Group 1

ABILENE PARADOX
Name Jaspal singh Ahluwalia Apoorva Sapra Santosh Dhuri Rajeev Ranjan Raj Kishore Srivastava Rajiv Biswas Roll No. PGEMP29/A/1 PGEMP29/A/37 PGEMP29/A/11 PGEMP29/A/29 PGEMP29/A/41 PGEMP29/A/07

1) What is Abilene Paradox? It is often found in our organization/groups that people act in a manner that they think others would want them to. The group of people together decides on a course of action without understanding the individual preferences. Many times the individual preferences are conflicting with the course of action decided by the group. This is the Abilene paradox. It is a typical human psychology to avoid rocking a sailing boat. The cause of Abilene paradox may be: Inability of the group to manage conflicts Reservation within the group Fearing being a laughing stock Action anxiety faced by group members Individuals negative fantasies e.g. boss might fire me, demote me etc. Fear of separation from the group. E.g. an individual may feel that if I am the only one to contradict, the others might desert me Herd mentality

2) Give two examples of work life where Abilene Paradox is experienced:

The Abilene paradox can be experienced in our everyday life at home, at work, amongst friends- anywhere where a group assembles together. The group could relate two incidents in real life with this paradox: A) ABS Ltd Bank Closed their Branch in Shimla ABC Ltd bank had a meeting to review the performance of a branch in Shimla. In the course of discussion the team decided that this seemingly non-performing branch, should be given some time to recuperate and reach the expected levels. The team agreed to a metrics to measure performance. The next review meeting was scheduled after the stipulated time was completed. In this meeting, it was found that the branch had miserably failed on the metrics. Once again a root cause discussion was started and the same bunch of executives admitted that the metrics was almost impossible to achieve. At this point a blame game started! Each executive blamed the other for not pointing out the impossibility at the outset and not exploring in depth about the possible options in the first meeting itself! B) Haardik Manufacturing Pvt. Ltd. Haardik Manufacturing Pvt. Ltd. wanted to implement a new process of cleaning components. For this they needed a specialized machine. The cross functional team prepared specifications for the machine and the sourcing team set out to find a capable manufacturer for this machine. One manufacturer displayed the interest and ability to design and manufacture as per specifications. The cross functional team strongly propagated this supplier to the mgmt. The supplier then sent his prodigy to Haardik Manufacturing Pvt Ltd. Much to their horror, the machine was nowhere close to the desired specifications and could not adhere to the required specifications. As soon as the trial was completed, realizing that the machine had completely failed, the cross functional team members started blaming each other. This was the same team which had strongly advocated the same supplier!

Q-2 ) What will create Abilene bypass? The group can create an Abilene bypass by: Confronting each other in meetings and discussing the matter threadbare

Designate a confronter in critical meetings, who challenges the ideas of each individual by asking the hard questions Address the underlying reality of the situation & assess real risks Each member should have enough self confidence, to own up to ones beliefs and table them Not play the blame game and take ownership of the decision. Team should be engaged and act towards achieving the goal with a plan in mind Team should be responsible and accountable Openness and participation in the group.

Q-3 ) Relate Emotional intelligence to Abilene Bypass. Emotional intelligence in the Context of Abilene Bypass refers to the ability to perceive, evaluate and control emotions. It is the ability to manage emotions within oneself and in other to achieve a desired outcome. The Golemans Model of EI addresses four domains: 1) Self-awareness knowing ones internal states, preferences, resources, and intuitions 2) Self-management managing ones internal states, impulses, and resources 3) Social awareness reading people and groups accurately, having an awareness of others feelings, needs, and concerns 4) Relationship management adeptness at inducing desirable responses in others These four domains can be put to use to create an Abilene bypass: By being self aware, understanding ones preferences.First one can be clear about how one wants to react in the particular discussion. Managing ones impulse to go with the flow of the discussion, and agreeing or disagreeing with all others at the table Being aware of others feelings. Seeking to understand what others are feeling will help in getting a handle on what the others desire in that situation. Once one has an understanding of the possible responses, we can encourage others to own up to their real feelings and come up with real risk assessment and face reality.

This will ultimately lead to creating an Abilene bypass.