In Analyzing the Current Case Study

In analyzing the current case study, the stage that the group is in could be misread as storming but they are in the norming stage. Though there is an issue with getting Mike to come to meetings and pull his weight of the group, the other group members are building relationships with one another and working together. Outside of Mike, everyone in the group seems to be on the same page. They are socializing with each other outside of class and group meetings, like the time that they were all in the cafeteria. Given Christine had an understanding of the stages of group development, as the leader, she would have known that she needed to focus more on the forming stage. Had she done that, she would have been able to identify everyone’s reason for taking the class and what outcome they were expecting. She would have known what, outside of the class, would prohibit them from making it to the group meetings (i.e. work, kids, etc.) and figured out a way to work around that. With that, the problem with Mike could have been resolved before it even started.

The primary problem that the group and Christine are facing would be Mike’s lack of group participation and lack of work he has contributed. The secondary problem would be that the final project is represents 30 percent of the final grade and they are being graded as a group and not on their individual contributions. Due to the fact that Christine is very devoted to maintaining an A-average, this being a group project, if one person doesn’t carry their weight, everyone is affected. Had Christine understood individual membership in a team, she would have known that she should have first identified who had the same goals and wanted the same outcome as she. The step would have helped her and the other members identify who the social loafer was, giving everyone the opportunity to express their feeling towards the situation and give their input on what should and could be done to cover the slack of the “loafer”. The group project represents 30 percent of the final grade and given that there was someone in the group who was not holding up their end of the bargain in completing their part of the group task, would affect everyone’s grade. This is because they are being graded as a group work and not their individual contributions. So, regardless of the time and effort Christine or the other members put into their work to achieve the goals of the project, they would still be held responsible for the “loafers” inability to complete his part. It is mentioned that each group would be heard by the other class members, who would be the “members of the board of directors of the company” and based on the presentation, would then be given a grade. I believe that should be allowed to grade each member, based on the work they contributed and it should be given to the professor, where she should use this, as well as, the overall group presentation to configure the project