Conflict (101) Resolution

It was one of the most enthralling decision making processes I’ve ever been a part of. At the very beginning of the activity we referred to Professor Kurpis as Professor Kurpis, minutes later the name gradually became a “professor” outburst and a pointed finger in his direction. By the end of this unforgiving endeavor, I couldn’t tell if Professor Kurpis ever existed. Everybody kept on referring to a mysterious “he” figure and the things he said or did not say.


In terms of leader and class interaction I suppose we drifted between “Facilitate” and “Delegate” decision making methods. Given that, the leader influence was low to very low, while group freedom ranged from high to very high. The leaders defined our objective, assisted the class in exploring alternatives, and worked to get a consensus on the final proposal. Using the above mentioned approach the leaders made it easier, or facilitated, for us to make a final decision. Although to a lesser extent, the leaders also delegated by playing almost no role in the decision making process, as well as setting inexact but obliging boundaries. Both of these methods require strong group skills - a quality that our class lacked, but salvaged through support for the general cause - a grade freebie. Considering time and goal constraints, and in regards to the class size, I think we would’ve been happier in groups of 15, fully utilizing the “Consult Group” approach. This way we would save time, everybody's opinion would be heard, resulting in viable demands and copious alternatives to add to the proposal.

When the World War 2.5 erupted in class, I did it all to handle the conflict. I played to win when somebody proposed to rewrite the essays; avoided when I felt overwhelmed by the many leaders and decision makers; compromised when a conflict of interest arose; accommodated when fellow students wanted no multiple-multiple choices on the next test; and finally collaborated with the single guy who threw off the final vote. I’m certain I chose the best way to handle this kind of conflict, because I couldn’t be more satisfied with the final result. I got an ...

"He" certainly has a fascinating approach to teaching management, and I LIKE IT. Professor Kurpis might not show us how decision making/planning/management skills are applied in the very real of the worlds, but his class is not a lecture, it's a memorable life-lesson. Let's hope this counts for that extra credit;-)

RIP T-Rex

T-Rex was the name of our egg. Some members of my team might argue if he even had a name, but from our very first moment together I knew…

In the Eggs-Cellent Competition, Team Rex, whose egg ricocheted off the garbage can and fell pompously under professor Kurpis’ table, was too divided to follow a planning process. Initially united, our team of 7 clearly defined the objectives, understood the deadlines, but was not specific enough to recognize which approach would work best. For the first 5 minutes, we brainstormed as a single entity about a foolproof technique to save T-Rex, and our various alternatives. Our team came up with over 4 different methods of saving the egg from the terrifying drop of 10 feet, 2 of which were sure to bring success. However, considering that 4 of the 7 people neglected to choose or follow a single leader, our team in fact consisted of 4 teams, while the rest sat quietly, flabbergasted by this split. Instead of consolidating our intelligence and physical strengths we instead began quarrelling over what kind of structure would be built. While some of us bickered like old hags, other more proactive yet delusional “leaders” built what resembled a discounted plasma lamp. On the side, as another proactive “leader” I tried to assemble a half crooked square box out of the remaining straws, inside which the egg was to be suspended by an adhesive paper tape. However, at this point there was only about a minute left until the erection of our structures had to abandoned. That was when all of our 4 teams along with the flabbergasted decided that without one another our egg had no way of surviving the plunge. More so, we finally realized that the resources provided were too scarce to be used in 3 different projects. In that last moment of competition we reached a point of absolute desperation, which resulted in a frenzied gluing of all three projects. Our logic was simple: birds had it figured out millions of years ago. So we built a nest out of colored juice straws and adhesive paper tape.


From my real life account scribbled above, a thorough evaluation of our planning process would be superfluous. Although team T-Rex completed Step 1, we circumvented each and every other step except for # 4. It was shoddy work nevertheless. We didn’t pick a method that would accomplish our objective, instead we were forced by the lack of time to collaborate. Nothing was offered to the person who merged our projects into a bird-like nest except of: “slap those together, and don’t you save any tape”. As a team we didn’t behave like a team, and that is the only reason why we fared so inadequately. Team T-Rex had brains, muscles and character, but it lacked unity and a chosen leader. I believe a little open-mindedness to others opinions and a strong leader would make T-Rex a successful team.