You lead a large team with a mix of different work habits, communication styles and preferences. Among your colleagues are night owls and larks, workaholics and lazy people.
On the one hand, different points of view and fresh ideas help to consider the problem from all sides. But on the other hand, the dynamics of the situation sometimes get out of control:
- One of the team members wants to carefully weigh everything and formulate a clear plan, although the rest are ready to roll up their sleeves and dive right into work.
- Some colleagues insist on being constantly connected through email, instant messaging and meetings, while others prefer to be left alone and allowed to focus.
- Some people like bagels, while others like cheesecakes.
All people are different, and there is no escaping this. The skill of a project manager lies in bringing a team together, playing to its strengths, and overcoming differences.
Who's who on the project team?
First, let's understand what personality is. According to psychology expert Professor John Mayer on Fox Business, “Personality is an organized system that develops within the individual and constitutes the collective actions of his major psychological subsystems.”
Let's rephrase: “In simple terms, I think personality is the internal drive that motivates us to do certain things,” writes Fox Business author Dr. Woody Woodward. “These are the natural attitudes that we return to after dealing with all the distractions of the outside world.”
Of course, this means that the number of possible roles to occupy on a team is incalculable. Think back to when you worked on a team project in school and how many different types of people you met:
- There was always a person in charge - someone who paid full attention to the work and kept on schedule.
- There was also a lazy person who did everything on the last day and stayed afloat at the expense of the others.
- And, of course, there were the storytellers: “Those who talk sweetly and leave you confident that they have everything ready, only to disappear at the most important moment,” as project management expert Elizabeth Harrin notes in the blog “Guide to Management.” projects for women."
Bureaucrat
Today this type is no longer as common as it used to be. But all types of leaders, without exception, contain a piece of the bureaucrat. This can manifest itself in different ways - strict control, a clear system for evaluating employees, love for rules and reports.
A bureaucrat is a classic, typical boss. His orders must be followed as in the army - without unnecessary thinking. Amateur performance is inappropriate here, only rules. This behavior is explained by the fact that the bureaucrat is very fond of accurate data. No guesswork, no intuition. Only a clear, sober analysis, everything is put in order.
In a team led by a bureaucrat, the atmosphere is very unhealthy - constant intrigue, gossip, and there is a hidden struggle “for seats.” This type of leader in the CIS countries almost faded into oblivion along with the USSR. Today it can only be popular in countries that are stubbornly building communism - China, Cuba, etc.
© Lebedev Oleg, BBF.RU
The problem of personalities in the project team
When so many different methods, priorities and habits converge on one team, turmoil is inevitable. The most serious of them?
"Conflict! - Harrin answers. “Different work styles lead to conflict for the simple reason that all colleagues have different expectations from each other.”
Are there any advantages to all this?
It would be wrong to say that a diverse team is necessarily a bad thing and that subordinates should resemble each other like clones. Besides the obvious challenges, having a group of people with different types of personalities and work styles has many benefits - including the most important thing.
“If your team members are too similar, there won't be discussions among them about how to approach problems and work on a project,” explains project management coach and trainer Susan Madsen, who wrote Project Management Coaching: A Guide to Action " and "Project management and its effect."
“The result is a positive work environment, but there is a high risk that the team is not giving their best,” she continues. “The presence of different types of personalities gives the team the necessary motivation to constantly improve the way they work.”
Diplomat
Here you can begin to draw conclusions from the name itself. This type of manager prefers team activities to all methods of work. We can say that this is one of the best types of leaders for those types of businesses that employ high-class specialists (whose level of knowledge may far exceed the level of management).
The boss-diplomat is distinguished by his friendliness, the ability to calmly and carefully listen to anyone, and his competence. The main task of a diplomat is to establish equal relations with employees in the company.
Create an atmosphere for work in which there are no subordinates - only equal partners, and where everyone’s opinion is taken into account before making any decision. Of course, to the extent possible in each individual company.
