[Prompt: Discuss a failure. In what way were you disappointed in yourself? What did you learn from the experience?]

Communication Breakdown

I was still a financial analyst when I became a member of Houlihan Valuation Advisors’ Electronics and Communications Knowledge Group. The group consisted of analysts from the San Francisco and Los Angeles offices and was formed to write quarterly reports discussing valuation topics relevant to these dynamic industries. At first I was excited to be involved, but when we finally submitted our report, I was completely embarrassed. It was late, poorly written, and troubled by large gaps in data.

The group had not worked together. Poor communication exacerbated an already problematic arrangement with the differences between office cultures. We never clearly delineated our individual roles, resulting in redundant work on the one hand and neglected research on the other. Our failure to develop style guidelines also entailed a wildly disjointed manner of writing. Although this was a team effort, I felt particularly disappointed in myself. I had simply assumed that the team would take care of itself.

Determined not to repeat this failure, I contacted the other members individually to discuss the problem. I was able to establish a consensus in the recognition that our group needed structure, and that we should meet via teleconference to review the matter. At the meeting, we decided to split the industries into sub-sectors with a single member responsible for each (I took wire line telecommunications). We also decided to have a facilitator in charge of the overall project, with a different member playing the role for each report. Since it was my idea, I was chosen to be the first facilitator. In this position, I acted as a communications hub, disseminating information and coordinating conferences.

Over the following quarter, we communicated much more frequently, and while the office cultures remained different, we came to understand each other. Our next report showed vast improvement: the information was current and comprehensive, and the report was well written and delivered on time. After that success, the group continued to improve as other members began to take the lead. One member enhanced our research by proposing and managing a study on the proper metrics to use in valuing Internet retail companies. Another member taught us how to incorporate real option analysis in our reports. Each one tried to increase the overall efficiency of the group.

When I was promoted to associate, my responsibilities changed, and I could no longer remain a member of the group. But what started as a disappointment became one of the best experiences in my career. I gained knowledge about a dynamic industry and developed real friendships with the other members. I learned to use new analysis techniques, and I discovered that to work effectively in a team requires not only communication and collaboration, but also a tactful form of leadership. Perhaps most importantly, I gained experience in stepping up to fill that role and am now better prepared to face similar situations that may arise.

太傻點評：

文章為5部分，圍繞“問題”的中心思想按“產(chǎn)生問題”—“發(fā)現(xiàn)問題”—“分析問題”—“解決問題”—“反思問題”的邏輯關(guān)系展開。整理來說，表達清晰結(jié)構(gòu)明了，是一篇比較好的文書。

從結(jié)構(gòu)上說，五個部分內(nèi)容如下：

１、報告完成的很失敗

２、報告失敗的原因是團隊的合作有問題

３、為了解決問題，通過團隊間的溝通分析問題

４、按照溝通的結(jié)果實際解決問題，并產(chǎn)生了很好的效果

５、通過這個事情的轉(zhuǎn)變，我學(xué)到了哪些技巧。

從內(nèi)容上說，作者采取的是層層深入的方式。先是作為一個新人到了一個團隊，然后在項目中發(fā)現(xiàn)不足。這點顯示了對于看待問題的獨特視角。然后主動通過團隊間的協(xié)調(diào)，順利的解決的問題。從而顯示出團隊領(lǐng)導(dǎo)的實際能力。順帶的效果是，從失敗中學(xué)到了很多。

整篇文章一氣呵成，通過具體的事例來證明自己的商業(yè)潛力。文風(fēng)嚴(yán)謹(jǐn)，符合商科申請的風(fēng)格。但是文章也是有一定的缺點，就是所舉事例并不是很詳細(xì)，有點籠統(tǒng)，沒把項目改進中出現(xiàn)的過程具體描述一下。但是總體來說還是一篇比較好的文章。

譯文：

交流障礙

提示：描述一次失敗經(jīng)歷。你對自己的哪一方面感到失望？你從這次經(jīng)歷中學(xué)到了什么？

當(dāng)我成為Houlihan美國電子工業(yè)的評估顧問和知識交流團的成員的時候，我還是一個財政分析師。團隊由來自San Francisco和Los Angeles的專家組成，他們被組織起來，按季度寫一些討論一些與機動工業(yè)相關(guān)的投資話題。開始我為自己能被收錄感到激動，但是后來我們的報告交上去之后，我簡直尷尬透了。那份報告交的很晚，寫的很蹩腳，而且當(dāng)中提供的數(shù)據(jù)也和實際的有很大的差距。

事實上團隊根本沒有一起工作。貧乏的合作造成的辦公差異使本來就成問題的安排變得更加的不合理。我們從來就沒有清楚地知道各自的角色，這就導(dǎo)致一方面積壓一堆的工作，另一方面又忽略了研究。我們在發(fā)展有效的指導(dǎo)方針方面的失敗使得報告的寫作缺乏條理。雖然這是團隊一起工作的結(jié)果，但是我對自己也很失望，也天真的想要是屯對不用各個個體操心就好了。

為了避免再犯同樣的錯誤，我分別找了團隊的其他成員來討論這個問題。我們達成一致：團隊需要條理性，而且我們需要通過電話會議來分析問題。會議上我們決定將工業(yè)分為幾個部，分別找一個單獨的成員負(fù)責(zé)該部門。我們還決定選出一個發(fā)起人來負(fù)責(zé)全部項目的管理，而最終的報告就有組內(nèi)的其他成員負(fù)責(zé)完成。由于這個建議是我提出來的，于是我被選為了第一任的發(fā)起人。作為發(fā)起人，我擔(dān)任著交流樞紐、船舶消息、協(xié)調(diào)討論的角色。

接下來的一個季度，我們進行了很順利的交流，雖然大家的辦公法還不是完全相同，但是大家都開始理解對方了。我們的下一個報告也有了明顯的進步，當(dāng)中的信息更準(zhǔn)確及時和廣泛了。報告寫得很精彩而且被很及時地發(fā)了出去。有了這一次的成功，團隊在接下來其他成員的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)下不斷的進步。一個成員提議大家學(xué)習(xí)計量單位，以便更好地完成對國際零售公司的評估報告。另外的一個成員還教我們怎樣在報告中結(jié)合實物的描寫。每個人都在為提高團隊的效率而努力。

后來我被提升為準(zhǔn)會員，我的職責(zé)變了，不再是團隊的一員。但是這次的經(jīng)歷已經(jīng)由開始時的失望變成了后來我的職業(yè)生涯中的一段寶貴經(jīng)歷。我學(xué)到了機械工業(yè)的知識、贏得了團隊成員的友誼、也學(xué)會了應(yīng)用新的分析方法，同時我也發(fā)現(xiàn)一個團隊想要有效的運行，需要的不僅僅是交流、合作，同時也需要一個有效的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)機構(gòu)。最重要的是，那段經(jīng)歷讓我在做好更充分的準(zhǔn)備，更好的面對今后將會出現(xiàn)的各種類似的問題。