So, I am just back to my flat, it's crazily hot, I have been travelling for 6 hours (visiting home) and had no IPod. It's been a long day. But not an entirely bad one. The fact that I had no IPod gave me some time to think about things. This and the fact that my flight was delayed for an hour. But I'll not complain! No Sir! I did bring some high quality DVD's and books from home, so the number of distractions in my room have increased. But, rest assured I have unfinished business with the PLP. And there I wanted to review and comment on the business game we completed last Wednesday.
I deliberately left this a few days as I wanted to have enough time to reflect on the impact the business game had on me. The obvious trade off is that the game is not quite as fresh in my mind, but we'll see how this goes...
1. The Set Up: We all knew the game was coming, however, unlike previous PLP's, there was no pre-course material to complete. This in itself surprised me in hindsight. Not only did this section turn out to be the most detailed of the three modules, it was also the most intellectually demanding one. I understand the benefit of "being thrown in at the deep end" and working under pressure, but a total lack of preparation on my part probably impacted my expectations of what I would achieve on the day.
A success full day for me would have been continued personal development within the context of my own leadership skills. As I had no explicit goals before hand, I found it difficult to set specific personal objectives. This may not necessarily be a bad thing in the context, but given the set up of the previous PLP modules, it felt different.
2. Make your choice... Once the introduction and welcome was completed, we were encouraged to throw ourselves into the game and see how we get on. We were each asked to pick a particular business area to work in. I looked down the list and picked the area that I was least comfortable with. To be honest, I am not so sure what made me do it...I guess it was just one of those things where i thought it'd be interesting to go against my intuition.
That and I didn't really know the details of the game. It was not really an informed decision I was making, but at that point that was not necessarily a bad thing. If I had more details about what each of the different areas entailed (in terms of the game), it would have been very tempting to pick my favourite / one that I would feel that I would excel at. Hey, everyone likes to look and feel good, especially in front of your peers.
3. Devil is in the detail: Next up, we got the detail. This came in the form of 8 - 10 page booklets. Now, I loved this! There was a hell of a lot of material to digest, some really interesting concepts, some really interesting 'facts' and some interesting business concepts. Once I got the booklet, I was really looking forward to getting my teeth into it. At first glance, there seemed to be a lot of really interesting stuff, and given that our groups were pretty much randomly selected, I was really looking forward to the game.
Then the time scale came down... we had 15 minutes to digest and understand the information. This gave us 1 minute and 30 seconds per page. For me, this was not enough. It took me 5 minutes to read through the booklet once, giving me only 1 minute per page look at the details. By the end of the 15 minutes, I had only an incomplete understanding of the material. It was going to be an interesting afternoon...
4. The Games Begin: Once we got settled into the game itself, the group interactions were really interesting. At other points during the PLP I always felt like I had the opportunity to reflect on my own behaviours, but here I had a lot of stuff going on, all at once. Not only had we to work on our own understanding of the material, but we were to lead our groups as well as preparing how we would defend our particular groups interests later on in the day.
Bits of this worked really well - we all felt pressurised. Part of this pressure may have come from the set up - we were reminded that we would be judged on our performance in the activity. And you know - the grads can be a competitive bunch. So, for me the pressure translated well - and so did the intellectual demands of the job / scenario. There was a lot of information to be assimilated - normally I love the full range of detail and the depth of information - it is what gets me going in my day to day job. However, at no point did I have my focus...why?
5. Distraction.... Well, the reason was quite simple. I felt distracted. There was so much going on I found it difficult to focus. Given that some of my feedback previously was to "take off my blinkers " (thanks TE), every time I did take off my blinkers, I saw disarray, lack of organisation, and people struggling to understand the game. These were people I have seen work really effectively before - but now it was like being back to square one. So, I guess what I am saying here is throw a couple of mathematic challenges at grads, put them in a time critical situation and ramp up the pressure and we crumble? Well, not exactly...
6. End Game: The game taught me a hell of a lot about how interact when I am uncomfortable. So, in terms of me being able to understand how I react when I am out of my comfort zone, it was interesting. And I would say that irrespective of whether or not you were red, blue or green, you would be out of your comfort zone in the game..
To summarise, there was not enough time for detail, space for people or organisation for effective leadership. The various situations in the game felt like a struggle. The final of the game, after the presentations was the Q&A and announcement of the winner.
7. Drum Roll: The winners were announced and the game wound up. My group won, and, no discredit to the guys in my team, but I felt like we were the "best of a bad bunch" as opposed to being outstanding. And I don't mean this to bring down the other groups, merely that no one group stood out as being great. Additionally, the feedback that I heard was that other groups had similar problems with the game.
It was certainly a challenging day, probably for both the grads and the facilitators.
To conclude....
