People are not cashflows; don't discount them

It is frustrating for me when I see people discounting others. It is unfortunate but true that majority of the students here don't realistically exploit the strength of other fellow class mates. In my view, the think tank we have here at ISB beats the great faculty and world class facilities we have. But the important question I have is Are we seriously leveraging the think tank? I am not claiming I am perfect in this but here are some learnings which I will value for the rest of my life.

1. Take responsibility: You can maximize learning through team work only if you take complete responsibility. Yes, there will be free riders and you may feel that you are doing all the work. Realize that if you want maximum learning this is the best way to go. To minimize burnout you should take complete responsibility in at least 50% of your courses. When I mean complete responsibility, I did not mean do all the work. First, you need to be confident enough that you can do a good job for your team. Second, you need to be able to motivate the team members and discuss, plan, communicate and assign the tasks. Third, you need to make sure every team member is meeting their commitments. Finally, take the responsibility of integration and putting together what is needed.
2. Combine synergies: We have all gone through initial group exercises where the importance of listening was rather over-emphasized. Neverthelss, we have turned out to be very poor listeners. We don't mind interrupting others when they are talking and completely ignore others suggestions and comments. I am not sure if this is a cultural thing in us but I find it very disturbing. We all understand MBTI profiling and we all know that every person has her own strengths and weaknesses. All you have to do is leverage their strengths and complement with their weaknesses. Some people have very good quantitatve skills where as some people are excellent thinkers and writers. If the both categories combine effectively, it is a deadly combination.
3. Be Professional: One of the key ingredients for success in the business world is to be professional. It is discouraging to see that we quickly develop a dangerous and casual student culture here. Respect for others time is very important especially in group work. Please don't get me wrong. I am not saying you should be formal but you should be disciplined. Simple things like replying promptly to the emails, volunteering for tasks, arranging for food etc., will take the stress factor out.
4. Be assertive : Being assertive is not being aggressive. You try to justify your argument by reasoning and data. When there is a conflict of interest, then try to understand where the other person is coming from. If there is a valid point in his argument agree and try to build on the argument.

These are only some of the learnings which helped me a lot and hope they help you too.