MHR523 W13

Team Project Handbook

Table of Contents Page

1. Introduction 2

2. Summary of Team Deliverables 2

3. Let Me Introduce Myself Worksheet (Individual) 3

4. Reading: Team Building Tools for Students (Questions are on p.10) 4

5. Draft Team Contract (Vision, Goals, Project Plan & Charter) 11

6. Team Project Check-In Form (Individual) 13

7. Team Case: Crosstown (Questions are on p. 17) 14

8. Case Analysis Report Guidelines and Project Marking Criteria 18

9. Peer Evaluation 19

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1. Introduction

Two of goals of MHR523 are that, by the end of the course, you are able to describe the

key elements of effective teamwork, and that you develop basic teamwork skills, such as the

ability to develop an effective team contract, and the ability to critique your own team process.

We hope you will accomplish these goals by; a) learning about key principles of effective

teamwork (lecture and reading), b) by analyzing a complex human resources management case

as a team, and c) by actively participating in team building exercises and assignments, both

during your seminar and outside of class.

Each student will be randomly assigned to a team of 5 students during Seminar 2. If the

student enrolls in the class at a later date, he or she is responsible for joining a team no later than

Seminar 3. No student will be permitted to remain in the course if they have not joined a team by

this date.

2. Summary of Team Deliverables

Due in Seminar 2: Complete and bring a hard copy of “Let Me Introduce Myself” (p. 3)

Due in Seminar 3: Read “Team Building Tools for Students” (p. 4-10) and hand in your

answers to the three questions on page 9.

Between Seminar 3 and Seminar 5: You will need to devote at least 2 hours outside of class (in

team meetings) between Seminars 3 and 5. At the meeting (s) you will be expected to discuss

and complete the first draft of your Team Contract (p. 11)

Due in Seminar 5: Team Assignment-Part 1:Your first draft of your Team Contract (Vision,

Goals, Project Plan & Charter) signed by all team members. Use the soft version on BB to type

your report, print it off and hand it in to your seminar leader in Seminar 5. Max length is 5 pages,

double spaced.

Due in Seminar 6: Hand in Team Assignment-Part 2: Your completed, individual “Team

Check-In Report” and circulate it to your teammates for discussion outside of class and for

inclusion in your Group Process Report, due in Seminar 9.

Due in Seminar 9: Team Assignment-Part 3: Your Case Analysis Report and your “Team

Process Report” including your final Team Contract. Your report (excluding Appendices and

Group Process Report) should be approximately 20 pages, double-spaced.

Due in Seminar 10: Team Assignment-Part 4: Your Peer Evaluation (Individual)

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3. Let Me Introduce Myself Worksheet (Individual, Due Seminar 2)

Complete this worksheet and bring a hard copy to Seminar 2, when your team will be formed.

. 1. Who am I and what do I do?

2. My country of origin, places I've lived, my background

3. What was going on in my life that caused me to want to be a student at Ryerson University

4. The most important aspect of my life is......

5. Some of the major influences on my life are……

6. What special skills or knowledge can I contribute to the team

7. What skills need further development

8. What I need to get out of this semester to make it worthwhile for me is….

9. Anything else you should know about me to help you work with me this semester

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4. Reading: Team Building Tools for Students

Adapted from: “Team-Building Tools for Students”, Diana Page & Joseph G. DonelanJournal of Education for Business, Jan/Feb 2003

ABSTRACT. In this article, the authors describe why university students need good teamwork

skills, how instructors can encourage students to develop those skills, and how team projects can

be designed to improve teamwork skills. An action plan and team-building tools are provided.

The class will work in teams of three, and the project will be due in 2 weeks. Good luck," said

Professor Smith.

Although instructors usually believe that they have properly integrated teamwork into their

courses, "Good luck" is too often the only team-building advice that they give their students. However,

research has shown that merely putting students in groups and telling them to work together does not, in

and of itself, promote higher achievement (Johnson & Johnson, 1990). In this article, we describe how

instructors can create meaningful team projects that will improve students' teamwork skills. We include

handouts and exercises that can be used as team-building tools.