The business game was a great learning experience, but it was harder to learn from it than other aspects of the course. I felt that it was very challenging, but often not just a challenging exercise, rather a challenge to learn.
I really enjoyed the concept of the game - I thought that it was definitely workable and there was a lot you could pick up from (and about) other people in the game. Some of the feedback that came out of it was very interesting too. I also think that there was a lot that you could learn about yourself on this module, but that it required more time and effort to get the same level of learning out.
Specifically, I would have liked more direction from the facilitators - on a number of occasions throughout the PLP they have been there to provide immediate hands on direction and feedback and for me that was not present. i also felt like the time frame was a bit skewed towards discussion rather than understanding. We had a full hour to discuss in our groups our own interpretations of the information, but (it felt like) we had little direction of what sort of end product we were to produce. I understand that vagueness brings its own challenges and benefits, but for an exercise coordinating 6 groups, more direction for output would have been beneficial.
I may of course be wrong - maybe some people thought there was too much detail!
So I will sign off this post (2 of 3) with a quick note about the business game.... I have the option to go for an interview for "The Apprentice" soon....I am sorely tempted by it. It would be really interesting to do, and you can guarantee that it would be tough, but rewarding. I guess though, if I did make it through (ha!) the business games the PLP gave me would probably give me a bit of perspective on what to expect - if not on how others would behave, at the very least how I would come across.
So was it a successfull day? Yes and No. I learned a lot from the activity, learned a lot about myself, but without clear objectives, I struggled to really assess the impact it had on me. Still, since the PLP is all about potential, I dont feel bad in saying that this set up definately has the potential to be successfull.
Its all good stuff.....
Kindest,
DD
Monday 6 July 2009
Wednesday 1 July 2009
PLP Part 3...or should I say Round 3?
Hello there...
I have been most neglectful of my blog lately, for some good and some bad reasons. The good reasons mostly revolve around cheese, the bad revolve around a combination of laziness, writers distraction (not technically block as I have had no problem writing on other stuff) and other general distractions of living in London. However, I have 3 new blogs to post at once, or as close to "at once" as I can manage. As they say, no buses for half an hour, then three at once (or if you trust TFL, no buses for half an hour, but you can get to your destination in under 20 minutes if you left 5 minutes ago and got a 4 trains and then a bus*)
My three blog posts are three reflections / comments on the PLP. The first will be a comment on how I personally I felt I got on at PLP module 3. The second will be a post on how I viewed PLP 3 as a group exercise. The third will be a review / comment on how I felt the whole package was. But don't worry, I am not going to be just focusing on the PLP, I plan to include how it has impacted the daily grind. Did I say grind? I meant fun, but more on that later. So, without further adieu.... part or round 3.
1. The Weigh in: I travelled to the 3rd module via automobile and arrived in (relatively) good time and was feeling pretty sharp. Part of me was glad for the break from work, but I couldn't help thinking about the work, and team, that I was leaving behind. While the purpose of the course was obviously focused on me, I did find it difficult initially to separate myself from my work. Not that I am trying to stretch an analogy, but I felt that my lack of separation affected my hitting power in the early exchanges. Not literally, but I was not on the ball in the morning session, for sure.
2. Early Exchanges: For me, my goal was set quite early on. I wanted to learn / improve my ability to effectively work in a team with a specific set of goals. I was looking forward to defending my teams interests to the other groups, and to be quite honest, at one point was feeling really up for the fight, or if you prefer, defense of my teams interests. For me, the group I was working in was a really interesting blend of characters and I was looking forward to it. Initially, I probably saw my role as being the person who would take on the responsibility of defending our groups interests. However, like a drunk boxer, I was swinging a miss.
3. On the Ropes: By 12pm (or round 3), I could tell I was not on my A-Game. Not only had I misinterpreted the set up of the exercise, but I had tried to misdirect my group - another group member had to correct me on this. Good work from him. This was a classic case of me trying to plough ahead with my own ideas of how to set the afternoon up successfully. I think my reason for trying "plough ahead" was that I was conscious of the lack of output our group had contributed. For me, I would have felt satisfied (if not overly so) with our contribution if we at least had a clear direction in place for the afternoon, but in doing so, completely missed the fundamental rules of the exercise.
This was particularly interesting as, at a previous PLP I was fed back that I should take a step back and look at the big picture - take the blinkers off if you will. And apparently, I hadn't done that quite yet. Needless to say, I was not feeling particularly comfortable with my own contribution within the group. I tried to analyse this at the time, as recommended to do so by the facilitators, but genuinely found this difficult.
For me, self reflection in such an environment was extremely challenging. While obviously I cant compare the 'stress' of the situation to that of a boxing match, it does seem to me sensible, that the more pressure we get put under, the harder it is to let go and take the step back - something that I would have definitely benefited from. So, after a quick lunch and a pep talk from (and to) a colleague, the bell went for the second half of the session...
