When a team leader hears about the nominal group technique, group brainstorming, and the affinity technique she says, "I have enough trouble just getting team members to sit through a regular meeting. They'd rebel if I tried to make them use those sorts of things." How might you respond?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The Answer is You know that people are typically open to trying such techniques, especially when they see how well they work. As discussed in this chapter, it is important when introducing new techniques that the team leader show confidence in their application, explain their benefits, and treat their use as a skill-building exercise. In particular;
1) just do it, and do it enthusiastically and confidently;
2) explain why you're doing something different and how each technique is tailored to the task at hand;
3) point out that these are widely used and effective, used by companies such as IBM, American Express, Xerox, and Adaptec;
4) treat this as a skill-building exercise both for yourselves and for your colleagues;
5) point out that mastering more group tools adds to the team's resources.

When a Team Leader Hears About the Nominal Group Technique