Leading Teams at West Coast Transit for Phyllis Young

Leading Teams at West Coast Transit for Phyllis Young 1

West Coast Transit Team Member Profiles

Natalie

Natalie has been with the company for two years. She is positive and ambitious. She hopes to own her own business someday. People like Natalie and like to engage her in conversation. Natalie always listens politely, but finds her colleague’s somewhat annoying and resents their tendency to gossip.

Although Natalie works well on the team, her preference is to identify ways to have her individual ideas and accomplishments shine through. Some people find her to be overly competitive.

Natalie is a smooth talker and can easily win people over to her point of view. She is great for smoothing over tense situations. She is a real negotiator and is comfortable in any kind of speaking situation. Her written communication skills are very strong as well. When she can get away with it, she prefers written communication since people often monopolize her time in conversations.

Motivation:

Natalie is motivated by challenges and enjoys competitive opportunities where her skills and talents can take center stage. She enjoys doing great work.

Strengths and Weaknesses:

Natalie is an excellent communicator, is charismatic, and is a natural leader. However, she has a bit too much disdain for her colleagues to fully trust them and some sense her negative attitude toward them. Also, her efficiency is sometimes impacted by her colleagues who she allows to monopolize her time in conversation.

Michael

Michael has been with the company for five years. Overall, his attitude remains positive, but he can be cynical at times. He attempts to look for the best in people and prefers to give people the benefit of the doubt. He is working on getting his PhD and has plans to eventually work in personal and corporate wellness consulting.

Michael considers himself to be a leader and motivator to the people around him. He has compassion for the emotional needs of people and values their individuality. At times he is overly confident and speaks his mind a little too freely. He enjoys collaborating with his co-workers, and brings out others’ strengths during their collaboration experience.

He prefers to resolve conflict passively through joking, but will often take things personally. Some colleagues describe him as passive-aggressive. Michael enjoys verbally communicating with people. He prefers open and informal conversations and shies away from formal communication. He is not afraid to ask questions until he is sure he understands a project. Michael has strong written communication skills as well.

Motivation:

Michael is motivated by interesting and complex tasks. However, his depressive tendencies can cause him to lose interest in a project and he has been known to abandon projects without finishing them.

Strengths and Weaknesses:

Michael thinks both tactically and strategically. He has the ability to see discrete parts of a project and relate them to the holistic project goal. He can be impulsive and demands instant feedback from those around him. He battles with depression and can appear lethargic. This interferes with his ability to concentrate on the task in front of him. His lack of attention to detail can contribute to oversights during projects or assignments. His weaknesses are damaging to his confidence.

Elizabeth

Elizabeth has been with the company for four years. She enjoys the collaborative aspect of the job and has a positive attitude. She can look at the big picture, keeping in mind that change is a great attribute in any company. Her long-term goal is to move up in the company.

Elizabeth is perfectly comfortable in the team environment. She enjoys working with others. Her teammates find her flexible and non-threatening. She has taken on the leadership role on several projects and has demonstrated that she can get the job done.

Elizabeth is flexible and will listen to other’s perspective with an open mind. She will; however, tell you what she is thinking and defend her position when she feels strongly that she is in the right. She is considered to be diplomatic and her goal is to settle on a resolution that makes most sense for the company and clients. She prefers open communication and is eager and willing to hear others thoughts. Her teammates consider her to be a good listener.

Motivation:

Elizabeth is motivated by a culture of trust in her abilities and work ethic. She thrives under a flexible management style that supports growth in her skills. She prefers to be treated as a peer rather than a subordinate.

Strengths and Weaknesses:

Elizabeth’s strengths lie in problem solving. She is constantly researching and compiling information to complete her final product. She considers herself to be detail-oriented and contentious about maintaining quality work while meeting all required deadlines. She may rush to meet deadlines when necessary. Her primary area of weakness is in developing new skills. She is comfortable fostering the skills she already possesses, but is hesitant about branching out into new and unfamiliar territory.

