Effective interpersonal and team communication skills for engineers by
Publication Date: 2013
Presents engineers with a communication microskills model, for both technical issues and social situations. Gives tips on how to engage, listen, manage conflict, and influence others with highly constructive, repeatable communication exchanges. Historically, the need for communication skills was not particularly emphasized in engineering education. However, recent studies show that clear, spoken communication is an essential competency for an engineer. Introduces key principles of communication that support clear exchanges in a technical context. Using self-assessment tools and practical examples, as well as engineering-specific case studies, the book helps engineers develop effective communication and presentation skills, allowing them to successfully respond to technical challenges in day-to-day engineering jobs.
Effective team leadership for engineers by
ISBN: 0863419542
An essential guide for engineers who are new to the role of leading a team. Packed with practical information, advice and case studies, this book not only presents you with the insights to get your team rapidly up to speed and working to their full potential, but also shows how to problem solve, and keep the team on track through turbulent times.
Effective teamwork : practical lessons from organizational research, 2nd ed. by
Publication Date: 2012
Most organizations see effective teamwork as essential to their success, but find that the reality of working in teams presents many practical difficulties. This text, based on rigorous research evidence, provides all the tools necessary to help teams overcome these difficulties, including case studies, discussion questions, exercises and questionnaires. Drawing on the latest psychological research, Effective Teamwork examines the factors which affect team functioning both positively and negatively.
How NASA builds teams: mission critical soft skills for scientists, engineers, and project teams by
Publication Date: 2009
Every successful organization needs high-performance teams to compete and succeed. Yet, technical people are often resistant to traditional 'touchy-feely' teambuilding. To improve communication, performance, and morale among NASA’s technical teams, former NASA Astrophysicist Dr. Charlie Pellerin developed the 4D teambuilding process - an approach that requires only a fraction of the time and resources of traditional training methods and has boosted team performance in hundreds of NASA project teams, engineering teams, and management teams.
The Leadership Challenge by
Publication Date: 2012
The 25th anniversary edition of the bestselling business classic, completely revised and updated For more than 25 years, The Leadership Challenge has been the most trusted source on becoming a better leader, selling more than 2 million copies in over 20 languages since its first publication. Based on Kouzes and Posner's extensive research, this all-new edition casts their enduring work in context for today's world, proving how leadership is a relationship that must be nurtured, and most importantly, that it can be learned. Features over 100 all-new case studies and examples, which show The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership in action around the world Focuses on the toughest organizational challenges leaders face today Addresses changes in how people work and what people want from their work An indispensable resource for leaders at all levels, this anniversary edition is a landmark update and must-read.
Leadership for engineers : the magic of mindset by
ISBN: 9780073385938
Stories of emerging leaders and their experiences, as well as information and tools that help you as a student reflect on your experience and decide what comes next. Every student has untapped leadership abilities. This book helps them find and develop their inner leader, become the person he or she wants to be, and pursue their passions in ways that are productive and rewarding for themselves and others. Identifies some common myths about leadership in technical fields, and then helps students identify their own leadership skills in the face of false assumptions. Shows students how to make a real difference and explain why the world needs every student's best professional self. Each of the four parts of Leadership for Engineers includes four chapters comprised of testimonies from emerging leaders, as well as reflective questions at the end of each chapter. Reading through the scenarios and working through the questions will prepare you to lead in your career and your life.
Maintaining effective engineering leadership by
Publication Date: 2013
Argues that engineering leadership is the result of the development of four fundamental concepts: personal managerial skills, self-leadership skills, operational leadership skills, and organizational leadership skills. Each is explored in turn, and examples are taken from the space shuttle Columbia disaster to show the importance of these processes and skills, and what can happen when they are ignored. The book introduces the Capability Maturity Model which provides organizations with appropriate processes and knowledge guidelines to ensure effective leadership to avoid such disasters. Topics covered include: a good process gone bad - setting the stage with the Columbia disaster, the importance of process, leadership is guiding a process-oriented organization, maintaining vigilance for product and the need for change, the financial impact on process and operations, how do we change - what do we need to do?, individual capability, recommendations for process and capability in today's industries.
Team building by
Publication Date: 2006
Deftly mixes theory, practical tools and personal experience into a provocative book about building business teams. Outlines the fundamentals that every empowering manage must understand before attempting the process of team building.
Teamwork and Project Management by
ISBN: 9780073534909
Teamwork, projects, collaborative problem solving, innovation, and creativity are central to success in engineering, especially in the increasingly global economy. The overall goal of Teamwork and Project Management, Fourth Edition is to prepare you for these aspects of professional practice in engineering. The approach involves engaging you in activity, reflection, and collaboration to build your knowledge and skills. The fourth edition represents a major redesign and includes an expanded number of collaborators. Specific goals for readers of Teamwork and Project Management, Fourth edition include: *To help frame the project team and identify and use an appropriate project management team. *To understand the dynamics of team development and interpersonal problem solving. *To identify strategies for accelerating the development of true team effectiveness. *To understand the critical dimensions of project scope, time, and cost management. *To understand the critical dimensions of project scope, time and cost management. *To explore a variety of best practices including anticipating, preventing, and overcoming barriers to project success.
