You can improve your output and results at work if you practice outstanding team management by following four simple tips below. Once you’ve mastered these team management skills, you’ll enjoy more successful projects, which could lead to promotions and more job responsibilities.
Serve, Don’t Manage
Some may say managers should manage, but the best managers serve their team members to ensure they have everything they need to complete their jobs. As a project manager, you should put the interests of every team member at the top of your list and support them as much as possible.
For example, if your team is writing a technical manual, be sure all stakeholders can send large files quickly to the cloud, so everyone is working on the same document. Having everyone working on the same version ensures no time is wasted.
Also, note that good project managers provide a good example with their actions, not just by telling people what to do. Want your team to work well together and deliver projects on time? Set a standard in how you work and communicate with everyone.
Learn From Everyone
The best managers don’t think they’re always right about everything because they have a higher position.
Some of the best managers take it upon themselves to have regular conversations with every team member to learn something from them. But, of course, just because you’re the manager doesn’t mean your employees cannot teach you something.
For instance, when you meet with your project team, and there’s a programming problem with a form, you may have a strong opinion about what the issue is. But your programmers and developers are probably closer to the subject than you are. So listen to what your programmers have to say. They could well be correct, and part of your job is to make others look good, so don’t assume you always have the correct answer.
Encourage Candor
A regular challenge in the workplace is handling project problems. Perhaps a programmer made an error that resulted in a pilot program failing in front of a customer.
Mistakes happen in every project, but how you handle them is the difference between a successful and unsuccessful product. You can create a safety culture in your organization and team by letting people be honest about problems and challenges during the project.
One way is to gather a safety meeting every day or week and ask for problems that have cropped up as team members work on tasks.
Some of the best projects happen when employees feel safe bringing up a problem that they caused. This gets it out in the open, and everyone can work together to solve it.
Continual improvement is essential for project success, but improvement only is possible if there is open communication.
Recognize Outstanding Work
When you work at a large company, some employees may feel that their work isn’t vital.
But as a manager, you always should keep your eyes open, looking for excellent performance, whatever the job assignment or task.
For example, some may not think that handling project billing is critical. But you should talk to employees in the billing department and show how vital their work is.
When employees feel that their work matters, they’re more likely to up their game and do their jobs better. They also may feel empowered to come up with solutions that improve efficiency and output.
When you recognize outstanding work and make people feel good about their jobs, good things happen.
Everyone has managers, and some are much better than others. Over time, managers with the above skills and abilities tend to be the best. When you are the best project manager you can be, others on the team look good and ensure the best possible result.
