummies survive the impact. Banks set up test branches with innovative layouts to see how customers react. Pharmaceutical companies test out new drugs to see if they work and what side effects may emerge. Then they tweak the ingredients. A Harvard Business Review article from the 1980s was entitled “Staple Yourself to an Order.” The article suggested that we should all test the procedures that our customers use in doing business with us.
Experiments, and especially failed experiments, can breed innovation. The point is—keep experimenting. You do not know how it will turn out.
Building Innovation DNA into Your Life
30 minutes
Purpose
The purpose of this exercise is to build a plan for individuals to become more innovative in their personal and work lives.
Materials
Materials
Worksheet #10
Pens
Imagination
Discipline
Procedure
1. Distribute Worksheet #10 to participants.
2. Re-emphasize to the participants how it is important to hold yourself accountable for becoming more innovative.
3. Briefly explain each of the five behaviors associated with Innovation DNA. These five are from the book The DNA of Innovation:
a) Experimenting: How to continually conduct experiments in order to improve products and services. Experiments can be simple or complex.
b) Questioning: Get in the habit of asking questions. Like a child, ask why the sky is blue, why fish swim, or why people have two eyes.
c) Observing: In what situations can you be more observant? Observing deeply customers, clients, your products being used, or your competition in action?
d) Networking: You do not have all the keys to the kingdom. Other people, organizations, companies, think tanks, and task forces hold pieces of truth that may be useful to you. Who are these people?
e) Associating: This is not technically a behavior, but a thinking pattern. It is, however, a muscle that can be built. How can you make new connections? Coffee shop and bookstore, car and cup holder, or gourmet food and home delivery.
4. For the first part of this exercise, individuals work alone, quietly trying to fill in Worksheet #10. Ask them to create specific action steps for each of these behaviors. For instance, they may decide to build the habit of asking questions in a specific task force meeting. Or they might go to a specific commercial location and watch their company’s product or service being used.
5. After about 15 minutes, have the participants share their tactics with one or two other people in the larger group. Hearing the action steps of others might spur on more possible action steps of their own.
6. For the larger group, have each individual share one of their action steps.
Debrief
Innovation is not magic or fluff. Sometimes it is just plain hard work. These are behavioral muscles that we—that is, anyone—can flex. It is a matter of practice and being okay with getting it wrong at times. The point is to try it. The point is to observe differently. The point is to ask more questions. The point is to be more curious about one’s life.
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Worksheet #10 |
INNOVATION DNA BEHAVIOR |
ACTION STEPS |
Experimenting |
1. _____________________ 2. _____________________ 3. _____________________ 4. _____________________ |
Questioning |
1. _____________________ 2. _____________________ 3. _____________________ 4. _____________________ |
Observing |
1. _____________________ 2. _____________________ 3. _____________________ 4. _____________________ |
Networking |
1. _____________________ 2. _____________________ 3. _____________________ 4. _____________________ |
Associating |
1. _____________________ 2. _____________________ 3. _____________________ 4. _____________________ |
Creative Problem Solving
60 minutes
Purpose
The purpose of this exercise is to give participants practice in using an effective creative problem solving approach.
Materials
Worksheet #11
Worksheet #12
Procedure
1. Hand out Worksheet #11 and Worksheet #12.
2. Divide the larger group into smaller groups of 3–5 participants.
3. Have each person write down a problem or challenge in his or her life. Using the worksheets, each participant should work through this problem or challenge with the help of their group members. Their group members should coach them through each step using the guidelines from the worksheet. Allow each person 10–15 minutes.
4. At the end of an hour or so, invite any participants to share the results of the process.
Debrief
This process is used throughout the world. It gives a good framework for working through problems in an organized way.
Worksheet #11 |
• Objective Finding
• Purpose: To single out a goal or objective and set its priority
• Task: Develop a list of problems/challenges to work on; settle on the juiciest one
• Process question: What are we really trying to create here?
• Outcome: An aim, general object, or common goal
• Fact Finding
• Purpose: To use all of our senses and feelings to deeply examine the objective before selecting important information
• Task: Find out what everyone knows or needs to know about the objective including how they feel about it
• Process questions: Who? What? When? Where? How? What don’t we know?
• Outcome: A broad base of information
• Problem/Challenge Finding
• Purpose: To seek many new ways to perceive people, situations, and challenges and opportunities from a diverse perspective and to choose the best one
• Task: Generate a variety of problem statements worded for idea stimulation
• Process question: In what ways might we…?
• Product: A single, clear action-oriented problem statement
• Idea Finding
• Purpose: To generate alternatives, possible solutions, interesting approaches
• Task: Define and identify the necessary conditions for brainstorming
• Process questions: Substitute? Adapt? Modify?
• Product: An abundance of alternatives, potential solutions, diverse ideas, and creative approaches to problem
• Solution Finding
• Purpose: To measure, rank, and examine possible solutions
• Task: Generate a list of criteria for use in evaluating the selected ideas
• Process questions: What needs must be satisfied for the problem to be solved?
• Product: A priority of approaches for solving the problem; choosing a working solution.
• Acceptance Finding
• Purpose: To identify assistance, objections, acceptance needs, and resources to gain commitment
• Task: Generate all the steps needed to implement the solution.
