Management 200 Oral Exam

Becoming the Boss - QUESTION 15 According to this article, what are the five myths and realities? For each of the five realities, discuss the strategy to manage effectively and give an example.

1. Myth Authority-"Now I will have the freedom to implement my ideas." Reality Interdependency-"It's humbling that someone who works for me could get me fired." 2. Myth Formal Authority-"I will finally be on top of the ladder." Reality "Everything but"-"Folks were wary, and you really had to earn it." 3. Myth Control-"I must get compliance from my subordinates." Reality "Commitment-"Compliance does not equal commitment." 4. Myth Managing one-on-one-"My role is to build relationships with individual subordinates." Reality Leading the team-"I need to create a culture that will allow the group to fulfill its potential." 5. Myth Keeping the operation in working order-"My job is to make sure that operations runs smoothly." Reality Making changes that will make the team perform better-" I am responsible for initiating changes to enhance the group's performance." In order to manage effectively you need to be able to rely on your employees and they need to be able to rely on you. In order to be interdependent you need to be able to help each other in order to reach your goals. The manager needs to know that even tho they have power they don't have full authority over their employees. They need to be committed to their employees and the projects in front of them in order to get things done. In order for a manager to be effective with his or her team they need to lead by example. If the employees see their manager slacking off while they're working hard they will be more likely to slack off as well and nothing will get accomplished. The manager also needs to have critical thinking and problem solving skills. If they see a problem or an opportunity to boost productivity they need to find a way to do so so that they can advance the company.

Name the nine major considerations when building a group into an effective team. Briefly, describe what a manager should do in each area. How have you used at least two of these considerations to ensure that your service-learning group is developing into a high performing team?

1. Cooperation- when efforts are systematically integrated to achieve a collective objective. 2. Trust- reciprocal faith in others' intentions and behaviors. 3. Cohesiveness- the tendency of a group or team to stick together. 4. Performance Goals & Feedback- specific, measurable performance goals with continual feedback to tell team members how well they are doing. 5. Motivation through Mutual Accountability- managers often allow teams to do the hiring of new members. When members feel their efforts matter and the work is meaningful. 6. Small Teams or Large Teams- Small Teams: Advantages: better interaction and better morale. Disadvantages: Fewer resources, possibly less innovation, and unfair work distribution. Large Teams: Advantages: More resources and division of labor. Disadvantage: Less Interaction, Lower morale, and social loafing- exerting less effort when working in groups than when working alone. 7. Roles- socially determined expectations of how individuals should behave in a specific position. Examples: Task role- consists of behavior that concentrates on getting the team's tasks done. Maintenance Role- consists of behavior that fosters constructive relationships among team members. 8. Norms- general guidelines or rules of behavior that most group or team members follow. 9. Groupthink- a cohesive group's blind unwillingness to consider alternatives. Avoiding Groupthink by being aware of the symptoms, and having members perform as the Devil's Advocate. Motivation through Mutual Accountability through the development of our Team Contract.

Describe the stages of group development. What should the leader do to facilitate each? How did this work in your team? In "The Case of the Forgotten Group Member", why was Mike considered a better team member than Janet, even though Janet completed more work than Mike?

1. Forming- the process of getting oriented and getting acquainted- leader asserts authority to fulfill the group's need for leadership and direction. Leaders should allow time for people to become acquainted and to socialize. 2. Storming- characterized by the emergence of individual personalities and roles and conflict within the group. The Leader should encourage members to suggest ideas, voice disagreements, and work through their conflicts about tasks and goals. 3. Norming- conflicts are resolved, close relationships develop, and unity and harmony emerge. Here the leader should emphasize unity and help identify team goals and values. 4. Performing- members concentrate on solving problems and completing the assigned task. The Leader should allow members the empowerment they need to work on tasks. 5. Adjourning- members prepare for disbandment. The leader can help ease the transition by rituals celebrating "the end" and "new beginnings." The leader can also emphasize valuable lessons learned in group dynamics to prepare everyone for future group and team efforts. Forming: We allowed time to get to know one another through team building games, Storming: We encourage open communication and for people to share their ideas. Norming: We also acknowledged common values and goals for the Service Learning Project. Performing: We are currently in the performing stage by completing individual task for our project. Mike was considered a better team member than Janet, even though Janet completed more work than Mike because Mike made an effort to meet with the group and to build relationships with the other team members. Mike participated in the Storming and Norming stages of group development, but Janet did not make it past the Forming stage.

Explain the three principal kinds of conflict and give two examples of how each one may occur.

