dreamteam

Project Charter

Ambitious goals are best achieved when people work together cooperatively. In order to work effectively as a team, we must be aware of common team problems including poor communication, inadequate critical discussions, insufficient process control, and imbalanced participation. In an effort to overcome these issues, each member will review the “Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing” (Webb) teamwork model outlined by Dr. Bruce Tuckman.

Our team will succeed by adhering to the regulations outlined in this charter. It is expected from each group member that they share their ideas, participate in discussions by defending or critiquing team ideas, provide assistance to any group member when needed, and respect one another within the team.

In order to gauge our work performance, our group will work under a structured timeline. This is best accomplished by breaking the project down into smaller components, dividing the workload based on our individual interests, and scheduling deadlines for completing each component. This approach to teamwork was validated by Katzenbach and Smith (1993) who studied team projects in over thirty organizations and concluded that effective teams develop project plans including rules of conduct, schedules, individual responsibilities, and timelines.

Group members will be expected to meet on a weekly basis at the conclusion of the tutorial period. During these meetings we will review our progress and our team leader will delegate specific tasks, ensuring steady workload and equal participation. Each member is expected to attend these meetings and provide prior notification should they be unavailable. Finally, each member is expected to complete their assigned tasks by the set date.

By adhering to this charter, our individual contribution based upon our unique strengths, our willingness to work together, and a mutual desire to attain a high standard will produce superior results and provide a rewarding learning experience.

Carly Zhang: Group Project Member (carly_zhang@hotmail.com)

//Program of Study:// Economics & CCIT

//Role:// With many years experience on presentation slide making, I will play a role in the group to collect the related information/materials and organize into slides based on my PowerPoint skills. I am fond of fashioned, modern and efficient style in every aspect of life. As a secondary role, based on my experience on group working, I will actively participate in the group project and coordinate with other group members, and provide positive feedback to assist the project moving forward.

//Learning Opportunities:// I view the group project as an opportunity to expand my knowledge of analysis of user experience through research and by learning from the proficiency of other group members, while refining my ability to work successfully within a team concept.

//Contribution:// I provided the outline for the charter, how our group will work together by applying my own experience working within a team, and conducting research on effective teamwork. I also filled out my responsibilities and contributions to the group.

Caroline Khewro: (innocent_devil55@hotmail.com)

//Program of study:// Visual Culture and Communication

Trevor-Ross Georgie: (canadianthriller@hotmail.com)

//Program of Study:// Digital Enterprise Management

//Role:// After working for one of the top five banks in Canada, restructuring their databases and suggesting alternatives to an otherwise faulty system, my experience with making critical and positive changes will prove to be an asset to our group. My role will consist primarily of the evaluation and brainstorming of changes that will make our technological artifact much more effective. My research and development role will be the backbone of our group project, allowing the members of the group to focus on showcasing their other skills. My secondary role will consist of the interviewing of those who use our technological artifact by asking a series of pre-determined questions, filling out a short survey and putting in place a focus group encouraging discussion and debate.

//Learning Opportunities:// I am genuinely interested in design and this project will allow me to develop my skills in the area of redesign. I have prepared many surveys and conducted many interviews for past work and this project will give me the chance to refine these skills and hopefully take them to a whole new level. Anytime one works in a group environment, learning is critical as I will have to learn how to work with people I have never worked with, deal with various personalities and learn to assess ones strengths and weaknesses in order for us all to contribute most efficiently and all feel fulfilled.

//Contribution:// I filled out my responsibilities and contributions to the team. I also wrote the PACT analysis and documentation of initial research. My main contributions will consist of evaluating the technological artifact and identifying what areas need improvement. I will also be focusing on the collection of information by creating the surveys, research as well as conducting interviews and holding focus groups.

