The Effect of Personality Type on Team Performance - Assignment Example

Reflective report Task evaluation Task Task one looked at the evaluation of the project using SWOT analysis, PEST analysis, Porter’s five forces, MCKinsey’s 7S framework and the Burke-Litwin model. The SWOT analysis looked into the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. By using SWOT analysis in this task, the foundation upon which other models would work on was set. SWOT analysis made it easy to understand the business and capitalize on strengths while improving on the weaknesses. Despite its benefits, SWOT analysis only gives a preliminary assessment of the project making it necessary to use other methods on analysis to get more insight, in depth analysis and solution prioritization. Given the limitations of SWOT analysis other analysis models were employed to give in-depth analysis of industry factors like the Porter’s five forces, PEST analysis which helped in the strategic thinking and the identification of opportunities to be exploited. It also aided in the analysis of both local and global market. Since it is subjective, an assumption had to be made on a data set to make the analysis possible. MCKinsey 7S framework analysis was also instrumental because it emphasizes on the strategic implementation of change and takes into account both tangible and intangible factor in a change project like this one. Like all other models, the MCKinsey and PEST analysis both have disadvantages which also made it necessary to use other models to ensure a comprehensive analysis of the project. To this end, the Burke-Litwin model was added to the list of models used in the analysis of the project. This model was particularly useful because it integrates several factors that are responsible for the change. It not only takes into account the internal and external factors of the organization but also interrelates them into a model that is appropriate for the analysis of change. Since external factor is the main factor in this change project, the group settled on the Burke-Litwin model since it proved as the appropriate model for the strategic analysis of change like this one. However other models also make the analysis comprehensive because they complement each other and take care of all the aspects of change. When a model is not effective in a particular aspect of the analysis, the next was used to cover that aspect which in turn led to an effective and comprehensive analysis of the project. Task 2 Task 2 entailed the top level use of diagrams. The task description involves the delegation and job description from the project manager who is responsible for meeting organization, task organization, tie management, human resource management, technical support, service management and archiving. However, some of these duties are delegated to project team members who aid in meeting organization, task organization, time management and information sharing. Other members of the organization are human resource manager who helps in the management of human resource; the technician who gives technical support. The system administrator in this change project will be in charge of information security while the archivist will take care of archiving. The company manager will oversee financial management which will also be taken care of by the financial manager. In meeting organization for instance, is essential in the project. The purpose of meeting organization is to schedule group meetings and make sure the team project members are informed of the scheduled meeting. The team leader is responsible for this action followed closely by project team members. New meetings are also scheduled by the team leader. Before scheduling a meeting, the team leader has to ensure that all team members will be free to attend the meeting at the proposed time, gives the meeting agenda. Once each member responds to the team leaders message, then the meeting can be confirmed. However, if some of the team members cannot attend the meeting, the team leader reschedules the meeting. This process was decided as the most appropriate by the group because it takes into consideration other organizational obligations of the change project team members and ensures that when a meeting is scheduled all members are in agreement and can attend without failure. Under task organization, the team leader was charged with the responsibility of checking the progress of a particular task and the assigning of a new one. The team leader also assesses the HR function and determines the deadline and if the project is in schedule or not. The team leader also coordinates with all team members regarding the progress of the project. One major drawback in this task is the work load and responsibilities given to the team leader. This makes success of the project dependent on the efforts of one person; a situation that could overwork an individual and hinder their productivity. In a change project like this one, the major aspect of the task should not be left as the sole responsibility of an individual but at least each team member should be given a lead role in an aspect of the project with the team leader as an overseer. Task 3 The third task was segmented into three areas of with the first segment looking at task organization, information sharing, human resource management, meeting organization and service management. This segment only gives an overview of these tasks. The tasks were given to each member of the group who was charged with the responsibility of elaborating on the goals and objectives of each function illustrated in the first segment. The first process was meeting organization whose objective is to simplify the organization of meetings. It gives the team leader an opportunity to look at the availability of each team member before scheduling a project meeting. This is instrumental in increasing cooperation, communication, productivity and the efficiency of the team. Since the change project involves making changes in a virtual enterprise, the workers are put into teams where they are given specific team projects. Under task coordination, the chosen team leader is charged with the responsibility of choosing the team members. The objective