MediSys Assignment - Case Study Example

Medisys Case Study Introduction After receipt of the request by the president of MediSys, Art Beaumont, I took the initiative to undertake an intense situational analysis. The analysis purposes to shed light on the prevailing situations and concerns in the medical organization. I came up with the following including my recommendations to the company president especially on matters concerning the project re-launch meeting. Part One: Proposal to be presented to Art Beaumont Situational Analysis After conducting a successful situation analysis, the following issues were evident. Factors Related the Dysfunctional Meeting Culture in the MediSys Company i. Lack of proper relations between the personnel and teams The marketing manager, Valerie Merz feels that Jack Fogel, the production manager, is not efficiently executing his duties. Merz complains that Jack is concentrating on the details of the product and ignoring the actual business issues and matters pertaining to modularity. Instead of considering the possibility of directly confronting Jack to solve the matter amicably, she is thinking of approaching the bosses (Donnellon & Margolis, 2009). Merz is of the opinion that the other team members are incompetent and she gives specific reference to Fogel. The lawyer representing the Regulatory Affairs team, Karen Baio is of the opinion that he other personnel see her as an obstruction. She finds it difficult to work with Mukerjee, the software design manager and Merz because she cannot tolerate them. Baio does not see any significance ot the president’s step to hire Merz. Bret O’Brien is also avoiding Merz because of her constant complains about the time line. A meeting cannot be functional if there is no cooperation between the key personnel and teams. The meeting can be successful on condition that the teams work together. ii. Heavy workload on particular employees Some of the personnel in the organizations have a lot of responsibilities that are a major cause of constant complains. Such employees may view themselves as being more important or constantly complain over the excessive responsibilities under their jurisdiction. For instance, Merz is solely responsible for the profit and loss issues on IntensCare. Other responsibilities that relate to Merz include evaluating the product road-map, extending technical support to clients, advertising and pricing (Donnellon & Margolis, 2009). She uses this as a basis for downplaying the effectiveness of the other team members. If work is distributed appropriately among employees, such inconveniences will be avoided. iii. Diverse opinions held by different team leaders The key issue that raises diverse opinions is the aspect of modular design. Modular design would enable clients to tailor the system to suite their specifications or medical needs. According to Merz, IntensCare should be modular and the modulation should be initiated in the second version of the system. However, she is reluctant to share this thought with fellow team members. The reason for her reluctance is the fact that she is afraid that the engineering team might use her suggestion to ignore the need for modulation (Donnellon & Margolis, 2009). In contrast to Merz’s suggestion, O’Brien, the senior engineering manager, says that the process of developing the modules is not on the forefront of his team’s agenda. He adds that his team is working towards finding a solution for the internal space problem. O’Brien considers the process of redesigning the modules as a waste of time (Donnellon & Margolis, 2009). Such divisions have to be addressed for the teams to work under common protocols. Successful meetings are always conducted on the basis of reasoning from a common perspective. How to Refocus the Team There is need to refocus the teams especially because the goals and objectives of the IntensCare group is disjointed. Refocusing the teams would ensure that the process of implementing the system project is within the set timeframe. As the chief consultant, I would use the following ways to influence the focus of the tea positively. i. Focusing on the main idea or agenda. The group members should avoid irrelevant and diverse personal opinions and grievances and concentrate effectively on the project at hand. ii. Defining roles. For efficiency, it is vital to outline the specific responsibilities for each of the team members and provide a basis on which the diverse roles can be complementary and coordinated. iii. Setting of common goals. The problem of having diverse interests is rampant within the organization and it is dividing the team members. Group members should be urged to set goals with reference to the different opinions held by specific members. iv. Ensuring effective communication. Proper communication parameters should be set to ensure that grievances and concerns are aired in an organized manner. The team members should also be ready listen to each other’s complains (Salas, Tannenbaum, Cohen, & Latham, 2013). Part Two: The Re-launch Meeting Plan This plan has been formulated in accordance to the 5 P’s that guide the process of preparing for a meeting. Purpose This meeting is facilitated to: i. Discuss and give guidance on matters pertaining to the re-launch of the IntensCare team project. The project involves the establishment of a monitoring system for the intensive care unit. ii. Set a workable time frame for the completion of the project iii. Formulate the activities to be incorporated into the project including the issue of modulation. iv. Identify and solve challenges faced by the employees and the need to counter competition. Some of the challenges include the inability of employees to appropriately relate to each other and work