someone else ), “ every person B u s i n e s s F i n a n c e

ALL WORK MUST BE ORIGINAL AND NO PLAIGIARISM.

Please respond to one of your classmate postings as what it pertains to the topic and what they wrote and express your views and opinions. This response posting is limited to 250 words.

TOPIC:

How do we use differences as leverage to achieve desired outcomes rather than obstacles to overcome? Based upon a past experience, please share one example of success or failure as related to this question.

STUDENT RESPONSE:

A plethora of evidence exists to support the notion that diverse teams perform better (Horman, et.al., 2013). Previously, there was a belief that heterogeneous teams caused friction and discourse, leading to worse team outcomes. While reframing our beliefs about teamwork and the factors that influence its success, I was reminded of a time when I was involved in a cross functional team at work, improving efficiency for one of our testing processes. This process had been an issue for MANY years and its inefficiency resulted in poorer patient outcomes. We sat down over the course of several weeks to try to identify ‘pain points’ in the process across the departments involved which were then used to develop a solution. When we had tried to solve this problem previously, only one department at a time was involved in the decisions regarding process changes. This led to many band aid solutions and many huffy attitudes between departments. My laboratory department originally thought that we would create the most effective solution because we all agreed on the core issues, had similar background regarding the process, and identified the same pain points. Our lack of team diversity led to a solution that flared up others’ pain points and created animosity between the lab and the client services department. It was not until all of the different departments finally sat down together that we were able to come up with a workable solution (and arguably the most effective). This type of organizational team diversity proved most effective when trying to solve an interdepartmental problem.

It is important to remember that it is not only a diverse set of skills and backgrounds that makes teams successful, but diverse perspectives as well (Rock, et.al., 2016). Different foundational environments shape neural circuitry that affects decision making and create a variety of problem-solving frameworks. This lends itself well to team success because it allows a team is able to tackle a problem from more than one angle. This may initially present as a hindrance to goal completion, but in actuality, this initial disagreement often leads to more productive outcomes (Rock, et.al., 2016). It may be hard to view these initial obstacles as beneficial to team results but addressing different ways of thinking helps individuals diversify their problem-solving tool kit as well as improves team metrics. This idea reminds me of a quote from my mother (though I’m sure she stole it from someone else), “Every person you meet knows something you don’t”. This is important to remember when working in a diverse team setting because it allows you to frame the differences not as an obstacle, but as an opportunity in the right direction. Not only are diverse teams more productive regarding organizational outcomes, but they also provide individuals with challenges that allow them to further develop their analytical decision making and expand their knowledge base.

David Rock, . (2016, September 22). Diverse Teams Feel Less Comfortable – and That’s Why They Perform Better. Retrieved September 28, 2020, from https://hbr.org/2016/09/diverse-teams-feel-less-co…

Homan, A. C., & Greer, L. L. (2013). Considering diversity: The positive effects of considerate leadership in diverse teams. Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 16(1), 105-125. doi:10.1177/1368430212437798