of his process is to provide the team leader with a platform that can be used in the assigning of project tasks. Task coordination improves project performance and help in the combination of team work in task completion. Service management is another process that was looked into under the third task. Its goals involve the acquisition of quality control data of the entire organization which was found to make the effective application of control methodologies which eventually leads to an improvement in productivity. In the long term, service management is expected to lead to a reduction in expenses through the elimination of reoccurring failures and errors. Information sharing was also reported to be another important process in a change project because it increases productivity since team members are able to communicate effectively. The final process under this segment of the third task was human resource management whose objective is to provide a database that is easily accessible to all the project team leaders to aid in the selection of appropriate team members which will in turn improve business performance. This task depicts the importance of the various processes in a project. Coordination, communication and cooperation is vital for the success of any project. The segmentation of the project and task delegation, enabled the project to run effectively. However more should be done in future project to reduce the workload of team leaders. The team leader is given a lot of responsibilities which might overwhelm him/her and affect the performance of the whole team and jeopardize the entire project. The workload of an individual can be reduced by having different team leaders for different tasks, but there also to be an overall team leader. Task 4 This task was concerned with quality management of the proposed new project; VOICE. Under quality management, the team looked at the choice of the most effective way to come up withsoftware for the project which began with the examination of the operational requirements of the proposed project. Since the project involves software implementation, it requires constant change and evolving environment to be able to function effectively. The project also requires a wide range of services to varied areas. The software to be developed has to be one that will be able to give software solutions continuously. The development of the software also required a team of developers with varied backgrounds. For effective quality management, the project used the expertise of people with varied experiences and backgrounds. It was decided that the agile software development approach would be the most appropriate for the development of the software to be used in the VOICE. The approach was taken because it encourages the utilization of large teams of developers and is also based on the effective communication of clients and developers. The task also looked at the functional suitability of the software in performing the designated function. In order to satisfy the needs of the users of the software, the developers made sure that the software was functionally appropriate, complete and functionally correct. This task also looked at the performance efficiency of the proposed project. Performance efficiency involved the analysis of time behaviour, resource utilization, capacity, compatibility and interoperability. The task also looked at usability, reliability, confidentiality, maintainability and portability. The choice of the team to use the agile software development needed to work in large teams which at times proved hard to manage. However, with teamwork, effective communication, project management and coordination, the project was completed successfully. Future projects like this should use a model that does not require the use of large teams as this will make the project easier to manage. Task 5 IT service management Under this task, the project examined ISO20000 IS service management; an internationally accepted certification standards that ensures companies adhere to the top quality IT management practices. To this end, the new project had to be in line with the acceptable standards in order to meet client needs and to get access to a clear market advantage since it demonstrates reliability and high quality of service. The team had to ensure that the new project delivers on the four service management processes in the areas of; service a delivery process which entails service level management, availability management and capacity management. Other process in the ISO20000 framework are; relationship process, resolution process and control process. The ISO20000 framework processes were further broken down into smaller segments for easy analysis and relation to the proposed project and the company. The breakdown enabled the term to see how the process will be applicable to the VOICE, the risks involved, hot to make it appropriate for the company’s clients and its management. Other components that were analysed in this task include; capacity management, information security management, service level management, service continuity and availability management, information security management and capacity management. This task mostly involved the analysis of acceptable IT standards that the proposed project needed to adopt for its success in the marketplace. Though the standards are many and detailed, tam work mad it easy to understand. Future teams working on such a project need to rely more on their team work and cooperation which are instrumental in making a project successful. The team chose these standards because they will give the VOICE a competitive edge in the marketplace as compared to other software products that do to adhere to the ISO20000 IT service management. Task 6 This task entailed the management of the project. Project management ensures that the stipulated activities are done on time and effectively. Project management also ensures that the project is kept in line with its goals and objectives and that the team members work towards the achievement of these goals and objectives. The first task under this task was planning and timescales. This tasked looked at the management of time throughout the life of the proposed