OB II – LEARNING DIARY

(ROLL NO CCBMDO/20-21/A50: VIRENDRA SINGH RATHORE)

Team Processes

In the discussion and exercise, team process was learnt by understanding how team members
work to carry out the task assigned for achieving the common goals and how teams can be
useful for the members to grow, develop, and improve also known as process gains.
Similarly, Process loss is also a factor to consider wherein we were unable to get the desired
output from the teams. Discussion was also focused around disadvantages from teams and
how/why teams could fail. These included reason like – social loafing, formation of
subgroups and pushing separate agenda, introvert members and other distractions from the
environment.
An exercise was conducted in the class for a stranded boat and as a team had to decide the
priorities. Data was initially taken in individual capacity and thereafter collectively as a team
and was compared to the solution given by the case setter. Some teams improved the score
while others had better score as individuals than the teams. Tuckman’s 5 stage theory of
group development was also understood with help of this exercise, and we also realized that
certain times some stages can be omitted.

Group/Team Dynamics

Team dynamics with understood based parameters-

 Level of participation at different stages of the activity and its effect
 Rate of participation – active/passive/ mixed
 Treatment of Introvert team members
 Domination
 Influence
 Cohesiveness – Interruptions and reasons
 Conflict Management
 Competitiveness
Effects of group behavior on personal behavior was also discussed. It was clearly
demonstrated how a person’s behavior change can to comply with the group behavior without
any suggestions to do so (conformity). In case of ambiguity, people tend to follow others due
to lack of confidence/ clarity and believe that it is the right way of dealing with the particular
situation. Normative Social Influence was demonstrated with the help of example wherein
individual went on to give out incorrect assessment after observing the group reaction.
Concept of Social Loafing in a group was also discussed with regards to freeloaders in a
group who tend to not work while rest of the group is working anyways. Hawthorne studies
were studied to see how group norms/influences/standards affects behavior it takes
precedence over money as well in terms of influence.
Collaboration
With the help of Pay Off matrix exercise collaboration benefits were understood in
teamwork. The class was divided into groups and further led by a larger group to discuss
strategy they to be adopted for payoff matrix. In the exercise collaboration skills were put to
test. Ultimately there were scenarios in which teams lost individually however as larger
groups prevailed.
During the discussions the importance of anticipating competitor’s moves planning
accordingly was aptly brought out. Additionally, role of incentives to encourage teams and
individuals to achieve aims was discussed. Importance of clear communication and its impact
was also discussed.

Decision Making Process

In the discussions we tried to understand decision making process and learnt about advocacy
orientation and inquiry orientation. Advocacy orientation, is a process of decision making
wherein there is no acceptance of fresh ideas and are wedded to our own ideas and dissenters
are suppressed any gaps in the information that someone is trying to bring up are pushed
down are not encouraged. Inquiry orientation is opposite to what advocacy orientation is
where the aim is to arrive at best possible solution, and views and opinions of team members
are encouraged.
Measures to promote inquiry orientation by building psychologically safe workplace were
discussed. Safe workplaces encourage people to speak up without the fear of being targeted
which leads to better decisions.

Problem Solving & Negotiation

We tried to understand about Problem solving with remarkably interesting discussions.

We learned that problem one way / approach of solving a problem is to understand what the
interests of both the parties are. We did an interesting exercise on this where two interested
parties discussed/negotiated for Black Melons. Hello there were many lessons brought out
from this exercise and the big simple solution was both the parties wanted different parts of
the black melon but only a few tried to understand and ask the opposite party what they
wanted. Many parties couldn't come to a decision and decided to altogether not go through
with the deal while the simple solution would have been to ask the opposite party what is it,
they wanted with respect to the millions and what was their motivation to get the same. this
excise not only taught us about a different approach to problem solving but also about
negotiation and logical thinking.
We also tried to understand this with help of graphic where in 5 different types of solutions
where listed and on the X axis we had assertiveness while on the Y axis we had
cooperativeness all these 5 characteristics or different types of solutions where competing
collaborating compromising avoiding and accommodating styles of coming to a solution has
obvious from these collaborating and competing where high on assertiveness while avoiding
and accommodating with high on cooperativeness but loan assertiveness compromising was
the middle ground where in one tried to find a mutually acceptable solution

Leading Teams
Leading teams was a subject very close to my heart as we have been doing this all our
service lives during the course, we saw leading teams with 2 interesting case studies one was
coach Knight and the second was coach K
Coach Knight’s mantra was to win at all costs he was a passionate old-style coach who
brought a lot of anger a lot of passion into his coaching he was a strict disciplinarian and he
believed he was always right. Pushed in this manner for 36 years and his success was there to
speak for himself ultimately his anger his stubborn became his downfall when he was fired
from his position as the head coach after slightly violent conduct with one of the students
whose father also happened to be a vocal critic of coach Knight. His accomplishments were
second to none many of his students his proteges went prodigies went on to become good and
successful coaches in the history of basketball as well.
Coach K on the other hand was a coach who taught with his heart. His famous quote to the
Time magazine wherein he said I believe in you; you are good, and I am there for you sums
up his idea of coaching. he was a caring person he had family values he was a father figure to
his students, and he was very sympathetic to his players. Surprisingly or not so surprisingly
coach key was one of coach nights initial students at the Westpoint Academy before he left to
teach at Indiana University.
Despite having very good relationship with coach night and being with him for long time
there coaching styles were starkly different for them leadership meant something else for
coach key leadership meant to take everybody along and rules were meant to be used as per
convenience. He proved this by rejecting a liquors $40,000,000 year offer to stay at Duke
which was more of a family to him.

Organizational Structure

Have in this chapter we studied how an organizational structure is designed what are the
reasons for designing it in a particular manner and the tools that can be used for designing the
organizational structure. This chapter also provides us with an understanding as to how utilise
organizational structure for better managerial decisions and managerial control.
in this chapter we also understood different types of organizational structures namely the
traditional ones like Functional, Divisional & Matrix. We also studied and understood the
capabilities of Employee centric and crowd centric structures.
Finally with this note on organizational structure we understood that that's organizational
structures will keep evolving we will have one type or the other but having a particularly
good organizational structure will still not guarantee that we will succeed as an organization
because success of an organization depends on a variety of other factors that are the
individual and collective actions.

Organizational Analysis – A Cultural Lens

We saw the case of Southwest Airlines to understand this concept. We saw the success of SW
airlines and how its competitors are trying to team up against them. Any Airlines tried to
copy SWs model of low-cost Airline, but they just faded away as they did not realize that for
SW the actual strength was not just their Balance sheets but the people running the Airline.
The real meat of the case is to understand the cultural revolution that SW airlines is.
SW has always kept its employees at the centre of its operation with their directions for their
employees being to identify with others at the company, deliver great customer service and
have fun.
Southwest has incredibly unique strategies and policies as compared to their rivals in the
airline industry be it there hiring strategies beat their costing strategies beat their customer
service, which is the best, they are always a notch higher this is evident from their
profitability since the company had started many years back.
To sum it up as Southwest airlines would put it the difference was not their machines but
their hearts their souls their minds and their spirits.