Essay about Mgmt1001 Assessment Task 2

During the Everest Simulation, the first issue face by our team is insufficient use and analysis the information gathered from each team members. At the beginning of the journey, all of the people were in a good condition, and entire group members decide to go up to up level campus. In level 1, environmental scientist was shown weak in her health condition, at level 2, things become even worse. At the beginning, all of the team members have no idea how many health conditions each people will have and what kind of medical facilities should be used for what specific health conditions. Besides, the team was too optimistic about the current situation the team were in, and ignored the possible negative impacts it might brought when people worked

The simulation posed a unique challenge one to me. It was neither purely an intellectual challenge nor entirely an exercise in teamwork, as with what I was accustomed to in high school. Instead, it tested my abilities under pressure and my ability to think on my feet. In our team’s planning sessions, we planned for the unpredictability of the simulation by acting out

This report explains my experience in University of Dammam cooperative simulation training program. The program is required to every student whose credit hours exceed 90. It started in the summer of 2015 from the 7th of July to the 20th of August with 2 weeks for the report work (12 week total). The cooperative program purpose is to apply theoretical knowledge into practical work.

The Everest simulation was a unique experience. Before the actual simulation started, my team discussed the approach we would take and how we will deal with situations wherein the personal goals collided with the team goals. We shared our character profile information with each other and began the exercise with excitement and a firm resolve to do our best.

The Everest Simulation was carried out twice in 1 hour sessions by Group 53 of MGMT 1001 at UNSW. The five team members each were assigned a role, with personal goals that were to be achieved. In addition to this, there were team goals that had to be addressed.

The Harvard Everest Simulation presents a situation where individual and collective goals conflict, making path-goal theory an optimal approach to leadership. Path-goal leadership theory is a contingency approach, recognising and supporting the individual goals of followers in a way compatible with the overall objective of the team. Therefore the objective of a leader under path goal theory is motivating team members to achieve team objectives. My simulation experiences reflect key issues in the role of a leader, the sharing of leadership and the differences in approaching cross-cultural teams. Examining these key issues enhances path-goal leadership theory by revealing its strengths and limitations, resulting in more developed leadership approaches.

The use of face-to-face interactions resolved many of the communication issues which arose in Everest 1. Furthermore, the group was able to establish a clear shared leadership structure through the team contract. With both conditions satisfied, the value of simulations was clear. The group was able to identify key goals and adopted a majority based decision-making process. The implementation of a minimum 15-minute brainstorming and discussion period meant each member could develop their leadership potential through the opportunity to have their thoughts heard and debated. Although there were still numerous points of contention, these were generally productive. However, the transition from a virtual to a physical environment did have drawbacks. For example, there was an emergence of groupthink as members began to succumb to the effects of peer

This report will provide a critical analysis of the two Everest teamwork exercises and the experiences and results that accompanied completing the simulation. The report will delve into the magnitude of factors that influenced the exercise and provide a scope into the methods of analysis that is utilised to examine management models. Preparation for the first simulation undertaken was very limited and as the interface and procedure was foreign to all our members, decisions were made out of impulses which subsequently lead to ineffective communication and a lack of group direction. The second attempt allowed us to adopt a more proactive approach, a more attentive communication system and a shared responsibility for group leadership. This report also provides a multifaceted overview on the different intragroup conflicts that arose during the simulation, examining the various effects it had on the team’s performance and how it impacted our experience. This report also discusses theories and concepts such as grouping modelling elements, benefits and hindrances of conforming and conflictions.

The problems that arose during the Everest Simulation relating to corporate culture stemmed from the clash of personal objectives and goals. While every team member was climbing Everest together, members had their own independent motives. For example, my goal to clean each camp did not include going to the summit of Everest, which was contradictory to the leaders goals. A belief that relates to corporate culture is that each member on our ascending group had a role, both

Simulations can be a valuable learning tool, as they give participants an opportunity to examine managerial theories, in a safe learning environment. However, a simulation’s effectiveness is often dependent on two factors: whether the simulation facilitates clear communication, and whether there is an effective leadership structure which can guide the direction of the group. A failure in either of these conditions will limit the usefulness of the simulation. This was highlighted by our group’s experience during Everest 1 and 2.

The Everest simulation was designed by the Harvard Business School as a group-based online activity to help participants experience group dynamics and organizational challenges in the context of climbing Mount Everest. The participants will be arranged into groups of five or more and are assigned to various roles such as leader, physician, marathoner, environmentalist, journalist and observer. The simulation requires the team to undertake two attempts and earn points for personal and group objectives. In addition, it allows participants to grasp the value of leadership and teamwork, as the participants are required to communicate and make decisions to surpass conflicts that are encountered during the simulations. The first attempt resulted in confusion and no coordination as there has been lack of the leader’s direction and participation. As a result, the team achieves a score of 76 percent for the group objective. Afterward, the second attempt proved that the team are more cohesive and prepared as the score for group objectives increase to 93 percent. Yet, even though the team attained high scores in both simulation, there are several issues that emerge during the attempts due to decision-making bias and leadership styles. Therefore, this report will explore the experience from the simulation by examining issues during the attempts, critically analyzing the issues with framework and theories and providing personal-reflection for future references.

The notion of a thoughtful pre-briefing, introduction, and orientation occurring before a simulation has been mentioned in literature for long time (Dismukes RK, McDonnell LK, & Jobe KK. 2000; Howard S, et al. 1992). A good pre brief is also very important to increase the fidelity and to ensure learner’s feeling of security and well being (Bion WR. 1962 & 2005; Modell AH. 1976. Winnicott DW. 1955). Participants should not feel exposed by the simulation and debriefing in a way that threatens their professional and social identity (Edmondson A 1999; Williams M 2007) making them defensive discussing their performance (Mann K et al 2011; Sargeant et al 2010). I created a safe and nonthreatening learning environment to ensure participants feel comfortable with the critical discussion (Fanning & Gaba, 2007; Rudolph J et al., 2007) by 1) Clarifying learning objectives explicitly and setting up a learning contract with the participants to be involved in critical analysis of their performance and feedback 2) Informing rules and roles of learner’s participation and roles and expectation of each faculty member. 3) Giving clear information on simulation etiquette, setting, norms, expectation in simulation and debriefing 4) Explaining and demonstrating the properties of the simulators, mannequin and it’s limitations 5) Absolutely clarifying about how the scenario will be evaluated and with whom information about simulation performance will be shared and 6) by sharing their anxieties,

3. How did the concepts of process, power (structural and/or personal), interests, and/or mutual gains, etc.  actually occur in the simulation?

Decision-making skill is a top priority in management as it creates a culture of clarity by allowing one to determine the problem and come to a resolution that is beneficial to the staff and organization. This skill was of vital importance in the Mount Everest simulation. During the simulation, our team was clueless and unaware that we would face harsh weather condition during the climb that would cause major health issues. As a result, our teams were faced with unexpected events causing crises that were so sudden and overwhelming that they required immediate response, limiting our team decision-making processes throughout the simulation when such situation would arise. This fundamental issue of occurrence that we did not reasonably plan for resulted with different team members at different camps on the mountain. Within this environment of disturbance, the idea of individualism approach acted as an obstacle for change and problem resolution which had a moderating effect on group performance loss.

The simulation gave me an essence of how tasks that are necessary for an organization can be brought up as a change and have a greatest chance of success. I learnt that one has to convince a lot of stakeholders to accept the change.