Last Monday, we had a very interesting activity in my management class. We were to plan, design and build an "egg-protection device" following the project rules. We were given 25 minutes to plan and 10 minutes to execute. Sounds doable right? At first it was an activity I thought would be stress free. Soon I realized it wasn't the case especially when my professor decided to raise the stakes with the incentive of 10 extra bonus points towards our first exam. That made everyone hyped and eager to be the team named the winner.
Our group I think utilized all the "steps in the planning process". All concepts were weaved into what we were planning to do. We were able to establish that we have a time constraint and we have limited resources to work with. We tried to devise the most efficient and tactical way for us to create our egg-protection device. We divided the tasks and roles within the group, for example asking who is comfortable drawing, time keeper, note-taker etc. We devised a strategy by instructing the shortest person of the group to drop the egg so it wouldn't be such a tremendous drop. We had several designs and ideas on how to create the egg protection device and we were able to make compromises. We made sure that everyone was on board with the plan. We tried our best to stay on track and follow through our planned action, but as the implementation proceeds, we were able to take the necessary actions and revised the plan as needed.
I think my group planned our task at hand effectively, but the execution killed our chances of getting the 10 bonus points and our egg too. Everyone was contributing their ideas and participating well, but another crucial part of planning is execution. In the height of actually creating the device, we were trying to stick to our plan as much as possible but since we were slowly running out of time, at some point I think my group just tried to make it work and hoped for the best. We didn't anticipate the things that might go wrong while we were executing; we were more focused on creating a successful device.
If we were given a chance to do it all over again, I think we will try to think of all the possibilities and to not focus on one thing. This will prevent any oversight in the future. We have to keep in mind, that EVERY LITTLE DETAIL MATTERS. I think that was our downfall since we didn't pay attention to details; we were more focused on the bottom line which is earning the 10 bonus points.
Our group had a similar problem, we were so focused on just finishing, and then we realized the initial plan didn't work. i agree with you on the point that if we could do it again, we would be successful.
ReplyDeleteI'm surprised that you're group thought about putting the shortest person to be the egg dropper; my group didn't even realize that until it was too late. I guess every little detail does matter.
ReplyDelete^ for my group, it was just the fact that no one wanted to volunteer themselves to go up.. but the person who dropped the egg for my group was pretty sure too. i think the most difficult thing though, however, was to come up with a plan that actually worked with the time allotted. maybe if we had more time we'd definitely get that 10 points!!!! :) :) :) :)
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that we were all worried about getting the 10 points. We didn't pay more attention to details. The activity was little bit challenging. But, if follow all the steps with strong idea we could be successful.
ReplyDeleteHey there,
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting a concise outline of how the planning process in your group went. One point in particular – well planned individual roles really impressed me. I’m really curious to know whether someone in your group flat out said we’re going to delegate roles to each individual in the group or was it more of a loose interpretation, who’s responsible for what.
Usually, the structure/strength of a team is based on how well the foundations are laid and it clearly show’s you guys did a great job at this.
While it’s important to consider each little detail in the planning process – it’s also reasonable to consider the bottom line. Imagine that your ability to work on a task was motivated by saving lives and not on an additional 10 points for the midterm – how would that change your opinion on the planning process?
I agree the little things matter. Given the amounts of unknowns coming into the assignment it would have helped to really focus on all the bits of information at hand. For example if we had measured the distance of all the straws maybe we would have come closer to not destroying the egg.
ReplyDeleteI also agree that it was a good idea to plan well for this assignment. My groups tasks were well divided between the people who were best suited to complete them. The time constraint was definatley a major factor which I believe screwed up 90% of the groups chances in their planning process. You guys are very sneaky for choosing a short person to drop the egg, haha.
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