project. There was a presentation of how the time was going to be managed in the project. Since it was a team work, the timelines were given keeping in mind the role of each member in the project. Tables and charts were used to show how the project was supposed to be done within the given time. In some instances, Gantt charts were used to give a clear illustration of the planned work. A human resource management table was also used to give job descriptions and the duration their duties were supposed to take. Other tasks that were covered in this section included task coordination, meeting organization and value management. In order to come up with an effective project plan, assumptions had to be made in this task. The assumptions were made to cover the three year period of the new project. The assumptions made for the first year included no charges for the server, it was also assumed that two ne PCs will be acquired in the first year at a cost of 400 pounds per machine and that the company will not incur any data storage charges. It is also assumed that there will be no cost of software licences and that personnel cost will not go beyond those of the parent company. The same applies to operational expenses. Having to develop software for an existing company makes it easy since there are existing infrastructure which lead to cost savings. Future projects should focus more on this kind of model as it will not only make their work easier, but it will also keep their costs low. Task 7 This task specifically examined IT governance which entailed generic and specific risks. Under generic risks, operational efficiency was identified as one of the challenges to be faced by the team. By developing the VOICE, the company is expanding its operation which might lead to an overabundance of company procedures which may contradict the existing methodologies. These alterations will lead to many more alterations in Cardiff Cloud Services which will need adjustments not only on the part of employees but also on the part of managers and the organization as a whole. Another generic risk associated with this project is the financial risk. The company is investing in this project which may not sit well with its stakeholders and client. However, to grow in business, risks have to be taken because it is the only way that the company will know if the project will be successful or not. The specific risks associated with this project were looked at in the areas of task coordination, meeting organization, human resource management, and service management. Each process was analysed by identifying the risks involved and looking for ways of minimizing these risks in order to make the project a success. This task involved the evaluation of the risks involved in a new project undertaking. Being a team work, the evaluation was done by each member of the team taking part in evaluating a particular aspect of the general risks. Team work should always be promoted in large projects like this one because it is instrumental in the ultimate success of the project. 2. Team evaluation a. Reflect on your experience of working in a team for the group project and discuss to what extent your experience compares or contrasts with the literature on promoting effective teamwork. Team work is always important and instrumental from the success of the project. When working as a team, work is simplified, and tasks are made easier as compared to when the project is done by an individual. This project has illustrated the benefits of effective teamwork where each team member was given a task depending on their ability. For teamwork to be successful the team members need to have a commitment to team success and shared goals, interdependence, interpersonal skills, open communication and positive feedback, appropriate team composition and commitment to team processes. According to Luca and Tarricone (2001) a project of this magnitude can only be successful if all the team members work towards a common goal. By being committed to the success of the project, the team members understood their purpose, shared a common goal which was the successful implementation of the project. Bradley and Federic (1997) add that successful teams are motivated by their anticipation for success and strong commitment to succeeded. The tam that worked on this project showed the highest level of commitment ever seen in group work. This concurs with the literature on the factors that promote good teamwork. On interdependence, the team understood that, for the project to be successful, all the team members had to be successful at the tasks delegated to them. Apart from working on their individual projects, the team members made sure that the other members of the team were not left behind because their work too would count on the overall success of the team (Scarnati, 2001). The team leader was particularly instrumental in ensuring that all team members delivered their part of the project in time. Members interacted from time to time to make the project a success. Another aspect that is vital for the success of teamwork projects is open communication. The team communicated effectively and in instances where there was a misunderstanding it was solved amicably. During meetings, constructive criticism was encouraged, and member never took corrections as attacks but a way of improving the project as a whole. In cases where some members were too busy to attend a meeting on a scheduled date, they made it clear to the team leader who then relayed the information to the rest of the team and rescheduled the meeting. When decision needed to be made, they were communicated openly to the team and ideas encouraged before reaching a conclusion. For a project to be successful, it also has to be composed of the right people with the right set of skills. Combination of an engineering student and psychology students for an IT project will not lead to success of that project since both lack the necessary skills needed to drive the needed change in the field. In the change project, roles, responsibilities, and assignments were given to the team members since each member had to contribute to the project. The team made use of individual skills for the benefit