Chapter 4 – Project Team
4.14. Learning Activities and Exercises for Students/Teachers
The learning activities can be completed by the Students on their own as a learning opportunity to integrate the materials from the textbook for assignments or tests/exams. Or, they may be used by the Teachers as learning activities in class, or for short answer questions on tests/exams.
Learning Activities for Students/Teachers
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- Form a small group. Design a brief strategy for the Project Manager to help recruit, develop and monitor the project team.
- Individually, research one team building exercise on the internet. Share with the larger group in the class.
- Review motivation and team motivation in the textbook. Read the short case. Short Case: The project manager has been working with a team for 2.5 years. The project is exhaustive and has been extended twice. The project manager comes to you, the Human Resources Specialist, and complains the team has lost its motivation on the project because it has taken too long to complete. Pair up with a partner and answer the questions. How would you go about helping the project manager rejuvenate the team? Make a list of motivators.
- Individually, review Tuckman’s Stages of Team Development in the textbook. Research on the internet another team development approach. Write about the similarities and differences between Tuckman’s approach and the different approach you discovered on the internet. Share your newly discovered approach with the larger group in the class.
- Individually, review Communication in the chapter. Which style of communication do you prefer (face-to-face or virtual)? Pair up and discuss with a partner your choice and why you made this choice.
- Individually, think about a project you have been involved in at school. It may be a current project, or a recent project you have completed.
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- What are/were the strengths of the team? Why?
- What are/were the weaknesses of the team? Why?
- How could you have helped to strengthen the team motivation?
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Pair up with a partner and share your answers.
7. Individually, make a list of the 5 steps in Tuckman’s Model for group development. Include a brief definition of each step. Within a small group, discuss a group/team that you have worked with in school or work that either was a success (you progressed through the steps); or discuss a group/team that was unsuccessful in working through the 5 steps. Discuss why it was successful? Or, why it was not successful?
These exercises can be completed by the Students to integrate learning materials for assignments/tests. Or they can be used by the Teachers in class to integrate learning or used on tests/exams.
Exercises for Students/Teachers
- What is the importance of Myers-Briggs to the hiring process of any employee in a company?
- What are the 5 stages of Tuckman’s Stages of Team Development? Define them.
- Name and describe the various communication skills that are effective for project teams.
- Why are diverse teams valuable to projects?
- Individually, research information about the “Big Five Personality Framework” on the internet. Which of the 4 types do you believe is your strongest type? Why do you believe this to be true?
- Maslow’s hierarchy of needs was born in 1943. It still proves to be one of the most important research and models today. Individually, explore on the internet the evolution of A Theory of Human Motivation. Find 2 other theories/models that have been an evolution from Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Do you believe they are better/more improved than the original theory? Why? Why not?
- The 360 Degree Feedback has become a popular evaluation model for organizations. If you were developing a 360 Degree Feedback survey, what type of questions would ask? Individually, explore the internet for existing surveys/questions. Chose 10 questions that you would use in your survey as a Human Resources Specialist. You may wish to combine your questions or compare your questions with other students in the class.
