Business planning is as challenging as it is a fun process. In this case, the task under consideration was to generate a unique business plan that would support a three-year startup business and ensure that business is profitable. The group was organized in 15 individuals that consisted of management as well as students. This reflective analysis aims to critically discuss my contribution as well as the contribution of other group members to the formation and function of the group that saw the successful formulation of a business plan. According to Vianen & De Dreu, (2011, P. 309), reflective writing allows the writer and the audience to have an understanding of how subjective the process was through experience. In this regard, through the development of the reflection on business planning as well as team management, I had an understanding of the attitudes, ambitions, and the functions of group members and the importance of group work. The skills for working as a group are critical for the success of any project. As much as it may be an enjoyable process, it also experiences challenges that limit its effectiveness. Apart from the school program, the group was tasked with the development of a business plan band; hence the various aspects of group work concerning the task came into play.
Group Dynamics and Theories
Group dynamics involve teamwork, which is usually foster the sharing of knowledge and skills as a way of benefiting both the project and individual self through a progressive and coordinated process. Kornberger & Clegg (2011) identifies four stages of group formation and progression, and they include the formation stage, the brainstorming stage, the norming stage, and the performance stage. However, in my experience with forming the group, I adopted the theory of punctuated equilibrium paradigm of group formation, given that the group had an experience of inertia that allowed automatic achievements. Initially, the group was beginning the forming stage, and I had to convene a meeting to establish a forming a relationship with the team. At first, the experience seemed difficult and made me feel anxious with questions lingering on whether the group will be a success given that the group members came from different backgrounds, and they had diverse ambitions for the group that they wanted to be achieved. Upon reflection, I gained the confidence to overcome the challenges as I assumed the leadership of the team for fear of isolation in the first place. As the group started, the aspects of motivation and lack of coordination was prominent as there was a lack of direction and divergent views that pulled people from the intended course with critical sessions not correctly initiated.
Group X development, to a large extent, followed the Tuchman framework of 1965, although they were some aspects of the group that the theory failed to address. Within the first one and a half weeks, the group went through the socializing phase that enabled the members to build a rapport with each other quickly. At the start, there was the assembly effect that occurred whereby the skills of individuals, as well as their personal experiences, were identified during the first meetings. The specific roles of the members were during the initial sessions, where I was elected the team leader. The convening and choosing of the group leader utilized theoretical frameworks such as the Belbin test that was also done through discussions (Levi, 2010, p. 42) as the team leader approached different situations separately but in a democratic way where the majority had their idea while the minority’s opinion was also considered. This approach complemented the group’s attitude towards the election of their leader, which influenced there approach and choice of their team leader. Besides, since everyone was pursuing the same goals, it was easier to lead the group as it was required to define the purpose of the team and ensure that everyone stays on course in the pursuance of the goals of the group.
Group Formation
The crucial phase of a group of people with the same ideologies is the formation stage which, if not done in the right manner, the group may lose out on the main list and hence the failure. According to Tuckman’s theory (1965), the stages of forming a group are progressive, and they convey the identity of the group in each step (Gloor, 2014, p. 1358). After the introductory meetings and the building of report and social relations among the members, I was reluctant in the first meet to initiate group formation. This reluctance was because I sensed that the group could not apprehend a sudden call to action. However, the presence of friends and members of my previous groups encouraged me to initiate the formation process. The group became responsive in the initial stages of its formation that led to barnstorming and coming up with the business idea that was the initial list of the group. Besides, the formative stage was seemingly shorter and less conflicting. According to Meyer & Bassett (2016), during group formation, the members are usually hindered by the unfamiliar situation, which limits there momentum to accomplish and put across their suggestions. However, with time the unfamiliarity of the group members diminishes as they start understanding each other’s weaknesses. In case, the unfamiliarity does not decrease, then the group personality needs to be checked to trade in useful values of the members with their unwanted traits.
