3 Idiots – Crossing the Valley!!!

The important learnings from activity are:

Ques 1) what is TeamWork?

The process of working together with a group of people in order to achieve a goal.The team work is often a crucial part of a business as it is often necessary for colleagues to work well together, trying for the best in any circumstances. Team work often means people will try to cooperate, using their individual skills and providing constructive feedbacks, despite any personal conflicts between the individual.

'Teamwork’ and requires the most complex co-ordination between team players.

Ques2) Why have teamwork ?

Team work is important because it helps us synergie, it compliment sour individual weakness, it does help in productivity and it helps one build new and better skills. Well its one thing to create a team but quite different  to create teamwork in the workplace.

To put it in simple words, a team doesn’t work without teamwork.

Description of Activity:

The activity consists of three individuals, connected only by a pole, attempting to cross a valley.

The activity has three people who are given a long rod which is carried by them on their shoulders, and then they have to cross a small crater as a group. There each person gets to be in motion for a few seconds without using their legs. The burden of the person in air is borne by the other two participants.

If we consider each of the idiots crossing the valley as /\ , we can see that the following scenarios are obtained :-

Thus, we see that in the above case three situations arrive, 

                                      one where the person is fully safe denoted by --.-.-

                                       one where the person is half safe denoted by------

         and one where the person is taking a dangerous step, denoted by        

The Scenario:

Step-1	All three are safe
Step-2	Front one is Half safe. Middle and Last one is fully  safe
Step-3	Front one is Fully Risky; Middle one and Last one is Fully SAFE
Step-4	Front one and middle one are HALF RISKY; Rear one is SAFE
Step-5	Front one SAFE: Middle one is Fully Risky; Last one is SAFE.
Step-6	Front one SAFE; Middle and Last one is Half Safe
Step-7	Front one and Middle ones are Fully Safe; Last one is Fully Risky
Step-8	Front and Middle one is safe; Last one is half risky
Step-9	All three are Safe

We have the following observations and learnings to make:-

1)    Structuring the Task  and roles in a Team:

1.       Role of First Person = Role of second Person = Role of Third person : No differentiation  was done in designing the team tasks. Nobody was overloaded or relaxed.

2.       All  3 members’ tasks  were designed to be - Easy, Lighter, Clear and Systematic.

3.       3 team members are equally responsible in their contributions for the overall task completion

4.       All three members have equal distribution of different kinds of situation :

      High Risk 01 times

      Half Risks 02 times

      Fully Safe 02 times

5.   Communication and feedback is essential while working in a team.

6.   Every member is indispensable in completing the task.

7.   There were equal instances when one needed each other.

2)Team Excellence:

Team excellence comes by proper designing of team tasks, team roles, preparation and execution of the tasks. Excellence is DESIGNED by the managers.

The  Eight Characteristics of Highly Effective Teams include:

1)      Clear, Elevating Goal

2)      Results-Driven Structure

3)      Competent Team Members

4)      Unified Commitment

5)      Collaborative Climate

6)      Standards of Excellence

7)      External Support and Recognition

8)      Leadership

Five Stages of team work

Pshychologist bruce teckman came up with five key stages through which team moves. They are

1.       Forming

2.       Storming

3.       Norming

4.       Performing

5.       Adjourning 

I conclude By:

 Teamwork is mainly about situational leadership, letting the person with the relevant core competency for a situation take leadership.

THE THREE MONKS!!!

“Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and working together is success”.   – Henry ford

The essence of powerful and able management lies in Team-management.

1)  What is Team Management?

Team management refers to techniques, processes and tools for   organizing and coordinating a group of individuals working towards a common goal-i.e. a team.

Objective:To understand the principles of management through THREE MONKS Story (A Chinese Tale to teach teamwork)

The video here, a story of three monks from a Chinese fable captures the essence of team dynamics.

Video Synopsis :

The story revolves around three monks who come to live at the top of a mountain. The first monk had to fetch water from the foot of the mountain, using a yoke and two buckets.  That provided him with enough water for his personal needs and to water his small vegetable garden.  One day, he was joined by an older monk.  Their combined attempts to bring water up the mountain together, using a pole and a bucket carried between them, were not very successful; and each felt it was the other’s responsibility to fetch more water, so neither went.  The plant kept in front of the Buddha began to die.  Then a third monk arrived, and the situation worsened.  As each monk refused to give in, or compromise his stance in any way, the situation became worse, and certainly none of them was able to concentrate on their meditation. Then one day, disaster struck and a big fire is caused by a small mouse in the monastery. At time of disaster all of them realize the importance of co-operation and Synergy. 