This type of leader is most popular in the Land of the Rising Sun - Japan. By the way, it is from this country that the type of leader—the diplomat—comes. Distinguished by his wisdom in life, who understands that great things cannot be done alone, he will never say “I did it,” but will always emphasize “we did it.” Together". In addition to Asian countries, this type of leader is popular in Latin American countries.
How to work with different personality types
How to find an approach to all these different people? Here are the rules that will help you establish joint cooperation:
Get to know your team
It's difficult to be a leader if you don't know and understand the people you work with.
“If you know their preferences, how they communicate, how they approach tasks, what kind of work they are capable of taking on, how they participate in meetings—everything that makes them individuals—it will be much easier for you to deal with their individual characteristics and resolve conflicts before how they arise, and you will become an ideal leader in their eyes,” explains Elizabeth Harrin.
Sometimes we are too quick to succumb to our own beliefs about our colleagues. You may think that two team members make a great duo, when in fact they are too similar to really complement each other. Or you think that regular checks on the activities of one of the team members will help you get the job done faster, when in fact they are just a distraction.
Assessment first, action second
There is no better way to truly understand the different members of your team than to conduct an assessment of each one's strengths. Myers-Briggs tests, Lominger competencies and a huge variety of similar methods are what you need to find out the outstanding qualities of each employee.
“I really like a test called StrengthsFinder,” says Wrike head of HR Sarah Shin. “It gives great results and is not too complicated.”
The specific steps of this assessment may vary depending on the situation, but the basics remain the same: team members must answer a series of questions, after which they are given a description of their character or a list of their strengths.
Using the StrengthsFinder method, participants discover their top five strengths. And this is not just a formality - the results obtained in such tests truly help your team members understand each other better and make the group more cohesive.
“The team members are very positive about the tests,” adds Sarah Shin. “I think they serve as another point of contact.” This is a chance to learn more about your colleagues, get closer to them, understand how they work with information, and ultimately get work done faster. Ultimately, this is the most important thing in creating a friendly and productive work environment.”
How will all these techniques and assessments help you, the manager? They allow you to create a reminder that makes it easy to select the right person for the right task. . If you need an idea generator, you know who to turn to. If deadlines are pressing, contact your employees.
“Everyone does their own thing,” says Sarah Shin. “There’s no point in forcing a natural sales agent to sit in an office doing paperwork.”
Play to your strengths
As you probably understand, disguising an elephant as a hare is a thankless task. So why try to do this with your project team, forcing an analytical colleague to brainstorm and a notorious bagpiper to monitor the schedule?
Instead, it makes more sense to take an approach in which each team member plays to their strengths. Don't focus on the shortcomings! Use the knowledge gained in the first step to formulate a strategy that emphasizes the best qualities of each participant.
“Strength is what allows you to achieve almost perfect results in a particular activity on a consistent basis and without difficulty,” writes Paul O'Keefe, president of Edge Training Systems, in his blog. “Actions that drain energy, even if done well, are not strength.”
Most US companies ignore strengths
Why are strengths so important? Data-driven management consultancy Gallup believes that developing strengths is much easier than ironing out weaknesses. The company developed strengths assessment criteria to test its employees and see which ones have outstanding qualities.
For the assessment, employees are asked to express their agreement or disagreement with four statements:
- Each week I set goals and expectations for myself based on my strengths.
- I can name the strengths of five of my colleagues.
- Over the past three months, my immediate supervisor and I have discussed my strengths at least once.
- My company is aimed at developing the strengths of each employee.
Result: only 3% of participants strongly agreed with all four statements.
“This low rate demonstrates that most U.S. companies are not trying to help employees develop their strengths —and it's costing them,” writer and editor Susan Sorenson explains in a cover letter to the Gallup study. “When employees feel their strengths are valued by the company, they are more likely to bring their best to work, have a stronger work ethic, and be more diligent and enthusiastic.”
