Quality management reflective report

Quality management reflective report

Description

I was given an opportunity to participate in the Age UK Fundraising project, which involves raising funds and awareness about the work of Age UK. My primary role was the quality manager. The responsibilities bestowed upon me included Project Manager, drafting Project Plan, and Quality Management. The team developed well with the appropriate skill set among the members. After our first meeting, I noticed a lot of challenges. The team Lacked commitment and teamwork.

Our first meeting was accompanied by little attendance. The members in attendance did not understand the agendas of the meeting. We could reach the rest of the members. Some sent apology emails claiming they had busy schedules and urgent workloads to handle. The confusion drove in as it was not possible to move ahead with the plans. Tension and uncertainty were high in its first meeting. The meeting was held online due to the recent pandemic, which has crippled the outdoor activities. We organized the meeting randomly, and a few members were in attendance due to a lack of information and ignorance.

We also experienced poor communication. At the beginning of the project, I realized that not every member was aware of the schedule and plans. We were not on the same page. The activities were not running as expected. Many were misinformed, and those having difficulties with the assigned task could not find assistance. To build the team, i picked task managers WHO welcomed the responsibility with open arms fully ready to perform the duty to the best of my ability. We concluded the meeting with the next meeting’s agenda ability. We ended the session with the next meeting’s agenda.

During our next meeting, I noticed the increased members who were not informed of the agenda, and neither did they know why they were included in the groups. Conflicts arose due to blame games and disorganization. I was forced to restart the plans of the group since many disagreed with the schedule claiming they had personal errands that they had to attend, and they must be included in the group’s agenda. Further, I noticed unique traits and characters, which included laziness and ignorance on the long term goals of the group.

To add to the development of the group, my members and I organized for team building. All members began showing commitment due to the discussion about the focus on the long term benefits of the group. The benefits derived from full participation are numerous besides the academic credits that come along with the accomplishment of the simulation. Business simulation adds to the accounting and finances, which are entirely beneficial in the corporate world. Finally, the team became fully functional, matured, and well-organized.

Feelings

Failure to achieve the objectives as planned as a result of poor communication, lack of teamwork, and commitment among the members made me tensed and disappointments. I was so angry at the group members for failing to work with determination and responsibility for us to attain our set goals. I almost gave up on them, but renewed my commitment and promised myself I would achieve despite the hurdles.

Despite the challenges encountered, some of the members motivated me. We shared ideas on how we will move on. The fact that some members were skilled gave me an upper hand to conquer the challenges encountered. The poor communication was resolved through the creation of What Sapp groups and Skype to enable us to share information. The flow of communication facilitated the timely accomplishment of the given tasks.

Evaluation

Communication

During the project period, I honed my communication skills. The forums and other social media groups involved a professional mode of passing information. I learned how to write professional emails and how to engage in a group discussion giving valid points. When explaining concepts and suggestions, I improved my public speaking skills.

Leadership

The challenges we faced as the group allowed me to learn more about leadership. I was given the mandate to manage a small aimed at accomplishing a task. The team objective was well achieved. Together with the project manager, we fulfilled the bigger mission of mobilizing members and keep them on the path to a unified goal. The commitment was later seen under my advice.

Critical thinking and creativity

The project allowed me to demonstrate and use critical thinking when handling the assigned activities. I designed a perfect project schedule for my group. The goals were clear and achievable. Creativity is vital in handling challenges. My suggestion towards creating a united team and managing the risks and time gave the team a boost towards accomplishing the main objective under a tight schedule

Table 1:  Fifteen leadership competencies

I applied Dulewicz theory where the members were given sense of self awareness and motivation. The members were guided by the project goals and engaging group discussions. The leadership competences aided success of the group project (Dulewicz et al.)

Analysis

Tuchman highlights five stages of team development. During the forming stage is often begins with confusion but with god leadership the team members are well acquainted with project schedules and plans. During our first meeting we made selection of the task managers and made the task polling.

The second stage according to the theory is the storming stage which involves conflicts and responsibilities. Conflicts arose due to blame games and disorganization. The meeting was not impressive. At this stage the members show unique traits and personalities which slightly affected the continuity of the project

Another stage of the theory is norming stage which encompassed the partial development of the group. At this stage, we experienced slight laziness on the task and ignorance among some members. Most embers became active participants and contributors towards the accomplishment of the long objectives of the project.

At, performing stage the team had been cemented by team building activity. Cooperation was experienced and most tasks had been finalized. Finally, at adjourning stage, the primary objectives had been fulfilled such as u together fundraising events, digital and management products supporting evidence for the final project report.

Conclusion/lesson learnt

Importance of teamwork

Collaboration and teamwork are essential in project management and outside work. I learned the significance of being a team player. I was assigned a task that deemed quite challenging. I could not find a trace on where to begin due to inadequate knowledge. The forum created helped me gain knowledge and appropriate skills concerning the academic area. I managed to accomplish the task with a little help from the team members. This might as well help me in future when I lead a project team

How to create a capable project team

The idea of creating an effective team might look easy, but in a real sense, the task requires competent skills of leadership and analysis. I did not understand well how to manage a large group. I learned that small groups are useful, especially if the skills match and have the required available resources.

Team-building

Team building activities were organized due to a lack of commitment and teamwork among the members. From my observation, I understood very well how to mobilize the team towards a unified goal. Despite the tight schedule and workload, members managed to prioritize the project meetings, which lead to the accomplishment of more than the project but enhanced unity

Action plan

According to Dulewicz and Higgs project success is achieved through planning ahead, organizing resources and coordinating them efficiently (Dulewicz et al). In future, I will draw a well-informed plan comprising of set smart goals which can be attained. The project goals will be specific to enable each member to be work towards attaining them. The goals will be measurable to evaluate the performances of the project team at each level and allows corrective measures to be taken to correct any ineffectiveness and fosters team work.

References

Dulewicz, Victor, Malcolm Higgs, and Mark Slaski. “Measuring emotional intelligence: content, construct and criterion‐related validity.” Journal of Managerial Psychology (2003).

Gibbs, G. “The reflective cycle.” Kitchen S (1999) An appraisal of methods of reflection and clinical supervision. Br J Theatre Nurs 9.7 (1988): 313-7.