1

Henry Tam and the MGI Team

The Harvard Business School (HBS) Business Plan Contest required the
submission of an official business plan in only three weeks, but Henry Tam
and his team were no where close to completing the task. The group was
composed of the Music Games International (MGI) founders, Sasha
Gimpelson, Igor Tkachenko and Roman Yukab, as well as college students
from HBS (Henry Tam and Dana Soiman), MIT (Dav Clark) and Boston Berklee
College (Alex Sartakov). The group was diverse and clashed in a variety of
ways, drastically impeding the progress of creating a successful business
plan. After almost six weeks of meetings, the team had minimal work to
show, with no determined plan of action regarding the business plan.
The group had several issues to address. First and foremost, the team
failed to meet Bruce Tuckmans five stages of group development.
Consequently, they had not determined who was the leader or who
maintained which particular role. Without a leader, it was difficult to
determine a vision, and the goals needed to fulfill this idea. The last issue to
address was the constant conflict between the clashing personalities and
cliques. Before significant process can be made, one member, specifically
Henry Tam, needs to take the reigns and develop an organizational culture.
After inserting himself as the leader, Henrys first focus should be forming a
vision for the group, and developing a strategic plan to meet the teams
goals. After defining the goals, Henry should help the group improve their

2
camaraderie by creating a mentoring or accountability program. By making
these implementations, the group could unite to their common cause and
create an award-winning business plan.
As a whole, the group has several strengths that could allow them to
be successful after implementing an efficient and effective business plan. An
abundance of musical experience between the MGI founders will help them
continue to develop and expand their product. Both Igor and Roman
developed an international reputation as composers, helping expand the
potential market for their product. As page three comments, MGI [could]
commission first-rate performance and recordings at a much lower cost than
would have been possible in the United States.1 Since Sasha and Igor have
been friends for over twenty years, they have a better understanding of their
personalities and abilities. Their friendship has prevailed through other
ventures, and they recognize the importance of each persons strengths.
Because Sasha was a graduate from Harvard Business School, he
should have obtained skills that would help him manage and market a
product, an asset that Dana and Henry should also possess or be learning as
current students. Each student has the motivation and desire to perform well
and create a plan that will succeed over time. Although the Russian and
American cultures create conflict at times, it also brings different ideas and
views to make their product as well rounded as possible. Although their team
consists of only seven people, studies show that financial performance was
higher when the organizations top management team was diverse and

3
collocated in the same location2. Unfortunately, even with all of these
strengths, the group has struggled to perform primarily due to the poor
formation of a unified team.
Bruce Tuckman lists the five stages of forming, storming, norming,
performing and adjourning that a group must go through to become a united
team instead of a collection of strangers.3 Almost every problem the group
faced resulted from the lack of this initial interaction. The first meeting was
held without Roman in attendance, the second meeting added Alex to the
team, and their third meeting was the first time that everyone on the team
was present because of the addition of Dav. It is very difficult to be united
and unified as a team when each new meeting includes a new member, thus
the forming stage needs to occur as everyone on the team interacts and
learns about each other. Everyone had valuable experience or talents, but
there was not one leader that held each person accountable or kept the
process focused and flowing. Because this stage never transpired, the team
never developed roles for each individual.
Furthermore, without one specific leader, the team was unable to
generate a vision for their plan. Since the group was deprived of a precise
vision, it was difficult to make decisions and create goals. At the current
state, the group is constantly circling in their processes, never making any
steps forward because of the lack of direction. Another issue the team faced
was the wide variety of talents and diversity within the group. Although this
doubles as a strength, the group has been unsuccessful at working together