• Process questions: Who? What? Why? When? In what ways might we (IWWMW) gain acceptance?
• Product: A plan of action with times, dates, people, places, and tasks
Worksheet #12 |
| Objective Finding |
| Fact Finding |
| Problem Finding |
| Idea Finding |
| Solution Finding |
| Acceptance Finding |
Brainwriting
30–40 minutes
Purpose
The purpose of this exercise is to show participants another method for generating a large number of ideas in a short time.
Materials
Blank sheets of paper
Pens
Procedure
1. The room should be set up so that 10 or 12 participants can be seated around a common table. Depending upon the size of the group, there might be more than one table.
2. Introduce the concept of brainwriting. Participants probably understand the concept and rules of brainstorming, the process of capturing many ideas out loud in a group setting. Often the most vocal and fast-talking participants get their ideas out there, and quiet, slower but perhaps more thoughtful participants sit quietly. Brain-writing, in contrast, is a silent activity. It allows quiet and more verbal participants to have equal footing in the idea production realm.
3. Each individual should have a blank sheet of paper in front of him or her. Each table should have a problem or a challenge statement. Assign these or have people at the tables decide which issue they wish to work on. Make sure that the tables do not spend too much time on this part of the process.
4. Once the problem/challenge has been decided upon, the groups can start the process. Each person should write down one solution on his or her piece of paper and then push the paper to the center of the table. Then they should take a piece of paper that another person has written an idea on and write another idea under theirs. Then they exchange that piece of paper for another one and do it again.
5. The other ideas written on the page should spark other ideas. Some ideas might build on the other ideas; others might emanate from random thoughts. If the sheets fill up, provide another blank one and collect the full one.
6. Call a halt to the activity at any time.
Debrief
Ask for participant reactions to the process. Did it work for them? How did it differ from brainstorming or other processes? Did they feel that they were more fluid with their ideas or less fluid? Was the silence strange? When might they use this process?
Assessment
The problem-solving game 1
“Not again!” exclaimed Raul Desjardins, a group vice president, as he arrived at work and opened his office door to discover his prize Ming dynasty Chinese vase in pieces on the carpet in front of his desk. “I’m not going to let the night cleaning staff in here … I’ll start closing my door when I leave at night. In fact, I’ll lock my office.”
Three months ago, Raul had lost a Limoges figurine the same way; it was on the book shelf that hung on the wall next to his office door, and he had arrived to find the figurine broken on the floor. Luckily it was in two pieces, so he could cement it together. When Raul took it home to mend, he replaced it with the Ming vase; he purchased it in Hong Kong and decided that it would serve just as well on the wall shelf. His office had at least a half dozen pieces displayed at any one time—pieces from different parts of the world, with a colorful story to go with each. And now the Ming vase was in a hundred pieces.
The first time something broke, Raul said nothing to the cleaning staff; mistakes happen, and the figurine can fortunately be mended. However, with this morning’s repeat occurrence, Raul immediately called Mr. Morello, the manager of building services, and summoned him to the office. “We’ll take action to avoid future problems of this type,” he thought, as he awaited Mr. Morello’s arrival.
1. What do you think is Raul’s objective in having objects of art in his office?
2. What is the problem? What are the likely causes?
3. What evidence do you have?
4. What should Raul have Mr. Morello do?
The problem-solving game 2
When Mr. Morello arrived, he could see that Raul Desjardins was annoyed. And he could see a vase in pieces on the carpet—the obvious source of his annoyance.
“Look here. This vase cannot be replaced or mended. Your staff should know better than to dust a priceless object of art such as this.” Actually the vase was not a priceless object at all, but a reproduction; Raul had paid under $50 for it, and knew where to get another. But a principle was at stake, and he wanted to make his point with Mr. Morello.
“You’re absolutely right, Mr. Desjardins. I’ll have a talk with my people tonight when they come on. We’ll make sure that they don’t dust any of your things on that shelf,” Mr. Morello promised. “We can do even better than that,” Raul added. “I’d rather they didn’t clean my office. In fact, I’ll secure my door at night. It may be like locking the barn after the horse is stolen, but it will at least solve the breakage problem.” Mr. Morello agreed and promised to send someone in with a dustpan and brush to sweep up the fragments. They parted, and Raul replaced the vase with an inexpensive Delft ginger jar that was on the windowsill.
5. Do you agree with what Raul and Mr. Morello decided to do? Why?
6. Do you see any alternative ways of dealing with the situation? How can such an accident be prevented in the future?
The problem-solving game 3
That evening, Raul Desjardins was working late at the office. The cleaning staff began to vacuum the floor and clean up. One of the women stuck her head in Raul’s office and said in broken English, “We are sorry you lost your vase, sir, but I know we are not to blame. We never touch the beautiful things on your shelf. But just the same, we are sorry.”
Raul thanked her. Then she asked if he would like her to empty his waste basket. He said yes, but began to wonder later if that was a good idea, since he had told Mr. Morello that the cleaning staff shouldn’t touch his office.