Technical minds : leading and getting the best work from your technically-minded team by
ISBN: 9781451583151
A compact guide for engineers striving to be stronger leaders, better communicators, and experts in bringing out the best in others. A straightforward and highly applicable guide for scientists, engineers, and technologists moving up the corporate ladder and wishing to maximize leadership abilities. Weaving vignettes from real-life experiences, Nazarian inspires and energizes, teaching lessons on communicating effectively, recognizing potential, motivating, and maximizing productivity and employee confidence. What makes a leader strong, successful, and respected-while reinforcing the team's expert knowledge, natural instincts, and creativity. Covers how to create a reputation for facing reality, following through, rewarding employees fairly, honoring commitments, and leading individuals to achieve their own workplace success.
Essential Question:
INTERPERSONAL AND GROUP DYNAMICS CHAPTER 8 OVERVIEW Chapter 8 Summary In Chapter 8, the authors explore interpersonal and group dynamics in organizations. People spend much of their time at work interacting with others. They often find.
How can a project manager instill the team concept and take advantage of team member diversity and group dynamics?
CONTEXT:
Working productively as a member of a group is not as easy as it might seem. One of the many responsibilities of the project manager is to make sure that the group works as a team with each member pulling his or her weight. To do this, project managers must have a sound knowledge of the principles of group dynamics. One thing that affects group dynamics is the personality types of the members. Effective managers use group dynamics and personality types to manage groups and maximize efficiency and productivity.
TASK:
The class will be divided into several groups, each group having three members, if possible. Each group gets construction materials (for example, (1) gum drops and toothpicks, (2) building blocks, (3) playing cards, (4) straws and tape). With the materials provided, each group will attempt to build the tallest tower with no verbal communication among group members.
Each group will then discuss the group dynamics that took place as the tower was building built. Using Tuckman’s stages of group dynamics, each group will determine its stage of group development as they worked on and completed the tower-building exercise, giving reasons for their classification.
Once the summaries have been completed, each group will do research (Internet, library) on personality differences, group interactions, group roles, and the team concept. The result will be a one-page synthesis of the results, using a word processor to produce the synthesis. This research synthesis will be compared with the summary of the discussion following the tower construction project. Based on this comparison, a set of principles to guide further group work will be determined.
Using different construction material, repeat the task of attempting to build the tallest tower. After completion of the towers and identification of the winning team, each group will reflect on its successes and failures using Tuckman’s stages of group dynamics. Differences in the stages between the first and second tower-building exercises will be examined.
DELIVERABLES: Each group will outline a set of principles of team building that connect group dynamics with personality types.Based on this outline, each group will make a presentation in which the two building projects are discussed in terms of the principles, providing examples of each principle based on what happened during the two tower-building exercises.The presentation should end with an answer to the essential question: “How can a project manager instill the team concept and make the best advantage of student diversity and group dynamics?”The answer to the question must follow logically from the information included earlier in the presentation.
PROJECT 3 UNPACKED CONTENT
1.Group
A group is a collection of three or more people that is formed for some purpose (e.g., complete work that is too difficult or complex for one person to complete, provide support for one another). Groups differ in terms of their type, structure, roles, norms, and cohesiveness.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_gptRmpFyk
2.Group Dynamics
Group Dynamics is a social theory proposed by Bruce Tuckman in the 1960s and now widely accepted. The theory states that groups through predicable stages as they begin and carry out their work. The five stages are forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning. http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/management/Gr-Int/Group-Dynamics.html
3.Group Interactions
Group Interactions are the ways in which personalities, agenda, and goals of the individual group members affect the way the group functions (or does not function) and the work it accomplishes (or fails to accomplish). Group interactions also include the ways that group members treat one another and ways in which their personalities affect other members of the group.
4.Group Roles
Group roles are the jobs or functions that people have within a group. These roles can be grouped into three categories: task roles (e.g., coordinator), social-interpersonal roles (e.g., encourager), and dysfunctional roles (e.g., dominator).http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMM_85.htm
5.Nonverbal Cues
Nonverbal cues are ways of sending messages to others without the use of spoken or written language. A researcher at UCLA concluded that as much as 93 percent of communication effectiveness is determined by nonverbal cues. Examples of nonverbal cues are facial expressions, body movements and posture, gestures, eye contact, space, and touch.
Personality can be defined as the sum total of a person’s behavioral and emotional qualities or characteristics. A personality type is a category of people with similar qualities or characteristics. For example, people often distinguish people with so-called Type A personalities from those with so-called Type B personalities. Type As are ambitious, competitive, impatient, and “tightly wound.” In contrast, Type Bs are easy-going, relaxed, and patient. In the business world, one of the most common ways of understanding personality types is the Myers-Briggs classification system. http://www.personalitypathways.com/type_inventory.html
7.Project execution.
See Project 1.
8.Project closing.
See Project 1.
9.Team Concept
The team concept is a modern business model that is based on the belief that people who work effectively in teams can accomplish more than individuals can accomplish working alone. Building the team concept requires that project managers get each team member to personally commit to the team’s goal. In a well-functioning team, members understand the personalities and motivations of the members and communicate clearly to avoid misunderstanding and to ensure that the goal will be met.
To synthesize information means to compile ideas into a coherent whole that combines the diverse views and organizes them to show the relationship and differences among them.http://www.west.asu.edu/johnso/synthesis/learners.html
11.Argument
Unlike our common understanding, an argument, as the term is used in oral and written communication, is NOT a heated disagreement about some issue. Rather, an argument is a connected series of statements that lead to and support a conclusion. There are three stages to an argument: Premises, inference, and conclusion. http://www.dartmouth.edu/~writing/materials/student/ac_paper/logic.shtml