of the project. However, like in every task involving more than one person, conflicting ideas always come up. But conflicting ideas do no necessarily lead to conflict. Amicable solution to problems leads to successful projects. With good leadership, effective communication, well laid chain of command, leadership and accountability, team work can lead to successful project implementation. The team leader working in conjunction with other team members monitored team progress, made sure decisions were made by consensus and that members were open to change, creativity and joint problem solving. The team realized the importance of communication, teamwork, interpersonal skills, delegation, and commitment to processes, leadership and accountability which made the project successful. b) Based on your experience provide justified recommendations for promoting effective teamwork for groups who will take this module in future years. The basic rules for effective teamwork are paramount for the success of any team project. Future groups intending to take on projects like this should get into team work knowing that it is not easy to work with people especially when creativity and task analysis is required. They should be ready to accommodate each other and their varied ideas about the project at hand. Teams working on projects should also be interdependent. The success of teamwork does not lie with the team leader but the entire team. The team leader is just more responsible because s/he is tasked with the responsibility of steering the project into successful completion. If teams want to be successful, they have to employ interpersonal skills. People have different personalities, and when these differences are put together, differences are bound to arise. Team members should show consideration for each other respect and support team members. Only then can the team execute their project successfully. The need for effective communication can never be overstated in the success of a project. In team work, it is always appropriate to discuss issues openly and offer constructive criticism in problem resolution. Dialogue should be encouraged across the team. People have different levels of communication and communicate differently too. Members should, therefore, encouraged to express their views and ideas without fear of intimidation. Truth and openness should also be encouraged in all stages of the project. The prospective team should also conduct an initial team activity to allow team members to get acquainted with each other and know how each member of the prospective team communicate their skills both academic and social. In this activity, team members should state their expectations about team behaviour. Other aspects that should be included in this activity are; meetings, task coordination, project responsibilities and deadlines. The team leaders should also be chosen in the initial meeting. This will ensure time is saved when the project begins because the team had been able to put everything in place and will be ready to begin working on the project. Future teams should also make sure that the skills and abilities of their team members are in line with the intended project. Skill analysis should be done to ensure that no time is wasted once the team is constituted, and project time is already given. Team members should also encourage each other and help in instances where a member experiences difficulty in a task. Team motivation should also be looked at before constituting or commencing the project. Low motivation levels will have a negative effect on the team success while a high level of motivation from one individual is also not enough to make the team successful. All team members have to be self driven and motivated to work towards the success of the project. 3. Personal evaluation a) Critically evaluate your personal performance in carrying out your tasks in the group project. Include reflective example to show what you did well and where you could improve. In a team project like this one, every member of the team is given responsibilities to work on. I was particularly given the responsibility of working on PEST analysis which involved looking at political factors, economic factors, social factors and technological factors that would affect the effective implementation of the new changes. The task involved looking for literature on PEST analysis and relating it to the team project. Since the team had agreed to deliver good quality work with no mistakes and zero plagiarism. I ensured that the work was original and not just copied and pasted from other sources. Whenever I used the work of another author it was properly referenced to show that it was not copied. Under political factors, I made sure they applied to the United Kingdom and also to Cardiff where the business is located. The analysis also covered all the aspects that pertained to PEST analysis, but were applicable to the new change project. Still on PEST analysis, economic factors encompassed the economy of the United Kingdom, it current situation and how it is affected by external factors. Other aspects of the economic factors also included the country’s currency and the exchange rate in relation to other major currencies. This was vital for the project because expansion plans were in mind. Other factors that were looked at in economic factors include; the availability and affordability of workforce, taxes and business licences, recession and its effects on consumer spending and consumer confidence. To come up with an effective analysis, more literature had to be consulted to make sure that the information given was a true representation of the facts. In task 2, I was responsible for drawing up a table on service management and archiving under use case description on task 2(b). In both instances, the responsibility involved outlining the responsibilities of the team leader in the task. This had to be done to ensure that all responsibilities are well stipulated and that there is no conflict of responsibilities in the project. In task 3, I was responsible for elaborating on the goals and objectives of service management under task 8.3. In this section the goals and objective of service management