1. Establishing the Importance of Teamwork

The instructor should begin by explaining to students why teamwork skills will be important in

their professional business careers. Many professional business organizations, including the American

Institute of Public Accountants have identified interpersonal skills as a core competency. Next, the

instructor should provide specific examples of job situations that require teamwork—for example,

financial planning engagements, consulting projects, and new product development programs. In addi-

tion, the instructor should provide students with evidence that business decision-making is improved

when teamwork is used (Bamber, Watson, & Hill, 1996; Hackman, 1990). If students understand the

benefits that they will derive from collaborative work, they will be more willing to learn teamwork

skills.

After establishing the importance of teamwork skills, the instructor must recognize and

reinforce those skills during team projects. In this article, we identify important group skills and

provide guidelines to help the instructor reinforce them.

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2. Defining the Task

To maximize students' successes, the instructor should establish clear objectives at the outset

of the project. Setting objectives includes providing students with clear timelines and progress-

report requirements. Requiring progress reports assures students that they are on the right track and

helps them practice teamwork skills necessary for timely completion of projects. In Appendix 1,

we present the Team Project Guidelines handout, which explains how instructors can clearly

establish team objectives and team member responsibilities. The guidelines suggest that the instructor

take an active role as the team supervisor, making clear that he or she will share responsibility for

student learning and that the team members will share responsibility for keeping their instructor

informed about group progress.

3. Creating a Psychological Contract

To accelerate group productivity and open lines of communication, the instructor should

encourage student groups to develop psychological contracts. A psychological contract is a set of

expectations or rules specifying the individuals and their functions in a relationship. Because it is

dynamic, the psychological contract can and should be updated as desired. Its elements can

include how performance will be measured and general rules of conduct. For example, the contract

may describe what will happen if a team member acts in an unprofessional way, submits work late, or

does not submit work. The team project guidelines address the following important elements in

drawing up a psychological contract:

• Assigning responsibilities

• Establishing deadlines

• Achieving full participation by group members

• Documenting group norms, values, and rules

Documenting these elements of a psychological contract benefits groups, because these steps help

groups plan, save time, and resolve conflicts.

4. Establishing Team Member Roles During and Between Meetings

Successful teams need a balance of task and relationship roles both at meetings and outside of

them. Task roles include seeking and providing information, elaborating to help the team understand

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issues, evaluating information, and coordinating activities. Relationship roles refer to the social

interaction of team members or to how tasks are performed. Roles can be taken for the duration of the

project or can be rotated. Roles need be identified for both team meetings and for responsibilities that

need to be carried out between meetings:

During Meetings: Examples of useful roles that need to be taken during meetings are:

Leader: Leads discussion and coordinates the processes and output

Recorder: Produces a written account of team member responsibilities and meeting decisions

Timekeeper: Records start time and reminds team of remaining time throughout the process

Gatekeeper: Keeps team members on track if they are failing to carry out assigned duties,

transgressing into others' duties, or violating team rules

Social-emotional leader: Resolves tension, mediates conflicts, encourages the quieter team

members to voice their opinion and the more vocal team members to share air time.

Between Meetings:

The group needs to identify its mission, goals and expectations, and responsibilities need

to be assigned to individuals accordingly. Examples vary depending on the nature of the

assignment and can include; project coordinator, leader, writer, researcher, proofreader, editor,

and typist.

5. Recognizing and Reinforcing Teamwork Skills

For group skills to be internalized, the group members must recognize the team-building

skills and have those skills reinforced during the team project. Therefore, instructors must not only

explain team-building skills but also support the explanations with practice and reinforcement.

Instructors should encourage members to follow seven basic rules:

• Know your team members.

• Communicate accurately and unambiguously.

• Accept and support one another.

• Check for understanding.

• Share ideas and understanding.

• Check for agreement.

• Resolve conflicts constructively and quickly.

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6. Managing Team Development Stages

Most groups progress through four development stages: forming, storming, norming, and

performing (Tuckman & Jensen, 1977). Early in the group's forming stage, it is useful for a team to

establish explicit team values and rules, together with a method of monitoring the team's adherence

to those rules (see guidelines in Appendix 1). During the storming stage, conflicts may emerge among

group members. Students may not want to take time to work through the conflicts, but the instructor

should remind them that solving the case (or problem or project) is only part of the assignment—

learning teamwork skills is an equally important part. In the norming and performing stages of group

development, members come together by adhering to the groups' standards of behavior. These

standards encourage group members to act as one. This synergistic process results in greater group

productivity. Instructors should reinforce these harmonious behaviors by praising students and ask-

ing them to explain who is responsible for which tasks.