4
as a cohesive unit because of the dysfunctions between their personalities
and work style. By addressing all of these problems, Henry Tam could form a
unified team to accomplish their task and create a successful business plan.
The case mentions that Henry was anxious to test his abilities and
distinguish himself beyond the standard curriculum4; therefore this is an
opportunity to challenge himself to bring an unorganized, unfocused group
together. As most of the issues circle around Tuckmans Group Development
Process, Henry should start this process at stage one, the formation of the
team. He should plan an extra meeting to essentially start over as a team. It
may seem tiresome or redundant, but giving each member the time to share
who they are and what they desire as an individual and as a team will help
form bonds between the group. While establishing these connections is
crucial, setting up this meeting also infers Henrys desire to take the reigns
and lead the entire group. By possessing a proactive personality, or being
the action-oriented person who shows initiative to change things5, Henry
provides evidence as to why he should be the leader of the group. It is
critical that Henry not only performs this task, but also firmly states his
intention to be the leader in order to get the team on track.
After establishing his own role as the leader, Henry should mention
some of the issues they are facing and emphasize the significance of
designating roles and responsibilities to each individual. Currently the
members know their own strengths and have an opinion of their own roles,
but an absence of determined and agreed roles has hindered progress. The

5
original founders of MGI struggled to fulfill the necessary roles in their initial
attempt at selling because Sasha was the only sales person. By bringing four
students into the team, they give themselves more time to focus on their
own specific strength instead of trying to do everything they can. Balancing
this project as well as their other responsibilities as a student, Dana and
Henry commented that their role on the team had become increasing
muddled6, potentially resulting in Edgar Scheins term, role overload, or the
belief that others expectations exceeded their own ability.7 By defining the
specific duties and responsibilities, each member of the team should feel less
burdened by the load, while also motivating them to provide their utmost in
their particular area.
Henry should establish both task and maintenance roles to complete
separate tasks and also build community between the individuals. With only
seven members, it may be foolish to completely differentiate responsibilities,
because they are a team and are working together. However, Henry can
encourage and help everyone determine his or her own role. For example, as
the overall leader, Henry should claim the task role as the Orienter and the
maintenance role as Encourager because not only should he be ensuring the
group maintains focus on reaching their goals, but he should also focus on
uplifting each member and their ideas.8 Likewise, he may want to establish
Roman as the Initiator because Roman believes he contributes best with his
creative ideas.9 Since Sasha has the most business experience, determining
his role as Elaborator, or the person who promotes greater understanding

6
through examples or exploration of implications, would affirm his importance
as an individual. Not only does this give each individual a direction of how to
contribute, but it also instills confidence by defining his or her significance to
the team.
Following the designation of roles, Henry should ask everyone to list
their visions for the team again and write them down to compare. The team
had done this once, but after different visions were stated, there was no
collaboration to determine what their overall vision should be. One of the
first decisions the team must address is which market they want to enter.
The MGI founders wanted to focus on teenagers, specifically in the
entertainment market, while Henry and Dana were targeting children in the
education market. Henry and Dana analyzed the products progress and
development at the time being and understood the risks of entering the
entertainment market originally. As the leader of the group, Henry should
emphasize his suggestions to enter the education market currently, in order
to eventually to reach he long-term goal of the entertainment market. Henry
commented, Even if youre going for the long-term strategy, you still need
to succeed in the short-term to prove your worth10. Since Henry and Dana
were brought in to create the business plan, Henry and Dana should remind
the MGI founders that they were brought in to develop a business plan and
that they should trust them to make the correct decision.
To provide even more support, Henry could refer to Sashas original
email to the Harvard Business School students. All four of the reviews

7
provided were refers to children or kids, such as the one from Jinny
Gudmundsen that states, Four Stars ratingEngaging way to surround a
child with the music11. Sasha does mention a beta version for teens and
adults, but there is little evidence that they would be successful in the short
run. Once Henry is able to convince the MGI founders to accept targeting the
children education market, the team can compile a list of goals to give them
direction. Goals can help an organization regulate effort, increase
persistence, and develop strategic and action plans.12 After knowing and
understanding the goals, the team should be motivated to increase
performance and productivity.
Another issue Henry could address is the amount of disconnect
between the team. By organizing the first meeting and discussing individual
and group goals, the individuals should feel more connected with each other.
However, to improve camaraderie, Henry could form a mentor system or
accountability system between the differing styles of people. Pairing Sasha
with Dana, Igor with Alex and Roman with Dav would match the opposite
personality types or individuals with the least amount of time together. The
mentorship would not need to be a typical mentor relationship, with one
figure the mentor and the other the mentee. Instead, both partners have
abilities or knowledge that is valuable, and can teach the other person their
side of the business. Since Sasha, Igor and Roman have more experience
with the music industry and contribute through creativity, they can share
that with Dana, Alex and Dav. Similarly, Dana, Alex and Dav have a business