1. Personality Conflicts- interpersonal opposition based on personal dislike or disagreement. Examples: Communication failures- misperceive and misunderstand. Personality clashes- individual differences (values, attitudes, etc.) can't be resolved. 2. Intergroup Conflicts- "we versus them" Examples: Inconsistent goals or reward systems- when people pursue different objectives. Status differences- when there are inconsistencies in power and influence. 3. Multicultural Conflicts- clashes between cultures Examples: Language Barriers and Work Styles.

What are the seven challenges for managers in the 21st century? Which two of these seem to be most challenging to your sponsoring organization? How is that evident?

1.Competitive Advantage-The ability of an organization to produce goods/services more effectively than competitors do. (Must be ahead in: being responsive to customers, innovation, quality, and efficiency) 2.Diversity - The ability to maximize the contributions of employees diverse in age, gender, race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation. 3.Globalization - The ability to communicate efficiently and effectively with people from all over the world. 4.Information technology - The ability to use e-communication, more data for decision making, artificial intelligence, and organizational changes (telecommute, video conferencing, knowledge management). 5.Ethical standards - The ability to overcome the pressures of trying to meet sales, production, and other targets. 6.Sustainability - The ability to address climate change and be a sustainable business. 7.Happiness and meaningfulness - The ability to be happy as well achieving a valued sense of one's self and one's purpose within the larger context of life and community. The two challenges that are evident for our sponsoring organization are managing for information technology and diversity. Patricia Weltin, our sponsor, informed us that her nonprofit has taken off fast and they don't have a very good organizational system. One of the parts of the project that we are creating for her is an excel spreadsheet that she can use to keep track of a lot of different information regarding her art exhibits. We were originally also going to create a website for her as well but unfortunately, it just won't work with the time frame that we are in. Diversity is also a challenge for Patricia. Her portraits are of different children with rare diseases and one of her biggest problems are diversifying the paintings.

Identify and explain the eight symptoms of Groupthink. What symptoms of Groupthink have you observed within your group or sponsoring organization? What recommendations would you make as to how Groupthink could be mitigated or avoided?

1.Invulnerability- group members have the illusion that nothing can go wrong, breeding excessive optimism and risk taking. 2.Inherent Morality-members may be assured of the rightness of their actions that they ignore the ethical implications of their decisions 3.Stereotyping of opposition-leads groups to underestimate their opponents 4.Rationalizing-protects the pet assumptions underlying the group's decisions from critical questions 5.Self censorship- stifles critical debate by not allowing oneself to voice their opinions 6.Illusion of unanimity-another way of saying that silence by a member is interpreted as consent since there are no official objections. 7.Peer pressure-leads other members to question the loyalty of the dissenters. 8.Mindguards-self appointed protectors against adverse information. Towards the beginning of the semester when we were finding a nonprofit, we wanted to work with the American Cancer Society. Mike sent numerous emails back and forth trying to figure out something that would work for our project and we were going to help plan and run a relay for life but the only ones available were ours and ones that were after we leave which would be too late. We were experiencing invulnerability at first because we were so excited that we had a great project but in the end it didn't work out.

Explain the five conversations and give an example of how you might use each in your future career.