4. Don't Fight the Referee, fight the opponent: I guess that that this has already been summed up by Sun Tzu better than I could ever do so, but this will become clear soon. By this point, I felt like someone out fought and out thought by an opponent. I had not really got to grips with the source material and not really worked as effectively as a Team member / leader as I know I can. It had not been a total disaster by any stretch of the imagination, but certainly I was struggling to come to terms with the set up. Maybe this reflection would have served me better during the day rather than at 1120pm after, but better late than never.
I felt that I spent too much time trying to understand the rules of the game, trying to understand exactly what I was trying to achieve, and not enough time actually doing it. This was interesting, particularly because I was working with some very capable people, several of which clearly had a better understanding of the game than me. I did ask for advice from two of them, but perhaps I should have been more forthcoming in bringing forward my own key understandings and knowledge limitations. It is conceivable that other people would have done the same thing too - I am pretty confident that many other people had similar concerns. However, at this point, I was too focused on my own limitations, to bring in others. Again, if I had taken a step back, there is a good chance that I would have increased my own grasp of the scope of the project.
Often, during this point, I worked alone - most unlike me as I love team work.
5. This match was going to Points: Almost inevitable, this one went to points. I had thrown myself into the work throughout the day and despite being bested by it on several occasions, it never totally got the better of me. I have the teams I worked in as well as some industry on my part to thank for that. The push came to the shove when our sponsor arrived and we were required to present as groups. One of the gents from our group gave a great effort with undeniably difficult source material - Great Work EC.
By the very end I had a good understanding of the key costs / benefits of my own individual work, and was able to answer probing questions on them. But that was it - I would not have been able to answer questions to the same level of detail on any other part of the team I was in. In fact, I don't think I could have answered a single question on my other team members business functions. This got me thinking:
How am I meant to work with these guys and persuade them if I don't know / understand their point of view demands? Maybe if I had taken my blinkers off and tried to understand my colleagues demands / needs better, I would have been more effective in working as a team.
For me at no point, did I ever have a true grasp of what the other guys were doing. For me, this was really hammered / punched home in the Q&A session.
6. And the Winner is... Well, our team won, and I think that was in no small part to the excellent job EC did presenting in addition to key contributions from some of our other guys. However there is a point I want to make to all this.
I have framed the discussion of PLP 3 as a boxing match. I don't think it was ever set up to be a fight, but at points, for me it felt like that. However, it was a fight I learned a hell of a lot from., and I will talk about how I felt the content / structure worked in a separate post. This is a very vain and self centred post I am afraid...
A conclusion
But that's just it, learning is acquiring knowledge, and maybe Sun Tzu missed the point slightly (or ignored it) when he said
"Know yourself and know your enemies and you will never be defeated in over 100 battles"
Today, maybe a more appropriate statement would be
"Know yourself, know your friends and know your enemies and you will never be defeated in one battle".
Knowing how we work together is as important as knowing how our enemies / competitors work without us.
Finally, I know some of you think that's a bit cheesy, but for those of you in the know - I did say I had a hell of a lot of big cheese recently, and you cant blame me for sharing it.
DD
* TFL are forever lying to me.
I have been most neglectful of my blog lately, for some good and some bad reasons. The good reasons mostly revolve around cheese, the bad revolve around a combination of laziness, writers distraction (not technically block as I have had no problem writing on other stuff) and other general distractions of living in London. However, I have 3 new blogs to post at once, or as close to "at once" as I can manage. As they say, no buses for half an hour, then three at once (or if you trust TFL, no buses for half an hour, but you can get to your destination in under 20 minutes if you left 5 minutes ago and got a 4 trains and then a bus*)
My three blog posts are three reflections / comments on the PLP. The first will be a comment on how I personally I felt I got on at PLP module 3. The second will be a post on how I viewed PLP 3 as a group exercise. The third will be a review / comment on how I felt the whole package was. But don't worry, I am not going to be just focusing on the PLP, I plan to include how it has impacted the daily grind. Did I say grind? I meant fun, but more on that later. So, without further adieu.... part or round 3.
1. The Weigh in: I travelled to the 3rd module via automobile and arrived in (relatively) good time and was feeling pretty sharp. Part of me was glad for the break from work, but I couldn't help thinking about the work, and team, that I was leaving behind. While the purpose of the course was obviously focused on me, I did find it difficult initially to separate myself from my work. Not that I am trying to stretch an analogy, but I felt that my lack of separation affected my hitting power in the early exchanges. Not literally, but I was not on the ball in the morning session, for sure.
