A631.2.5.RB - Cooperation and Competition

Once you have completed and turned in A631.2.4.LT, consider the process that you and your team went through in completing the Learning Team Charter. In a well-written reflection blog, answer the following questions:

What behaviors seemed to help your team successfully complete its task?

Right out of the gate, this team was very proactive and was able to introduce themselves and proceed to the assignment very quickly.  Initially, the coordination was held up by one team member; that would be me.  Overall, as a newly formed team, we relied on our professionalism and constant communication to complete the task ahead of schedule.  The team passed the first hurdle without any complications, but let’s sees how we will do as we progress in the course and have to complete more complex taskings. 

 

What factors inhibited decision-making or problem-solving?

The one factor that I feel stumped the team was decision-making as a group.  We had no issues with figuring out or identifying our roles and one member took the leadership role to get the process started.  The issue involved the team objective.  Initially, the team acted as a group of individuals who just contributed individual thought processes on a document.  From past history with team charters of this program, I introduced the thought process that a team charter needs to be submitted as team collaboration and not as individuals.  The team agreed and we were able to adjust and submit a solid document.  I think the role of the team leader will rotate between members, according to everyone’s schedule. 

 

How much time was spent on decision-making and problem-solving?

No time was spent on decision-making and problem-solving this week; it was not required.  The focus was on completing the Team Charter.  As far as a team goes, I see us in the norming stage of team dynamics.  As a team, we were able to capitalized on our past course experience and process this task fairly quickly. 

How was information shared among team members?

The majority of our introduction was conducted in week one on Blackboard group discussion board.  The only new information was based on the team charter of our expectations and what we bring to the team.  

How did issues of authority or power affect the team?

We have not had any issues arise affecting power of authority at this point.  One member took the leadership role this time.  As stated earlier, we intend on passing the role around as the course evolves.

How did collaboration and competition influence the outcome?

So far, I am pleasantly pleased with the members on the assigned team.  Collaboration on the team charter went smoothly allowing us to submit it ahead of schedule with each team member doing their part without any feelings of conflict or competition at this point.

Did team members make process interventions?

There were issues on the charter objective that needed clarification.  However, no intervention was required. So far, I have confidence in the capabilities of the assigned team and feel we will cover all of the assignment parameters in the future.

 

A634.2.4.RB - Theories of Ethics

In Chapter 2, LaFollette (2007) discusses Consequentialism and Deontology. Discuss your thoughts on these two theories.

Consequentialists claim as cited by LaFollette (2009) “that we are morally obligated to act in ways that produce the best consequences” (p.23), "the ends justify the means."  The term consequentialism on its own appears to be a perfect theory for the business community.  I am not sure if this is as welcomed when it comes to personal decisions.  In the past, I have often had to make decisions that met the needs of the highest number of people involved when it came to the needs of the organization.  In its simplest form, I would call this majority rules.  For example, if a group of people were deciding on what type of new safety boots they wanted, I would say that the majority vote rules because then the largest number of people are being satisfied.  Now, this is not always the best way to address certain situations.  Sometimes, the needs of the business may outweigh the needs of the individuals.  In week one of this course, we were presented with an ethical dilemma – The Train Dilemma.  For this scenario, the case presented a train that was hurtling down the track and on the track are five children.  However if you decided to throw the switch and reroute the train, it more than likely kill an old man on the other track.  Form a consequentialist perspective, the choice would be the pull the switch and save the five children; thus causing the death of the elderly man.  In this situation, the action would be morally correct because if it produces more overall good than any alternative action; i.e. an act of consequentialism.

Formed from the work of Immanuel Kant (paradigmatic philosopher), deontological ethics followers feel that there are strict moral limits on what we can do to others, the ends never justify the means.  Those who follow deontological ethics believe that ethics determines the correctness of a moral action by determining if it follows moral norms.  My question is how do you define what is a moral norm and what is not a moral norm?  Contrary to consequentialism, duty-based ethics is not interested in the results and it can lead to courses of action that produce a reduction in the overall happiness of the majority.  To me, deontologists have the thought process of looking beyond the surface of actions.  I have seen from a business perspective where leaders who use this type of philosophy, often make profit based decisions.  The problem is with this adoption of deontological ethics things such as employee morale is often overlooked and undervalued. 
Deontology and consequentialism differ because deontology deals with morals, regardless of whether or not the outcome is favorable, whereas consequentialism seeks to satisfy the most people and allows them to define the morality of the situation.  When I first retired from the military, I had to learn a totally new environment as a retail store manager (name withheld because it was not a good experience).  I soon found that retail managers operate on what they believe is right because standard operating procedures were very ambiguous at best.  Even though the store had a posted merchandise return policy, some managers would choose to honor the policy or to make exceptions, depending on the circumstances of a particular return.  Managers with strong deontological ethics would typically follow the policy to the letter with very few exceptions.  I soon learned that this type of manager viewed upholding policy as vital to their job.  On the other hand, the managers who adopted the consequentialists viewpoint (people who favor evaluating the outcome of an act rather than the act itself) -- may be more willing to grant exceptions to keep customers happy.  I often experienced this, I would often use the consequentialists view and found the person would spend even more money in the store.  I never gave consideration to my action when it came to either deontology or consequentialism, but I now have a totally different perspective toward my actions that may be viewed as ethically based. 

 

La Follette, H. (2009). The Practice of Ethics. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing

Gillikin, J. & Media D. (n.d.), Workplace Example of Duty Based Ethics, Retrieved from

http://smallbusiness.chron.com/workplace-example-duty-based-ethics-11972.html

 

A631.1.5.RB – EcoSeagate

Do you see value in the EcoSeagate team development process?