1.Look Colleagues make fast judgments (negative ones especially) when looking at their peers, based on the briefest exposure. "Thin slices" behavior as what Harvard research says, are reactions that are triggered by differences in how we and others present ourselves. It is the way they look, move, dress, and their voice that creates an image of themselves. By having this conversation, it helps them reflect on how they intend to come across to others. Questions like: In your world what intangible credentials do you value (Education, experience, connections)? Or How do you perceive status differences? Would help the team to understand each other better. By having these conversation talked about before hand it destroys false judgments made of one another. Example: In the future when moving into a new environment for your job, by asking these questions beforehand, it will decrease the chance of your peers to have thin slice judgments of you. You would be able to adapt to the environment better, and faster. 2.Act In a diverse teams, a common source of conflict is the clashing difference behavioral norms. These norms could cause disproportionate impact, aggravating stereotypes, alienating people and disrupting communication flows. Different concepts of physical, timely, and assertiveness actions, could cause conflicts within a team. When it comes to physical differences, we should ask ourselves, what is the comfortable physical distance for interacting in a workplace. Each individual also have different time ideologies, and it's important for us to see how much it matters to one another. Finally the idea of assertiveness, should be viewed with caution, while some companies and people view volunteering as a brave and responsible move others don't. Example: It is important to know how you should act in the work environment you are in. The importance of personal distance and being on time, might differ in different companies, and is essential for employees to adapt and learn those rules before others view you differently. 3.Speak Communication is important when it comes to teams. The words we choose to express ourselves, and the way we speak in certain settings, creates possibilities for misunderstanding. Teams might have colleagues who are fluent in other languages but not the predominant language spoken within the team itself. One rule that teams use to prevent candor, is by using the "four sentence" rule. This gives encouragement for members within the team to take turns and to give each member a chance to contribute. Example:Speaking up and sharing your ideas are important, but at the same time you need to understand the way your speaking and the vocabulary choices you're making that might affect the tone of your language. It is also important to give others a chance to speak up, so ideas could be shared preventing groupthink from happening. 4.Think The biggest source of conflict on teams is from the way each member thinks. Different personalities and experiences make them alert to different signals and making them different when approaching diverse problems and decisions. This will eventually create tensions and misunderstandings when two ideas clash with each other. To fix this situation, a dutch consumer goods company, would rotate leadership of projects matching the team needs to mindsets. When the team needs a period of creativity and innovation, the free-thinkers would be in charge, and when detail-oriented members would take over when analytical goals are needed to be achieved. Team also need to find an alignment of tolerance for risk and shifting priorities. Example:Although it is important to have your own idea during group projects, it is also important to work with one another to achieve a sense of agreement. 5.Feel Team members will have different levels and intensity of their feelings when working in a group. Some are able to manage their emotions while others can't. Enthusiasm in a team is good at some degree, but to some point it should be controlled and viewed with careful control so the ideas projected are being viewed fairly. Negative feelings on the other hand, could be a sensitive issue to approach. These problems should be approached by talking about the kind of context team members are used to. It is important to talk about the conflict before it becomes destructive and immense. Example: It is important to understand your own personality before entering the new environment you are working in. By expressing your own feelings during team conversations gives your teammates an understanding of who you are as a person, and how different things impact you.

What are the five basic behaviors to help you better handle conflict? Explain each one.

1.Openness State your views openly and honestly without trying to disguise the real topic of the conflict. Look at the conflict as a better way to understand the situation in order to find a solution. Concentrate on identifying the problem and take a problem solving approach. 2.Equality Treat the status and ideas of the other members as your own, allowing them time to completely express their opinions. Evaluate each idea fairly and logically without regard to ownership. 3.Empathy Try to experience the other person's feelings and point of view, showing you are truly listening. Use expressions as "I appreciate how you feel." 4.Supportiveness Let the other person know you want to find a resolution that will benefit you both. Describe the specifics you have difficulty understanding, without evaluating or judging them. Support the other person's position when it makes sense to do so. 5.Positiveness Be positive about the other person and your relationship. Express your willingness to work toward a resolution that will be feasible for everyone.

Define the four management functions. Assess Chet Craig's effectiveness with regard to these four functions. What specific suggestions do you have for how he can improve?

1.Planning-Setting goals and determining how you're going to achieve them. Example:Chet was driving to work and set a bunch of goals for himself and was really excited to go through with them. 2.Organizing-Arranging tasks, people, and other resources to accomplish the work. Example:In the car he was figuring out all of the ways he could organize.complete his special project. However, when he got to work he would walk around the plant and the office multiple times throughout the day and people would com up and give him problems hes not responsible of. 3.Leading-Motivating, directing, and otherwise influencing people to work hard to achieve the organization's goals Example:Chet really was lacking as a leader because he would take other people's problems and just figure them out himself without telling the subordinates that realistically they could be completing most of the tasks 4.Controlling-Monitoring performance, comparing it with goals, and taking corrective action if needed. Example:chet wasn't able to complete any of the goals that he set for himself because of all the problems he had to tackle throughout the day. In the car home he was thinking of different ways to organize his time and was also debating getting an assistant. Suggestions: Chet shouldn't walk around the plant so many times a day He should have a certain time of the day where he shuts his office door and focuses on his work he should allocate certain amounts of time to meet with subordinates so that he can help them solve their own problems on their own

What are the three skills that exceptional managers need? Explain and give an example of each one. Which is most important and why?

