Problem Solving and Collaboration

“And now come, ..... and let us reason together, that ye may understand;.”

As a leader, you aren't just to have your team complete tasks. Your team is really called upon to solve problems. Many times, the more difficult the problem, the more inefficiencies, conflicts, and frustrations can happen in your team. Think back on some of your group projects for your courses.

Many times, you will find to create the best product, or end result requires collaboration as an organization.

What Can I Do to Problem Solve More Effectively?

Solving problems as a group can many times be more challenging because people in the group are in different stages. So a person may not be ready to evaluate solutions because they are still generating solutions. A few people in the group could be ready to make a plan and execute it while others are still evaluating solutions. Having people in different stages is problematic. As a leader, it will be important to keep everyone on the same stage and progressing together.

Habit 5 and Habit 6 Revisited

Watch the following videos about Habit 5 and Habit 6 and think about how practicing these habits help with problem solving in an organization:

The Nature of Synergy

Example of Christ: A House Divided / Jesus Declares: I Am the Light of the World, the Truth Shall Make You Free

WATCH A House Divided or READ Luke 11:14-26; Matthew 12:31-42. Also WATCH Jesus Declares I am the Light of the World the Truth Shall Make You Free or READ John 8:12-58.

What do we learn in these examples about the need for a leader to seek and generate light and to drive out darkness from the organization?
In what ways does Jesus drive out darkness in these examples?
What must a leader do to establish a collaborative culture of good works? How can a leader know when the culture is sick and darkness must be cast out?
What does this verse in Jacob 5 teach us about the process of removing that which is harmful or bad for the organization and fostering a culture based on principles of light?

Anatomy of Peace

You will begin your reading of the Anatomy of Peace. While The Anatomy of Peace teaches principles that you may incorporate into collaborating with others in groups, the main purpose of your reading, for now, is to begin your preparation for the next few weeks ahead when we will learn and apply principles of seeing others more fully, overcoming conflict, influencing others for good, and other life-changing principles. While it isn’t long, we will be reading the whole book, so it’s best to start now and enjoy the journey. We’re confident that you will find important truths and principles that will impact you for years to come as you practice disciple-leadership.

Part 1: The Heart of Peace

Watch this video, Anatomy of Peace.

Read all of Part 1: The Heart of Peace (Chapters 1-7)

- Remember to take notes as you read.

Watch Two Mindsets.

Reflect on the following, "How can an inward mindset by me or by others impact the collaboration of my group or team?"
You will apply these concepts in future assignments.

How can I improve collaboration with others?

Watch the following video and read the talk and reflect on the following questions::

The 7 Habits Video: Walls video.
Counseling with Our Councils Elder M. Russell Ballard.

What can you do to prevent the "walls" from being built in your organization? and how to encourage collaboration?

How can you prevent yourself from being the "one-cylinder" of your organization's engine?

How to use the AMP model for organizational engagement?

Organizational engagement means the level of commitment and connection that the employees have to your organization. The level of engagement has been proven to be connected to business success and performance. It also indicates the satisfaction of your employees, which helps retention and loyalty. A couple of chapters ago, you learned Daniel Pink's AMP model.

AMP Model

AUTONOMY: The urge to direct our own lives
MASTERY: The desire to get better and better in something that matters
PURPOSE: The yearning to do what we do in the service of something larger than ourselves

PONDER: It has been said that "Rewards narrow our focus and concentrate the mind." Reflect on the following questions:

Why is this a problem for complex tasks and work?
Do you agree with the assertion that for complex problems, if-then rewards don't work? Why or why not?
What then, is the role of pay?

Mini-Case: Wilderness Survival Scenario

You have gone on a Boundary Waters canoe trip with five friends to upper Minnesota and southern Ontario in the Quetico Provincial Park. Your group has been traveling Saganagons Lake to Kawnipi Lake, following through Canyon Falls and Kennebas Falls and Kenny Lake. 15 -18 miles away is the closest road, which is arrived at by paddling through lakes and rivers and usually portaging (taking the land path) around numerous falls. Saganagons Lake is impossible to cross in bad weather, generally because of heavy rain. The nearest town is Grand Marais, Minnesota, 60 miles away. That town has plenty of camping outfitters but limited medical help, so residents rely on hospitals farther to the south.

The terrain is about 70 percent land and 30 percent water, with small patches of land here and there, in between the lakes and rivers. Bears are not uncommon in this region. It's now mid-May, when the (daytime) temperature ranges from about 25° to 70° Fahrenheit, often in the same day. Nighttime temperatures can be in the 20s. Rain is frequent during the day (night, too) and can be life-threatening if the temperature is cold. It's unusual for the weather to stay the same for more than a day or two. Generally, it will rain one day and be warm and clear the next, with a third day windy: It's not easy to predict what type of weather will come next. In fact, it may be clear and warm, and then rainy and windy all in the same day.

Your group was in two canoes going down the river when they came to some rapids. Rather than taking the portage route on land, the group foolishly decided to shoot the rapids by canoe. Unfortunately, everyone fell out of the canoes, and some banged against the rocks. Luckily no one was killed, but one person suffered a broken leg, and several others had cuts and bruises. Both canoes were damaged severely. Both were bent in half - one with an open tear of 18 inches, the other with two tears of 12 and 15 inches long. Both have broken gunwales (the upper edges on both sides). You lost the packs that held the tent, most clothing, nearly all the food, cooking equipment, fuel, the first aid kit, and the flashlight. Your combined possessions include these items:

Fanny pack of food (cheese, salami, etc.)
Plastic-covered map of the region
Six personal flotation devices
Two fishing poles (broken)
Set of clothes for three (wet)
One yellow Frisbee
Water purification tablets
Duct tape (one 30’ roll)
Whiskey (one pint, 180 proof)
Insect repellant (one bottle)
Matches (30, dry)
Parachute cord (35’)
Compass
Six sleeping bags (synthetic)

You had permits to take this trip, but no one knows for sure where you are, and the closest phone is in Grand Marais. You were scheduled back four days from now, so it's likely a search party will not be sent out until at least five more days have passed (because you could have been delayed a day or so in getting back). Just now, it has started to drizzle, and it looks like rain will follow. Your task is to figure out how to survive in these unpredictable and possibly harsh conditions until you can get help.

This week's case study experience is from pp. 214-215 from Organizational Behavior: Essentials for Improving Performance and Commitment, by Jason A. Colquitt, Jeffery A. LePine, and Michael J. Wesson. 2009. McGraw-Hill.