Roles, Team Building, and Dynamics

Group Dynamics

Personally, I have almost always had problems in working with teams for school projects, and I know that many other people have experienced the same.  Part of the problem I feel is that school team assignments have different dynamics then real world assignments.  In the academic world, not all team members working towards a common goal, team life spans are short, and there is a higher chance for a lack a of maturity and work ethics.

Group Thinking

This aspect of a team is commonly the most unproductive group dynamic preventing new ideas and crippling innovation.  When a team thinks only as one and resists thought from outsiders nothing new will ever emerge from the group or the company.  It is important to always be open minded to others and willing to listen and think about the new contributions.  I have found that it can be difficult to break this group thinking state especially when trying to take step back and think about what other are saying.  Is there a way to use their idea or make adjustments?

Balance

Birds of a feather flock together.  I and many others have the bad habit of associating with people that we have a lot in common.  This is not a good habit socially or professionally.  We need diversity in the people we work and socialize with.  Engineers cannot function fully without businessmen, artist, managers, and every other discipline out there.  A business would be incomplete without the balance among its employees. 

Dr. Vanegas was trying to teach us this lesson from day one by assigning us to work in a group in which everyone had their own characteristics.  The most efficient groups will be comprised on a variety of people that vary in discipline, gender, and experiences.  Having a diverse group brings new ideas to the table and allows different good ideas to compete and compromise to develop the best ideas.

I have noticed how this has affected me in my social circle of friends.  This semester I have realized that I have been surrounded by a very diverse group of close friends that have had a significant impact on me.   Various personalities have encouraged me to incorporate into my personality  a little bit of them  thus  causing me to be more well-rounded, a  more diverse thinker, and  a more experienced member of society.  I used to be a very quiet and reserved person and if I had surrounded myself with only those types of people I would have never been able to improve myself.

Rule of Thumb

• ·         Within a team never move blindly

o   Be aware of yourself

o   Be aware of your team

o   Be aware of your surroundings

• ·         Even the most clear instructions are not clear enough

o   Everyone has their own personal interpretation of instructions

• ·         Team work should be a win-win situation and never win-lose or lose-lose

Ranking Matrix

This is a tool that I feel would be very useful for me.  As I mentioned in the leadership section,   I am not strong when it comes to making decisions.  Not only could this tool be used to make professional decisions when dealing with large groups, but I could also use it for making personal decisions such as determining   where a group of friends and I will eat dinner.