To facilitate the group development process, instructors can use the scales provided in

Tables 1 and 2 to arrive at a group development score and a group decision-making score. At

several points in the group's development, the instructor should display the two scoring sheets and

ask the individual group members to record, anonymously, where they think their group falls on

each scale. At the next meeting, the results can be displayed and discussed. The scores obtained for

group decision making and group development often provide important insights into the group's

dynamics. Dominant group members often believe that the group is close to both consensus and

performing. However, if there are wide disparities in scores between members, the team should revisit

its values and rules to resolve the differences and make a plan for bringing the entire group to a higher

level of consensus and development.

7. Creating Positive Interdependence

Positive interdependence exists when all group members benefit from the success of other

group members. Positive interdependence can be created by taking the following steps: (a) asking the

group to create a common goal (e.g., obtaining an "A" grade on the project), (b) establishing a mutual

reward system so that the score for the team is dependent on the performance of all group members,

and (c) establishing team member roles (e.g., team leader, team reporter, team spokesperson).

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TABLE 1. Group Development Score

Score Development

Stage

Stage Characteristics

10 Performing Fun and exciting; high commitment to group; feeling ofhigh trust and friendship; involvement with group inspiresmembers' best performance; creative use of existing

9 resources; highly effective orchestration of activities andabilities; humor, flexibility, versatility, smooth task andprocess flow within the group; pride in group accomplishments;

8 volunteering participation; commitment to decisions;expressions of appreciation and caring.

7 Norming A sense of belonging and group cohesion; a sense ofpersonal accomplishment; individual roles understood;freedom to express opinion; trust between group members

6 unified mission; healthy balance of power; effectivegroup processes; sincere attempt to reach consensus; littleor no violation of team rules; productive; attack problems,

5 not each other; "we" overtakes "me" mentality.

4 Storming Group attempts to organize for the task, and conflictsemerge; group attempts to decide who is to be responsiblefor what, what evaluation and reward criteria will be;

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3 power structure is not stable; some members may be silentwhile others may attempt to dominate; confusion; loss ofinterest; lack of progress; violation of code of conduct and

2 team rules.

1 Forming Reliance on polite, safe, patterned behavior; memberslooking to a leader for direction; desire for acceptance; approaches to resolving conflict not developed; individualexpectations not formed; group purpose and methods notformed; tasks not determined or delegated; methods andprocedures not determined; rules of behavior not welldeveloped, so members keep things simple and avoid

0 controversy.

Note. Adapted from Tuckman, B., and Jensen, M., (1977). Stages of small group development.

Group and Organizational Studies, 2, 419-427.

8. Holding Individual Team Members Accountable

Two activities will foster individual accountability: (a) regularly recording team meeting

minutes and (b) following up on those minutes. Students balk at these activities because they view

recording meeting minutes as "busy work." But these two activities simplify the management of

team processes and can clearly differentiate performers from nonperformers. This also helps in peer

evaluation upon conclusion of the team project.

TABLE 2. Group Decision-Making Score

Score Type of decision Characteristics

10 Consensus Needs and interest of all parties9 explored; all positions fairly developed;8 Creative, unified solution emerges7

6 Majority rule; some discussion; Majority and minority points of view5 some compromise explored; majority position prevails4 with some modification and

consideration of minority opinion.

3 Majority rule; no compromise; Decision made by powerful individual 2 no discussion or sub-group; opinions of other members are

not sought or explored.

1 No decision Avoidance by all members; no agreement;0 no decision is made.

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9. Conclusion

Today's business professionals must be able to function effectively in teams. In this article, we

have provided guides for developing effective teamwork projects that reinforce teamwork skills. The

processes include task definition, creation of a psychological contract, establishment of appropriate team

membership, specification of team member roles, meeting with team members, management of team

development stages, creation of positive interdependence, and holding individual team members

accountable.

