Even I put the title as team management, actually this is a human resources management concept in project management.​ You will find invaluable tools to organize your team. Enjoy it. 

 

 

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One essential management skill that project manager should possess is human resources management. It is actually not only leadership skills but also using right tools to secure project concept and allignment to goals. 

 

Many project mangers assumes that HRM is already managed by Human resources department and only focuses on tasks that scope management plan drives. That is not right. PM is the responsible one to motivate team, build team and clarify their responsibilities. In order to achieve that PM actually build reward plans, clarify the expectations from each member, write roles and responsibilities with HRM buy-in, motivate and build team using team building  activities, even document the performance. 

 

For small teams you may feel you do not need HRM plan and not document each activity you make, however big team means big responsibility, big teams with 40 members and 12 stakeholders mean big and organized HRM plan is needed. 

 

 

Step One: 

Plan HRM 

 

Clarify roles and responsibilities 

You can use responsibility assignment matrix for that. The roles of a sponsor, PM, stakeholders and team are already defined in both six sigma and PM methodologies. If you are interested in learning those please talk to me. I advise resources for that. 

Do not forget adding and reminding ethical responsibilities for team. 

 

 

Get Organization Chart from HR department (Organizational breakdown structure) 

The roles and responsibilities of departments and where project stands are mapped in this organization shart. 

 

 

Create a responsibility list (Reponsibility assignment matrix OR RACI) 

 

Basicly the list of activities you get as an output of scope management can be used. You will add one column for each member's name or just two columns called "Responsible" and "reviewer" (second responsible) asssign him/her for this task. 

 

 

Create Resource breakdown structure (RBS)

 

RBS is created decomposing your resources classifying them. 

 

You think you finished planning using these tools. No. 

Just think about yourself you are Mourinho, Guardiola. You need people to realize the goals, you need to acquire team members, speak them, train them and motivate them. If you are OK with that, now wake up from the dream and realize you are not Mourinho but a project manager who is going to learn now how to plan staffing. 

 

 

Staffing Management Plan 

 

Staffing Plan includes plans how to acquire team, train them, manage their energy, motivate them.

Therefore when you start project work you already will know and also inform the team regarding rewards and recognition. There are many tools such as selecting member of the month present him a gift or writing reference letters or assign them for the tasks they love, prizes for deliverables, milestone celebrations. Here is the step that you will plan staffing not actually execute it. This means that you and team already know before the project which recognition type you believe that team will be motived. 

 

 

Resource histogram 

Resource histogram shows visually team members and their contribution to the project. It might be in percentage or hours completed. It is a powerful tool to demonstrate, advocate and convince need for resources, essentially in meetings with functional managers and sponsor. 

 

 

Step two: Acquire Team 

 

Be aware which type of team you are: 

 

Is your team a full-time dedicated team?

Full-time project dedicated teams are the most effective ones as uninterrupted time is maximized and free of daily fire-fighting issues. 

 

Is your team a part-time team? 

Your team members both will appear in project and with their actual functional responsibilities. 

If you do not plan staffing, be ready to have conflict with functional managers. Do not panic and next time prepare one. 

 

Is your team virtual team who are located at different offices or countries? 

I recommend you to read communication management and see there the noises in that types of teams. You need to assign very much time to prepare, clarify and communicate aspects of the project, avoiding any misunderstanding that might stem from cultural differences, languages etc.. 

Most probably you will be a master in using teleconferencing room TV, voice stations and also this IP numbers stuff. 

Even though it might suffer you not to have a cup of tea with your teammates, virtual teams are joyful. As you have a nice conference room then everybody will appear there with his/her most brilliant manner, and usually prepared for the meeting. 

 

 

Drive management to avoid Halo Effect 

 

In organizations, performance appraisal tools might fundamentally focus on functional responsibilities to be done by appraisee but not his/her potential and management skills. Therefore, the man who focuses on daily activities and get them done might be qualified for high authority new position whereas his potential, skills, vision and leadership is limited. That is called halo effect. You are responsible to protect the project scope, schedule and quality from these effect by driving business proactively. 

 

As a PM you migth not have authority to assign people for your projects but any conflict arisen by halo effect must be pre-determined and prevented. 

