Exam 10: Enhancing Team Meetings

Alfredo was a marketing executive at an IT firm. He regularly noticed that the team meetings he attended were extremely long. Alfredo also observed team members jumping from one idea to the next, without staying focused on the main topic. When he was made team leader of one of the projects, Alfredo decided to try to work on the issues he noticed in earlier meetings. What should Albert do?

Riverdale Junior High recently adopted a new grading system for its students. After using the new system in an exam for the first time, the school invited key representatives from the parents' association to offer feedback regarding the system, analyze its usage for the next term, and debate whether the system required any tweaks to make it better. Which type of meeting did the school convene?

At which stage of the problem-solving process does criteria identification and the development of goals and standards take place?

The research team members participating in a problem-solving meeting found some possible solutions for their cost-cutting problem. At the end of the meeting, the manager asked the members to grade each proposal on a scale of 1 to 5. What brainstorming method did the manager employ?

What is defined as the method of surmounting hurdles to accomplish a particular objective?

A problem for which there is an immediate solution is called a(n) ________ problem.

Anonymous Unlimited, an IT multinational, wanted to develop a new ethical hacking software. It involved teams from its Manchester, Milan, Bratislava, and Sarajevo offices using a certain brainstorming technique. The facilitator of the meeting simply described the goal to the teams and asked them to generate ideas. The coordinator collected the ideas and then shared them with each group for evaluation, without having to conduct a face-to-face meeting. Which brainstorming technique did the facilitator use?

At which step of a team meeting do the members find out something they were not previously aware of?

In a problem-solving meeting Theodore, the sales manager at Arsenal Gunners, was discussing with his team the recent dip in sales for their flagship product. He asked each team member to jot down his or her suggested solutions on separate pieces of paper. After this process was complete, he deliberated on each solution with the entire team. Which type of brainstorming technique did Theodore employ?

Graham was acting as the facilitator at a problem-solving meeting. He noticed that Denise, one of the participants, was continually going off-topic and rambling on about noncritical issues. He told Denise, "I'm not sure I understand how your observation relates to our meeting goal." Graham's comment helped Denise get back on track to the topic at hand. What strategy of keeping a team focused on its objective did Graham use?

Before the start of a new project, all 20 team members submitted different proposals. Rather than debating and dissecting each proposal one at a time, the meeting broke up into separate factions, each discussing a separate idea. Thus, the meeting was reduced to a cacophony of unrestrained and unfocused discussion. What was the problem in this meeting?

The manager of Sudden Valley Corp called a problem-solving meeting after noticing a few glitches in the brand-new multiple listing service website. The manager acted as a facilitator in the meeting and asked each agent to come up with as many ideas as possible within a half-hour timeframe. He also dissuaded them for criticizing any other member's ideas. After half an hour, he orally discussed each of the suggestions with the team, and they zeroed in on an appropriate solution. What problem-solving technique did the manager use?

The members of a creative writing team are asked come up with ideas for a new publicity campaign. The members are further asked to individually submit their proposals via their smartphones. After the submission of every idea, they are shown to everyone on the team. Which problem-solving method did the team use?

During a brainstorming session, all of the members were sticking to their own suggested solutions, and no one was willing to validate any other member's idea. Realizing this would never lead to a consensus, Heather, the facilitator, selected what she believed to be the most appropriate proposal, and asked the rest of the members to contribute to it as if they had suggested it themselves. This allowed the members to effectively discuss the idea, and, after a few tweaks, everyone accepted the solution to be implemented. What process did the facilitator encourage?

Irene was preparing the agenda for a team meeting. She felt the most challenging point of discussion was how to best merge the creative writing and storyboarding teams in her firm. Where should Irene place this item on the agenda?

The team leader asked everyone to individually categorize the best five of the nine suggested proposals, according to the degree of their suitability. What brainstorming method did the team leader conduct?

Wesley generally works independently on projects for his firm. While analyzing a new project, however, he realizes he requires five others to help him finish by the specified deadline. Therefore, after his firm provides him the five-member team, Wesley calls for a meeting to discuss the intricacies of the project. Why did Wesley convene a meeting?

What is the traditional approach for detecting feasible solutions to group problems called?

While analyzing a problem, a group should ________ to weigh the positives and negatives of a suggested resolution.

During a meeting, the team leader talked throughout the session and did not encourage any other member to speak up or share ideas and opinions with the group. This effectively reduced the meeting to a rambling monologue, devoid of any give-and-take dialogue. What did the team leader fail to do during the meeting?