REFERENCES

American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). (1999). Vision project. Retrieved

http://www.aicpa.org/vision/wpaperoib.ctm; http://www.cpavision.org/vision/wpaperOlb.cfm

Bamber, E. M., Watson, R. L., & Hill, M. C. (1996), The effects of group decision support

systems technology on audit group decision making. Auditing, a Journal of Theory and

Practice, 15(1), 122-134.

Hackman, J. R. (Ed). (1990). Groups that work (and those that don't). San Francisco: Jossey

Bass.

Johnson, D., & Johnson, R. (1990). Cooperative learning and achievement. In S. Sharan (Ed.),

Cooperative learning: Theory and research (pp. 23-37). New York: Praeger Press.

Tuckman, B., & Jensen, M. (1977). Stages of small group development. Group and Organi-

zational Studies, 2, 419-427.

Questions for Seminar 3 Assignment

1. What are the 7 basic rules for reinforcing teamwork skills?

2. In which stage of group development are teams most likely to experience conflict?

3. What are the differences between consensus and majority rule?

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5. Team Assignment-Part 1 : 1 st Draft of Your Team Contract

This assignment requires that you work together with the members of your team to

establish a first draft of your team contract that includes your team’s vision & goals, project plan

and charter. You will need to devote at least 2 hours outside of class, working together, to this

assignment. We have set up the schedule so that you have the option of using the cancelled

seminar time slot, (the week between seminars 4 and 5), towards this purpose. There are three

deliverables that should result from this assignment:

1. A name for your team

2. A team document outlining your team’s agreed-upon vision and a break-down of your

short-term and long-term goals that will help you to accomplish your group project

3. A team document that outlines your team’s implicit ground rules for operation – i.e., your

‘team contract’ – which should be signed by each member of your team

These documents are due at the beginning of Seminar 5.

Purpose & Group Discussion

The purpose of this exercise is for your team to first visualize an ideal scenario for what your

team will look like and how you will accomplish your project. Note that you should consider the

processes involved in this project, and not just the end-goal. Questions you should ask yourself,

and should discuss with the group include:

• What is your vision for what an ideal team and ideal project completion would look like?

• What is your ideal scenario for how you will interact together to accomplish your goals?

• How would you like to see the work structured and allocated to members?

• What types of norms would you like to see enforced in the group?

• How would you like to communicate?

• What behaviors are strongly supported? What behaviors are completely unacceptable?

Additional points of discussion may also emerge. They key is to engage in a collective

discussion that will allow you to develop a shared understanding of your team’s identity and

your goals.

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Next, based upon this shared understanding of what you’d like to accomplish, begin to

break down the specifics of how you can realize this vision. Basically, you should engage in a

goal-setting process whereby you outline specific goals that you would like to achieve during

your project.

Make sure that you indicate what should be done, by when, and by whom. Note that

grade-based goals (i.e., we’d like to earn 80%+) are not particularly helpful… focus on the

outputs that will be necessary to achieve a good grade instead. Keep in mind that this task will

also require that you pay attention to the timeline for project deadlines, so you may want to start

at the end and work backwards.

Note: This is your first draft and it is likely to evolve as you begin working on your tasks. Keep

track of any changes so that you can submit your final version in Seminar 9.

Deliverables and Marking Criteria

Based upon this discussion, you should prepare the following draft document to submit in

Seminar 5 and then refine it as the project develops to submit a final version in Seminar 9:

1. Team Name-Anything you like

2. Team Vision (20%). Begin with a 1-3 sentence Vision Statement that describes your

agreed-upon vision for an effective team and project completion. Do not include specific

goals here

3. Team Goals and Plan for Project Completion (40%). Provide details regarding the specific

short-term and long-term goals for project completion. Include specific project timeline

and milestones as shown below. This section should be 1-2 pages in length. Point-form,

bullets are acceptable

Timeline:

Meeting dates (or frequency). Show awareness of the required time investment to achieve

set goals

Meeting goal/scope: What is the purpose of each meeting (checking-in, working on a

draft, discussion of project etc.)

Milestones: Show evidence that you have thought through your work

Deliverable (e.g., outline, draft, revision etc.)

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Charts and diagrams are allowed

4. Team Charter (40%) – The purpose of this section is for you to think, set and record,

group norms, task distribution and team processes.