Doug

Doug has been with the company for two years. Though relatively new in his position, he feels a bit frustrated and defeated in his job. While he is usually congenial, he has a bit of a temper. He produces high-quality and timely work, but he is not the easiest person to work with. He is ambivalent about teamwork and prefers to work alone; however, he will follow through on his commitments and contribute to team projects.

Doug is somewhat paranoid and can be defensive if he feels he is being attacked. He has lashed out in high-pressure situations on a few occasions. He can make diffusing conflict more difficult.

Doug prefers face-to-face communication, as he uses body language to gauge understanding, but he sometimes misinterprets both people’s words and actions. He tries to avoid e-mail and other forms of written communication whenever possible.

Motivation:

Doug is motivated by the prospect of raises and bonuses.

Strengths and Weaknesses:

Doug cares about the quality of the work he produces and makes sure he meets deadlines. His work is efficient and consistent. Doug is definitely an over-reactor though and calming him down or diffusing emotion-charged reactions is sometimes required.

Katelyn

Katelyn is new to the company and has been employed here less than a year; however, she has demonstrated great promise with her knowledge and abilities. She is very driven and seeks promotion. While she feels committed to her employer, she is somewhat impatient and will seek opportunities elsewhere if they do not present themselves at West Coast Transit.

She has very high standards and strives for perfection in all that she does. This impacts her performance in teams because her team members may fail to meet her high expectations, which can be unreasonable at times. This can cause friction on the team. She also has the tendency to try to take over projects due to lack of trust and dislike of inferior work, which can cause her teammates to resent her. She has difficulty accepting blame as well.

When encountering conflict over projects, Katelyn generally perceives herself to be in the right and is often unwilling to yield. However, she greatly dislikes conflicts of a personal nature and tends to avoid colleagues and others who put her in uncomfortable situations. Katelyn prefers written communication and formal speaking situations. She can be uncomfortable with conversations, especially with people she just met.

Motivation:

Katelyn is highly motivated by challenging tasks and by praise and public accolades.

Strength and Weaknesses:

Katelyn enjoys being engaged in challenging tasks and can produce impeccable work under pressure. She is highly detail oriented. While she has the tendency to grumble when assigned tasks she does not favor, she will eventually get over it and commit herself to get the job done. She is relatively flexible and is generally an early adopter when it comes to change. On the other hand, she can take criticism, even tactfully delivered criticism, personally and sets unreasonable standards for her teammates.

Bob

Bob has been employed with the company from nearly the beginning. He believes the length of his tenure at the company gives him clout. His attitude is positive, but he prefers to downplay this attitude with comments such as: “I don’t care,” “oh well, things happen,” or “that’s not my problem.” Bob is on the edge of retirement.

Bob is a team player and exhibits this in his eagerness to assist team members when needed. He is quick to volunteer when a task needs to be completed. However, he is sometimes perceived of as surly and he is not always pleasant to work with.

When conflict occurs he tends to over-react, which can escalate conflicts. He prefers a direct communication style. He is sometimes brash. Some might consider his style unprofessional.

Motivation:

Bob is motivated by a simple “job well done” compliment and prefers to not be publically recognized. He is highly motivated in the form of a raise or bonus.

Strengths and Weaknesses:

Bob’s eagerness is both a strength and a weakness. He has been known to take on too many tasks, which lowers the quality of his deliverables. Still, he is perceived of as a person who will come to the team’s assistance in order to get the job done.

Susan

Susan has been with the company for just over a year. Her attitude is mostly positive and she is very energetic. When she is overwhelmed with assignments or personal projects, she can shut-down and struggle to focus on the necessary task. Her long-term goals are unknown at this point. Her free-spirited nature and uncertainty interferes with her long-term planning.

Susan is an excellent team player. She can easily work well with others and builds trusting relationships with her co-workers. This trust helps others feel comfortable when they seek her out for guidance or assistance. Her ultimate goal is to get jobs done with quality.

