Will Your Team Take Responsibility for Their Work?

 

Through the years, I've had the opportunity to work with and manage some great people. Most were highly motivated and anxious to contribute However, I've also worked with others who, no matter what we did, were never able to catch the vision of their role. Over time, it became apparent that they were not able to contribute effectively with an increased level of autonomy. Ultimately, their role on the team was eliminated and they were replaced.

I have often asked myself, "How do you choose the right team?" In a world where self-directed teams or teams with a lot of autonomy over time-lines and deliverables are the norm, building the right project teams becomes more and more important. Although there's no way to guarantee that you've put together the perfect project team, here are five traits I look for that have helped me find engaged, motivated and responsible project teams:

1. Do they have the skills I need to make the project successful? Because I will be relying on them to do their jobs (so I can do mine), I always look for people who have demonstrated that they know what they're doing.
2. Do they have the ability to learn and stretch? I look for people who aren't afraid to try new things, take on additional responsibility and think "outside the box." I learned a long time ago that collaboration with people of different skills can be very productive.
3. Will they plan well and work together with other members of the team? A superstar who is a jerk doesn't help the team. He or she might be highly skilled, or even the "best" at what they do, but if they don't get along with anyone, I won't add them to my team.
4. Are they willing to take (and offer) constructive feedback? Don't call it criticism. Criticism doesn't help anyone, but feedback and honest critique can help a willing learner improve and increase their skills. That includes team leads and project managers. A willingness to incorporate constructive feedback allows everyone on the team to improve.
5. Can I count on them at crunch time? Every project seems to run into times when people need to put forth extra effort to make things happen. It seems like no matter how well you plan, there are always things that crop up to cause grief. It's important that we can count on each other to pitch in with a little extra effort when this happens.

Building a team that shares all these traits is easier said than done. However, it's critical to consistent project success and absolutely necessary for project managers who are working with empowered team members.

How do you pick your project teams? How can you tell if you have the right combination of skills?