From Ta-Da to Uh-Oh:
Team Building
Can be Challenging
As
explained by Brown (2011), “An effective work group must be able to identify
problems, examine possible actions, and make decisions” (p. 202). That which a
group does, the task, and the process a group goes through to finish the task
provide for specific functions to be present within the group (Brown, 2011). “Behaviors
that directly help the group solve its task” combine with behaviors such as “harmonizing
and compromising” to provide growth and improved “interpersonal relationships”
opportunities for the group (Brown, 2011, p. 201). The communication process
that occurs within a group is vitally important in order for the tasks,
processes, and functions to take place. Organization development (OD) practitioners,
like Tom Wujec, study and observe how group members talk during discussions,
record such observations, identify those who listen, those who speak the most,
those who interrupt, and the impact of the interruptions (Brown, 2011). One
method that provides for such observations to take place is the introduction of
a game, developed by Peter Skillman and presented by TED2010 (2010), known as the
“marshmallow game”.
A simple
game, designed for teams of four, requires the team to construct the tallest
tower from twenty sticks of spaghetti, one yard of string, one yard of tape,
and one marshmallow, with two conditions; the marshmallow must be placed on top
of the tower and the tower must be built in thirty minutes (TED2010, 2010). Of
the more than seventy workshops conducted and observed by Wujec,
kindergarteners outperform business school graduates with the “tallest and most
interesting” tower configurations (TED2010, 2010). Citing Skillman’s studies,
Wujec states the reason kindergartners build a better tower is that none are
seeking to attain power by becoming “CEO of Spaghetti, Inc.” (TED2010, 2010). As
he continues, he adds another piece to this puzzle. “Business students are trained
to find the single right plan” and then execute it (TED2010, 2010). Football
teams are trained to initiate and suggest the goal of the game should be to win.
They then seek opinions and information needed to formulate a plan. They have
spent so much time on formulating and sticking to a plan; yet, when it fails to
lead them to victory, a hail Mary pass is thrown which results in either a “ta-da”
or “uh-oh” moment (TED2010, 2010). As Wujec provides, business students begin
with task orientation, talk about the task, imagine how the completed task will
look, position for power in the group, plan, organize, sketch, and “lay out
spaghetti” only to realize their time has run out and the hail Mary is the
placement of the marshmallow on top which has the same “ta-da” or “uh-oh”
moment (TED2010, 2010). So why do children have better success?
Often
times, storytellers begin with the end and work backwards. This is what the
children do. They start by putting the marshmallow on top and construct a
successful prototype that supports the top (TED2010, 2010). How many of us have
been given math problems that have the answer and we are tasked with producing
the equation that equals the answer? Each attempt provides immediate feedback
so the tower may be either strengthened or reconfigured to accommodate the
marshmallow. Wujec provides engineers and architects outperform all groups
because they understand the stabilizing advantages of geometric figures and
patterns, like triangles and rectangles. CEOs do better than business students;
but, when an executive administrator joins team CEO, the results improve
dramatically (TED2010, 2010). Why? Because administrators they have skills that
provide for facilitation and management of the work process (TED2010, 2010).
Wujec
provides this simple game allows teams to discover the marshmallow challenge
that exists in every project. “Hidden assumptions” can be discovered and
opportunities for “shared experience, common language, and a common stance to
build the right prototype” can be developed within the group, which is the goal
of process intervention (TED2010, 2010). Wujec’s approach offers a fun method
through which teams may identify their norms, develop and apply process
interventions, and ultimately learn to problem solve and make decisions without
an OD practitioner (Brown, 2011). This then allows the group to “understand the
impact of leadership styles and authority issues” such that group and
leadership functions begin to be “shared among team members”, a skill already
present in kindergarten.
References
Brown, D.R. (2011). An Experiential Approach to Organization
Development. (8th ed.). Upper Saddle
River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
TED2010. (2010, Feb.). Tom
Wujec: Build a tower, build a team. [Video file]. Retrieved from
http://www.ted.com/talks/tom_wujec_build_a_tower
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