1.Technical skills - The ability to perform a certain job. Technical skills consist of the job specific knowledge needed to perform well in a specialized field. The skills are most important in the lower levels of management. An example of this would be Example: Computer information systems or Applied Analytics - you need to know how to use certain software's such as SAS Enterprise Guide or Tableau 2.Conceptual skills - The ability to think analytically, visualize the organization as a whole, and understand how the parts work. Example: Knowing how the marketing, HR, accounting, finance, and IT parts of the organization interact and knowing which information needs to flow through certain departments 3.Human skills (Soft skills) - The ability to interact well with people and the ability to motivate and inspire people to do good work. Example: Having your subordinates have trust and faith in you as a manager so that they can produce their best work for you. Most important

According to Buckingham (What Great Managers Do) what are the three things (levers) you need to know about someone to manage them well? Demonstrate your understanding by giving examples of each one. How do they relate to "playing chess"?

1.her/His Strengths (make most out of strengths) -By asking questions What was the best day at work you've had in the past three months? What was the worst day you've had at work in the past three months? If they fail, you need to explain the failure as a lack of effort rather than talents 4 approaches to overcome those weakness 1.Offer the relevant training, allow some time for the employee to incorporate the new skill and look for signs of improvement 2.Find the individual a partner, who has talents that are strong in the areas that individual is weak in 3.A technique that helps accomplish through discipline, on what the person can't accomplish through instinct 4.Rearrange the employee's working world to render his weakness irrelevant Example:Judi as an employee fails to finish her work on time for each meeting, her time management skills were her weakness and working as the secretary of the product manager, she was unable to attend to certain meetings on time. While she was able to take good notes, the manager needed to find a way in helping her with fixing this situation. The manager was able to ask the 2 broad questions and see that although she was a great note taker, she never took notes on her agenda recording and reminding herself what she had to do each day. Thus, the manager paired her up with a partner that knew how to do so, and Judi eventually started learning how to write down her daily agendas, and used her strengths to conquer her weaknesses. 2.Trigger that activates those strengths Turns them on to perform with their strengths. This can be tricky, because the triggers of each individual are different and mysterious. The most powerful trigger a person can have is recognition, and not money. Example-Bob played an important role when planning his event for his graduation party. During the party, the manager publicly celebrated Bob's important role when planning the party. By doing so, Bob was recognized, and triggered him into doing better the next time he had to plan a party. It is important to note that not everyone is like Bob, managers need to tailor praise or other triggers differently to fit the person in the right way. 3.How He/She Learns those strengths 3 Styles Analyzing Analyzers understand a task by taking it apart, examining the elements, and reconstructing it back into pieces. Example:Claudia is an analyzer. She craves information, and she needs to know everything about the subject before she is comfortable moving on. She will read the assigned readings and go to all the classes to gain enough information for her task. Doing Doing or Doer's are most powerful when they are performing the task. They use the technique of trial and error to learn tasks. They learn when they are in the act and figure the things themselves. Example:Tom is a doer. He would rather role-play, and experience the task a few times before moving on to the actual mission. He might make mistakes during his process of trial and error, but for him this is the fastest way of learning. Watching Watchers learn a great amount of information when they are given the chance to see the whole performance. Rather than studying individual parts, they would want to see the whole process and learn from that. Example:Stacy is a watcher. She would watch the whole process of developing a film rather than learning it piece by piece, knowing that she would only move on if she is given the complete picture. Watchers hate sitting in the classroom, they rather see the experience. Great managers play chess, because they know that their employees differ from each one, and like chess pieces each piece is important to win the match. By using these three levers, managers are able to use those chess pieces (employees) to gain advantage from different areas, and greater efficiency.

Explain the five conflict-handling styles managers use to resolve conflicts in teams. Under what circumstances is each style appropriate? Give examples of three instances when you used any of the three styles in your team. Which conflict handling style was used by Christine in "The Case of the Forgotten Group Member"?

