CASE ANALYSIS BY GROUP D1:

HENRY TAM AND THE MGI TEAM

Primary Issues:

There is lack of proper team work in the MGI team. The following are the most important
issues pertaining to the given case.

1. No clear cut definition of roles: There is an ambiguity in role description. Hence, there is
awareness of what each person has to do.
2. Diverse background: While Sasha is a graduate from Harvard Business School with
professional expertise in management related domains, both Igor and Roman are
accomplished musicians and composers. So, there was a conflict of interest when it came
to making decisions. Also, ethnic diversity seems to be a hindrance during some times.
3. Egoism: There was complete animosity between Sasha and Dana. Due to this strong
personality clash, Sasha would always disagree with Dana and both would represent
extremes positions.
4. Lack of leadership and transparency: There was no clear cut leader. There were times
when Henry and Sasha would exchange leadership roles. Though Sasha provided a lot of
energy, he could aslo cause a lot of tension among the team members.

Problem Statement:
To decide if MGIs music puzzle should focus on gaining a foothold in education market or
entertainment market.

Reason:

The MGI founders saw enormous potential for using the software as it could be used in
the following ways.
1. Innovative way to teach children about music
2. Basis for a new genre of interactive music entertainment products aimed at the multibillion dollar teen market

Henry Tam and Dana Soiman thought it was best to launch the MGIs music puzzle in
the education market where there was comparatively less competition. Hence, there was a
dilemma as to what segment the new product should target. Founders who had an artistic
background wanted the future of the company to be in the entertainment industry but
Henry and Dana opted for the education market given the nature of the product and its
success in its stages of development.
Sashas unconventional background and aggressive approach towards Dana and Henry
caused a sense of lack of trust and transparency in the team. There was an extreme
mismatch in the perceptions of Dana and Sasha.
In each meeting a new member was included leading to a larger diverse team. The
brainstorming meetings were leading to more and more chaos.
Dav noticed that the greatest differences within the team rooted in ethnic origins and
cultural stereotypes.

Observations
The MGI team is a perfect example of a team that consists of the right blend of enthusiasm,
creativity, experience and ethnic diversity. The inability to form consensus in most of the
meetings is due to the highly diverse point of views and variations in background of each
member. Igor and Roman were internationally acclaimed musicians/composer, whereas we find
that the rest of the team are more business oriented. All of them aim for a superior vision in
terms of where they want MGIs product to be but differ in the path to be taken. The diversity
and cohesiveness between the team members allow for stronger and creative marketing ideas for
the product, but there was lack of clarity in the roles of each member. Long and aggressive
brainstorming meetings often ended in no significant solutions. Each time a member joined the
group, a new perspective or/and idea was generated. The differences between the team members
were actually a boon as well as a bane. The regular debates that they had did mold some sense of
direction and financial agenda for the product. We can even notice the effect of ethnic
background amongst the personality of few members; Henry who is an American is found to be
calm and soft-spoken and knows how to handle any uncertain decision whereas Sasha and Dana
from a Russian background, are both outspoken and less inclined to uncertainty and more logic
oriented. Each member was motivated to be part of the team due to diverse reasons.
Areas of Concern:
The main areas of concern were:
Improper allocation of roles- Each member in the team was at some point of time confused and
overburdened because there was no proper role allocated to them. Henry and Dana most of the
time were engaged in the holistic duties and Dav had to maintain a low profile in order to reduce
the confusion. There were no code of conduct, proper rules, agenda or objectives during the
meetings.
Inability to properly utilize the teams strengths- The MGI team is a perfect example of a
team that consists of the right blend of enthusiasm, creativity, experience and ethnic diversity.

Each person was complementing the other. Personality clashes and lack of compromise led to
fruitless discussions. Thus there was lack of agreement and trust at times.
Lack of leadership Due to the absence of a proper leader many a times the team lacked focus
and direction. As there was no one to control the interpersonal conflicts, often the day would end
with futile results.
SWOT ANALYSIS
Strengths

Right blend of age, enthusiasm, creativity, experience and ethnic diversity.

All were sincerely passionate about the well-being of the team as well as the product.
The diverse backgrounds of each member helps in brainstorming
Complementary skills of each member

Weaknesses

Lack of clarity of each members role in the team.

Differences in point of views among team members lead to unproductive meetings.
Lack of interpersonal congruence and personality clashes
Improper code of conduct and lack of leadership

Opportunities

Functional and demographic diversity amongst members

Potential of becoming a Virtuoso team
Availability of important HBS Alumni contacts to market the product

Threats

Lack of time need to present the business plan soon.

Unhealthy conflicts and threats to identity
Lack of trust and loss of morale

Recommendations

The first problem that the team needs to address is the role definition. Interpersonal
congruence should be fostered amongst the team members. Sense of respect for each
persons abilities and background should be maintained. Healthy discussions and mutual
agreement of the strengths of each member can define his role in the team. This to an
extent solves the weaknesses and threats in the team.
A sense of direction can only be created if there is appropriate leadership. This calls for
organizing the team under a leader. As Henry is found to be a character that is soft
spoken, calm but assertive, and stable under uncertainty, clearly is a good choice for a
leader. Alex and Dana seconds this notion in the case. Sense of enthusiasm and the

business background adds to his favour. A sense of greater independence should also be
fostered.
Sasha and Dana need to get there acts together and start accepting and acknowledging
each others ideas with mutual respect. While assigning roles to them, the team can be
careful to not threaten their identity.
The problem of whether or not for the product to be launched in the education or
entertainment market can be solved by healthy brainstorming using the complementary
skills of each member under proper leadership.