Reflection on the PPP - Essay Example

Self Reflection Introduction In this self reflective essay, I will be analyzing the power point presentation given by me along with my group members as a part of our assignment. The purpose of this self reflection is to identify the strengths, errors and weaknesses of the individual group members including me. By doing this I will be able to reflect upon my performance and highlight the areas where I can improve. I will also be able to learn the mistakes that I commit during the presentation which should not be repeated in future. Moreover, I can also use this self reflection as an inspiration through which I can make myself more presentable in the future. The presentation that we gave was about the first industrial revolution. The most important objective was to highlight the noteworthy inventions that were made in this period and what has happened since then. Tasks were assigned to individuals equally in order to ensure successful completion of the project. There was three group members, one was given the task to do the research and collect data, the second group member was reasonable for designing the presentation and I was give the task of writing the slide contents. The following sections will include the interpretation and outcome of our group efforts. Interpretation As mentioned above, we were tasked with the preparation of a PowerPoint presentation regarding the first industrial revolution. We decided to conduct group meetings every alternative day in the week in order to discuss our individual progress regarding the overall presentation. The division of work was done very effectively as each of us go the work that we do best. However, one of the major drawbacks of our group was that no one was clearly defined as the leader. Although we were making individual progress there was no leader who would give proper direction to the flow of our work. Occasionally we have conflict of issues which deviate us from the actual path of the assignment’s objective. I decided to implement the ideas the Tuckman teamwork theory. It was extremely important for me to make sure that the team go through all the four phases of team development mentioned in this theory (forming, storming norming and performing). I witnessed that initially the group members were finding it difficult to gel in with each other. So I decided to clarify the overall objective of the team in order to make sure that group members work towards a unified goal. This helped me to establish coordination among the team members once they started to feel comfortable within the group (Riebe, et al., 2010). We failed miserably during the norming phase of the model as no one in the group was being able to find the appropriate processes of preparing the presentation. No ground rules were established due to the absence of a definite leader and this deteriorated the quality of our work even though we made individual progresses (Hall, 2005). Our effort was not cohesive. Even though all the group members in our group lacked English language prowess but we made sure that to the best we could with the limited knowledge. That is why we focused on improving the quality of research. We lacked prior experience regarding giving presentation in front of an audience that is why we failed to maintain eye contact with the audience (Berlin, Carlström and Sandberg, 2012). Our presentation was a bit short which was primary because of two reasons: lesser number of slides and faster tempo of speech. The group members were often reading the contents of the slide which worked against the quality of research that we had done (Palmer and Markus, 2000). I believe that the group lacked team work where there was no collaboration or coordination among the group members. The individuals cared only about their own responsibility in order to get rid of it as soon as possible in order to focus on other important things. The lack of cohesiveness among the group members resulted in underprepared presentation (McCallin and Bamford, 2007). I can also relate to our situation using the STAR (Strength, teamwork, alignment and result) model of team work. I could easily identify various strengths among the group members such as their knowledge base, technological prowess, logical thinking and so on and so forth (POLAN). The group members were also able to fulfil their responsibility and produce result well within the defined schedule (Kahler, 2001). Nevertheless we failed on two aspects namely teamwork and alignment. Had we ensured a collaborative teamwork and had aligned our strengths properly and we would have been able to hide our weaknesses such as lack of English prowess and presentation experience by giving a well prepared presentation (West, 2012). Outcome Even though our presentation was successful but we committed many mistakes while preparing the presentation as well as while presenting it in front of the tutors. We did a considerable amount of research on the presentation topic but we were not able to translate in this research into a effective presentation (DeChurch and Mesmer-Magnus, 2010). We did not have a good leader within the team would guide the work flow and maintain a strong coordination among the group members. Everyone was bothered about their individual objectives and no one emphasized much on the holistic aim of the group (Berlin, Carlström and Sandberg, 2012). This affected the quality of presentation even though we managed to secure average marks due to some strengths demonstrated by the group members (West, 2012). The technical knowhow enabled us to prepare a visually interactive presentation which grabbed the attention of the audience but our contents were far too less. As a result of this our presentation length was relatively shorter with lesser number of slides. We also did not rehearse much before the presentation as a result of which we were not able to maintain eye contact with the audience and had the read the contents from slide. Therefore as a group member I would suggest the group to designate an able leader in the future would direct the flow of work as well as encourage the group members to be cooperative and work towards a unified objective. I would also recommended all the group members to enhance their English language skills as it is an international language and is accepted and spoken all round the world. Lastly, I would also advice the group members to identify their own skills and focus on teamwork. This will allow them to harmonize their efforts and strengths to produce the required outcome. Reference List Berlin, J. M., Carlström, E. D. and Sandberg, H. S., 2012. Models of teamwork: ideal or not? A critical study of theoretical team models. Team Performance Management: An International Journal, 18(5/6), pp. 328-340. DeChurch, L. A. and Mesmer-Magnus, J. R., 2010. The cognitive underpinnings of effective teamwork: a meta-analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology, 95(1), p. 32. Hall, P., 2005. Interprofessional teamwork: Professional cultures as barriers. Journal of Interprofessional care, 19(S1), pp. 188-196. Kahler, D., 2001. Successful Schools: Achieving Excellence Through STAR Theory. Maryland: R&L Education. McCallin, A. and Bamford, A., 2007. Interdisciplinary teamwork: is the influence of emotional intelligence fully appreciated?. Journal of Nursing Management, 15(4), pp. 386-391. Palmer, J. W. and Markus, M. L., 2000. The performance impacts of quick response and strategic alignment in specialty retailing. Information Systems Research, 11(3), pp. 241-259. Riebe, L., Roepen, D., Santarelli, B. and Marchioro, G., 2010. Teamwork: effectively teaching an employability skill. Education+ Training, 52(6/7), pp. 528-539. West, M. A., 2012. Effective teamwork: Practical lessons from organizational research. John Wiley & Sons. Read More