Individual Reflections
Adam
I have been very happily surprised with how well the group has worked together for this assignment. While there were occasional disagreements on how to proceed, nobody got defensive or upset and we were able to achieve group consensus without egos standing in the way. Communication was good, great initiative was shown and ownership of sections taken. Everybody was determined that together we would produce something great that fits the requirements. One thing that stood out to me was how well the division of labour went; everybody seemed happy with the tasks they were assigned and no complaints about how the load was shared. To improve as a group, I think we could have been a bit more formal with our recorded meetings - shared the chairing, taken more formal minutes and kept to a strict agenda as well as perhaps ensuring that only one person had their mic unmuted at a time. I don’t think this stopped us from having good, productive meetings, however. As everybody was contributing and meetings were only small, we never had people talking over each other or the like. While shorter, more regular meetings were recommended, our long meetings worked well for us, especially with fitting into everybody’s schedule. In terms of learning about groups, I would say that it reminded me of the importance of having a clearly assigned leader in most group situations. I feel we were lucky that we were able to proceed democratically, usually issues arise without someone with the authority to make final decisions.
Alex
I feel as if overall we have strong communication between all of us and what has gone well is the work, we’ve been able to delegate amongst ourselves and playing on each other’s strengths and weaknesses to a certain degree. Alas there are always things that could be improved like being able to be more vocal or decisive with certain decisions. While the group has a great dynamic there is no distinction of any form of hierarchy or organisation which plays into both a good thing but also a bad thing. We at times will juggle the prospective head role in a sense but there’s never a clear distinction as to who may oversee an aspect unless volunteered so. In things that I found surprising was when we conducted our interview, I found that a lot of the information Martyn was giving was so surprising to me as it’s an industry I could see myself investing into so to speak to a professional with a gaming career history was such a refreshing surprise and wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for meeting my group, or at least would’ve taken more personal effort. The one thing that I’ve learnt about groups is that varying personality traits doesn’t necessarily mean a project will not be productive as a matter of fact because we are each our own individuals you tend to get some interesting perspectives despite any disagreements or agreements.
Ashley
I have not been as involved as I would like in the group. The group is very welcoming and understanding even when I have not been up to any reasonable standards. We had a couple of Group video meetings, which I could not attend but watched later as they were recorded. I found the Interview with Martyn from Gameloft fascinating and helpful insight into the gaming industry. It never appeared to me how many teams or people were involved in making a game. The group worked well, and they communicated well with each other.
Jessica
Overall, I think that we have worked well as a team and have been welcoming and respectful towards one another. It took a while for roles, responsibilities, and strengths to emerge as we were still getting to know each other. However, once we got over initial formalities, we managed to reach a stage where work could be delegated and expected to be completed by individual members of the group. Perhaps one of our weaknesses as a group was the lack of a hierarchical structure. That is not to say that leadership was not present within our group, it was more that leadership roles changed throughout the course of the project and that it was taken on in a more voluntary basis. It is often said that positions of leadership should be taken with reluctance, however I believe this approach may have led to inefficiencies. Our weekly meetings highlighted work that needed to be done and I feel that we always walked away from the meetings having a better understanding than before. I think that team meetings could have benefited from a more structured approach like group stand ups and then discussing key topic areas within a set time limit. I am most proud of the fact that despite the challenges that we faced, we always came to team meetings with a positive attitude, helped each other and managed to have a few laughs in the process.
Karsten
The group for assessment 2 consisted of a multitude of different characters and ages. Nevertheless, right from the start, the group converged very well and prioritised and focused on the tasks at hand. While some members were quieter and others more dominant, everyone delivered their part and positively contributed to the overall task. Working with many members across different tasks and with MS Teams, lengthy chat sessions evolved, which sometimes were difficult to follow, and the actual outcome was diffuse. However, in the weekly video conferences, these issues could always be rectified. It was interesting to see that some team members had quite advanced technological skills in animation, electronics, and web design. Which positively added to the overall outcome. Working together as a group for about three weeks showed how vital effective communication is, but also that not everything can be resolved by chats. While passing on information and content works fine this way, if the group had not done video meetings in addition, it would not have turned out as well as it did.
Paul
As I am the oldest member of the group, I was apprehensive about being accepted. I was pleasantly surprised with how the group accepted me for who I am. My academic skills probably leave a lot to be desired, but the group was very encouraging with assistance required to complete the tasks I took on. There didn’t seem to be any sort of hierarchy within the group, it was evident from the first meeting that certain individuals had strengths to make the group function more formally. It was very informal as to who took on what task, but the people with the best skills always seemed to take on the task that suited their strengths. The meetings were held on MS Teams on a weekly basis, and Teams was something new to me. The rest of the group were very helpful with assisting me with the operation of teams. The tasks I was given I asked for others’ opinions on how I should proceed, and everyone was helpful.
