There have been numerous articles comparing orchestras and other musical ensembles like Jazz groups and their similarity to being part of a business teams.  Adrian Cho works for IBM as a software developer and he also plays bass and leads a big band in Ottawa Canada.  Perhaps because of Cho’s experiences as both a Jazz musician and a software developer, Cho clearly sees the similarities.

Jazz musicians according to Cho must work in synergy to develop high quality musical performances. Jazz musicians are highly committed practitioners who flourish on improvisation and mutual playing success.(http://www.npr.org/blogs/ablogsupreme/2010/02/how_jazz_can_improve_your_busi.html) There is definitely a back and forth between players as there has to be in a high performance team.

Technology has in many ways imitated the back and forth of a jazz musicians, and IBM in particular has a software delivery product, aptly named Jazz which helps global teams work across continents in multiple countries.

Have your students go to the following websites

• http://www.npr.org/blogs/ablogsupreme/2010/02/how_jazz_can_improve_your_busi.html
• http://www-01.ibm.com/software/rational/jazz/

Questions:

1. What comparisons can your student make between a jazz performer and the objectives of software like IBM’s Rational ®Jazz®?

2. How might teams benefit from this kind of technology?

3. What kinds of drawbacks might also factor in with teams that use technology software rather than face-to-face meeting?