together. v. Allocate specific roles to different team members will also be in the meeting’s agenda (Bens, 2012)  If the above stated issues are not solved, the company might not be able to implement the proposed project successfully. The key point here is the determination of a basis to guide decision making. Product At the end of the meeting, the following must have been achieved: i. Successful determination of an appropriate and workable timeframe for the project which will be unanimously agreed upon. ii. The Identification of the protocols of operation to ensure that the activities involved in the course of implementing the project are efficient and well-coordinated. iii. The activities to be incorporated into the project are identified and properly outlined to the group members. iv. The differences between the employees in terms of objectives and vital but diverse opinions will be incorporated and merged into one school of thought that is acceptable to all. v. Every member should have been given a specific role to play within the team and ensure that they complement and not contradict the work of other personnel. Participants The table below shows the specific personnel that must attend and what is expected of them in the course of the product re-launch meeting: Attendee Position Role in the meeting Art Beaumont Company President Facilitate the meeting and guide the junior employees especially in the decision making stage Dipesh Mukerjee Software Design Manager Respond to questions related to the state of software development and outline the problems faced by the software development team. Bret O’Brien Senior Engineering Manager Present the product design strategy that his team has been able to come up with and the role the engineering team will play in the implementation of the project Jack Fogel Senior Production Manager Outline the production strategy in relation to the proposed project and the impact that this outline will have on the company as a whole Valerie Merz Marketing Manager Enlighten the other members on the role that the new monitoring system will play in countering competition thus attracting more customers Karen Baio Regulatory Affairs Team Manager Outline the project regulatory guidelines to the other members in attendance Possible Issues The issues of concern in the meeting are to be determined by providing an open platform from which all members can participate and give their views. Going by my anticipation, the following are the possible issues that may come up while the meeting is in session: i. Complains and grievances from the team members due to the wrangles that exist among them ii. The issue of the timeframe not being enough for effective completion of the project iii. Members may suggest that more employees should be hired so that the workload is shared iv. Need for the development of guidelines for solving conflicts that may arise among the group members to ensure that personal differences do not affect the project implementation process. Process The agenda of the meeting incorporates the following aspects or activities: i. A short speech from the manager concerning the progress the company has made towards the realization of its objectives. He will also state his expectations. ii. Presentations from the different team leaders. The presentation must entail what the leaders are doing to ensure that the company’s project successfully comes to pass. iii. Re-evaluation of the project to include new developments as agreed upon unanimously by the members in attendance. iv. Drafting of rules and regulations to guide the employees in the process of executing their duties and to direct the implementation of the project accordingly. v. Enumeration of the available personnel and the determination of whether more personnel are required for operations to be more efficient. Given the issues that are evident among the group members, the following rules would guide their operations; i. Group members should respect each other regardless of their conflicting opinions. They should strive to incorporate different opinions into their work to diversify their activities ii. The personnel must actively participate in the company’s activities especially the development of the new monitoring system for the intensive care unit. For the group to achieve its purpose, the following steps must be adhered to: i. Effective discussion of the whole development project by the group and settlement of any matters that may arise ii. Coordination of the team’s activities and the responsibilities of departmental heads to ensure cooperation among all personnel iii. Division of work according to the expertise associated with specific personnel (Wilkinson, 2012) Conclusion Having made the above recommendations, it is my expectation that the company will adhere to the guidelines I have provided. The recommendations are vital for the success of the company’s proposal of for a new monitoring system for the hospital intensive care unit. More emphasis should be put on the meeting since its effectiveness will be reflected in the final results of the project. References Donnellon, Anne., & Margolis, Joshua D. (2009) MediSys.: The IntensCare Product Development Team. Harvard Business Review. pp. 1-10 Bens, I. (2012). Facilitating with ease!: Core skills for facilitators, team leaders and members, managers, consultants, and trainers. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Salas, Eduardo., Tannenbaum, Scott., Cohen, Deborah., & Latham, Gary (2013). Developing and enhancing teamwork in organizations: Evidence-based best practices and guidelines. London: John Wiley & Sons Wilkinson, M. (2013). The secrets of facilitation: The s.m.a.r.t. guide to getting results with groups. San Francisco, Calif: Jossey-Bass). Read More