Disturbed with himself (or with the cleaning lady for being so apologetic) and distracted by the noise level of the vacuum cleaner outside his office in the reception area, Raul Desjardins got up from his desk, crossed the room to the wall with the bookshelf, and pushed the door closed. Two seconds later—on his way back to the desk—he heard the door slam, followed by a rocking sound on his wall bookshelf. He turned just in time to see his Delft ginger jar come crashing down, scattering pieces all over the carpet!
7. Given this new information, what changes do you want to make (if any) in your statement of the problem?
8. How do you recommend dealing with the problem in light of your new evidence?
9. How can the problem be avoided in the future?
10. What new insights do you have about the problem-solving process now that you have gone through this exercise?
INSTRUCTIONS FOR SCORING
The problem-solving game
Now that you have gone through the ten questions, it’s time to compare your answers with ours. There are ten points for each question. Thus a perfect score is 100. On each answer, decide in your group how well you handled the question and give yourself the appropriate credit: from 0 or 1 point, up to a full credit of 10 points. Enter your score in the box in front of each answer.
Analytical Thinking Test
A Self-Assessment Exercise
Directions: There are two parts to this exercise. In Part One, you’ll be reading five situations, each followed by four conclusions. Some conclusions are true (T), some are false (F), and some are questionable or cannot be made without further information (?). Beside each conclusion, indicate which applies by placing an X over the appropriate answer.
PART ONE
1. According to the police in the suburban town of Maplewood, the automobile accidents occurring during the workweek (Monday through Friday) are 250% more numerous than those occurring during the weekend (Saturday and Sunday). We can conclude that:
2. George is a recent MBA who wishes to spend a year working overseas. He understands that the newly independent nation of Rotunda needs MBAs, both in government and private industry. Salaries are paid in Rotunda Dollars (RD). The range paid to M BAs is from 7,0 00 to 21,000 RD per annum, depending on experience. Half the MBAs earn less than 14,000 RD and half earn more than 14,000 RD. From this we conclude that:
3. A group of surveyors who wanted to find out the fuel oil consumption for residential heating in 1985 throughout the state of Pennsyltucky interviewed a representative sample of homeowners by telephone in early 1986, asking the following question: “What would you say is the average monthly amount of fuel oil used to heat your home last year?” The results yielded a statewide average of 47.3 gallons of No. 2 fuel oil per month. From this we know that:
4. A major automotive dealership mailed a questionnaire to all customers who had purchased a new car within the prior year. The questionnaire asked, among other things, whether they would like to have received a free check-up every 5000 miles during the six months following purchase. Of the 27% who responded, 68% stated that they were in favor of having a free check-up. From this we can conclude that:
5. Grassmaster, a lawn mower manufacturer, must select a supplier of paint that will dry within 20 minutes of spraying. Two vendors have been identified for consideration: A and B. Paint from A dries slower than B’s paint at normal room temperature (68°F). But at temperatures of 90°F and higher, A’s paint dries faster than B’s. Both dry at the same rate when equal amounts of Agent X are added to the paints during the normal manufacturing process. Agent X is already present in B’s product as part of the normal manufacturing process, but not in A’s. From this we can conclude that:
PART TWO
Directions: There are three proposals (A, B, and C) stated below. You are to select one of these three and develop a list of all the advantages and disadvantages (pros and cons) of implementing it, as well as all the interesting points associated with the proposal (further information to be obtained before or after the proposal is acted upon). Complete the table on the next page for the proposal you select. Go for quantity—the more entries you have in each column, the better will be your chances of thinking clearly when you decide whether to recommend that the proposal be accepted or rejected. Here are the three proposals, from which you should now select one and complete the table on the next page.
A. Proposed: That state laws be passed requiring that a man and a woman desiring to marry must first announce their engagement in the local newspaper and then live together for a minimum of three months before applying for a marriage license.
B. Proposed: That all young men and women be required to serve one summer in the army in military training; this requirement would be to serve for 10 weeks at any point between their 17th and their 20th birthday.
C. Proposed: That each citizen of the country receive from the government a plastic laminated identification card containing their photo, signature, and identification number (Social Security number in the U.S.), to be carried or worn at all times.
After selecting the proposal you will be thinking through, develop your list by using the table on the next page.
DISADVANTAGES |
INTERESTING POINTS |
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ANALYTICAL THINKING TEST
Answer Sheet
Directions: The correct answers are noted below, along with the reasons. Place a check mark beside every answer you got correct. There is a total of 20 points possible. Enter your score in this box..................................... |
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PART ONE
1. Automobile accidents in Maplewood
2. Annual salaries for MBAs in Rotunda
3. Fuel oil consumption throughout Pennsyltucky
4. Free check-up for new car purchases
5. Grassmaster’s need for fast-drying paint
Reminder: Count the total number of answers you got correct and enter this number in the box on the previous page. Then go on to Part Two on the next page.
There are no right or wrong answers to the exercise you went through. However, you should have come up with at least five advantages, five disadvantages, and two or three interesting points. These numbers should double when the list is expanded as a group activity. Here are our lists, with which you can compare your own.