8
mindset and can help explain how the marketing and management process
works. This system not only brings the team closer together, but also trains
each person to understand how the organization works to be successful.
Henry can help oversee and set up this system, while also trying to meet one
on one with each person. By implementing these relationships and the steps
listed previously, Henry could unite his team to work for one goal, creating
and running a successful business plan.
Unfortunately, some of these strategies may not work as predicted.
Two characteristics could be the fatal flaw with this particular group: pride
and impatience. The MGI team could take offense or disapprove of Henry
taking the reigns because it was their original creation. Their experience is
invaluable, but they must be willing to let Henry and the college students
utilize their field to get the operation up and running. Similarly, The MGI
founders must be patient and willing to work in the child education market
for the short-term in order to have an opportunity to reach long-term goals. If
they disagree with this decision, the group will be at an impasse and will be
unable to work together to their best potential. Although Henry is attempting
to create camaraderie with the mentor-like system, the variety of opinions
and personalities may be too much to overcome. The musicians desire an
adhocracy clan that leans toward an external focus and values flexibility, but
the business students would belong to the market clan, which has a strong
external focus but values stability or profit.13 These fundamental differences

9
could make it difficult to create a work environment that everyone can be
successful.
In conclusion, Henry Tam has the potential to turn around a
dysfunctional group to create an effective business plan. Even though the
group doesnt have established leaders, roles, or visions, Henry can step up
and give the team a line of sight, showing each individual what their
strategic goals are and how they can contribute.14 By implementing the
suggested ideas, the MGI founders and the college students will form
relationships that will allow the organization to work to their best capabilities,
while also allowing the marketing process to begin and flourish.

10
References

1 Jeffrey T. Polzer and Ingrid Vargas and Hillary Anger Elfenbein (2003) Henry Tam and the MGI
Team) page 3

2 Results can be found in A A Cannella Jr, J-H Park, and H-U Lee, Top Management
Team Functional Background Diversity and Firm Performance: Examining the Roles
of Team Member Coloca- tion and Environmental Uncertainty, Academy of
Management Journal, August 2008, pages 768784.
3 Forming, Storming, Norming, and Performing: Understanding the Stages of Team
Formation. (n.d.). Retrieved February 07, 2016, from:
https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newLDR_86.htm
4 Jeffrey T. Polzer and Ingrid Vargas and Hillary Anger Elfenbein (2003) Henry Tam and the MGI
Team) page 1
5 Kreitner, R., & Kinicky, A. (2013). Organization Behavior (10th ed.). New York, NY: McGrawHill/Irwin. Page 133
6 Jeffrey T. Polzer and Ingrid Vargas and Hillary Anger Elfenbein (2003) Henry Tam and the MGI
Team) page 12
7 Kreitner, R., & Kinicky, A. (2013). Organization Behavior (10th ed.). New York, NY: McGrawHill/Irwin. Page 279
8 Kreitner, R., & Kinicky, A. (2013). Organization Behavior (10th ed.). New York, NY: McGrawHill/Irwin. Page 284
9 Jeffrey T. Polzer and Ingrid Vargas and Hillary Anger Elfenbein (2003) Henry Tam and the MGI
Team) page 4
10 Jeffrey T. Polzer and Ingrid Vargas and Hillary Anger Elfenbein (2003) Henry Tam and the MGI
Team) page 12
11 Jeffrey T. Polzer and Ingrid Vargas and Hillary Anger Elfenbein (2003) Henry Tam and the MGI
Team) page 17
12 Kreitner, R., & Kinicky, A. (2013). Organization Behavior (10th ed.). New York, NY: McGrawHill/Irwin. Page 223
13 Kreitner, R., & Kinicky, A. (2013). Organization Behavior (10th ed.). New York, NY: McGrawHill/Irwin. Page 69
14 Kreitner, R., & Kinicky, A. (2013). Organization Behavior (10th ed.). New York, NY: McGrawHill/Irwin. Page 239