Most people working on projects realize that in the long run it is beneficial to work toward mutually satisfying solutions. Still, occasionally you encounter someone who has a dominant win/lose attitude about life and will be difficult to deal with. Fisher and Ury recommend that you use negotiation jujitsu when dealing with unreasonable people, such…
Tag: Project Manager
Outsourcing Project Work – 4 Advantages and Disadvantages
This is the first part of a short guide on outsourcing. If you have landed on this article via a Google/Bing search then I encourage you to take a look at this article first and then come back to this one. Outsourcing Overview The term outsourcing has traditionally been applied to the transferring of business…
5 Reasons For Reducing Project Duration
This article addresses strategies for reducing project duration either prior to setting the baseline for the project or in the midst of project execution. Choice of options is based on the constraints surrounding the project. For example, there are many more options available for reducing project duration if you are not resource constrained than if…
9 Easy Ways to Speed Up Project Delivery
This is the message sent to the Government in a keynote speech by the recently appointed HS2 Chairman Sir David Higgins in Manchester on Monday as he delivered his long awaited review, HS2 Plus, of the mega project’s direction, costs and project delivery method. The best way of keeping costs down for the £50 billion…
Decision Making Process, Make It Your Own
Most decisions on a project do not require a formal meeting to discuss alternatives and determine solutions. Instead decisions are made in real time as part of the daily interaction patterns between project managers, stakeholders, and team members. With that said, I do feel that a formal decision making process should be at the ready,…
Managing Project Reward Systems
Project managers are responsible for managing the reward systems that encourage team performance and extra effort. One advantage they have is that often project work is inherently satisfying, whether it is manifested in an inspiring vision or simple sense of accomplishment. Projects provide participants with a change in scenery, a chance to learn new skills,…
How to Establish a Team Identity
One of the challenges project managers often face in building a team is the lack of full-time involvement of team members. Specialists work on different phases of the project and spend the majority of their time and energy elsewhere. They are often members of multiple teams, each competing for their time and allegiance. And so,…
Conducting Your First Project Team Meeting
Research on team development confirms what we have heard from project managers: The first project team meeting is critical to the early functioning of the project team. According to one veteran project manager: The first team meeting sets the tone for how the team will work together. If it is disorganized, or becomes bogged down…
Building High Performance Teams: Recruiting Team Members
Project managers play a key role in developing high performance teams. They recruit members, conduct meetings, establish a team identity, create a common sense of purpose or a shared vision, manage a reward system that encourages teamwork, orchestrate decision making, resolve conflicts that emerge within the team, and rejuvenate the team when energy wanes. Project…
Factors Affecting Team Development
Experience and research indicate that the following conditions will aid team development and also help start the process of building a high-performance project team: There are 10 or fewer members per team. Members volunteer to serve on the project team. Members serve on the project from beginning to end. Members are…