A. Couples desiring marriage must first live together for three months:
ADVANTAGES |
DISADVANTAGES |
INTERESTING POINTS |
1. Fewer surprises and risk of marriage not working. 2. Reduced divorce rate. 3. Couples learn how to live together in a relatively “fail-safe” environment—less pressure. 4. Fewer “passion” marriages. 5. Eliminate marriages done for legal reasons and not for love (e.g., to gain entry to U.S., to qualify for an inheritance, etc.). 6. Supportiveness of parents and friends can be determined and possibly influenced before marriage. |
1. Could lead some people to becoming “marriage samplers,” living with different mates but never marrying. 2. Buying or renting a home or apartment will be expensive if marriage doesn’t materialize (leases are for more than three months). 3. Some might enter it just to have a child more “legitimately.” 4. Psychologically damaging by creating “losers” who have been through several engagements without marriage. 5. Difficult for some partners who know they want marriage now and cannot wait three months (e.g., military or student far away from their would-be spouse, dying person wanting to marry nurse). |
1. What would be the view of the churches and religious leaders? 2. Where would couples live together? 3. What effect on abortion rate? 4. What effect on divorce rate? 5. Is three months enough to accomplish the purpose of the proposal? |
B. Youths would be required to serve one summer (10 weeks) in the army:
ADVANTAGES |
DISADVANTAGES |
INTERESTING POINTS |
1. Eliminate the need for draft for longer period (1–2 years). 2. Develop physical and mental stamina, self-reliance, discipline, respect for authority, pride in serving country, etc. 3. Reaches many youth when they are least influenced by parents, teachers, and other “authority figures.” 4. Provides another set of role models for shaping values to live by. 5. Enables youth of all socio-economic levels and subcultures to live and work together in a relatively failsafe environment. |
1. Disruptive to personal lives. 2. Seen as curtailment of individual freedom. 3. Expensive to give everyone a little instead of giving a few trainees a lot (breadth vs. depth). 4. Might require additional military bases, equipment, training cadre, etc. 5. Would they really be combat-ready, or would they think they were fit to fight, especially against a professional, full-time army? |
1. Would all youths get the same training for 10 weeks? Or would there be different tracks? 2. Should they live on a military base, or could they live at home and commute to a nearby base? 3. Could efficiency of military training be improved, given the higher level of trainees? 4. How many people are we talking about each summer? 5. Would trainees be harassed or required to perform menial chores that might negate many of the advantages? |
6. Time (10 weeks) is long enough to effect permanent position change, yet short enough to not be disruptive to lives (education, career, marriage, etc.). 7. Give the country a trained citizen’s army that is relatively combat-ready at any time; serves as deterrent to other nations taking military action against us. 8. Gives all youth an equal view of what a career in the military would be like, probably leading to more career soldiers. 9. Better quality of recruits than in present army. 10. Increase in patriotism, and a better informed electorate. |
6. Hard to administer and determine at what age each youth will attend, and when. 7. Many weapons and defense systems are too high-tech to be operated by people who have only had ten weeks of basic training. 8. Likely to create a caste system of “regulars” and “10-week wonders.” 9. Difficult administering the exceptions who are excused for such things as for physical or mental disabilities. 10. U.S. could become subject of international ridicule. |
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C. Government issuance of a photo-signature plastic I.D. to all citizens:
ADVANTAGES |
DISADVANTAGES |
INTERESTING POINTS |
1. Is highly reliable I.D. for check cashing, travel, etc. 2. Should reduce fraud and similar criminal acts. 3. Is more personal than just a number. 4. Makes census-taking more accurate. 5. Would establish drinking age reliably. |
1. More costly than I.D. number only. 2. People wanting “newer” photos every few years. 3. Requires equipment (Polaroid camera, laminator). 4. Requires operators and training in how to operate the equipment. |
1. How often would this be done—every 10–20 years? 2. Where done—at Post Offices? Motor vehicle registries? 3. Would people carry them? Would laws be necessary requiring this (like the wearing of seat belts)? 4. How long would citizens have to wait during the initial “tidal wave” of issuing cards to every Social Security card holder? |
6. Provides better control of illegal immigration. 7. Time saved in establishing positive I.D. over one’s lifetime should more than offset the time and cost of going in for a photo. 8. Police have an immediate check on drivers of stolen vehicles, contraband, etc. 9. Could eliminate need for passports or visas to some countries. 10. Government could charge and make money on it. |
5. Cannot be done by mail—citizen must go to a center. 6. Citizens annoyed by the inconvenience, the unflattering photo. 7. Replacement of lost cards a nuisance and expense. 8. Fraud still possible through makeup, wigs, eyeglasses, moustaches, etc. 9. Could add employees to government payroll instead of reducing costs. 10. Some people change in physical appearance much faster than others. |
5. Could this be alleviated via alphabetic scheduling (e.g., all A through C names during the first two weeks of August, etc.)? |
TEST OF CREATIVITY
A Self-Assessment Exercise
The left side of your brain handles analytical thinking: logical, rational, linear, numerical, precise. Many aspects of your job call for analytical thinking: planning a project, preparing a budget, learning a procedure, solving a problem, studying alternatives, and making decisions.
The right side of your brain handles creative thinking: expansive, visionary, intuitive, spatial, artistic. Whenever you come up with new ideas or create products, procedures, forms, programs, or plans that are new (or, at least, have never been generated by you before), you are drawing on the right side of your brain.
