university of sunderland professionalism and personal skills unit 1 professional and personal skills

University of Sunderland

Professionalism and Personal Skills Unit 1

Professional and Professional and Personal SkillsPersonal Skills



Professional and Professional and Personal SkillsPersonal Skills

1) Brainstorming 2) Weighted Matrices3) Swot Analysis



BrainstormingBrainstorming

• This technique was developed by Osborn in 1953

• It uses creative thinking to generate a large number of ideas in a short space of time WITHOUT evaluating them



Brainstorming….. 2Brainstorming….. 2

• Is used to:-– gather information relating to a problem– generate ideas which can be modified and refined– evaluate and select an idea for further development– identify possible data requirements



Brainstorming…. 3Brainstorming…. 3

• Should only be used when:-– the problem is fairly simple– when participants are familiar with it– when it is open ended

• Twenty to thirty minutes is advised as the upper limit for brainstorming one particular subject



Brainstorming …. 4Brainstorming …. 4

• Why use it?

• helps to get thinking out of a rut• by hearing novel concepts and ideas can trigger

people to think in a new way• allows individuals to contribute and to benefit from

the ideas of others• creates a good environment which will enhance

teamwork



• STRUCTUREDEvery person in the group must give an

idea as their turn passes in rotation. Forces shy people to participate.

Can create pressure to contribute• UNSTRUCTURED

Group members simply give ideas as they come to mind. Creates a more relaxed atmosphere.

Vocal members can dominate.

BrainstormingBrainstorming …. 4 …. 4



Brainstorming…. RulesBrainstorming…. Rules

• RULES– Do not judge ideas– Encourage wild thinking– Quantity not quality– Every person, every idea is equal– Build on ideas

Activity One



Weighted MatricesWeighted Matrices

• A problem

– ‘I need to make a decision based on a number of options that all have good and bad points’



Weighted Weighted MatricesMatrices

• A solution

–Use a Weighted matrix




PURPOSE

• to provide a way of comparing a range of options in order to choose between them

• It helps to makes choices objective - but by using subjective judgement!




• It is a simple two dimensional table - or spreadsheet type of layout in that it uses rows and columns



Factor Weighting Choice 1 Choice 2 Distance from University

3 2 3

Cost 10 8 9 Area 5 3 2 Facilities 10 5 9

TOTAL 28 18 23

Weighted Matrices for choosing student accommodation




• The ‘WEIGHTING’ column gives the key to weighted matrices




• Enter against each factor a significance weighting. This is subjective. The scale does not matter - just the weightings relative to each other. Any factors given the same weighting are considered to be of equal importance




• The final stage is to enter the alternatives, and to ‘score’ them. Each alternative is given a rating out of the maximum significance weighting.

Activity 2




ARE THEY USEFUL?

• Used in Information Systems Group Project to judge students!

• Used by companies when comparing invitations to tender

• Used to select products, e.g. which database is best for our purpose?



SWOT AnalysisSWOT Analysis

• An effective method of identifying:-

–Strengths–Weaknesses–Opportunities–Threats




• STRENGTHS– What are your advantages?– What do you do well?– Consider this from your own point of view and

from the point of view of the people you deal with.



Example: Example:

• A start-up small web design/customised graphics company might carry out the following SWOT analysis:



Strengths: Strengths:

• We are able to give really good customer care, as the current small amount of work means we have plenty of time to devote to customers

• Our lead designer has a solid reputation within the market

• We can change direction quickly if we find that our marketing is not working

• We have little in the way of overheads, so can offer good value to customers

• We are able to respond very quickly as we have no red tape, no need for higher management approval, etc.




•WEAKNESSES– What could be improved?– What is done badly?– What should be avoided?

Consider these from an internal and external viewpoint - do other people see weaknesses that you don’t? Do your competitors do better? Face unpleasant truths!



Weaknesses:Weaknesses:

• Our company has no market presence or reputation

• We have a small staff with a shallow skills base in many areas

• We are vulnerable to vital staff being sick, leaving, etc.

• Our cash flow will be unreliable in the early stages




• OPPORTUNITIES

• What are the interesting trends?

• Where are the good opportunities facing you?

• Useful opportunities could come from technology, from changes in market, from governmental policy, from changes in social patterns etc



Opportunities:Opportunities:

• Our target sector is expanding, with many future opportunities for success

• Our local council wants to encourage local businesses with work where possible

• Our competitors may be slow to adopt new technologies




• THREATS

• What obstacles do you face?

• What is the competition doing?

• Are specifications for your job, product etc changing?

• Is technology threatening you position?

• Do you have bad debt or cash flow problems?



Threats:Threats:

• Will developments in technology change this market beyond our ability to adapt?

• A small change in focus of a large competitor might wipe out any market position we achieve




STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES

OPPORTUNITIES THREATS

university of sunderland professionalism and personal skills unit 1 professional and personal skills

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