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Using the PTPS to Create a New Team
In 2003 I was engaged by three companies jointly to help them create a team of middle managers from each company. These middle managers would lead various aspects of the design, development, testing and delivery of a high tech product which had been won by a joint bid. the team reported to the project lead, a senior VP of one of the companies which was designated as the Prime Contractor. In the past these companies both competed and worked together. The team consisted mostly of mechanical and electrical engineers with more than 15 years experience in their industry. The requirements for the product were challenging and required "break-throughs" in several design areas.
I used the Parker Team Player Survey to assess the preferences of the members and how this would affect their ability to identify and resolve problems that arose. There were approximately nine members of the leadership team. I also assessed their key reports which brought the total to 25 people.
The results indicated a high number of Contributors and very few Communicators. In the feedback session the main theme was that this was a task focused group and not a process focused group. My recommendation, along with the rationale for the recommendation, was to spend time developing group processes to raise and resolve issues and differences. It also included the potential pitfalls of having so many Contributors in resolving problems.
To make a long story short, they elected not to develop group processes as they had too much work to do and felt that if problems arose, the data could speak for itself. No surprises there!
After two years, I learned the project failed and the contract was canceled because they could not overcome the technical problems that arose due to "differences of opinion."
Bob Fritz, Consultant
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