This self-assessment exercise will help you to get a quick measure of your creativity. There are fifteen questions. Each is timed. We suggest you get a kitchen timer or alarm clock or wristwatch, since you are likely to become absorbed in the exercises and forget to keep track of the time. Alternative: get a friend to be your timekeeper.
On each exercise, read the instructions. Then immediately start the clock.
1. Five Minutes In the space below (and on a separate sheet of paper if you need more space), list all the words you can think of that begin with the letter c. Start timing now.
2. The local soft drink bottling company has a fleet of trucks whose drivers make daily deliveries at the same supermarkets, drug stores, and beverage distributors. That is, the drivers visit all outlets on the routes every day.
This July, the company noticed a higher than normal absenteeism on Fridays and Mondays. The drivers call in sick. This has meant that the route supervisors have had to drive the routes themselves. Since many drivers have exceeded their allowable sick days, the company is docking the drivers (i.e., not paying them) for absent days. But this has not reduced the absenteeism.
(a) Three Minutes In the space below, list all the reasonable explanations you can think of as to why the drivers are calling in sick on Mondays and Fridays. Start timing now.
(b) Three Minutes Assuming the explanations you just listed are valid, use the space below to list all the possible actions the bottling company might take to correct the problem. Start timing now.
3. Three Minutes A friend of yours manufactures peanut butter and other peanut products. Peanut shells are a by-product, and your friend has been carting them to the dump for use as landfill; they are, of course, biodegradable.
You’re convinced that the shells will have some commercial value if ways can be found to use them and not merely bury them. In the space below, list all the possible uses that you feel should be explored for their practicality. Start timing now.
4. Three Minutes Many fruits find their names used in figures of speech. For example, we refer to an unreliable automobile as a “lemon,” or the boss or lead performer as the “top banana.” In the space below, list all the figures of speech you can think of that have the name of a fruit in them. Start timing now.
5. Three Minutes It’s scrabble time. Here are your seven letters. In the space below, see how many words you can assemble by using some of these letters (and no other letters). A letter may be used only once in each word. Start timing now.
NXEYOTI
Fifteen Minutes Complete as many of these assignments as you possibly can. Don’t spend too much time on any that stump you. Move on to another. You can always return to an item if a new strategy or fresh insight comes to you. The exercise continues on the next page. Start timing now.
TEST OF CREATIVITY
Answer Sheet and Feedback
The test you just completed covers the major types of mental activity associated with creativity: insight, recognizing relationships that are not easily evident, visualizing, thinking laterally as well as linearly, withholding evaluation (judgment) so as to generate many ideas (brainstorming), using familiar concepts or objects in unfamiliar (novel) ways, and so on.
Creative people tend to have traits that are not shared by most other people. Often they have grown up as “loners,” seeking solitude rather than friends and peer group support. They see no reason to conform and meet arbitrary norms. They value their uniqueness and originality. They are not ashamed of having “off-the-wall” thoughts and do not fear the realization that others will see them as bizarre, foolish, or “out-of-touch.” They prefer challenge to routine, and value excitement over predictability and fixedness.
Although creativity requires superior intelligence, a high I.Q. is no guarantee of creativity. In fact, only a small fraction of the intellectually gifted are creative. Besides being novel, the fruits of your creativity must also be appropriate or relevant or satisfying to others (for example, aesthetically pleasing in works of art or music). Otherwise, anyone who smears paint on canvas or pounds on piano keys in novel and bizarre ways would have to be deemed creative (and this could include the entire family of man as well as our primate friends, apes, monkeys, and King Kong!).
1. On this first exercise, your mission was to come up with as many words as you can generate in five minutes that begin with the letter c. Did you plunge right in by listing any word that came to mind? Or did you spend a moment planning your creative journey with questions like these:
(a) Is it better to work through the alphabet so as to avoid later confusion as to whether you’ve already used a word (e.g., all “ca …” words, followed by all “ce …” words, “ch …” words, etc.)?
(b) Is it better to write only one-syllable words, since you can write more of them in three minutes (e.g., can, cow, cut, chip versus circumference, communications, celebrity)?
(c) Is it acceptable to use different forms of the same word (e.g., cheat, cheater, cheats, cheating), or would that not be very challenging or original? (Remember: creative people prefer challenge and excitement to routine and fixedness.)
All of these questions are rational and analytical, and draw on the left brain. Creative individuals harness and channel their creativity by planning their approach to a creative assignment with such questions. If you did so, you probably realize that: (a) an alphabetic approach would enable you to generate more words in shorter time, since you are following a system rather than a random process; (b) although one-syllable words can be written more quickly, if you start to pass judgment and edit yourself, your momentum will slow down; (c) if you are highly creative, you’re likely to be bored by simply sticking different endings onto a root word. You won’t see them as new (original, novel) words, and there won’t be much challenge or excitement.
Printed below is a list of c words to show how easy it is to follow these (a), (b), (c) guidelines and to generate words as fast as you can write. Writing at a rate of 30 words per minute, you could come up with about 150 words, as shown in the list below. (No need for your list to resemble ours, of course.) Take a moment to count the total number of words you generated in five minutes. Divide this number by five.
