Groups form a basic unit of work activity throughout engineering and yet the underlying process is poorly managed. This article looks at the basics of group work and suggests ways to accelerate development.

In the beginning, God made an individual – and then he made a pair. The pair formed a group, together they beget others and thus the group grew. Unfortunately, working in a group led to friction, the group disintegrated in conflict settled in the land of Nod – there has been trouble with groups ever since.

When people work in groups, there are two quite separate issues involved. The first is the task and the problems involved in getting the job done. Frequently this is the only issue which the group considers. The second is the process of the group work itself: the mechanisms by which the group acts as a unit and not as a loose rabble. However, without due attention to this process the value of the group can be diminished or even destroyed; yet with a little explicit management of the process, it can enhance the worth of the group to be many times the sum of the worth of its individuals. It is this synergy which makes group work attractive in corporate organization despite the possible problems (and time spent) in group formation.

This article examines the group process and how it can best be utilized. The key is that the group should be viewed as an important resource whose maintenance must be managed just like any other resource and that this management should be undertaken by the group itself so that it forms a normal part of the group’s activities.

What is a Group?
A group of people working in the same room, or even on a common project, does not necessarily invoke the group process. If the group is managed in a totally autocratic manner, there may be little opportunity for interaction relating to the work; if there is factional within the group, the process may never evolve. On the other hand, the group process may be utilized by normally distant individuals working on different projects.

In simple terms, the group process leads to a spirit of cooperation, coordination and commonly understood procedures and mores. If this is present within a group of people, then their performance will be enhanced by their mutual support (both practical and moral). If you think this is a nebulous concept when applied to the world of industry, consider the opposite effect that a self-opinionated, cantankerous loud-mouth would have on your performance and then contrast that to working with a friendly, open, helpful associate.

Why a Group?
Groups are particularly good at combining talents and providing innovative solutions to possible unfamiliar problems; in cases where there is no well established approach/procedure, the wider skill and knowledge set of the group has a distinct advantage over that of the individual.

In general, however, there is an overriding advantage in a group-based work force which makes it attractive to Management: that it engenders a fuller utilization of the work force.

A group can be seen as a self managing unit. The range of skills provided by its members and the self monitoring which each group performs makes it a reasonably safe recipient for delegated responsibility. Even if a problem could be decided by a single person, there are two main benefits in involving the people who will carry out the decision. Firstly, the motivational aspect of participating in the decision will clearly enhance its implementation. Secondly, there may well be factors which the implementer understands better than the single person who could supposedly have decided alone.

More indirectly, if the lowest echelons of the workforce each become trained, through participation in group decision making, in an understanding of the companies objectives and work practices, then each will be better able to solve work-related problems in general. Further, they will also individually become a safe recipient for delegated authority which is exemplified in the celebrated right of Japanese car workers to halt the production line.

From the individual’s point of view, there is the added incentive that through belonging to a group each can participate in achievements well beyond his/her own individual potential. Less idealistically, the group provides an environment where the individual’s self-perceived level of responsibility and authority is enhanced, in an environment where accountability is shared: thus providing a perfect motivator through enhanced self-esteem coupled with low stress.

Finally, a word about the much vaunted “recognition of the worth of the individual” which is often given as the reason for delegating responsibility to groups of subordinates. While I agree with the sentiment, I am dubious that this is a prime motivator – the bottom line is that the individual’s talents are better utilized in a group, not that they are wonderful human beings.

It’s great to have the ability to communicate in many different ways, at home, work and on the go. But there is a problem with all of these great ways to stay in touch and communicate. If you’re like me, you’re probably getting tired of the hassle of keeping up with so many different phone numbers and phone lines that you are using both at home and the office. Let’s face it, for most people that have all of these communication devices, staying in touch can become a real hassle.

Keeping up with so many phone numbers and sometimes can be difficult – you might not be in the office or at home, or realized you’ve taken the wrong cell phone on a trip and you are going to miss an important call. Missing a client because you’ve taken the wrong phone can cost you money.

You probably carry some type of personal notebook with all your phone numbers for your home cell phone or office fax, but what do you do when it is misplaced or you’ve simply left it behind? Just think what you would do if you had some way of unifying all of these communication formats by having just ONE telephone number. It’s a dream come true.

The latest technology that allows anyone to combine home cell phone, fax machine, broadband VoIP, office cell phone, office phone and office fax all into one universal phone number. Total unified communications is now available that puts you in control. You no longer have to miss a call or worry about remembering all those home and office numbers. You have global access and can receive any call with one universal number that works for every number you own.

They can give you by allowing you to have only one phone number for all of your home and office communication. And your family, friends, business partners, and clients will be thrilled that they no longer have to dial more than one number to get in contact with you.

Benefits of Being Guided by Intuition

So what are the benefits of following your intuition as opposed to listening to the promptings of parents, partners and others? First of all, this begins to give you confidence in your own judgment. It helps you judge whether this person or opportunity is the right one for you…even if it may not seem so on paper. Secondly I have never met anyone who regretted following their intuition. Yes it may have meant making a difficult decision but it WAS the right ultimate decision for them. Many great business deals have been gone through on a hunch…or intuition.

What is success? Everyone of us has his/her own definition of success. An artist feels successful after creating a beautiful painting and a business person feels successful if the business makes profits. Each of us has his/her own parameters that decide success in our life. How do our friendships affect our success? Happiness and success? A successful person is essentially a happy person. Happiness means – to feel satisfied with life in most of the ways and to maintain a state of mind that is contented.

Our friendships are part of our life. If we want to succeed, we will also have an art of making good friends and keep friendships strong through-out our life. How to maintain friendships that last? The art is in giving rather than expecting. Share your friends’ worries, concerns and happiness. Join them on all occasions that are important to them. Congratulate them at every success, express empathy at every loss and share joy at every success or any enjoyable occasion. The role of Internet in keeping contacts: In the earlier times, when the internet was not there, talking on telephones, sending letters and meeting personally were the preferred methods of keeping in touch. After the advent of Internet, emailing and chat are slowly replacing these earlier ways.

We react to many stimuli – both from outside and our mind. We go into different moods and act differently at different times. We can not predict our own behavior many times. We know something about our likes and dislikes about food, clothing, home and such thins. But what about our emotions? What of our mind? Do we know? Can we predict our own reaction at a given situation? It may be different at different times, depending on our own mood. We are not machines and therefore highly unpredictable.

How about knowing about our emotions and our mind better? How about analyzing our self? How about finding out more about ourselves? That would surely help us in improving our life. It may not give us more money, but certainly more peace and a sense of control on ourselves. Some fun tests are devised to make you think about yourself. Try these tests to find out about yourself in a fun way.