Team development techniques
Team development refers to the situation where the staff involved in the project acquires relevant skills and functions as a single team. This is a continuous process throughout the project building. Team development ensures there is an effective and a cooperative team which is reliable and able to complete a given project. The team leader must always be on the look-out for emerging new skills to keep the team updated and therefore increase its confidentiality when dealing with a particular project. Building new skills on the project team is a great source of motivation. This can be accomplished through training, establishing links with others, coaching, developing on your own and mentoring (Kendrick & Project Management Institute, 2004).
Team development refers to the situation where the staff involved in the project acquires relevant skills and functions as a single team. This is a continuous process throughout the project building. Team development ensures there is an effective and a cooperative team which is reliable and able to complete a given project. The team leader must always be on the look-out for emerging new skills to keep the team updated and therefore increase its confidentiality when dealing with a particular project. Building new skills on the project team is a great source of motivation. This can be accomplished through training, establishing links with others, coaching, developing on your own and mentoring (Kendrick & Project Management Institute, 2004).
A large and a diverse project team is prone to conflicts because of diverse opinions of different characters of people in the team. The team leader must be as consultative as possible to engage team players in decision making. This gives them the sense of involvement in the project and therefore minimal cases of conflicts are encountered. When roles are not clearly stated for each team player, it can be avenue of conflicts in the team because one person may step-in another person’s responsibilities. Conflicts may also arise when there are no stipulated communication norms within the team where a team player feels hard to communicate some ideas openly (Parker, 2008).
To reduce the incidences of conflicts, the team must take some precautionary measures to ensure there is harmonious running within the team. Every team player must clearly understand his/her roles in the project group. This prevents unworthy interference by some team players with others responsibilities. It is imperative to understand the team structure, know members well and understand their feelings about the team. When a conflict arises in a team, mechanisms must be put in place to resolve the same. A systematic approach called conflict management is used to find a solution that satisfies both parties involved in the conflict. Effective communication channels within a team are essential to curb conflict and create an atmosphere that is conducive for a meaningful operation. Conflict resolution calls for one “listen” to his/her feelings i.e. know how you feel and why you feel that way (Scott, 2008). Good listening skills are important when dealing conflicts. There is need to understand the party’s perspective and not concentrating on yours only. It is important to be clear when communicating your feelings without being assertive or putting the other party on the defensive side. After you have understood each others perspective, it is the time to look for the solution to the conflict, a solution that mutual i.e. each party in the conflict ought to benefit from the outcome and feel satisfied. There are some incidences where the cause the conflict could be a slight misunderstanding, a simple apology can resolve the conflict (Thomsett, 2009).
Open communication is another tool that solves conflict issues where a team player should feel free discuss any issue related to the team. Sometimes people may agree to disagree, can compromise or give up so to unravel the mystery of the issue at hand. The most crucial thing when solving conflict issues within a team is to solve the problem in such a way that all the parties involved are satisfied and respected. This prevents such kind of a conflict from happening again and retains the harmonious operation of the team. Depending on the magnitude of the conflict involved, sometimes it’s advisable to approach the solution in a different manner, either by keeping a distance between the conflicting parties or ending the relationship completely. Accepting other people’s limitations is always a milestone towards solving any conflict. In conclusion, you possess the powers to terminate any relationship or you can still work hard towards improving it in a project team.
References
Kendrick, T., & Project Management Institute. (2004). The project management tool kit: 100 tips and techniques for getting the job done right. New York: AMACOM Div American Mgmt Assn.
Parker, G. (2008). Team Players and Teamwork: New Strategies for Developing Successful Collaboration. U.K: John Wiley and Sons
Scott, E. (2008). Conflict Resolution Skills for Healthy Relationships. Retrieved on 28th February, 2010, from http://stress.about.com/od/relationships/a/conflict_res.htm
Thomsett, M. (2009). The Little Black Book of Project Management. New York: AMACOM Div American Mgmt Assn