OGL 481: Pro-Seminar I

Core Assignment 1
Table 1: Organizing and Reflecting on Key Learnings – and Collecting Key Artifacts

Substitutions paragraph:

COURSE Key content – textbook / articles /
multimedia presentations / videos
Key learning – concepts, theories, skills,
best practices, applications, cases,
assignments, discussions, simulations /
activities, teamwork initiatives, readings,
analysis, other projects, etc.
OGL 200: Introduction
to Organizational Book: Northouse, P. G. (2021).
Leadership Introduction to leadership: concepts and
practice (5th ed.). Los Angeles: SAGE.
Professional (or personal)
application. As a result of
your academics: how do you
think differently? How do you
behave differently? What can
you do more effectively? How
have you changed as a
person?
Possible artifacts to include in
professional e-portfolio / website –
that illustrates tangible connections to
personal and professional
transformation. You will describe the
artifacts with your explanation, not
attach them in this space. Make sure to
save them for Core #2.

EI games: Leadership and management

Key Learning: Introduction to leadership,

OGL 220: Behavioral

Dynamics in Book: Organizational Behavior
Organizations Version 3.0
By Talya Bauer and Berrin Erdogan
Published: August 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4533-9198-3

Indigo Activity
 Key Learning:

OGL 240: Introduction

to Project
Management
PMG 322: Project
Time Management

OGL 260: Resource

Allocation in
Organizations /
Foundations of
Finance
PMG 326: Project
Procurement
management

OGL 300: Theory and

Practice of Leadership

OGL 321: Project

Leadership, Strategy
and Scope

BIS 345:
Organizational Ethics
OGL 345:
Organizational Ethics

BIS 343: Social

Processes in
Organizations
OGL 343: Social
processes in
organizations

OGL 350: Diversity

and Organizations
OGL 355: Leading Purcell Readings
Organizational
Innovation and
Change OR PAF 311:
Leadership and
Change (SB)
PMG 324: Resources
Project Management

BIS 357: Assessment

in Organizations
OGL 357:
Assessments in
Organizations

OGL 360: Assessment

of Leadership
Effectiveness
PMG 422: Project
Quality Management

COM 430: Leadership

in Group
Communication
OGL 340:
Organizational Skills:
The language of
organizations

TWC 347: Written

Communication for
Managers (L)
PMG 421: Project Risk
Management
OGL 481: Pro-Seminar
I (what have you
learned so far)

OGL 482: Pro-Seminar

II (when will you be
taking it)
PUP 190: Sustainable
Cities
Table 2: Plus / Delta – Significant Learning Experiences – Structure and Transfer
Pick one of your most significant learning experiences from Table 1. Take some time to deeply reflect on the experience. Respond to the
following questions / sub-questions as explicitly as possible. Use your imagination and creativity here – this is really all about making
connections, and seeing what you can learn about your learning style (and yourself) from the experience!
OGL 321: Project Leadership: Harvard Simulation
Describe the task / assignment? What, specifically, did you
learn? The Harvard simulation placed you in charge of a project, we were given the
Be sure to address both declarative forms of knowledge requirements and objectives for building a new printer. This module had
(things you learned – concepts, theories, ideas, models) as multiple stages, each one increases in difficulty with new requirements and
well as procedural forms of knowledge (things you timelines. As the PM we were given the option to miss, meet, or exceed the
learned how to do – skills). requirements such as scope of work, target schedule, and target costs. The
project manager also had to select the number of team members, their skill
level, amount of overtime, and the amount of work to be outsourced. On top of
this the PM oversaw meetings such as one on ones, standup meetings, and
status reviews. All these factors played into your overall score. One huge
benefit to this simulation was the ability to replay it as many times as wanted
to increase your score or try other methods of leadership. I attempted each
simulation more than 10 times, to get different results so I could see how my
choices affected the team. Each trial I used a different leadership strategy and
changed the number and skill of team members, this greatly affected my
results but showed me how minor changes can make significant impacts.

Why is it important to you?

What connections can you make between this learning and
other things you have learned (in school – and beyond)?
What connections can you make between what you
learned and your life roles and goals?
This simulation was very beneficial to me since it showed me how the choices
you make as a project manager affect your team and the success of a project. I
would equate this simulation to running the same project repeatedly but each
time obtaining a different result due to different leadership strategies and
different teams. At the time of completion, I had not taken PMG 323: Project
cost management or PMG 324: Resources project management. I believe that
concepts from both classes would have been very useful for this simulation.
PMG 323 Is still in progress, so far it has looked at how to assess the needs of a
project and estimate the costs involved with those processes. This included
resources such as people, materials, tools, permits. PMG 324 focused on
resource planning, how to create an RBS, estimation methods, acquiring
resources, understanding people’s personalities and traits, managing and
developing your team, and managing and controlling resources.