Enter the resulting number in the box at the right (total divided by five) |
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CA |
cab, cache, cad, cadmium, cadet, cadaver, cafe, cage, cake, calf, caliber, cam, came, can, cane, cap, caper, cape, capillary, car, carnage, carpet, care, carry carrot, carp, case, cast, castle, caste, cat, catch, cater, cattle, cataract, cave, caveat, cavity |
CE |
cedar, ceiling, certain, celebrity, celery, cell, celtic, cement, cemetery, censor, census, centennial, century, cent, centimeter |
CH |
chap, char, chat, chant, chair, chablis, chafing, charge, chastise, chapter, charity, chatterbox, cheap, cheat, cheer, chest, check, chef, chip, chicle, chic, chin, chirp, chit, chisel, chimney, chimp, chive, choke, chow, chock, chore, chose, chunk, chute |
CI |
cigar, cilia, cinder, circle, circumference, circumvent, cistern, city, civics, civil |
CL |
clone, claw, clasp, cliff, clique, clump, clip, clown, clutch, clef, clean, clear, cloud, clout |
CO |
cord, con, (convent, convex, convert, control … etc.) corn, cob, cod, coffee, cog, cogitate, coke, cold, color, collate, collide, cop, copper, cope, core, cot, cottage, coddle, cove, covey, cover, cow, cower, coy, coyote, cozy |
CR |
crap, crate, crash, cranberry, crazy, crest, cream, crisp, criterion, croak, crown, crow, croon, crock, crouton, crud, cruller, crust, cruet, cruel |
CU |
cub, cuckoo, cuckold, cud, cuddle, cue, cuff, culinary, culprit, cull, cunning, cup, cur, curt, curdle, curfew, curate, cure, cusp, cuss, custard, cut, cute |
CY |
cymbal, cyst, cynic, cycle, cyclical |
2. In this exercise, you generated possible explanations in response to (a), then came up with possible solutions in response to (b). We’ve listed twelve relevant answers to each. Your responses will differ from ours, of course. See how many plausible responses you came up with.
Enter your total to parts (a) and (b) in the box at the right. |
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(a) • it’s summer and they value their three- to four-day weekends more than the money
• they really are sick, having exerted themselves excessively over the weekend
• they have Monday hangovers
• they are paid so well that the docking doesn’t hurt them
• the Friday deliveries are heavier: more work stocking stores for the weekend
• the Monday “out-of-stocks” (it’s summer) mean more work and second trips
• the routes are too big, too many outlets
• the traffic on Friday and Monday is too much of a hassle
• weekend sporting events (stadium, arena, coliseum) require much more labor
• their trucks can’t carry enough product for extra-heavy Monday/Friday deliveries
• their jobs aren’t satisfying; long weekends are providing the balance
• drivers may be going off in groups for long weekends (hunting, fishing, drinking)
(b) • provide weekend deliveries for stores that have had “out-of-stock” conditions
• take advance orders by phone so trucks carry only what they need
• reduce the number and variety of packages (sizes, cans vs. bottles)
• hire helpers to work with drivers; they can run routes if necessary
• have retirees on call in case regulars don’t show up
• carry more product: use larger trucks or use pallets for delivery to larger stores
• increase the penalty for absenteeism
• reapportion the territory so as to break up larger (out-of-stock) routes
• set up a special weekend “hot line” so that dealers can phone for supplementary delivery
• terminate for excessive absenteeism, replace with drivers with a different work ethic
• deliver product to sporting events during midweek, not on Friday
• carry only the best sellers on Monday and Friday (80% of sales come from 20% of product line)
3. Creativity requires superior intelligence. In this exercise, you could channel your thinking into a variety of different fields: agriculture, construction, manufacture, and so on. Your ability to “shift gears” and move your focus from one context to another is important to success on exercises such as this.
First of all, you should recognize that peanut shells can be used “as is” in some applications. However, by processing them, we can greatly expand our list of potential uses, as shown in the list below. We’ve listed 15 applications—many more than you had time to generate or write in 3 minutes.
Enter your total in the box at the right. |
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Use peanut shells “as is” for:
• animal feed (silage)
• filler in human food (like soybeans)
• aggregate (additive) in cement for use as stucco—makes it lighter
• fiber in “scratch coat” (undercoat) prior to fine plaster coat
• fiber in asphalt as paving
• pulp to be rolled into special kinds of paper or sheet products
• insulation (if fireproofing is economical or unnecessary)
• additive in potting soil—helps it breathe
• filler in a contained jumping, rolling, bouncing area for children
• filler (sterilized) in pillows, quilts, blankets (like Kapok)
Process the shells (shred, grind, pulverize) to use as:
• mulch and ground cover for planting areas
• fuel, either alone or as additive
• packing material (like styrofoam pellets and squiggles)
• crushable filler in highway and vehicle collision barriers (in bags or plastic canisters)
• additive to plastic, resins, plaster, cement (fibers add strength)
4. If English is not your native language, you will find an exercise like this to be especially challenging. Let’s see how the fruits of your labor compare with ours. Listed below are some candidates for “fruity” figures of speech.
Enter your total in the box at the right. |
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grapes of wrath |
they gave him the raspberry |
a blueberry sky |
5. Words formed from these letters are listed below. Note the flow, or sequence, in which the mind can be mapped to go from each word to the next. This helps in identifying the full range of possibilities, or as many as 3 minutes will allow.
