Team Contract

Performance Expectations
As a group, it has been decided that meetings will be held roughly two to three times a week, mainly at any convenient library on campus. Any further forms of communication that shall be required will be directly through cellular devices, Facebook, emailing, and MSN Messenger. In order to avoid any technical difficulties, all of these communication channels will be checked regularly within 24 hours each and every day. Aside from our online or cellular forms of communication, it is predicted that further meetings shall be required and when the time comes for further outside meetings it has been established that these meetings will be set up whenever necessary at any location that is convenient for participating group members (for example: a group member’s house). Deadlines will be set accordingly following the professor’s instructions; however, it is mandatory that each group member is responsible for submitting their work 3 days prior to the actual deadline of submission for peer review, to allow adjustments in the case of any emergencies arising, and so forth. It has been agreed that this early deadline will be crucial and beneficial to each individual group member. In the case of any further assistance being required, the group member experiencing whatever difficulty must first consult the group leader with detailed explanations and a legitimate reason for their troubled situation; however, if the issue cannot be resolved through the group leader and or other group members, the member must then approach the teacher assistant and/or professor and discuss the issue then. Last but not least for performance expectations involves any member missing a meeting. It is not acceptable to miss any group meetings, as they are crucial for collaborations on the project as a group; however, it is understandable that emergencies occur. A group member that is to miss a group meeting must inform the group leader or any of the group members prior to the date of absence and any work assigned must still be completed, if a sudden emergency is to occur – group contact remains mandatory and further adjustments in work shall be made if necessary.

Operating Policies and Procedures
It is the responsibility for each individual to abide by the following operating policies and procedures. This will show initiative and trust for other members of the group. Firstly, lateness should not be a habit; group members who are late must contact the group leader in advance stating a legitimate reason. Group members who are unexpectedly late will receive a warning at first, and if it continues deduction in the individual’s budget will be initiated. Individual engagement in a group discussion is imperative in order to use time efficiently; inactivity and distractions will jeopardize time, trust of group members, and the assignment. Thus, deduction of the individual’s budget will occur.
We will handle conflict accordingly, in a professional manner. Any group member who fails to meet deadlines will result in a reduction in the peer self-evaluation. We will use conflict resolution, if there are any conflicts within the group. This meaning, the persons involved in a conflict will first try to resolve the issue with the person that they have conflict with. If the conflict were still unresolved, they would have to seek help from the team leader, teaching assistant, and lastly professor.
As a group, we decided to adopt a democratic system. Key decisions will be made through a voting system. Each member of the group will be able to share their input through a vote where the majority will rule. Although a consensus may not be achieved, this will ensure that most members will agree on key decisions and the direction in which the project is heading.
One way to avoid poor quality work is to make sure everyone is aware and clear of the expectations and their task to complete. Before assigning a task, the group leader will lay out expectations and make time for questions during group meetings. If while completing a task and a question a rises, the member can contact the group leader via email. This will help avoid confusion and doing the work incorrectly. Prior to group meetings, the work that a member has to complete should be proof read by another member in the group. This will help ensure that the work completed is free from unnecessary grammatical errors and wrong format. In an incident where poor quality work is submitted, the member may be asked to redo the task until all expectations are met.
If perhaps a group member has missed a meeting due to a legitimate reason, the following expectations is required of the member or else points will be deducted and further implications may follow. Notes and any assigned work due prior to the group meeting must be sent to all the group member’s McMaster student E-mails. The group member should also send out a mobile phone text message to ensure that all members have received the E-mail. However, even before sending it to all group members, each member should send a copy to at least one other member to revise and ensure that the work is done correctly before he or she sends it out to all of the other group members. This method of sharing the work will reinforce accuracy, efficiency, and well time management within the group. Each group member will be allowed to miss only two group meetings and if this expectation is not met, points will be deducted, as well as more strict guidelines will be created to ensure that all members are participating evenly.
Our group has collectively agreed to create a Master Timetable, in which will display all due dates and important information in regards to Commerce 1E03. This Master Timetable will also take account of each member’s individual working schedules, his or her major assignments, his or her important family gatherings, any special holidays and any date in which may interfere with group interventions. Prior to the next group meeting, our group has cooperatively announced that each member will come to the meeting with his or her personal schedule. Every member’s personal schedule is required and essential in order to create a detailed and accurate Master Timetable. This Master Timetable will be beneficial towards creating and scheduling extra group meetings because it will allow the following. It will permit each member to understand the lifestyles and schedules of each other, it will work around certain dates, it will reinforce due dates according to every member’s specific needs and complications, and it will determine which task is best for which person. The Master Timetable will also ensure that there will be no excuses for late or careless work. All work should meet deadlines on the Master Timetable and should be sent out to at least one other group member to review before he or she brings it to the following group meeting.