Roles: Member roles should be specified (See reading; “Team Building Tools for

Students” for suggestions

Explicitly outline acceptable behaviours and group norms (e.g., modes and frequency of

communication) – It is up to you whether or not you also include unacceptable

behaviours

Specify who will be doing what to ensure proper division of tasks and responsibilities

Summarize your procedures for decision-making and conflict resolution

5. Other Deductions

No team name

Grammar, syntax, spelling

Missing Component (charter, goal, vision statement)

Contract not signed/dated

Each member should sign the contract before it is submitted.

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6. Team Assignment-Part 2: Team Process Check-In (Individual, due Seminar 6, and discuss in your team meeting, outside of class)

Team Name ____________________________My Name ______________________

Assess your team’s performance to date on each of the following categories by circling the number that reflects your assessment. Bring this completed “Team Project Check-in” form to Seminar 6

1. Goal Clarity and Agreement1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Team Goals are unclear, conflictingOr ambiguous. Team members are not working toward a common goal

Team goals are clear and are shared by all team members. Team members are committed to achieving goals

2. Listening1 2 3 4 5 6 7

As a team, we do not listen to each other. Instead, each of us tries to push our own goals. It is difficult to be heard: Ideas must be repeated again and again before they are acknowledged

As a team, we listen with attention, ask for clarification or elaboration on ideas, and work to understand each other. There is little competition and everyone’s voice is heard. There are few interruptions while one of us speaks.

3. Trust1 2 3 4 5 6 7

We are generally distrustful of one anotherWe are cautious and careful about what we tell each other. We avoid discussing problems.

We trust one another and openly express our views and disagreements. We encourage people to be open about any issues or concerns

4. Conflict Management1 2 3 4 5 6 7

We are generally distrustful of one anotherOur methods for managing conflict are to Avoid, smooth over or minimize it. Disagreements lead to tension that is usually left unresolved

We accept conflicts as inevitable and do not attempt to avoid them. We discuss our differences openly focusing on the issues rather than attacking the person

5. Leadership and Decision-Making1 2 3 4 5 6 7

One or two people tend to dominate thediscussions and control team decisions. Overall commitment to these decisions is low

Leadership is shared depending on the tasks at hand and the skill of the member. Decisions are made by discussion and consensus.

5 Group Development Score (See Table 1, p. 8)______/10

6 Team Decision-Making Scores (See Table 2, p. 9) _____/10

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7. Team Case: Crosstown

Crosstown is a growing (and now major) retail store in Alberta. The store sells a

wide range of medium to high-priced consumer items. While its reputation was built on the

sale of clothing for men and women, Crosstown now sells children's clothing and a large

assortment of non-clothing items, including jewelry, cosmetics, and even some furniture.

While prices are lower at competitors such as Wal-Mart, the closest such store is 100 km

away so the mission of the store is for consumers to support their local merchants and in

turn, Crosstown attempts to stock what the community needs. Crosstown also assures a

high quality on its wide range of consumer items and chooses not to carry low quality/low-

priced items. As a result, in addition to its distance from Wal-Mart stores, Crosstown

attempts to differentiate itself from its competitors, such as Wal-Mart, based on the

superior quality of its items.

The owner and President, Joe Crosstown is the son of the store's founder. He has an

MBA from the university of Alberta (six years ago) and has worked for the store for 10 years. He

has been president since his father retired three years ago. Over these past three years, he has

further pushed for a strong focus on high quality consumer items. Joe Crosstown has been very

pleased with the rapid growth of the store in recent years. This growth supports his long-

term goals. More specifically, he has communicated to upper-level management his vision

and long-term goal to open new stores in nearby communities in the future. Sales at

Crosstown have increased 200 percent over the past five years, and profits have grown

commensurately. Unfortunately, in addition to its benefits, this kind of growth can usually

lead to problems as well. For example, it has become increasingly difficult to control

orders and inventories. More than ever before, the store seems to be either out of stock or

overstocked on certain items. Customer satisfaction surveys have also revealed a declining

trend of satisfaction among customers with the service that they receive in the store. As

one might expect, therefore, this explosive growth has led to some key human resource

problems. The human resource challenges are the focus of the present case.