2. Early Exchanges: For me, my goal was set quite early on. I wanted to learn / improve my ability to effectively work in a team with a specific set of goals. I was looking forward to defending my teams interests to the other groups, and to be quite honest, at one point was feeling really up for the fight, or if you prefer, defense of my teams interests. For me, the group I was working in was a really interesting blend of characters and I was looking forward to it. Initially, I probably saw my role as being the person who would take on the responsibility of defending our groups interests. However, like a drunk boxer, I was swinging a miss.
3. On the Ropes: By 12pm (or round 3), I could tell I was not on my A-Game. Not only had I misinterpreted the set up of the exercise, but I had tried to misdirect my group - another group member had to correct me on this. Good work from him. This was a classic case of me trying to plough ahead with my own ideas of how to set the afternoon up successfully. I think my reason for trying "plough ahead" was that I was conscious of the lack of output our group had contributed. For me, I would have felt satisfied (if not overly so) with our contribution if we at least had a clear direction in place for the afternoon, but in doing so, completely missed the fundamental rules of the exercise.
This was particularly interesting as, at a previous PLP I was fed back that I should take a step back and look at the big picture - take the blinkers off if you will. And apparently, I hadn't done that quite yet. Needless to say, I was not feeling particularly comfortable with my own contribution within the group. I tried to analyse this at the time, as recommended to do so by the facilitators, but genuinely found this difficult.
For me, self reflection in such an environment was extremely challenging. While obviously I cant compare the 'stress' of the situation to that of a boxing match, it does seem to me sensible, that the more pressure we get put under, the harder it is to let go and take the step back - something that I would have definitely benefited from. So, after a quick lunch and a pep talk from (and to) a colleague, the bell went for the second half of the session...
4. Don't Fight the Referee, fight the opponent: I guess that that this has already been summed up by Sun Tzu better than I could ever do so, but this will become clear soon. By this point, I felt like someone out fought and out thought by an opponent. I had not really got to grips with the source material and not really worked as effectively as a Team member / leader as I know I can. It had not been a total disaster by any stretch of the imagination, but certainly I was struggling to come to terms with the set up. Maybe this reflection would have served me better during the day rather than at 1120pm after, but better late than never.
I felt that I spent too much time trying to understand the rules of the game, trying to understand exactly what I was trying to achieve, and not enough time actually doing it. This was interesting, particularly because I was working with some very capable people, several of which clearly had a better understanding of the game than me. I did ask for advice from two of them, but perhaps I should have been more forthcoming in bringing forward my own key understandings and knowledge limitations. It is conceivable that other people would have done the same thing too - I am pretty confident that many other people had similar concerns. However, at this point, I was too focused on my own limitations, to bring in others. Again, if I had taken a step back, there is a good chance that I would have increased my own grasp of the scope of the project.
Often, during this point, I worked alone - most unlike me as I love team work.
5. This match was going to Points: Almost inevitable, this one went to points. I had thrown myself into the work throughout the day and despite being bested by it on several occasions, it never totally got the better of me. I have the teams I worked in as well as some industry on my part to thank for that. The push came to the shove when our sponsor arrived and we were required to present as groups. One of the gents from our group gave a great effort with undeniably difficult source material - Great Work EC.
By the very end I had a good understanding of the key costs / benefits of my own individual work, and was able to answer probing questions on them. But that was it - I would not have been able to answer questions to the same level of detail on any other part of the team I was in. In fact, I don't think I could have answered a single question on my other team members business functions. This got me thinking:
How am I meant to work with these guys and persuade them if I don't know / understand their point of view demands? Maybe if I had taken my blinkers off and tried to understand my colleagues demands / needs better, I would have been more effective in working as a team.
For me at no point, did I ever have a true grasp of what the other guys were doing. For me, this was really hammered / punched home in the Q&A session.
6. And the Winner is... Well, our team won, and I think that was in no small part to the excellent job EC did presenting in addition to key contributions from some of our other guys. However there is a point I want to make to all this.
I have framed the discussion of PLP 3 as a boxing match. I don't think it was ever set up to be a fight, but at points, for me it felt like that. However, it was a fight I learned a hell of a lot from., and I will talk about how I felt the content / structure worked in a separate post. This is a very vain and self centred post I am afraid...
A conclusion
But that's just it, learning is acquiring knowledge, and maybe Sun Tzu missed the point slightly (or ignored it) when he said
"Know yourself and know your enemies and you will never be defeated in over 100 battles"
Today, maybe a more appropriate statement would be
"Know yourself, know your friends and know your enemies and you will never be defeated in one battle".
Knowing how we work together is as important as knowing how our enemies / competitors work without us.
Finally, I know some of you think that's a bit cheesy, but for those of you in the know - I did say I had a hell of a lot of big cheese recently, and you cant blame me for sharing it.
DD
* TFL are forever lying to me.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)