NXEYOTI
Enter your total in the box at the right. |
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Give yourself two points for each of the ten assignments that you got right. Give one point for half-right answers. The total possible is 20 points.
Enter your total in the box at the right. |
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HOW DID YOU DO?
Highly creative persons will usually score in the range of 15–20 points in each of the six boxes, for a total of 90–120 points. Moderately creative persons typically score in the range of 10–15 points on each item, for a total of 60–90 points. Add up your scores in the six boxes, and enter this new total in the box at the right. |
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What insights have you gained into the nature of creativity and your areas of creative strength and weakness?
Leadership And Team Building
This self-assessment exercise enables a team member or the team leader to review their overall effectiveness by focusing on a number of factors that are important to the success of work groups. There are sixty statements on the pages that follow. Your job is to indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with each statement, entering the reply on the separate Answer Sheet on page 12 and 13.
Some of the statements will be characteristic of your work team. Others will not be. Your job is to place a circle on the Answer Sheet in the box that best reflects your own opinion of each statement.
• If you definitely agree, place a circle around the two plus signs.
• If you are inclined to agree, place a circle around the one plus sign.
• If you are inclined to disagree, place a circle around the one minus sign.
• If you definitely disagree, place a circle around the two minus signs.
Here is an example:
Personal rivalries are fairly common around here. |
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Notice that in the sample item above, there is a circle around the box that indicates that the person responding is inclined to agree. As you go through this list of 60 items, place a circle in one of the four boxes for the corresponding number on your answer sheet for each item. You won’t know the answer, since the items are statements of opinion rather than factual statements. In other words, your responses will simply indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with the opinion expressed. Incidentally, you want to be careful that you are placing a circle around the box whose number corresponds to the statement that you are answering at the time.
After completing the exercise, you will be given instructions on how to score your responses and interpret the results. You may want to invite other members of your team (work group, department, branch, etc.) to go through the exercise, in which case you may make copies of the Answer Sheet. By comparing your responses with those of other members of your team and arriving at a composite score or average for the group, you will be able to identify the team’s strengths and the areas where your effectiveness is being blocked. This should lead to a discussion by members and leader as to what actions can be taken to improve the team’s overall effectiveness.
Leadership And Team Building
Answer Sheet
Directions: Add up the six circled scores that appear side by side across the page. Be sure that you are adding horizontally (sideways), rather than in the usual vertical manner. The sum of these six scores reflects your views of your team’s Leadership. Enter the sum in the box to the right of the Leadership scores.
Now do the same for each of the other nine horizontal groupings. Each score that you enter will be the sum of six circled numbers. The highest score possible is a 24; the lowest is a 6.
Don’t worry about what the scores mean. You’ll be discussing the interpretations after everyone has completed the scoring.
Leadership And Team Building
Interpretation
Directions: Take each of the ten sums from the prior page and convert it to a rank, as shown. Then enter the ranks in the boxes to the left.
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1. Performing appropriate leadership roles—The leader discusses issues and gets facts and opinions before decisions are made. Team members know where they stand with the leader, who gives feedback to members. The leader encourages initiative and welcomes leadership efforts by other team members. |
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2. Having the right members—The team members possess a mix of skills and abilities needed to produce high levels of performance. They are good at handling their jobs and are viewed by outsiders as qualified. Members adapt to the needs of others or to the goals of the team. A lot of time is spent getting the right members and developing them effectively. |
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3. Winning the commitment of members—Members have a strong sense of belonging to the team and identifying with its goals. Objectives are met since members knock themselves out to accomplish their goals. Team activities are carefully planned to move the team toward meeting objectives without wasting time and energy. |
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4. Building a climate of trust and openness—A healthy level of trust and openness exists among team members. When interpersonal problems arise, they are dealt with candidly and honestly before they are allowed to disrupt the positive climate. Internal backbiting, politics, and cliques do not interfere with the team’s effectiveness. |
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5. Clarifying the mission—The organization understands and respects contributions made by the team and would experience a substantial loss if the team did not exist. The mission of the team is known to members and non-members alike. The objectives of the team are integrated into the objectives of the entire organization. |
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6. Using meetings to build teamwork—The time spent at meetings is used effectively in resolving conflicts, solving problems, and building commitment. The decisions reached and plans made are followed up and acted upon by members. Meetings are run using a methodical approach understood and supported by team members. |
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7. Developing relationships—Team members have developed fairly effective ways of working together and know how to use one another as resources. Members know how their roles relate to the roles and responsibilities of other team members. As the team develops, interpersonal relations among members are improved and strengthened. |
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8. Cultivating job satisfaction—Members experience a great deal of satisfaction and pride in being part of the team and do not choose to belong to another team. Being a member of the team means receiving psychological (intrinsic) and financial (extrinsic) rewards. Team morale is high and stays that way even when problems arise. |
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9. Improving the quality of feedback—The team views mistakes as learning experiences. Team performance is reviewed in a constructive and objective manner. Members give and receive feedback and suggest how to improve team performance. Reviews of team performance do not end up jeopardizing working relationships among members. |
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10. Training and developing the team—Team members have many opportunities for growth and enlargement of their skills and abilities within and beyond their individual areas of specialty. Members initiate self-development programs to benefit team performance. |
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Now add the numbers in the preceding ten boxes. A “perfect” score is 100. How well did your own team score? A score of 70 or less indicates that there is room for improvement. More important, you know which items to concentrate on—those with the lowest scores. |
Raw Scores Rank
23,24 ................10
21,22 ................ 9
19,20 ................ 8
17,18 ................ 7
15,16 ................ 6
13,14 ................ 5
11,12 ................ 4
9,10 ............... 3
8..................... 2
7.................... 1
6.................... 0
Building a Winning Team
One way of looking at the elements of a successful team-building effort is to examine the similarities between work teams and sports teams. Developing an effective work team is not too different from developing a winning sports team.
