Our clients's Task Force members have never worked together before. Prior to this they worked individually.
Conan insists he is not a team player and is unsure of why he was selected for the Task Force.
Both Jay and Ellen feel they were forced to work on the Task Force and would rather have been asked politely. In fact, Jay continually arrives late for their online meetings and sometimes does not turn in his assignments. He relies on the other Task Force members to cover for him (which they unhappily do) and Ellen feels she lacks the experience to lead this Task Force team to victory.
This is Ellen's first time managing a "virtual team". She admits she is frustrated and losing sight of the purpose of the Task Force and why she was chosen to lead a "virtual team".
One thing to which the Task Force members all agree, is that the current designs already in production are top notch and a new product line is unnecessary. They know that the R&D Team had specifically rejected using the existing designs because R&D felt that the designs were old and not easily manufactured which affected the profit margin of the products.
Ellen is being pressured by the Task Force members to write a memo to the Board of Directors of the company recommending the use of the existing design.
The company could miss its production deadlines due to this controversial delay.
You have been presented the client's situation and Ellen has suggested possible issues with its Task Force.
Prioritize her issues and identify any others that you feel Ellen may have missed. Notice that several of Ellen's issues have the same underlying components. It helps to break down each issue and categorize them. Do they involve Team Cohesion, Poor Leadership, Misalignment of Goals, Low Efficacy, Attitudes, Goodness-of-Fit, etc? Know that all of these are possible Problem areas for Ellen's team. However, you are only to choose the ONE that you feels is the greatest, most important problem to fix right now.
Once you have chosen your Problem, then identify at least three (3) possible solutions (alternatives) that could help Ellen transform this Task Force into a highly functioning team. Once your have identified three (3) possible solutions (alternatives), choose which one (1) you feel is the best for your recommendation. Then indicate how Ellen might implement these changes. Please include a discussion of the following when presenting your solutions:
What behavioral issues are presented that affect the Task Force's performance? [categorize and put in your alternatives section]
What advice do you have for managing a "virtual team" and reinforcing its goals and purpose?