Discussions and Analysis:

1)    SCENE 1: The First monk Comes :

The first fetches two cans of water at a time and does it with delight. 

MY OBSERVATIONS AND LEARNINGS:

1) Here the resource (human resource) proved to be useful and efficient.

2) Role clarity and responsibility is clear.

3) Repetitive job daily may set fatigue and reduce enthusiasm.

 It gave good and productive results initially .But gradually the motivation of the monk decreases and maximum utilization of resource does not take place .

Calculation of productivity-Two buckets water fetched by single monk

Input = 2 Joules.

Output = 2 Joules.

Therefore, productivity = 2/2 = 1 Unit.

Scene 1 Input 2 Joules Output 2 Joules Productivity 1

LIVE EXAMPLES:

One of my utmost aims is to look healthy and fit. For this I need to follow a consistent physical exercise and meditation regime. But after following the regime daily for some days I have noticed that I keep on escaping the exercises. The reason is the repetitive exercises creates a boredom and reduces enthusiasm.

2)    SCENE 2: The Second monk comes:

 The first monk extends a warm welcome and shows hospitality to the second monk .  Once the real work starts, differences set in. the difference in the opinion was later sorted out when the first monk draws a scale and makes a fair ruling.

MY OBSERVATIONS AND LEARNINGS:

1) Equitable division of works in the same peer group makes a person more amicable to perform tasks.

2)In the rule book of company(for persons at same level)-superiority and inferiority is not related with old employee/New employee.both are equal in the eyes of company.

3)working together efficienctly can increase the productivity at work place.

 Calculation of productivity-when two monks carry only ONE bucket of water between them.

Input = 1 Joules.

Output = 0.5 Joules.

Therefore, productivity = 1/0.5 = 2 Units.

	Scene 2
Input	1 Joules
Output	0.5 Joules
Productivity	2

LIVE EXAMPLE:

In my previous company Maruti Suzuki ltd, we have to work together with Japanese people. During which I have learnt that it is not often that two people have similar opinions about people and situations. Everyone in my team was almost equally competent and experienced and being more qualified .A balance in opinions and consideration help us to understand each of us in a better way.

3)SCENE 3:The third monk arrives

After a while comes the third monk comes. He was very thirsty and drains all of the water. When the time comes to refill the water, he relents. Now the other two monks who have been doing their work religiously start fighting too and everything comes to a standstill. Harmony is lost, once and forever.

Suddenly, we see that the monastery catches fire. When this happens, all the monks forget their hostility and try to put out the fire. After the crisis they all become friends.

In the end we see that the monks resolve the situation by fixing a pulley and dividing their roles - hooking the bucket, roping it in and transporting to the monastery. A fairly simple solution!!

MY OBSERVATIONS AND LEARNINGS:

 1) Continuous innovation adds an altogether new dimension to the process and fundamentally changes the conventional process.

2) When the crisis situation arises people forget their hostility and try to put out the team work. The dilemma of bitterness is quickly forgotten and a system arose out of the initial chaos.

3) Managers need to have the ability to coordinate the task and remove indifferences among all the team members.

4) Good teamwork builds motivation, confidence and trust among employees.

LIVE EXAMPLE:

1)CRISIS Management- During the strike in Maruti Suzuki plant ,the company has suffered a huge losses in terms of materials and money. During this hard time as an employee its our onus to utilize our resources optimally and reduces the operational cost as far as possible. Believe, unity and support were the key learning I learned from my team and organization in this crisis period.

2)INNOVATION-One of the best example to illustrate innovation is camera in cell phone. Nobody has thought that one day a Camera in a mobile phone will become its UNIQUE SELLING POINT . Introduction of camera in cell phone has near about conquered the market of a traditional KODAK camera.

I thereby sum up my learning by –

“Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision. The ability to direct individual accomplishments toward organizational objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results”.
-Andrew Carnegie