Employment at Crosstown has grown from 102 to 214 in the past five years. Of these 214

employees, 196 are within the retail operations. This unit of the company includes the director of

retail operations, four managers (each in charge of a different retail line), and 20 retail

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supervisors who manage the 171 sales associates (formerly called "salesclerks''). The remaining

18 employees include three managers of "support" units (who report to the president) and their

employees. One support unit is the human resource department, which includes the manager and

three employees. The manager, Bill Goode, has been with the company for 20 years and has

been in charge of the HR unit for the past 10. He has no formal education in human resource

management except for a series of one-week seminars he attended eight years ago at UBC. He

was selected to be the HR manager because of his knowledge of company operations and his

ability to get along with people. Bill is a former retail supervisor. It is worth noting that his

department handles not only "personnel" duties but also any other company matters (e.g., public

relations) that do not clearly fall under one of the other units.

The most obvious human resource challenges faced by this growing retail organization

are with the retail supervisors: Of the 20 retail supervisors, 13 have been hired within the past 18

months. Although part of this hiring effort was due to the growth of the company itself, another

part is related to a high level of dissatisfaction among the retail supervisors. This dissatisfaction

conflicts with Joyce Crosstown aspiration for this company to be among the country’s list of

“best places to work”. It also potentially compromises the organizational culture needed to

achieve this aspiration. Those who have left (and a few who remain) have complained at various

times about the following issues:

• "Insufficient pay" compared to what they think they can get elsewhere.

• A "lack of company support" (e.g., money, time) in learning how to manage their

areas.

• An "unmotivated" sales force.

The director of retail operations, Janice Clark, disagrees with these statements. She

believes that the retail supervisors themselves are the real problem. She has mentioned to

Joe Crosstown several times that the HR unit selects unqualified people to be retail

supervisors. There seems to be some validity to Clark's viewpoint. For example, the company's

Job descriptions, including those for the position of retail supervisor, are woefully out of date. In

fact, there is some doubt that they ever were any good. Further, supervisory positions are filled

from within whenever possible, and the more senior employees are given first choice (unless

they are clearly not fit for the job). Outside recruiting relies almost exclusively on newspaper ads

and employee referrals. A few sales associates have also complained to the manager of human

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resources about the treatment they receive from their supervisor, citing harassment and bullying.

The selection process consists of a very simple one-page, application blank, brief interviews with

the manager of human resources and the relevant manager in retail operations, and a physical

exam. The director of retail operations makes the final hiring decision based on the feedback he

receives from this process.

Training of retail supervisors is strictly on-the-job. Newly hired supervisors spend their

first day with a member of the HR unit to become oriented to the company (e.g., philosophy,

hours, pay, and benefits). Then the new supervisor "tags along" with an experienced supervisor

for one full week. By the second week, the new supervisor is in charge of an area. The procedure

for a new supervisor promoted from within is similar except that the "orientation" session is

briefer.

Evaluation of retail supervisors is based on a graphic rating scale developed

about five years ago by Bill Goode. The four retail managers rate each of their five retail

supervisors once per year on 10 dimensions. The dimensions include attitude, dependability,

knowledge of work, quality of work, getting along with others, and so forth. Each of these is

rated on a five-point scale, running from very poor through average to very good. Although

this rating technique is used primarily for determination of pay increases, all four retail

managers also claim to spend a fair amount of time each year discussing other issues

important to their retail supervisors.

The compensation system at Crosstown is not as systematic and thorough as it should be.

For example, a new retail supervisor's initial pay is based on a comparison of his or her

qualifications in comparison with those of current supervisors. Key "qualifications" looked at

include education, experience, knowledge of store operations, and so forth. Future increases in

pay are based largely on the results of the performance evaluations described above. However,

Bill Goode occasionally recommends an "appropriate" general increase when he feels that the

pay increases for a certain category of employees (including retail supervisors) have not kept up

with inflation.

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Questions (Due Seminar 9)

1. Assume you are a team of consultants called in by Joe Crosstown to help him examine

the effectiveness of the company's human resource system. He is especially concerned

about that system's impact on his retail supervisors and the individuals to whom they

report.

2. How would you classify Crosstown’s organizational strategy and based on this, what

should the HR priorities be (Text, Figure 1-10)

3. Summarize the HR problems that are evident at Crosstown based on the information you

have been given.