Members Roles
The group had a total of 15 people that included customer service officers, marketing officers, and general account managers as well as students. During the process of group formation, group roles were identified and allocated to each member depending on their experience and skills. To avoid confusion, member T and member V requested the team to have an open discussion where each member of the group would state their level of skills and experience and say what they are capable of doing comfortably. In this regard, each member contributed by stating their capabilities, and the roles were distributed according to one’s abilities, with everyone getting equal workload. In determining the efficiency in the use of the available resources, there was also a discussion that identified the group’s weaknesses, strengths, and the available opportunities and mitigation measures put in place to avoid conflicting the roles. In role distribution, I took the resource management and advisory portfolio, given my role as the team leader. In contrast, other characters included designing, education and training, report writing, research, and data collection, marketing, and welfare management, among other minor tasks that came up along the process. The group also utilized social media platforms for communicating while in the field in a practice that ensured the flow of information and coherence.
Group Challenges
The biggest challenge that the group faced was the language barrier. At some point, member Z openly admitted to being deficient in her spoken and written English, with member Y also not being a native English speaker. In this case, the two members were seen not to contribute to the meetings or ask any questions. Since I had initially encountered such a situation before, I took the initiative of slowing the sessions to ensure that everyone understood what was being discussed. I also assigned members Q and members P to the two group members who had difficulties in apprehending the English language. The situation of working within a team with poor communication skills should improve within two weeks, or the leader finds another way to handle the situation or dissolve the team altogether (Borgatta, Bales, & Hare, 2010, p. 55). However, in my group, we did not reach the state where we dissolve because of misunderstandings in communication as the two members quickly adapted to the discussions and began making a valuable contribution to the team. Having reflected on the situation, I admit that my fast pace to the formation of the group and the leadership of the meeting may have left out some of the members since not everyone had the same capacity of understanding and communication. But the situation was rectified on time to enable the group to stay on track towards achieving its goal.
Another challenge came during the changing of group roles, which was done at the end of every week due to the increased familiarity with the personalities and group dynamics. Despite my leadership position, the flat structure, which was the norm, encouraged a different approach that followed the fragile laissez-faire model. According to Goleman (2010, p. 79), to be successful in the sensitive laissez-faire model, the group needs to be right in communication and interpersonal relationships as all members should adapt to the receiver and sender roles. The lack of clarity and effective communication and collaboration is usually attributed to the group’s failure to take group action as directed strongly by the individual members. At this point, effective leadership comes into play as it is apparent that some activities can be run by some individuals more than others. Kozlowski, Gully, & Salas (2015, p. 253), suggested that transformational leadership is one of the most effective forms of leadership where a single member influences the group morale by instilling the values and purpose of the group through collective identity. Therefore, the challenge of communication resulted in the self-adaption of delegated roles that focused on work ethics, team management, as well as experience in assisting the members in expressing their views openly. Therefore, the approach helped me and the group members have open communication taking into account the different forms of information sharing.
Preexisting Knowledge
I took leadership roles within elements of the initial stages of the project with no opposition from my colleagues. My personal experience played a big part in the positioning of the group and controlling the behavior of the group members who came from different backgrounds. In some instances, I had to explain the essence of having a good communication plan and was happy that all the group members agreed with the idea. Besides, in other groups I have been, they used more than one tool of communication of which we applied in the current group. Hence I was confident that the project was completed within the stipulated timelines. The preexisting knowledge of the methods to use in communication and bringing cohesion within the group played an essential role in fostering unity and having a purpose within the team. Besides, the knowledge on the importance of social media in communication was sufficient as the majority of the members embraced the technology, especially the Facebook and Twitter platform, not only to communicate with each other but also to collect information about the business plan. After reflection, I realized that my preexisting knowledge from the other employments as well as school work is beneficial while leading a group towards achieving a given goal.
Overall, the reflective project aims to critically discuss the work and the development of the group that ensures the job is done. In this regard, group X performance was exceptional as members performed their roles correctly within minimal supervision. After a time of critical self-reflection, I realized that my experiences were able to help me in applying skills in managing the group to success. Also, within the group, I failed to pursue the aspects that I felt that they were difficult and so I delegated also of my duties to members who were capable of handling some of the technical tasks. By delegation, I managed to bring cohesion and achieved my function as a transformational leader. Throughout my actions within the team environment, I managed to modify my behaviors towards team management by accepting the challenges of the group work and staying the course of the project. As a result, I led to further my development and was able to criticize my actions as well as accept to be corrected by my team members as we found a better way of achieving our project of business planning. Therefore, given the success of the project, I will apply the same mechanics and even improve on some in future projects.