| Effective teams are organizational assets; they | | | | Feedback should always be on ways to prove and |
| perform well and help the organization to achieve its | | | | looking forward, not backward. |
| goals and objectives. As a project manager, improving | | | | 5. Attitude. As hard as it can be sometimes, don't be |
| team performance should be an ongoing process, and | | | | angry. Easier said than done, but if you are stressed, |
| project managers need to be constantly ensuring they | | | | that will always be reflected in how you deal with your |
| deliver as success or failure depends on how well | | | | team. Be positive, reassuring and supporting, even |
| your team performs. Here are some tips to maximize | | | | when things go wrong or the project is delayed. Lead |
| your project team's performance: | | | | by example. |
| 1. Vision: Your team can only hope to perform well if | | | | 6. Praise in Public. There is no excuse for forgetting to |
| they understand the end game; what it is they need to | | | | praise performance and your team's successes. |
| deliver and why. It is best to reinforce the project | | | | Congratulate those responsible in your team for great |
| vision, goals, milestones, and deadlines. Team members | | | | work, meeting milestones, turning in deliverables. This is |
| will need to be assigned responsibility for delivery, and | | | | not just a back-slapping exercise, but an important |
| then be held accountable for execution. By | | | | team building activity to ensure performance does not |
| empowering team members and making them feel | | | | go unrecognized. |
| wanted, team members will have a better sense of | | | | 7. Meet with the Team. They are unavoidable, so meet |
| how their contributions impact the project and why | | | | with the team regularly to build strong esprit de corps. |
| their efforts are critical to the success of the project | | | | Have team social functions; who doesn't love a good |
| and the company. Getting the buy-in from the team | | | | happy hour? The objective is to help build a strong |
| early can be the difference between success and | | | | bond with your team, so you work better together and |
| failure, and help ensures commitment going forward. | | | | achieve objectives. |
| 2. Setting Expectations. Effective program managers | | | | 8. Sharpen the Saw. If people need a break, give it to |
| give clear guidance and direction to their team | | | | them. Try an anticipate burn out, and allow team |
| members, and then hold them accountability for | | | | members time off for working hard. This will lead to |
| delivery. Of importance is letting them know how you | | | | higher productivity, reduce absence, and help improve |
| will how them accountable, and you intend to measure | | | | motivation as team members know you are watching |
| their performance. You should know what motivates | | | | out for them and not being a ruthless task master. |
| each team member, and what you need to do to | | | | 9. Everyone is different. Treat them differently. I do not |
| support them in their role to be successful. | | | | subscribe to the theory that everyone should be |
| 3. Allow Your Team to Perform. Do not | | | | treated the same because people are motivated by |
| micro-manage; let the team do their jobs. Of course | | | | different things. Getting to know your team members |
| you need to manage the project, but the point is to | | | | and building the relationship will be an important driving |
| allow your team to excel and be empowered to | | | | force to understand what motivates each team |
| perform. As pressure gets ramped up with | | | | member. If you can reward each person differently |
| deliverables, budget crunches, etc., don't put the team in | | | | based on their motivations, then you can improve their |
| a pressure cooker or their performance will suffer. Be | | | | performance. |
| flexible and lead from the front. | | | | 10. Victory. Celebrate success at the end of the |
| 4. Set Milestones. Manage to the milestones, with | | | | project. Many team members will just move straight |
| periodic checks to measure their performance | | | | onto the next project, without celebrating the success |
| regularly. Weekly status checks are best, or you can | | | | of the last one. Take a breather, release stress, and |
| meet with team members individually as appropriate to | | | | allow team members to recharge their batteries. |
| discuss their achievements, provide feedback, and | | | | By implementing these tips, you will be giving your team |
| communicate issues as needed. Constructive | | | | the right tools and motivation to help them complete |
| communication is vital, as focusing on failures is | | | | their work quickly and to a high level of quality, and |
| counterproductive and destructive for morale. | | | | improve performance. |