LE01

In our first class of POM, we experienced the tower building game which involved putting one square block over the over and achieving the maximum height possible till the tower fell down. The game was performed by one of our batch-mates. 

The student was randomly chosen who had himself set the target of 10 blocks.Then our professor asked the class about the number of blocks with which the tower can be built. The students came up with varying responses for the number of blocks ranging from 10 till 30. The student performed the exercise and the height achieved was 17 blocks.

From this exercise, we had the following conclusions:

1) Students who set their target more than 17 blocks were over ambitious, where goal set is more then achievable goal. The "Ambitious Goal" is subject to changes based on the performance and goal setting by an individual. 

2)  Students who set their target lower than 17 blocks were ambitious, but not over ambitious. They set their goal according to the situation and that target was achieved. This is because the potential of an individual should increase after having performed the exercise which would lead him to set higher target for next time..

 The above exercise was performed by an open-eyed individual. The professor presented a case where the individual will be blindfolded and helped by two other open-eyed individuals for building the tower. He asked us what your targets will now be. It was observed that:

1) Some of the students lowered the target from the previously stated one .This is not preferred since the organization shouldn't lower their targets despite the hurdles which come across as this portrays a negative outlook.Also,this strategy does not work in the longer run for the growth of the company.

2) Some of the students retained the target. This is preferable as the organization continues to work towards the defined target despite the hurdle through motivation and team effort and effective co-ordination,

3) Some increased the target. Ideally, organizations need to expand even during tough times when others are contracting and avoiding risks. A good  example can be Apple , which during recession perceived as threat to many  used as opportunity to expand their market share and generate more products like iPad.This lead to increased profits and increased market share.

To understand better, the following graph depicts different parameters-

In this graph,

A = Potential of an individual. It is limitless and beyond measure.

B =  goal set for an individual by the manager.

C =  achievable goals assumed by the individual for himself.

D =  goal actually achieved by the individual.

As it can be seen ,A,B,C,D are in descending order.

This is the problem faced by every manager who has to try and overcome them.

Thus, from this exercise, we got to know that goal should be set in such a way that it realizes the potential.