DEVELOPING A HIGH FUNCTIONING TEAM You have recently accepted the position of CEO for a small steel manufacturing business, Steel Incorporated, based in Johannesburg. Steel Inc has about 50 employees and competes in the South African market. The company has huge potential but, because of your predecessors incompetence, is under performing. You have been hired to turn the companys fortunes but are required to work with the existing management team, on the condition that it may be reshuffled, should you think this is necessary. The team has, to date, been inadequately managed and is described to you as poorly motivated and lacking in cohesion. To achieve your brief of turning the company around, you turn your initial attention to the team who must ultimately help you achieve your goal. The management team consist of: 1. Human resources manager Elmarie van Wyk 2. Marketing manager Simon Skosana 3. Production manager Jay Moosa 4. Financial manager Elsie Mokoena 5. Maintenance manager Steve Jantjies 6. IT manager Eric Radebe

The following is a brief description of the different team members: Jay Moosa Introvert, creative, values-driven, emphasises diagnosing over concluding, supportive, tolerant A collector of information, always busy on the internet Dislikes being put under pressure Knowledgeable, unbelievable general knowledge Usually not aggressive, at times even too much mister nice guy, avoids conflict Not time conscious, misses deadlines from time to time Enjoys discovering and finding valuable sources of information Tends to procrastinate, finds it difficult to make decisions

Elmarie van Wyk Analytical and objective, will often think things out by talking them through Developer of ideas, moves from one idea to another Enjoys prototype or project work, makes idea work Experimenter, always looks for new ideas Prefers a structured approach when organising herself and others, good organiser Moves from task to task, always searching for new or better ideas Action orientated, needs continuous challenges, loses interest after a while Dislikes routine Gregarious but independent Sociable and outgoing

Steve Jantjies Imaginative, prefers thinking up new ideas Future orientated, head in the clouds A problem solver Enjoys complexity, willing to test traditional boundaries Likes research work Often irregular work patterns, busy with different projects at the same time

May miss deadlines, absent minded Continually searching for new ways to do things Independent, difficult to influence once he has made up his mind, emotion driven Irritated with routine and detail

Simon Skosana Very talkative, persuader, seller, can take over discussions Likes variety, excitement, stimulation Easily bored, doesnt pay attention to detail Influential and outgoing Doesnt like controlling and organizing High energy level, active Has a very good network, knows lots of people Good at getting resources Sees the big picture, a visionary A good communicator, gets emotional on issues

Eric Radebe Analytical decision maker, excellent organiser Quick to decide Results-oriented, wants to see measurable results Sets up systems and plans Straight-forward, meets conflict head on Makes things happen, things are always happening too slowly Emphasises targets, action via deadlines Thrust towards goals, will exert pressure Impatient, cant understand slowness of other people May overlook peoples feelings, not very empathetic Elsie Mokoena Strong on control, prefers to work with facts and figures Detail-oriented, always has spread sheets available to explain issues Low need for people contact, finds it difficult to delegate An inspector of standards and procedures Enjoys precision work, not very creative Careful and meticulous, critical of inaccuracies Enforcer of rules and regulations Meticulous, hates to be interrupted when busy with a task Quiet and reflective, prefers to work on her own Concentrates in depth on a few issues at a time, gets stressed when confronted with a variety of activities at the same time

YOUR BRIEF Compile a set of documents for Steel Incs shareholders in which you sketch your plans for the team as precursor to the company turn around. Please note, these plans should contain a theoretical foundation (that which you have learnt during the course) but relate practically to the team members as they have been described here (both individually and the team as a whole). It is imperative that both theoretical and practical (team application) aspects are addressed in each question. Any information you may need in answering these questions, not specifically indicated here, you are welcome to make up as you go along but please state this up front. These documents should include the following: 2. Outline a plan to practically manage motivation in the management team as a whole, as well as in respect of each of its individual members. In answering this question, you are required to do the following: 1. Refer to at least three different theories of motivation. 2. Consider strategies which can be used to motivate in a team context. 3. Highlight elements that relate to individual team members.