#🌲 #🟡 # Reflection on team effectiveness in Mt. Everest simulation ![[calendar-plus.svg]] <small>Nov 14, 2022</small> | ![[calendar-clock.svg]] <small>Jan 03, 2023</small> 🏷️ [[Leadership MOC]], [[Team Building]] One of the key components of the [[ORGL 615]] course was a multimedia, multi-user simulation of a team ascent of Mt. Everest. Some of the objectives of the simulation were to learn: - how to build, participate in, and lead effective teams; - how teams can solve problems and make decisions more effectively in difficult situations when members have different information and opposing interests; - how teams can improve the way they make decisions; and - how teams and their leaders deal with potential tradeoffs between short-term task completion and longer-term team effectiveness. I was assigned to a team of five and each of us were assigned roles for the simulation. My assigned role was team leader. In the simulation, each of us was given resources and information that pertained to our individual roles and to the group effort. We had shared team goals, but each of us also had our own personal goals, which often conflicted with one another. ### Factors contributing to team effectiveness I think four key factors contributed to our team's effectiveness during the first round of the simulation. First, before we started the climb, we each shared our character's complete information, including our personal objectives. We used that information to collectively decide on a [[shared vision]] - that above all else no one would need to be rescued. This did not require anyone to sacrifice their personal interests, "rather, the shared vision became an extension of their personal visions" (Senge, 1994, p. 235). The second factor that contributed to our effectiveness was a strong sense of [[psychological safety]]. Our team established psychological safety by informally communicating before the start of the simulation. We had already discussed some ground rules (norms) and then agreed to them once we met synchronously. Everyone on the team seemed comfortable speaking up and sharing their concerns as well as their ideas. This allowed us to benefit from multiple perspectives so we could make better decisions. Third, because we had a shared vision combined with psychological safety, we were able to avoid the [[organizational learning disability]] of "I am my position" (Senge, 1994, p. 19). We were aware of one another's personal objectives in addition to our shared vision, and worked together to help one another while staying aligned toward our team goal. Finally, I think our team did a good job of practicing [[dialogue]]. Certainly, all the conditions were met: each member held their assumptions out to be considered, we regarded one another as colleagues, and our leader (and occasionally other members) served as a facilitator. Judging by our results, I'd say our team was very effective. All of our members were safe, we successfully identified a potential risk and mitigated it, and we were positioned well for most of our members to achieve their personal objectives. I think we were also effective from a process perspective. We established trust and a good working relationship with one another, which will aid us in future tasks. ### Leader's impact on team effectiveness As our group's leader, I demonstrated three techniques that helped our team come together and perform effectively. 1. I used [[active listening]], including [[playback techniques]], to be sure we were hearing and understanding each member's ideas and perspectives. 2. I checked in with each member before every group decision to be sure everyone had a chance to share their input and felt the process was fair. 3. I contributed to the sense of psychological safety and showed vulnerability by sharing my own uncertainty and anxiety. These are all examples of a leader actively intervening in discussion, which Conners (n.d.) recommended for anytime [[information assymetry]] exists. #### Feedback from other team members Other members of the team commented on how my leadership impacted our team's effectiveness. - "Gina Marie helped me see that my information was different and that I was taking my individual knowledge for granted. This led me to read mine out loud which was ultimately why we were able to diagnose Mark with dehydration (our hidden challenge)....As the leader, she could have assumed that her knowledge was comprehensive, but instead she relied on our collective minds to help us move through the first hidden challenge correctly." - "Gina was able to create a safe environment where all team members were encouraged, and expected, to be open about their characters' information and "hidden" issues." - "You deferred to others to gather information and facilitated the discussion between different team members. You also asked clarification questions in order to make sure everyone on the team had important information." - "Gina Marie did a fantastic job being a facilitator with this simulation and I believe was well suited for the job." ### Individual and team goal achievement Our group, Team 2, was not only able to achieve the majority of our team goals, but each individual was also able to achieve the majority of their personal goals (as seen in the table depicting a comparison of team results). ![[Everest Team Goals.png]] Our team had very low variation in our individual goal achievements. I think that is likely because by having a shared vision and working so effectively as a team we were able to maximize the ability for each member to achieve their own personal goals; something that couldn't have been accomplished if we had each been working on our own. As the leader, I achieved the lowest percentage of my personal goals compared to the rest of my team, but I didn't see that as a sacrifice, because the shared vision was my primary goal. Not only was the team goal for everyone to avoid rescue the most important, but I truly wanted all of the team members to be as successful as possible in achieving their own personal goals. For me to have achieved more of my personal goals would have required other team members to give up on their primary purposes for participating in the expedition. I was able to achieve my primary personal goal (after avoiding rescue) of reaching the summit. It wouldn't have been fair of me to ask others to sacrifice their passions just so I could earn a few more points. Had we all been able to summit together, that would have been the icing; but I am more than satisfied with having enjoyed the cake. ### Group process Group process is key to team effectiveness. Results are great, and they can be very important, but I don't think they are always the be all, end all. I've known teams that have managed to achieve great results on a project despite being woefully ineffective as a team. Those groups don't tend to repeat their success. And I've also known teams that are very effective and don't always achieve the results they were hoping for. Having a solid group process allows for a team to build trust and reliability, which allows teams to be sustainably effective over time. It's in the process that teams and organizations can develop the five components of learning organizations (Senge, 1994, pp. 6-10). It's about transitioning from a means-to-an-end view to "a more 'sacred' view, where people seek the 'intrinsic' benefits of work" (p. 5). Specific examples of our team's highly effective group process include: - We established clear group norms from the beginning - We share information to ensure that everyone was on the same page - We had clearly defined roles and supported one another in them - We had a clear process for making decisions as a team - We measured our progress along the way and provided feedback to individuals and the group - We made "recurring 'ways of working' into an explicit but flexible system of activities clear to everyone" (HIll & Linebeck, , p. 175) - We [[Balancing advocacy and inquiry|balanced advocacy and inquiry]] as we practiced [[dialogue]] and [[skillful discussion]] --- ## Sources [[First Round Issues - Conners]] [[Being the Boss - Hill & Lineback 2011]] [[The Fifth Discipline - Senge 1994]]