There were several statements that stood out to me concerning EcoSeagate:

·         “This week you will learn to make sacrifices”

·         “Healthy conflict is based on a new found trust”

·         “Not who you are, but who you will become”

·         “If you do nothing, then nothing will happen, and nothing will change.”

As good as EcoSeagate seems, I do see flaws.  The video clips are motivating, and EcoSeagate positively highlights how everyone is responsible for their team success thru the understanding and application of team trust, team commitment and respect for eachother.  However, I feel there is a false sense of reality here.  Team building sessions like what EcoSeagate does are great, but in the business world teamwork is not guaranteed and EcoSeagate does not address what happens when there is failure.  What is overlooked is the fact that sometimes a team dynamics work does not work with the participants no matter what a leader does.  Here is an example, the Discovery Channel has a realty series titled Naked & Afraid where a new pair of strangers must learn to survive together for 21 days with no food, no water and no clothes.  On the show, the team must face sacrifice, conflict and deal with the fact that is their team dynamics fails, there is no do over and no one there to will bail them out. 

Why would something like this be necessary in a high-performing organization?

Teamwork experts all agree that high-performance organizations consistently outperform competitors.  Leaders in high-performing organizations understand that in this type of organization, its people are its assets.  These leaders also have a clear understanding that teamwork can be key/crucial to its success.  I do not think the EcoSeagate activities would be necessary in a high-performing organization; however they could be used as a refresher and something to break the monotony when compliancy sets in.  The EcoSeagate activities could be used as motivation when morale is low. 

 

Could your organization benefit from a similar activity?

While I think my organization would benefit, I would really like to see senior management participate in something like this.  I think before something like this would benefit the organization I work for, there has to be a serious change in culture starting from the top.  The operational environment of the federal government is mandated by various federal and state laws.  To add to the situation such activities may not be allowed with federal funds.  I have to say that we have no choice but to perform optimally at all times. However I do believe that several of my previous organizations could benefit from a fun, outdoor activity like the EcoSeagate experience.  Overall, I personally think that this is a great tool for a company to use, because I have personally done activities something similar to this. 

 

References 

Brown, D. R. (2011). An experiential approach to organization

          Development (8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Watkins. B. (2008). EcoSeagate and Team Development.

http://www.discovery.com/tv-shows/naked-and-afraid

A634.1.6.RB - The Buck Stops and Starts With You

A634.1.6.RB - The Buck Stops and Starts With You

In the article titled, " The Buck Stops (and Starts) at Business School", author Joel Podolny's article discusses his theory on how management education has contributed to the general failure of today's leaders.  So to me the question to his theory is “do businesses schools need to change curriculum when it comes to ethics or is the business community making them the scapegoats of their failures when it comes to developing leaders? Podolny’s view takes a direct shot at business schools by stating how he believes business schools have largely ignored the teaching of values and ethics when it comes to leadership.   Some would agree notion by looking at it from historical perspective; emphasizing that values and ethics were not highly recognized subjects of traditional business school academic disciplines.

Author Podolny lists five his (not mine) actions he believes that business schools can take to best prepare future leaders to assume a holistic approach to business problems and ethical dilemmas.  These actions include: fostering greater integration, appointing teaching teams, encouraging qualitative research, stopping the practice of competing on rankings, withdrawing degrees for violating ethical codes of conduct. 

I do agree with the author and have seen changes in recent academic curriculum that tailor business programs to not only incorporate business ethics education; but to also educate students on how to making effective decisions that benefits the organizations they represent.  My personal perspective is I do not think that we can blame business schools for the wrongs of our leadership.  I think the American business community has moved away from why it is important to make good ethical decisions.   Ethical decision making does not get you rewarded with bonuses or promotions.  Business is about profit, and I feel it is hard for the average American manager or leader to compete in a global market when nobody plays by the same rules.  Employees on all levels have become concerned with the situation of ensuring that they get the farthest in their career or make the most money in life.  I don’t think this mindset is counterproductive to society, or business; it is just a very competitive world we live in.

Author John C. Maxwell made a very profound statement in his book Organizational Excellence; "There’s No Such Thing as "Business" Ethics".  Although controversial, I find this powerful statement very true to an extent.  However, I think we need to change how we see unethical behavior to fit modern day society, not living by the words of John Maxwell, “the Golden Rule.”  Maxwell, in Ethics 101: What Every Leader Needs to Know, explains that the Golden Rule boils down to treating others the way you want to be treated.  Maxwell emphasizes that ethics breaks down into unethical choices for three reasons:  People do what most convenient, they do what they must to win, and finally they rationalize their choices with relativism (Maxwell, 2003).  I am not saying Maxwell is wrong, but maybe we need to educate students about the consequences of their actions which may be viewed as unethical by society. 

I feel the drawback to implementing Podolny's recommendations at business schools around the country is consensus.  Most major universities (here and abroad) specialize their leadership programs to what they feel serves their students the best.  This is not like high schools where in a certain state where everyone must teach the same material in the same way.  Such a change movement will take an enormous effort, require an enormous financial assets, buy-in from the academic community, and various other resources.  No matter how much education you provide to students, human nature will always play a role in their actions.  Ask yourself the question, “If we had more value and ethics training in the past, would it have changed the historical events such as the housing market national financial crisis, Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme or even the Enron scandal”.  Maybe instead of reinventing the wheel, when the value and ethics are incorporated in leadership courses, there should be a section on what really happens when you ignore values and ethics and decide to roll the dice on you going to jail. 

  

References:

Harvard Business Review. Jun2009, Vol. 87 Issue 6, p62-67. 6p. 1 Illustration, 1 Diagram

Maxwell, J. C. (2003). Ethics 101: What Every Leader Needs to Know. New York, NY: Center Street.