SHPE - Fall 2007 - (Page 18) C O V E R S T O RY Students and TI reps brainstorm creative ways to attract new members. According to IBM’s Cruz, leadership involves understanding your role in group dynamics. acting; executing your commitments; and adhering to your ethical standards. During “Managing Meetings,” IBM’s Vera Cruz led six volunteers in an experiment. Unbeknownst to them, their visors assigned each of them a role in the group’s dynamic such as: “My ideas stink” or “Ask my opinion.” The exercise demonstrated how important it was for leaders to pay attention to group dynamics. “Be aware of the questions that will get you into problem solving mode and those that do not,” Cruz advised. “For example, rather than asking someone why he or she doesn’t like your idea, ask what is in the proposal that he or she can’t support.” Communicating within a multigenerational work force was the theme of a workshop by Mark Moore of American Airlines. In it, he offered members of Generation Y advice on how best to present their ideas to Baby Boomers, Traditionalists and Generation Xers as well as how to interpret their feedback. Moore encouraged students to seek out mentors who would help them understand their company’s unwritten corporate culture. The silent part of communication was addressed by Accenture’s Fernando Rosario during a session on business etiquette. “Body language has words, sentences and punctuation,” he explained, “so you have to be aware of how you’re using it.” As an example he used the “Friends” character Joey Tribbiani and his catch phrase, “How you doin’?” Rosario offered practical advice on applying good 18 manners to grease the wheels of social interaction, including those conducted over e-mail, voice mail and social networking websites. Professionals were particularly engaged during Greg Stephens’ two sessions of “Crucial Communications” where they learned and applied various tools to effective communication. Stephens encouraged participants to identify the stories they tell themselves that essentially predispose them to certain emotions. “In order to have a different outcome, you have to revisit those stories,” he counseled. “Deal with what is happening, not with the emotions.” For Nora Rincon, a past Region VI student representative currently employed with GM, the communications workshop Accenture’s Fernando Rosario demonstrates how a good first impression starts with a solid handshake. was her first real feel of being a SHPE professional. Although she at first missed the student experience, she came away with a new realization: “There’s a greater phase yet to come for me within SHPE.” Students and professionals alike left NILA with a laundry list of ideas to improve their leadership ability and help their SHPE chapters become The Source for Quality Hispanic Engineers and Technical Talent. I Hands-on training on OneSHPE’s functionality. SHPE R Fall 2007
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