Team Spirit is Built On Commitment and Respect

  Diversity   Organizational Culture   PM Network  

Every project manager has a dream team—and I just had the pleasure of working with mine. It was a volunteer project that required a demanding set of deliverables. And although we were all extremely happy to wrap up our work, there was also an element of sadness at the dissolution of the team.

As we concluded the project, we took time to reflect upon why the team functioned so well and agreed on some key contributing factors:

• We shared values with respect to volunteer work. This was established through our initial conversations about why we were willing to put time into the project and what each of us envisaged achieving.
• We shared a commitment to doing the work to the best of our abilities. We established this through frank dialogue about what each of us does well and what we find frustrating, and agreeing that the outcomes and due dates were achievable.
• We respected our different perspectives by talking about past experiences, hopes for this endeavor and the challenges each of us would strive to avoid.
• We all enjoyed the diversity of race, gender, age, heritage, experiences, influences and attitudes that each of us contributed to the project and the environment.

These values were espoused by each of us individually and collectively. We are all strong communicators, able to express ourselves well, but equally able to listen, …

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