4. With a focus on the retail supervisors, detail the specific HR practices, policies and

procedures that you would recommend to support the HR Strategy (i.e. HR plan, job

descriptions, recruitment, selection, training, performance appraisal and compensation).

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8 Case Analysis Guidelines and Project Marking Criteria (Due in Seminar 9)

Read the Crosstown Case on pages 14-17 and answer the four questions on page 17. Your

report (excluding Appendices and Group Process Report) should be approximately 20 pages,

double-spaced. Use the following headings to organize your report:

1. Cover Page: Includes your section number, name of your seminar leader, your team

name and the names and student numbers of all group members in alphabetical order.

2. Introduction, purpose of the paper (5%): Write half a page clarifying the purpose of

this paper, and how it is organized, as if you were an HR consulting team.

3. Q1: How would you classify Crosstown’s organizational strategy and based on this,

what should the HR priorities be (Figure 1-10)? (5%) Defend your classification using case

facts and select appropriate HR priorities.

4. Q2: Summarize the HR problems that are evident at Crosstown based on the

information you have been given (25%): Identify all the problems and define them critically,

using text concepts. For example

5. Q3: With a focus on the retail supervisors, detail the specific HR practices, policies

and procedures that you would recommend to support Crosstown’s HR Strategy (35%):

Describe each recommended HR practice, policy and procedure in depth, support with text

concepts and provide examples that are applicable to a retail environment.

6. Conclusion (5%): Write a brief conclusion, summarizing your consulting team’s short

and long term recommendations

7. Group Process Report and Final Team Contract (25%): Citing the concepts from the

reading “Team Building Tools for Students,” and using information from previous team

assignments, write a report on your team’s effectiveness, and the various stages of its

development. In the Appendix include a) the final version of your Team Contract (Vision,

Goals, Project Plan and Charter) and b) summarize each team members’ responsibilities during

and between meetings.

8. Deductions: Marks will be deducted for poor organization, flow, readability,

contradictions or overlap reflecting ineffective teamwork, low grasp of subject- the paper is a

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rephrasing of the material rather than demonstrating a grasp of the subject and critical thinking,

poor grammar, syntax, or spelling, citation inaccuracy and/or lack of professionalism i.e. sources

not cited or not cited correctly using APA.

9. Team Assignment-Part 4: Peer Evaluation (Individual, due Seminar 10)

You will be required to submit an evaluation of your peers based on the contribution and

effort they have put into the completion of the project. This evaluation should be based on the

criteria for member participation and duties as set out in your team vision, goals, project plan and

charter. In doing so, you need to consider the different roles that were assigned to each team

member and reflect on whether they have fulfilled their tasks in a timely and efficient manner.

This is a simple one page document that you will be required to submit in Seminar 10.

Submissions will not be accepted after this date and late submissions will be penalized. Failure to

submit your peer evaluation will result in a failing grade on the group project. The peer

evaluation should not take you more than a few minutes to complete (provided you have worked

with your team members!), so please do not forget to submit them and risk losing marks.

Your final grade on the group project will be comprised of the grade allocated for the project

multiplied by the percentage/evaluation you receive from your team members.

The peer evaluation document should include: Your section number, your name, your

team name, the names of each of the members of your team (including yourself) and an

evaluation out of 100 points for each of the members including yourself. Below is an example of

what the peer evaluation form should look like as well as how the your grade will be calculated.

Name: Student 1 Section: 011 Team: X

Team Members and Evaluation: Student 1 = 100; Student 2 = 95; Student 3 = 90; Student 4 =

95; Student 5 = 90

When all of the evaluations have been compiled. A table like the one below will be created:

Student 1 Student 2 Student 3 Student 4 Student 5

Student 1 100 100 100 100 100

Student 2 95 100 90 90 100

Student 3 90 100 100 95 95

Student 4 95 100 85 100 95

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Student 5 90 100 85 100 100

Percentage 95% 100% 93.75% 98.75% 98.75%

To calculate Student 1’s %, the lowest evaluation will be dropped (in this case 90) and the other

4 will be averaged (100 + 95 + 90 + 95 = 95%). If the team received 80% on the group report

(20/25) then Student 1’s grade will be 80 x 95% = 76% or 19/25.

Please note that groups are expected to speak with their seminar leader early in the process to

discuss and identify any concerns before they become real problems.

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