MGT 3700.01

Building a Coalition: Washington DC After School Program

To the Development Team:

Designing the program will be a big challenge if you do not know what can be expected giving consideration to the dynamics of team building. Your task group will come from cross functional backgrounds which should be very effective once they work with their differences. The positive side is that your team will be made up of experienced individuals. This will weigh heavily in the success this team can bring.

1. Understanding the dynamics of how teams operate you must first know why teams are formed and why they are a good way to solve problems. Team building is for the purpose of setting goals, developing interpersonal relationships between its members, establishing roles and responsibilities, and most importantly, at the end of the day team building should increase trust and openness among the members.

The team will go through different stages as they begin to work together. At first, there is a high level of uncertainty and anxiety between members about how to work together and how to approach the problem. Through the process of working through conflicts the members struggle to define their individual and then collective roles. This is when it is important that each member listen openly to others’ ideas. Once they are able to sit and hear each other’s ideas you will find that there will be a greater willingness to work together. This is really a critical stage of the team building process and can make or break the team. Getting past this stage the team can now focus on the issues at hand. Any anxieties should have been alleviated and the members recognize themselves as a team and are willing to define and distribute the workload amongst them. Finally, the team, with openness and trust, is focused and there is a sense of cohesiveness between the members and they will do the task that has been assigned.

While not all teams go through all the above stages, it is very common that they go through most. Once they have become what are considered a true team their effectiveness is measured by contextual influences, team composition, and their processes. In this case, the biggest advantage is the fact that this is a small group of professionals who basically know where their strengths lie and have had the experience of working in groups.

2. Choosing team members consists of looking at key areas such as personality, abilities, skills, and individual preference for teamwork. In staffing your team it is best to select candidates who will bring experience and diversity to the table. With these qualities you will have individuals who are able to effectively handle conflicts, efficiently allocate roles, and bring new ideas from different perspectives. Based on the profiles of the candidates given, I would suggest a team composed of members who share the views of at least one of the other participating organizations. They should also have an equal degree of conscientiousness, be willing to openly share their ideas, and possess a true desire to put what is best for the students ahead of their own ideas. With that said the candidates of choice are Victoria Adams, school superintendent. She already has a working relationship with the Foundation and is familiar with their way of doing things. Her role as a linker and adviser for the team should prove effective. My second candidate is Meredith Watson with the Foundation. As a former teacher she knows and understands the school system. She can be an assessor and a strong creator for the team offering insightful analysis of options and new ideas for changes. My last candidate is Candace Sharpe with NCPIE. Though she has only been in the area for a short while, her newness can bring unbiased, new ideas. She also has a positive attitude and a balanced view of the situation. Her role as creator, initiating creative ideas, can add great value to the program. Between these three you will have a fair representation for the school system, the Foundation, and the parents. Those whom would not be effective for the team or its efforts are Ari Kaufman and Mason Dupree. Ari cannot get along with those inside his circle and Mason lacks a lot of trust in the school system. I feel these two would cause more conflict than effectively serve the purpose of forming this team. The same is true for Duane Hardy who is experienced but does not appear to have much tolerance for those whom he refers to as “outsiders”. He too could cause conflict and slow down the decision making process.

3. Managing conflict is a process best handled when you know the type of conflict you are working with as well as the source of that conflict. We know there are shared interests within the group in that all want what is best in serving the students and their learning. You welcome and even invite functional conflict because it supports goals and improves how the group performs toward reaching those goals. Traditionally, conflict is perceived as something that should be avoided because it is associated with negative attitudes and behaviors. However, conflict can be a positive force for a group or team and might also be a necessary force because it can lead to new ideas and approaches to organizational processes and increased interest in dealing with problems. Conflict, in this sense, facilitates the surfacing of important issues and provides opportunities for team members to develop communication and interpersonal skills. Conflict becomes negative when it is left to escalate to the point where people begin to feel threatened and a combative climate of distrust and suspicion develops. Needless to say, negative conflict can destroy a team quickly.

4. The strategy of integrative negotiations is to create a win-win situation for all parties and interests. This is accomplished when all parties are engaged as a team. Creating this situation is important because the party who wins has the support and trust of the other parties. To best achieve successful joint integrative negotiation certain conditions have to exist:

• all parties are open with information • parties are candid with their concerns • parties are sensitive to others’ needs • there is maintained flexibility
In achieving joint goals, what you most want to avoid is having any party compromise their position. This reduces the pressure to bargain integratively. You do not want people to feel as if they settled for less than they were bargaining to obtain or achieve. In addition, you need to coach the team to bargain collectively so they can put all issues on the table to enable trade-offs wherever possible. The key to create this joint effort is to continually think and act as a team.

Message to the Program Team:

1. It is to your advantage to know the types of cultures you are working with on this development team. The school system, The Woodson Foundation, and the NCPIE are three organizations that share some very critical core values related to this program. They are all interested in meeting the needs of the students and increasing student learning. Their commitments to these core values identify each organization’s dominant cultures. However, there are cultural factors that differentiate one organization from the other. The school system is an aggressive culture. They want to have control over the outcomes. This is apparent in that they fear the Foundation might take that control away. They also emphasize their need to maintain the status quo. Stability is important to the culture in the school system, yet they do not have a strong culture. The Woodson Foundation, based on the values of its founders, is innovative and risk takers. This is demonstrated by their willingness to step in and help develop a new agency for an organization that is failing. At the same time attention to detail is very important as well. Efficiency and experimentation are instilled in the employees at the Foundation with focus on using hard data to measure performance and make decisions. The NCPIE has a culture of outcome orientation. They measure their success based on results.

2. A transformational message to the leaders:

This task you are undertaking will greatly influence the Washington, D.C. school system and its stakeholders. As leaders you are expected to gain employee and parent trust but it takes time. Your display of pride through motivation and inspiration will help influence your followers. First you have to make sure they know their interest is your priority. Then you must communicate openly with them; get them involved by making them aware of the concerns and issues while showing them new ways of getting things done. Lastly, you must prove your trustworthiness by showing them you are sincere and honest in your efforts, creating a caring and supportive demeanor, and demonstrating your abilities to carry out what you say. In other words, as leaders you make sure they see that you do what you say you will do.

3. As program leaders administering diversity management must include everybody. The potential for demographic fault lines is inevitable without proper awareness of differences. The best strategy to manage diversity for this team is to have them focus on their common goal to do what is best for the students; putting aside self interests. Keep in mind diversity is an invitation to conflict. Studies show diverse groups who openly share their views and opinions are most likely to work through their differences to reach their goals. Intergroup development is a good way for each member to place their focus on demographic differences and stereotypes. Make it a practice to develop diversity training programs, emphasize similarities in groups, utilize underrepresented groups in key roles, and attract diverse employees when recruiting.

In closing, much has been covered to assure our goal is met. It is not just about starting an after school program in a troubled school system. This project is about giving students opportunities that will last a lifetime. The students will gain knowledge, the school system will benefit from increased test scores, and the Foundation and NCPIE will unite to see more parents engaged in the system. This truly is a win-win situation, well worth the conflicts, negotiations, and time spent planning.