__PACT analysis: Paypal___

__**People:**__
 * //Who uses Paypal?// People who do internet shopping or money exchanges. (surveys to be used to determine the most accurate answer)
 * //What characteristics do they share?// They all prefer to do shopping online and are often pressed for time (surveys to be used to determine their characteristics)

Physical Differences:
 * //Height/Weight:// It is practically irrelevant unless certain people may be ashamed of their appearance to purchase certain items in public. (surveys conducted will allow for us to collect such demographic information)
 * //Physical Abilities:// People who have physical disabilities may use Paypal more frequently as it is easier for some to operate a computer than to physically go shopping for an item. (interviews with people who have various degrees of physical disabilities will allow us to probe into the relevance of the user’s physical state)

Psychological/Social differences:
 * //Language and Cultural Variety:// Paypal is not offered in every language, meaning some users are unable to use their service if they wanted to. (Internet research and surveys answered by non-users)
 * //Learning Styles:// Do people who use Paypal generally learn better through hands on experience or through more informative methods? (Surveys will help us answer this question)
 * //Attention, Memory and Mental Models:// Do users of Paypal typically have a better memory, pay more attention or focus more than the average person who doesn’t use it? (Surveys from those who use Paypal and those who don’t will help us develop upon this)

User Differences:__
 * //Novice/Experienced Users:// What are the experience differences noticed between Novice and Experienced Users of Paypal? (The focus group will allow us to contrast answers through an open discussion)
 * //Irregular/Regular Users:// How does the Paypal experience vary between regular and irregular users? Why are some users regular and other irregular? (The focus group will allow us to understand both User’s point of view)
 * //Organizational/Broad Social Contexts:// Is Paypal associated with any Organizational or Broad Social Contexts? (The focus group will discuss this subject)


 * Activities:**
 * //Cooperation:// Do those who run Paypal aim to cooperate with the User in order to resolve disputes or problems? Do those who use Paypal generally cooperate with each other in when conducting a transaction? (The focus group will allow us to answer these questions from previous experiences)
 * //Complexity:// Is Paypal is easy to use and understand? (The surveys will allow us to answer this question)
 * //Safety-Critical:// Is Paypal safe? Is their a chance that a person loses their money? Is fraud an issue Paypal must address? What are Paypal’s safety policies in regards to stolen funds? (Research, interviews with those who use Paypal and those who run Paypal will allow us to answer address these questions)
 * //The nature of content:// Is the content the user provides to Paypal safe? Is the content on Paypal’s website relative to the service provided? (Research done on the internet and interview with an administrator from Paypal)

Context:
 * //Physical environment:// In a physical environment, is Paypal an actual item or rather a service? (Analyzing Paypal)
 * //Social context:// How is Paypal recognized in a social context? (Analyzing Paypal)
 * //Organizational context:// How is Paypal recognized in an organizational context? (Analyzing Paypal and Focus group)

Technology:
 * //Input:// Is the information you put into a Paypal account relevant? From a user perspective: is the amount of input and effort from the user point of view worth the results? (Surveys and analysis of the Paypal website)
 * //Output:// What is the output from the Paypal process and does it reach Users expectations? (Surveys and analysis of the Paypal website)
 * //Communication:// Is the communication method used by Paypal efficient? How do those who use Paypal generally communicate? Are there easier ways to create communication between Paypal and its clients?(Analysing Paypal, Surveys and Focus groups)
 * //Content:// What content does Paypal provide online? What are you able to do with the content provided? (Analysis of Paypal and Surveys)

Our inspiration came from a terrible experience where one group member, Trevor Georgie, lost a large sum of money through Paypal. All sources and methods for us to collect information are included in the PACT analysis. We used the Paypal website ([|www.paypal.com]) and the Ebay Canada website ([|www.ebay.ca]) as initial research. We have decided to use surveys, focus groups and interviews to collect the majority of our information as well as analyze the Paypal process itself. We believe the complimentary nature of these quantitative and qualitative research methods will be significantly beneficial in answering our research question.

References

Katzenback, J. R. & Smith, D.K. “The Discipline of Teams.” Harvard Business Review, March/April, 1993.

Webb, J., Miller, N., and McNew, R. “Training: Promoting Effective Teamwork in the College Classroom.” NACTA Journal, Dec. 2004, 3.