 

 

Third Step - Develop TEAM 

 

To develop team you will recognize the need for training, motivate, build, encourage and assess team. To be a team can not be posible in kick-off meeting just in 2 hours but needs time. 

 

The main goal of developing the team is to unleash the potential of the team and shift it to a efficient even synergical state of work. You will need team building activities to realize that. Be careful, it is different from recognition and giving prizes but it is more related to build rapport and trust. In this stage you are going to use both your soft skills, vision, leadership and symphatic personality. If you are not known as the most sympathic PM or you do not want to, don't be afraid. I have got some generic tools and manners even though your human skill is not the best. 

 

1. First of all, always be honest and open. 

 

2. Then, try to learn about your team members preferences and personality. Learn their passion, dreams and streghts. You can build authority and rapport on them by helping them on their path. Assign them for the tasks they love. 

 

3. Let them see the whole picture. Do not stop them if they ask to attend in a higher level meeting. Take time to show and remind the relation between organization strategic objectives and the project. 

 

4. Make your decisions with the team buy-in. Let them feel they contribute. 

Expect new ideas from them, and appreciate. WBS and other planning tools are good practices for that. Use the tools that you are more experienced, to avoid the risk of losing reputation. 

 

5. Recognition and rewards. 

 

6. Train them essentially on areas they want to commit their career. Before trainings show up and tell the value of training for their development as a professional. 

 

7. Build a team culture and trust among team members. Use sense of humor. team building activities. 

 

 

Team Stages 

You also need to be aware of stages of being a team. These are: 

 

Forming 

team members begin to learn about each other. 

 

Storming 

Some conflicts appear in this stage, people get accostumed to each other's ideas, attitude and personality. 

 

Norming 

Team members build rapport and trust 

 

Performing 

Team is already formed and shifted to a productive and efficienct state together, they know each other 

 

Adjourning 

At the end of the project, team forming ends as well. 

 

The period of each step changes depending on organization type, motivation level and functional variety of the participants. 

 

In the course of all these stages team-bıilding activities has an essential role to catalyze the processes and stay on performing stage as much time as possible. Please utilize team building activities which best fits with your budgert and the need of organization. 

 

 

Training 

 

Training is an activity both unleash the potential of the team members and motivate them. As a project manager, to over-motivate people and boost the effectiveness of training, make speeches prior to the training, essentially pointing out and reminding that it will add value to their professional development as well as organization's strategic goals. If you do not have enough budget for that you may also convince HR department to pay them, as most trainings add value to the organizational assets. 

 

 

Ground rules 

 

While developing team step you are going to put ground rules? Why? 

Because, you will not have enough time to lose it with basic conflicts and you are the responsible to prevent that. 

You may prefer or not, to add HR department's general rules for all employees. Better not to add but prepare some base rules for the project. This may include the small procedures and rules that need to be met in meetings, phone calls, communications, right way of asking questions or interruption etc. This will facilitate your leadership and drive people to respect to the project very much, as even that much detail is thought by you. 

 

 

Fourth Step  - Manage Team 

 

In management, you will demonstrate your leadership and human skills. Only the following tools are not sufficient to manage the team effectively. 

 

Manage team includes high level observation in accordance to your management style and be obsessive to be a helper and a coach for your team member. 

 

 

Team members' Performance appraisal 

 

Work with Human resources department and in the course of the project appraise the performance of team members. If they are performing well, do not be shy and conguratulate them bothe verbally and via Thank you letters. If you are performing in a matrix organzational structure and members are reporting both to you and a functional manager, send recognition and thank you letters to their supervisor as well. 

 

 

Issue Log (Issue register, Action log) 

 

Issue log is essential tool for communication effectively. This is basicly the list of issues happened and issue causes and their impact and corrective actions taken. To get one example, you can contact me. 

 

 

 

Management Styles 

 

In the course of the project lifetime you are going to use different types of management skills. 

I will just name but not explain the types of management styles. Direct, coach, delegate, bureaucracy, consultive, support, facilitate, analytical, charisma, drive and influence are types of management styles. The ones who want to get the definitions and desire to learn more profound regarding that topic you can contact me or have a look to the PM guides or books.