Her pleasing nature often allows her to be taken advantage of or agree with co-workers against her better judgment. When conflict occurs, she holds steadfast to her opinions while still keeping other views in mind. She prefers open communication and will not shy away from any subject. She can talk freely with anyone. She struggles with listening at times because she is eager to share her ideas.

Motivation:

Susan sometimes struggles with motivation; however, she is motivated by knowing her work makes a difference. She feels accomplished when she knows she did something to improve the lives of others.

Strengths and Weaknesses:

Susan’s biggest asset is her personality. She is also considered a go-getter, but often looks for approval before submitting her final work. She is also very creative. She lacks focus at times and has been known to overlook important details on tasks, which can cause her to have to redo work.

William

William has been employed with the company for over four years. He is positive and has an easy-going disposition. He sympathizes with others easily. He is nearing retirement and is satisfied with his accomplishments.

William considers himself a team player. While he prefers to work independently, he works well with his co-workers. He is willing to jump in and lead on a project when necessary, but is content with others leading if they prefer. His teammates like him and enjoy his company. He is perceived as non-threatening and non-confrontational.

William tends to shut down when conflict occurs, often refusing to give any further input in order to end the conflict as soon as possible, whether he agrees with the resolution or not.

William prefers face-to-face communication. He enjoys participating in conversations with fellow co-workers. He feels that sitting in a cubicle day in and day out can be demoralizing. Engaging with his colleagues enhances his daily tasks.

Motivation:

William struggles to get motivated if he does not see immediate value in a project. When he views a project as relevant, he can be easily motivated by challenging tasks. He is also motivated when shown appreciation for the work he produces.

Strengths and Weaknesses:

William is a veteran in his area of expertise and is confident with his performance. His primary weakness is inefficiency. He is a bit of a perfectionist, which can make it difficult for him to complete projects in a timely manner.

Ian

Ian has been employed with the company for nearly two years. His long-term goal is to remain active and stimulated. He is an industry hopper and easily switches careers when he feels bored.

Ian prefers to work alone, but will collaborate when required. He can work well with others if he chooses. Ian can come off as somewhat arrogant and is usually pretty insistent that his way is the best.

When conflict occurs, Ian is generally unwilling to back down, especially if he feels strongly about the situation. Managerial intervention is sometimes required to smooth things over.

Ian has a direct communication style that people sometimes find abrasive. He prefers e-mail communication because it is quick and efficient.

Motivation:

Ian is motivated by self-achievement and often does not consider others in his goals.

Strengths and Weaknesses:

Ian is very smart, tech savvy, and has many creative ideas for getting projects done when he is interested in the subject matter. He prefers to get projects done quickly as he prizes efficiency; however, that sometimes causes him to overlook details. His tendency to hurry through tasks makes him impatient with others.

Tiffany

Tiffany has been with the company for five years, but if you ask her, she will say she has been here for an eternity. She is quite jaded and cynical. Her career goal is to retire as soon as possible.

Tiffany is indifferent about working with others or alone. Either way, her goal is to get the job done with the minimum amount of work possible. “Acceptable” is acceptable to her; however, Tiffany is very knowledgeable in the field and her teammates trust that she will get her work done even if they have to add to it if anything more than “acceptable” is the goal.

Tiffany does not care enough to be embroiled in conflict. She is perfectly comfortable going along with teams decisions to avoid investing time or energy in contributing to the solution. Tiffany prefers e-mail and written communication. The fewer people she has to deal with face-to-face in her opinion, the better. She keeps contact with peers to a minimum. Her peers may have to seek answers from her multiple times and her short retorts to e-mails may be unclear.

Motivation:

Tiffany’s motivation is 5:00 p.m. every day. She is a clock puncher and is considered to be “checked out” of her position.

Strengths and Weaknesses:

Tiffany certainly knows the ins and outs of her position and the industry and accomplishes her duties with minimal mistakes. She is punctual and due to lack of interest in most projects, provides few stumbling blocks. That same lack of interest also prevents her from ever going above and beyond with projects.