Avoiding: Avoiding involves ignoring or suppressing a conflict. This is appropriate for trivial issues, when emotions are high and cooling-off period is needed, or when the cost of the confrontation outweighs the benefits of resolving the conflict. It is not appropriate for complex or worsening problems. Accommodating: Accommodating is allowing the desires of the other party to prevail. It may be appropriate when it is impossible to eventually get something in return or when the issue isn't important to you. It is not appropriate for complex or worsening problems. Forcing: Forcing is ordering an outcome, when a manager relies on his or her formal authority and power to resolve a conflict, but needs of the other party are largely ignored. It is appropriate when an unpopular solution must be implemented and when it is not important that others be committed to your viewpoint. Advantage is speed. Disadvantage is that it doesn't resolve personal conflict. Compromising: In compromising, both parties give up something in order to gain something. It is appropriate when both sides have opposite goals or possess equal power. It is not workable when it is used so often that it does not achieve results. Problem solving: In this style, the manager strives to confront the issue and cooperatively identify the problem, generating and weighing alternatives, and selecting a solution. It is appropriate for complex issues plagued by misunderstanding. It is inappropriate for resolving conflicts rooted in opposing value systems. Our team has used a variety of these styles. We have used the problem-solving style multiple times. For example, when constructing the project plan, we used all of our heads to identify problems, compose different ideas and thoughts and ultimately selecting a solution out of our ideas. We have also used compromising through when to meet at "non-sacred" meeting times. If one of us is the only one that cannot meet at a certain time, we may say no to another activity so we can come to the meeting. We would lose the time of doing the other activity, however there would be a greater gain of getting things done for our project. We have also used accommodating, although not much at all. When two members could not make a meeting, we decided to accommodate them and switch the meeting time where we could all meet to accomplish work. In "The Case of the Forgotten Group Member," Christine mostly uses the avoiding conflict-handling style. She does not address any of the problems the group is facing, especially the fact that Janet never showed up to anything. This was not a good way to handle this conflict because avoiding in this case made the problem and conflict even worse.

Pretend that you are teaching a class and explain MBO (60 seconds), including the name of the person who created it. After that, explain the four steps in the MBO process and the three things that have to happen for MBO to be successful? What is the purpose of MBO? Relate MBO to the Case of Missing Time. Use specific examples to support your answer.

Management by Objectives, or MBO, is a management technique where managers and employees work together to set, record and monitor goals for a specific period of time. The technique was first brought up by management expert Peter Drucker and came into common use in the 1960s. Goals flow down from the top and end up as personal goals for organizational members. The main concept within MBO is planning. This way members aren't reacting to events or problems but being proactive. MBO has some advantages. This includes permitting proactive behavior and a disciplined approach to goal achievement. There are also some disadvantages. This includes the fact that it requires a lot of concentrated effort. Many of these decisions have to be looked at extensively to ensure efficiency which can take time. The four steps in the MBO process are: 1.Jointly set objectives 2.Develop action plan 3.Periodically review performance 4.Give performance appraisal and rewards, if any The three things that need to happen for MBO to be successful are: 1.Top management must be committed 2.It must be applied organization wide 3.Objectives must "cascade" The main purpose of MBO is to motivate rather than to control subordinates. MBO would have been useful for Chet and his subordinates. By setting out objectives and mutual goals, CHet would have been able to make expectations more clears and delegated more time in the long run for his work on separate creative projects for the firm. By setting these objectives, Chet's subordinates may have felt more of a connection to the company and feel a greater responsibility to follow their SMART goals set by both parties. Overall, a more proactive setup would have helped Chet in the long run.

Define the components of the acronym SMART in goal setting. Provide a specific example of a SMART goal and demonstrate that it meets all criteria. SMART stands for:

Specific: Our goals should be specific so we know exactly what we need to accomplish. There needs to be no vague or ambiguous language for this reason. Measurable: There needs to be some way to measure the degree to which a goal has been reached. Attainable: Goals should be challenging but they should be realistic as well so one can realistically be able to reach it. Results-oriented (or Relevant): Goals should be in line with the organization's vision and should be relevant to the present. Target dates (or timeframe): Goals should have target dates that everyone should work to reach the goal for. Example SMART goal: For our management 200 service learning project (relevant), our team will organize a Beyond the Diagnosis event on April 19th, 2017 (target date) for our non-profit organization with at least 50 guests who will use a book to sign in (measurable). This goal is attainable because we have the resources to accomplish this goal, and it is specific because it lays out exactly what will happen.

What is the planning/ control cycle and how does it apply to your service learning project.

The planning/control cycle has two planning steps and two control steps. 1.Make the plan. (planning) 2.Carry out the plan. (planning) 3.Control direction by comparing the results with the plan. (controlling) 4.Control direction by either correcting deviations in the plan being carried out or by improving future plans. (controlling) This applies to our service learning project because we will be going through all of these steps. We have completed our plan, which is the first step. We have begun the step of carrying out the plan because we have been working on it within the last week and a half. In the near future, each time we complete a certain aspect, we can compare the achieved result to the planned result (step 3) and either fix the problem with the result if it does not meet the expectations of the plan or improve future plans if it does meet the expectations (step 4).

Discuss subordinate imposed time? What is it and why does it happen? What are three specific examples of this from the "Case of Missing Time"? How can it be avoided? Give an example of an instance where you experienced it? What was the outcome? What could have been done differently?