To begin with, the leader relates to team members as one adult to another. Members are individuals who bring their own needs and interests to the game, and the leader helps them clarify their needs and expectations. Each member of a team must contribute his/her own particular skills and expertise. On a football team, the skills needed to be a good tackler are quite different from those needed to be a good kicker or passer. However, for the team to be successful, it needs everyone’s skills. A team made up of all passers won’t be a winning team. In short, teams need members with a variety of different skills.
Likewise, a successful work team needs members who bring to the group their own specific knowledge and skills. A work team designed to explore ways of increasing productivity will need the perspective of a manager as well as a production worker. Each member makes a different yet significant contribution to the team as a whole. In this way, members not only gain an appreciation for the different dimensions of the organization, but the team as a unit also benefits from a broad-based perspective on any single issue.
In sports and at work, players share a common goal: they want to belong to a winning team. No one wants to be in last place at the end of the season. Members come together to work on a specific project, and each has a stake in the outcome. Members want to work as an effective team and to complete their tasks successfully. They are united by their shared desire to achieve a common goal.
Players come to the realization that they are interdependent. The quarterback or the coach cannot win the game without the talents and support of all the other players. This applies to work teams as well. There are no “stars” in work teams … only “star” teams.
As each team member learns about each other’s skills and ability, trust and respect begin to develop. This positive climate fuels feelings of togetherness among team members. When a player and a coach don’t get along, the positive climate of the whole team is threatened, since players may begin to take sides with one or the other. A work team containing one member who is an excessive talker or is aggressive may have a difficult time maintaining a supportive climate.
Both sports teams and work teams use methods that keep the ball moving. Football teams rely on offensive and defensive play-selection, signal-calling, and follow-through. And they have post-game critiques and pre-game planning sessions. Work teams also meet to assess performance, tackle problems, and make decisions. They use techniques such as brainstorming, consensus, problem analysis, and problem solving during their meetings. Many of these same techniques are used on the job when time permits.
A sports team receives immediate feedback for each play. The crowd cheers, and the coach and team members congratulate each other. If the play is unsuccessful, the cheers give way to groans, and on Monday morning the coach reviews the game with the team in order to point out errors. The feedback for a successful work team may not be as dramatic as it is for a sports team. Even if the team has not achieved its goal, the team must evaluate itself on a regular basis and carry out changes whenever needed. Team members can—and should—appraise each other’s performance without threatening the positive climate.
Teams and Traditional Work Units: Some Differences
FACTOR |
TEAMS |
TRADITIONAL WORK UNITS |
Nature of Goals |
Goals are immediate, common, and foremost in the thinking of every member. The team’s acceptance by others depends on achieving these goals. |
Goals are longer range, not always common to all, and thought about from time to time. There is a tendency to be task-oriented rather than goal-oriented. |
Dependency of Workers |
Members depend on each other to achieve goals. They appraise one another’s performance, and help one another develop. |
Workers depend on a supervisor to give assignments, appraise performance, and provide development. |
Visibility and Feedback |
Everyone knows very quickly how everyone else is doing. There is high visibility and immediate feedback from peers, from the coach, and from those affected by the team’s performance. |
An individual can perform well or poorly for days and sometimes even weeks without being recognized. Feedback is sparse and often occurs too late to be of help in shaping performance. |
Performance Standards |
Extremely high standards and expectations are usually set and measured by the team. |
Standards are either nonexistent or are set by the supervisor. |
Competition |
Each member is trying to beat his or her own last performance. Com petition is fair and is not directed toward each other. |
Where competition exists, it is between workers and may thus be unfair (since they may not have an equal chance at succeeding). |
Morale |
Great “esprit de corps” and feeling of privilege in belonging to the team. Others want to belong but are not qualified. |
Can vary from very healthy to sick. Usually no particular distinction is attached to belonging to the unit. |
Role of Leader |
Leader is a coach whose only job is to develop a winning team. The coach does not play the game. |
Leader has his or her own work to do, often leaving relatively little time to develop workers. |
1. The team you just evaluated is strongest on the following two to three characteristics:
2. The areas that need to be strengthened are (name two to three):
3. Do you feel that your total score is an accurate reflection of how your group functions as a team? _______ Explain:
4. Some of the actions the team might take in order to improve in the areas just noted:
5. Some of the actions you as an individual might take to improve the team:
6. Would it help if other members of the team were to go through this assessment so that you could share your perceptions and discuss possible actions? _______
If yes, decide who should take the assessment and when you will talk with them.