50 minutes (15 minutes for individual responses to case studies; 20 minutes for small-group discussion; 15 minutes for debriefing)
Work M–H P, T, O, D, M
1. To provide participants with an opportunity to explore personal values
2. To generate discussion about cultural influence on values
3. To explore differences in perspective regarding values
• Copies of the Four Case Studies handout for each participant
• Transparency of Four Case Studies: Discussion Questions
• Projector or flipchart and marking pen for questions
1. Pass out copies of the “Four Case Studies” handout to all of the participants.
2. Allow 10–15 minutes for participants to read and select responses to the four case studies. Participants are to make two choices for each case study: one for themselves personally and one that they believe “others in your organization” would select.
3. Form groups of 3–6 people and ask participants to share their responses in their groups, using the questions below for each case study. Allow approximately 20 minutes for this discussion.
Note: The questions should be placed on an overhead transparency (see transparency master on page 149) or flipchart for easy viewing by the entire group. Remind participants that there are no right or wrong answers and that this is an opportunity to identify differences and possible reasons for those differences. Also remind them that this is an opportunity to listen to each other—to learn, not to persuade.
• Which choice did individuals on your team make most frequently?
• If some of you made different choices from the group, why do you think this was so?
• What are some of the important values or beliefs that are reflected by your choices?
• How closely aligned were personal choices with organizational choices?
• What are the implications for those responses in which personal and organizational choices differ?
1. Which cases were easiest to agree on? Why? Hardest? Why?
2. How did you feel during the discussion—especially if your responses were different from those of the majority of the group?
3. What values were you able to identify as affecting responses?
4. What have you learned?
5. How can you apply what you learned to your everyday work life?
1. Our values can be challenged when we have to make difficult decisions.
2. Our values do affect our decisions.
3. When our personal and organizational values are not aligned, the results can create discomfort.
4. When our values are different from the majority, we can either feel like an outsider (marginalized) or feel “righteous” (superior) about our own value position.
5. When either terminal (the goal) values or instrumental (the behavior used to get to the goal) values differ between two people, the result can be misperceptions or conflict if we don’t explore the differences and listen carefully.
© Executive Diversity Services, Inc., Seattle, Washington, 2001.
• Which choice did individuals on your team pick most frequently?
• Identify the reasons of those who made other choices.
• What are some of the important values or beliefs that are reflected by your choices?
• How aligned were personal choices with organizational choices?
• What are the implications for those responses in which personal and organizational choices differ?
For each study, choose one response for yourself and one response that you think others in your organization would select.
1. You are appointed to head a new work team on a project that is critical to the organization. This is your first important leadership role, and you are preparing for your first team meeting. Based on your personal ideas about team building, which statement is the best reflection of your thinking?
a. I will guide the team by helping members solve problems, but I will have the final word on all decisions because I am ultimately responsible.
b. I will take charge early. My role is to maintain balance between setting goals and ensuring that the goals are met.
c. My first responsibility will be to develop a relationship with each team member. Team members will also need time to learn about each other to facilitate strong commitment and stellar performance.
d. I will provide all of the information about the project, including information about deadlines, expectations, budget, and so on. I will also find ways to engage team members so they can make a clear commitment to the project
e. I will need to pay close attention to performance, task completion, and goal achievement—I will reward each member for what she or he contributes to the project—anything else is irrelevant.
Your choice___________
Others in your organization would choose_________
2. You are the contractor remodeling a home for a friend. The work crew has informed you that you will be a month behind the promised completion date because the job is complicated and your original completion, date was unrealistic. Your friends have already mailed invitations to a wedding and reception in their newly remodeled home based on the original completion date. What would you do?
a. I will pay the crew whatever is necessary to complete the job by the promised time. This customer is my personal friend to whom I have made a promise, so the job must be completed on time.
b. My first obligation is to my employees. The delay is due to my unrealistic schedule, not because the crew is not working hard enough. I need to tell my friend that we will not be able to finish by the date promised.
c. I am responsible for promising an unrealistic completion date, and it would be unfair to ask my crew to work overtime. I will offer financial compensation to my friend for the cost involved in moving the wedding date or location.
d. Business is business. I promised the completion date based on the available information. It may be inconvenient for my friend, but she should understand and modify her plans.
e. I will tell my friends that the work crew is inexperienced and the unexpected delay is their fault.
Your choice___________
Others in your organization would choose_________
3. You are riding in a car with a friend. He turns to say something to you, loses concentration, and hits a car parked at the curb. In addition to being distracted by your conversation, he was also driving well over the speed limit. He asks you to testify in court that he was driving the speed limit, which will save him from damaging his driving record and from an even larger increase in his insurance rates. There are no other witnesses. How would you act in this case?
a. I am under obligation to tell the truth under oath. I will not perjure myself. A real friend would not ask me to lie.
b. I will not lie under oath, but I will offer my friend emotional and financial support if he needs it.
c. My friend has my full support. Courts and laws are often irrelevant to real-life situations.
d. My friend is my main concern, but I will encourage him to tell the truth.
e. I will testify that I was not able to see the speedometer but think we may have been speeding a little.
Your choice___________
Others in your organization would choose_________
4. Gender issues have been an area of increasing concern for organizations around the world. As you are walking through the manufacturing plant, you hear each of the following statements. Which one most clearly expresses your thoughts?
a. For women to contribute to an organization where physical demands are part of the job, they need special consideration and accommodation. The organization must make the necessary adjustments so women receive the opportunities they deserve in order to succeed.
b. Equality means exactly that. Treating women differently from men is not fair. Women should be treated and evaluated with the same standards as men.
c. Women have different talents and perspectives than men. Equal means they have an opportunity to share their diverse viewpoints and to contribute their unique talents.
d. If women fight for positions in a “man’s world,” they may lose the unique talents that they bring. If they lead in a male style, the result will be business as usual. It is important to provide alternative ways for women to enter leadership roles.
e. If things are to be equal, the focus should be on talent and performance, not gender.
Your choice___________
Others in your organization would choose_________
© Executive Diversity Services, Inc., Seattle, Washington, 2000.