The world is moving at a faster pace than it used to a couple of decades ago, which is forcing a lot of companies to come up with innovative ideas. For this reason, project management skills and teamwork should be the priority of any up-and-coming company that’s looking to make a real impact in the industry. If you’re looking to build a high-performing project team, here’s what you can do:
What NOT to do:
Before we talk about what you should focus on, we want to bring your attention to the mistakes that many project managers and team leaders make when putting a project team together. We listed four of the biggest ones below:
1. Not Involving the Client During the Planning Phase
The goal of every project is to satisfy the client and failing to do that is a recipe for disaster. You need to prioritize communication between your team and the client so they understand each other. Your team should know what the client expects of them and the client should know what your team is capable of. This will help minimize confusion and frustration between both sides, which in turn will make the project go smoother.
2. Not Having a Good Leader
A good leader will always take the brunt of the impact to allow their team to thrive and prosper. This is a responsibility that a project leader has to take on every time they are doing anything new. The support from the leader will provide the team with a buffer or cushion, making them feel more comfortable about being creative.
3. Not Having a Defined Role for Each Member
When you are planning to launch a new project, you need to know what the focus of the project is so that you can assign the right people to do certain tasks. It’s crucial that every member of the team has a defined role so they can focus on those things, which will allow them to be more productive and avoid distractions.
4. Not Being Focused on the Right Goals
Chasing too many goals will result in mediocre outcomes, because there won’t be enough funds, manpower, time, and other resources to go around. If you try to do too many things at once, you will find yourself having to rush certain things. It’s better to focus on a couple of key objectives at a time so you can guarantee that everything will be done well and on time.
What to DO:
Now that you know what you need to avoid, let’s get to what you need to do to improve the performance of your project team. Listed below are three tips that will help you build a better project team:
1. Always Keep in Touch with the Client
You want to make sure that your client is always updated on the progress of the project, as that will help alleviate their anxiety and reduce their potential to be aggravated. You have to understand that they are paying for the project, so they want to know exactly what’s going on at all times. When they are kept in the loop, they will be less likely to get annoyed or angry with your team, which will make the process go much more smoothly.
2. Assess the Skills of Your Team Members
You need to understand the skills of all of your team members so that you can assign them to the right positions and test their limits in the right way. Therefore, we recommend that you do some skill testing to see what each member of your team specializes. That will give you a better idea of what you can expect from them throughout the project.
3. Give Your Team the Authority to Make Decisions
Most leaders don’t feel comfortable giving up their authority, which is the reason why the decision-making process can be slow and ineffective. When you are a project leader, some decisions need to be made on the fly, so it’s better to let your team make their own decisions on the parts they are proficient at.
This will help reduce your workload and it will give your team members the freedom to be themselves. The downside of this is that you will have to deal with some scolding and criticism early on, but once everything works out, you will see a significant difference in how the team functions.
If you’re looking to improve your management skills, no matter in which facet, Phoenix Perform is here for you. Get in touch with us today to see how we can help.