What worked for you?
In terms of process, was there something about the
assignment structure that appealed to you? How did this
task / structure of this assignment differ from other
assignments? Was it similar to other assignments / tasks
that were meaningful to me? What strategies, skills,
procedures proved effective in the completion of this
assignment / task? Do you see any patterns or
connections in this regard to your preferred approach to
learning – such as following an outline, keeping to
deadlines, other learning or study skills?
I believe that this simulation gave me good insight as to what it means to be a
project manager and how the choices you make affect the team and the
project. Since I have no experience as a PM yet, I found this simulation similar
to coaching lacrosse. Each game has different objectives and as the head coach
I had to manage playing time and positions. One connection between
managing a project and coaching a team would be the RBS and a team lineup.
The RBS is used to breakdown and define the resources that will be needed for
the project. The team line up places players in groups of three depending on
skill and chemistry on the field. The line up helps a coach manage a team like
how the RBS helps a PM with resource management.
I believe that the trial and error that this simulation allowed was extremely
beneficial and helps my understanding of how the PM can affect a project. I
plan to use this insight in my future career as a PM in the construction
industry.
This assignment’s structure was very different from most of the simulations
that I had attempted in the OGL coursework. This assignment allowed me to
repeat it as many times as wanted to achieve an optimal score or try a
different style of leadership. I believe the ability to replay is part of the reason
that this simulation was so beneficial to my learning experience. By replaying
it and changing my approach I saw different results and I was able to compare
and see how my choices affected the team and the success of the project.
While other courses and simulations allowed multiple attempts, this
simulation had the most options and choices to make. It was also most like the
kinds of tasks I will be taking on as a PM in construction. On one attempt I
would complete the project to exactly specifications requested, the next
attempt I would beat the deadline by days or weeks but also be significantly
over budget. Another strategy I used was to miss the deadline but save
thousands of dollars off the budget. All of these strategies gave different
results and in turn helped my understanding of PM choices effecting a project.
One connection that I made between this simulation and my approach to
learning was that it is often best to meet the requirements instead of
attempting to exceed them and leave some areas lacking. Prior to ASU my
education career was very rocky and I attempted to quit multiple times. Many
times these attempts at quitting came from frustration and a lack of
understanding the requirements. Project management has helped me look at
multiple sides of an issue and find the best possible solution to them. Most
often by simply meeting the requirements and not attempting to exceed them.
What can you transfer?
Where can you apply / use these skills and knowledge?
How can you apply what worked for you (above) to other
learning goals or initiatives in your life? Can you connect
or adapt this knowledge / skill to other areas of your life?
What kinds of metaphorical connections can you make?
Can you connect something that was interesting or
important with respect to this knowledge / skill to
something that you are struggling with?
What evidence do you have?
Do you have a plan for communicating your learning to
others? Are there any tangible outcomes (and specific
artifacts, in particular) that serve as evidence of this
knowledge / skill?
The ideas and concepts that I learned in this simulation related to how to run a
project and how to manage a team. I believe that these skills will be important
to me in my career. It will be essential that I know how to properly manage all
the moving parts of a project while being active within the project team and
assisting team members with more information or a second opinion. I
currently work in the construction field as a laborer, and I often use the
knowledge that I have gained from the OGL coursework. Because I have this
extra knowledge, my bosses have given me more responsibilities like leading a
team of 5 laborers. This is my first time leading a team in the workplace and I
often have to consider how we are working together and how we can operate
at a better capacity.
One area that I see lacking in my company, but also many other
subcontractors, is a lack of communication. Many times, in construction issues
occur due to communication not occurring. I have seen this firsthand on
jobsites, but I also got to experience this from the PM perspective in this
simulation. As the PM I had to balance time for meetings and time for work. It
is essential that meetings are held because they give a sense of direction and
help open lines of communication. When the team was confused or lacked
direction, more meetings were held. When the team was in a groove and knew
the direction that work was heading, less meetings were held, and they had
more time to complete tasks. Communication is key in a project management
setting, if the lines of communication are not clear or communication is not
occurring it can cause massive issues for a project.
My plan for communicating my knowledge to others has been taking place at
my current jobsite and I plan to continue this once I have obtained my degree
and move into a leadership or management position. By sharing some of the
concepts and processes that I have learned with my boss, he has given me
much more responsibility and allowed me to see the management side of
construction to some degree. The first time I asked my boss to see the Task
Hazard Analysis (THA), he was shocked I knew what that was. This was a
process that I learned in the risk management class, a THA is assessment that
identifies and evaluates potential risks and safety concern associated with a
task.
Some artifacts that can help communicate my learning from the Harvard
simulation and PMG 321 are the essay that I wrote for this class. Each essay
demonstrates a different set of concepts that are relevant to project
 leadership. One essay looked at how technology has changed organizational
leadership and given project management teams a variety of tools. Another
essay examined how problem solving, project knowledge, and decision making
are three essential traits for a project manager. My final essay in the class
reflected on a quiz taken once at the beginning of the term, the Harvard
simulations, and connecting my most important concepts from the class. I
believe that these three documents can serve as learning tools for others and a
good refresher for myself.

Assignment #1: Questions for Reflection

Prompt #1: Now that you have completed Assignment #1, what were the most important aspects of this assignment? What moved you the
most? Any surprises?

(insert response here)

Prompt #2: What are your ideas in terms of how to best illustrate your growth and development over the course of your education and
experiences with the Organizational Leadership program? What are your best ideas with respect to specific artifacts / evidence that you
might present (within the context of an e-portfolio) as your consider your growth and development in the Organizational Leadership
Program?
(insert response here)