The subordinate imposed time is when a certain portion of the self-imposed time from the manager is taken by its subordinates. Managers should try to increase the discretionary component of their self-imposed time by minimizing the subordinate component. Thus by doing so, they will then add increment to get gain better control over their boss-imposed and system-imposed activities. Subordinate imposed time increase, due to the managers voluntarily accepting the monkeys, were in the beginning this monkey jumps between both of their backs. Eventually when the subordinate disappears, the responsibility of the monkey falls to the manager, and as more and more monkeys climb on the manager's back, the manager would be overwhelmed with all these responsibilities not knowing what to do. Throughout the "Case of Missing Time", Chet accepts different monkeys from his subordinates, and eventually falling into the hole of responsibilities that crippled him from doing his own work. The first acceptance of a monkey was in the parking lot with Al Noren. He promised Al Noren, to call him a half an hour later to talk about the missing men but he didn't. Walking into the office his second acceptance of a monkey and disturbance was during his important session of putting delivery dates on important and difficult inquiries received from customers and salesmen. He was interrupted twice by the sales correspondent and personnel vice president. The third example in the case is that there is not a specific time set for his subordinates to find help from him. Instead, they just ask for help when they need help and most of the time Chet would agree to do so. These examples can be avoided through these 5 steps 1.Monkeys should be fed or shot, Chet should not waste valuable time on postmortem or attempted resurrection. 2.Monkey population should be kept below the maximum number the manager has time to feed and manage. 3.Monkeys should be fed by appointment only. 4.Monkey should be fed face-to-face or by telephone but never by mail. 5.Every monkey should have an assigned next feeding time and degree of initiative. Each revisite should be specific and not vague. Example: During GFOB in freshmen year, I tried to take on the responsibilities, monkeys, when the team was lacking in behind the schedule. Eventually my teammates took advantage of me, and knew that I would do the work to prevent our group from getting a late penalty. The outcome was that as a team leader, I was really tired and was never able to put 100% of my effort in my own work and had to multitask and take others responsibility. As a team leader i could've changed the way we worked on our project, and talked with my teammates rather than just picking up their work and finishing them. The monkeys should have been shot, and my team mates should hav

Explain the different types of planning for the different levels of management. Include the typical time frame for which each plan is created.

There are 3 different types of planning for managers, for three levels of management. 1.Strategic planning by top management: Using their mission and vision statements, top managers do strategic planning They determine what the organization's long-term goals should be for the next 1-5 years with the resources they have available Requires visionary and directional thinking Should communicate general goals about growth and profits, and ways to achieve them 2.Tactical planning by middle management: Strategic priorities and policies are passed to middle management who do tactical planning They determine what contributions their departments or similar work units can make with their given resources during the next 6-24 months 3.Operational Planning by first line management: Middle managers then pass those plans along to first-line managers to do operational planning They determine how to accomplish specific tasks with available resources within the next 1-52 weeks

List and explain the three benefits of planning. What observations do you have about how your sponsoring organization realized these benefits? Or, what were the missed opportunities? Discuss how your team used the lesson learned from the article "Performing a Project Premortem" to improve your planning process.

Three benefits of planning: 1.Providing direction and management Planning and strategic management can help people focus on the most critical problems, choices, and opportunities If a broad group of employees is involved in the process, that can foster teamwork, promote learning, and build commitment across the organization 2.Encouraging new ideas Can help encourage new ideas by stressing the importance of innovation in achieving long-range success Management scholar Gary Hamel says that companies such as Apple have been successful because they have been able to unleash the spirit of "strategy innovation." Strategy innovation, he says, is the ability to reinvent the basis of competition within existing industries—"bold new business models that put incumbents on the defensive" 3.Developing a sustainable competitive advantage Sustainable competitive advantage occurs when an organization is able to get and stay ahead in four areas Being responsive to customers Innovating Quality Effectiveness Technology has made achieving a sustainable competitive advantage nearly impossible I think Patricia realized the benefits of our planning through the efficiency of our meetings with her, because we knew what had to be talked about and sorted out to stay on track with the plan. I think she also realized the benefits when she no longer needed the website, and since we had figured out some contingency plan, we were able to secure a substantial project within the same day. Our group learned from our project premortem because we were able to address all possible things that could go wrong. We sat down as a group during class and thought of possible ways to counteract, or prevent, those things from happening. After writing those things down, we made sure to refer back to them when writing our project plan. We did this for multiple reasons. We wanted to hold ourselves accountable, but also plan for a project that can be as successful as it possibly can.