Group Discussion Group Discussion is an important part of the selection process where employers evaluate the candidates’ potential to be a leader and also the ability to work in teams. Normally group discussions are used in the selection process for management trainees and executive positions. The objective of a group discussion is to mainly check your team playing skills because as a manager, you will be working in organisations with people. Employers are looking for candidates who have potential to be executives and to lead teams of people. The group discussion is a test of your interactive skills and how good you are at communicating with other people. You’ll have to be able to understand the other person’s point of view while making your point and ensure that your team as a whole reaches a win-win situation; in other words a solution/agreement which is both feasible and accepted by all members of the team. A group discussion, to that extent, is a simulated managerial setting. Groups of 8-10 candidates are formed into a leaderless group, and are given a specific situation to analyse and discuss within a given time limit, which may vary between twenty minutes and forty-five minutes. They may be given a case study and asked to come out with a solution for a problem. They may be given a topic and are asked to discuss the same. Skills assessed during a Group Discussion: Leadership Skills - Ability to take leadership roles and be able to lead, inspire and carry the team along to help them achieve the group’s objectives. Communication Skills - Candidates will be assessed in terms of clarity of thought, expression and aptness of language. One key aspect is listening. It indicates a willingness to accommodate others views. Interpersonal Skills - People skills are an important aspect of any job. They are reflected in the ability to interact with other members of the group in a brief situation. Emotional maturity and balance promotes good interpersonal relationships. The person has to be more people centric and less self-centred. Persuasive Skills - The ability to analyse and persuade others to see the problem from multiple perspectives. Essentially, the group discussion is a test of your ability to think on your feet, your analytical prowess and your ability to make your point in a team-based environment. Tips for the Group Discussion · A good level of general awareness will come in handy so that you arent at a loss of words on certain issues. · Topics can be from a wide range of issues. It could be a topic on current events, business news, sports or anything very general. The wider your reading interests, the better prepared you will be. · Take time to think of what you are going to say. Always enter the room with a piece of paper and a pen. In the first two minutes jot down as many ideas as you can before verbalizing them. · Work out various strategies to help you enter the discussion - initiate the discussion or agree with someone elses point and then move onto express your views. · Starting the discussion is considered to be good however it isnt that important; what is important is that you speak for a period long enough for you to be able to communicate your viewpoint. · Be patient; dont lose your cool if anyone says anything you object to. The key is to stay objective: Dont take the discussion personally. · Remember the six Cs of effective communication - Clarity, Completeness, Conciseness, Confidence, Correctness and Courtesy. · Be responsive to ideas from other people and very receptive and open-minded but dont allow others to change your own viewpoint. · Employers are looking for a range of different skills and although you may think that leadership is key, and want to demonstrate this in a discussion, you need to be careful that you dont dominate the discussion as this may come across as aggressive. · Quality and NOT QUANTITY: Often, participants think that success in group discussions depends on their decibel levels – i.e. how much they speak and how loud they speak. Ironically, it’s the opposite. · Rounding the discussion off - when about 2-3 minutes are left, someone in the group must take the initiative and summaries all the issues discussed. -ends-
Posted on: Mon, 03 Feb 2014 15:18:49 +0000
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