process where I found out that the goal of service management process is to acquire quality control of the entire organization and give the service manager an opportunity to control methodologies more efficiently which in turn allows the evolution of the enterprise through improved productivity and manageability of the process. The other part of my duty was to relate this to the VOICE. I came up with a table to show how this was possible. Overall I would say I did what was required of m by the team and ensured that the responsibilities given to me were done in accordance to what was agreed by the team and also in time. In task 4, I was also given the responsibility of researching on capacity management. I did my tasks with the utmost professionalism keeping in mind that the success of the entire team and project was dependent on my work too. The responsibilities and duties given to me were mostly in my area of specialization which made it easy to execute and complete. I would, however, have done better if I began my project tasks and responsibilities ahead of time. Most of my tasks were done close to the deadline which made me rush to beat the deadline. At one point, I almost never made it in time for a meeting that had been scheduled two days earlier and got a warning from the team leader. I could have done better on the issue of time management, finish my work in time and have time to review it before handing it in to the team leader. This, however, did not hinder my performance in the project. I would also like to improve on the number of literature used in the project. Most of the literature on this project was limited, limiting the researcher. More research should be done on this field to improve the quality of future researches on software development projects like the VOICE. b) Reflect on what you have leant from carrying out the change project and discuss the extent to which you think the skills you have learnt in this module will be useful to you in future. Having taken this module and particularly the project, it has addressed the learning outcome of the which were to evaluate approaches to choose an appropriate software development approach for the change project; appreciate how choice of development approach and architecture can affect quality; apply appropriate project management techniques to plan and cost the implementation of the change project and determine legal, ethical, business and technical risks in developing a new information system and determine appropriate recommendations fro mitigating these risks. Through the development of the change project, I have been able to learn the process, and tasks involved in the coming up with software. I was also able to learn that, for the effective development of software that will be competitive in the marketplace, it has to be developed in accordance with the ISO20000 guidelines. I also learnt that it takes a team, cooperation, communication and coordination to come up with software. By working with a dedicated team, I realize the importance of team work, cooperation and interpersonal skill and how all these affect the outcome of a project. Depending on how the team led by the team leader relate, the project can succeed or fail. The success of the team depends on the exemplary performance by all team members. When only on team member excels, the entire team has failed because it should be a team work all aspects of the project should be successful, and this can only happen if every member of the team shows commitment. Prior to working on this project, I was used to working on my own on small projects but this has taught me the importance of teamwork and interdependence in team work. It has also taught me that not all conflicts are bad. Some good actually can come from conflict if it is solved constructively and amicably. The change project has helped in improving my interpersonal skills and commitment to complete tasks in time. In has increased my confidence in teamwork, communication and cooperation. Another thing that I have learnt from this project that will be helpful in future projects is time keeping. Though still not perfect in time keeping; I have greatly improved on time keeping and the delivery of projects within the deadline. Team work has also encouraged me to get more involved in more projects that require teamwork in the future. I have also learnt that people communicate differently and that some people are reserved while other are more talkative and the only way to know what the other person thinks is by asking and engaging them because they are the only ones who tell you what they think on a particular subject. Through the team leader of this project, i have learnt the importance of delegation and chain of command in any project. A project without a team leader is bound to fail because it lacks order. This will help me in future project because I now know what to expect and what needs to be done for a project to be successful. I also learnt that there are other models of project evaluation apart from SWOT, PEST and MCKinsey’s 7S framework. This will make the evaluation of my future projects more comprehensive since I will be able to use all the project analysis models used in this project to evaluate projects. Another lesson learnt from the project is that being a team leader is not an easy task. Apart from performing his/her duties in the project, the team leader has to ensure that the project is in schedule and that all team members are doing their tasks to ensure project success. The success of the project is more dependent on the leadership qualities of the team leader as compared to other members of the group. References Luca, J., and Tarricone, P. (2001). Does emotional intelligence affect successful teamwork? Proceedings of the 18th Annual Conference of the Australasian Society for Computers in Learning in Tertiary Education at the ASCILITE, pp. 367 – 376, Melbourne: the University of Melbourne. Scarnati, J. T. (2001). On becoming a team player. Team Performance Management: An International Journal, 7(1/2), pp. 5-10. Bradley, J. H., and Frederic, J. H. (1997). The effect of personality type on team performance. Journal of Management Development, 16(5), pp. 337-353. Read More