OGL 320 Module 5 Paper Joshua Burg

There are many important aspects when building and fostering successful teams. I

believe that honest, transparent communication between all members of the team is one of the

key aspects of team building and will help drive success. When working with others in a team,

having all members of the team working towards the common goal that is established in the

team charter or project plan will help keep team members focused on the goal they have set

out to achieve in the beginning. Team charters are a great resource to keep team members

accountable through the duration of the project. Charters are a great resource because they

are developed by all of the team members and is agreed upon by everyone. Accountability, or

the lack thereof, can be one of the major factors why projects ultimately fail.

When going through this week’s module materials, I found the acronym of “PERFORM”

to be extremely inciteful and thought provoking. When you provide a team with a Purpose,

Empowerment, Relationships, Flexibility, Optimal productivity, Recognition and Morale, our

project is on a much higher pass to success than without those project management elements.

As a leader in my store, I will be sharing that information with my supervisors and come up with

a plan on how we can implement those elements into our daily work. I also found the slide

about using productivity and morale as a tool to diagnose the team’s development status to be

very beneficial. Measuring the level of productivity and morale of the group’s members will

allow you check and adjust the project’s goals and drive the team even further.

The first video with Steve Jobs was also very thought provoking. I found it very

interesting that Apple has zero committee’s and that they have organized themselves in such a

way that one person is in charge of very specific actions and roles within the company. The fact

that all of the senior level project managers at Apple meet weekly for three hours to discuss
OGL 320 Module 5 Paper Joshua Burg

what is going on in their projects is very refreshing and potentially game changing. I think he

has been able to bring Apple to the forefront of technology because he simply trusts and

empowers his project managers to get the job done. Mr. Jobs idea of “arguments” with project

members is also rather revolutionary. Most CEO’s and high-lever executives surround

themselves with “yes people” who will do whatever their superior says, even if they are wrong.

The fact that Mr. Jobs encourages people to disagree with him and to think outside of the box is

exactly why Apple has been so successful in the past as well as why they will continue to be so

successful under the leadership of Tim Cook.

Leadership is constantly evolving and changing over time. There have been many

changes to have leadership is perceived and its effects on followers. Leadership is not

something that is innate in everyone, but rather a skill that can be learned and applied by

anyone. Leadership can be explained as a specific individual’s ability to motivate a group of

followers to achieve the goal the leader has set for the group. Leaders may utilize different

leadership styles at different times and with different individuals within the group. Oftentimes,

leaders will utilize different leadership styles simultaneously to effectively direct the group

towards the desired outcome. Employee performance must be continuously evaluated by the

leader in order to understand the opportunities the group are experiencing. Knowing how to

reach and motivate each employee is vital of the leader and must be at the forefront of the

leader’s priorities. From there, the leader can tailor their leadership style to best motivate and

grow the follower’s capabilities. Leadership is a process and must adapt and evolve to multiple

circumstances in order to be effective. There are twelve leadership theories covered in the text

that leaders may choose to utilize. While they all may be effective, each have strengths and
OGL 320 Module 5 Paper Joshua Burg

criticism that go with them. No one theory is the “right choice” and have continued to adapt as

research has been performed.

The leadership style that I believe fits my leadership style is the servant leadership

theory. In my profession, I work very close with my team and I place a high level of importance

on them seeing me do some of the same jobs that I am asking them to do. If I am not willing to

clean a dirty floor drain, how can I expect one of my followers to clean said drain? By cleaning

the drain myself, it shows my followers that I am not superior to them and that I am willing to

perform some of the same tasks that I am asking of them. Working shoulder to shoulder with

my employees also forces me to become empathetic to what they are going on in their lives,

which enables me to have deeper and more constructive development conversations with

them. I also believe that as a leader for over thirty employees, I must make leadership decisions

that will put my followers in a position to succeed and feel a sense of accomplishment once we

achieve the goal I have set for my team.