Sometimes taking a strengths-based approach to a project will result in some employees taking the initiative to go beyond their job responsibilities—and that's okay. After all, if your graphic designer happens to know a great sponsor for a major event you're planning, why not take advantage of such a valuable opportunity?
“Knowing what motivates your people can help you make them more effective.” ~Elizabeth Harrin @pm4girls
“Knowing what motivates your people can help you make them more effective,” Harrin writes. — Projects require different types of people to better represent different groups of end users. Make the most of your advantages."
Maintain a positive atmosphere
Want to create a friendly, hassle-free work environment for your team? To do this, you need to make it clear that there is no place for disrespect at work. Once signs of disrespect become the norm in a team, the likelihood of failure and conflict increases dramatically, leading to decreased employee productivity and engagement.
A Harvard Business Review study of more than 20,000 workers across industries found that employees who saw “signs of respect” from their boss worked 92% more attentively and harder, reported 56% better health and mood, and were more productive. 55% more enthusiasm.
Allow me to voice comments
Another study, conducted by the authors of the New York Times bestseller “Conversations that Matter,” notes that 95% of company employees are hesitant to voice their thoughts to colleagues.
This indecisiveness leads to strained relationships and difficult communication within the team—the exact opposite of what we want. It would be wrong to say that there should be no place for criticism at work. At the same time, it should be constructive, encouraging and move the project in the right direction.
Remember, your goal is to foster an environment of collaboration and positive sharing where everyone feels safe and comfortable sharing their ideas. Letting your team members know that you care about them helps them gain confidence and interest in their work.
“The most important competitive advantage in today's economy is a positive and engaged mind,” as TED Talk author and GoodThink co-founder and CEO Shawn Achor noted in a past Wrike article. - A mind tuned to positivity has a gigantic, insurmountable advantage over exactly the same mind full of negative or neutral thoughts. When we think positively, we are 31% more productive, 40% more likely to get promoted, 23% less likely to experience stress, 37% more likely to sell, and so on.”
Ask questions
Assumptions are dangerous traps. If you don't notice anything wrong, it doesn't mean that everything in the team is really going well. Instead of relaxing, keep your finger on the pulse of events and regularly check whether your subordinates are doing well.
“In my opinion, the most important thing is not only to monitor all the components of the project, but also to cultivate a culture of expressing emotions,” explains Susan Madsen. — Before the meeting begins, take a few minutes to find out how the other participants are doing. Try to let everyone know that it is okay to voice their ideas and concerns and that any feedback will be appreciated.”
Susan also suggests that project managers discuss several questions with the entire team:
- How well do we work together?
- What are our ground rules?
- How can we improve communication and make decisions more effectively?
The easiest way to do this without making anyone feel uncomfortable is to have a brief informal chat before the team meeting and let everyone share their thoughts.
“By asking simple, open-ended questions and listening carefully to the answers, you can learn a lot about a person’s character,” says author and productivity management coach Marcus Buckingham in an article for Harvard Business Review.
Be positive about differences
Mentality is a very influential factor. According to a study of pre-med students conducted by Stanford University psychology professor Dr. Carol Dweck, students with a limited mindset ("It'll do") had lower academic performance than those who told themselves, "There's a lot to be done here." work”, that is, with a growth mentality.
Given the power of this influence, you should focus on viewing differences of opinion within your team in a positive light.
Don’t say, “Vasily doesn’t know how to work in Excel at all, so he can’t be entrusted with creating tables.” Instead, say, “Since Vasily enjoys creative work, he should start creating charts for our reports.”
At first glance, the change is minor, but it can play an important role in the overall mood of the entire team.
Lead by example
There is nothing worse than leaders who follow the mantra “Do as I say, not as I do.” Naturally, this pattern of behavior should be avoided.
Be sure to not only set examples for your team to do the right thing, but also treat your colleagues with as much respect as possible to improve everyone's morale and productivity. Gallup research shows that manager behavior accounts for up to 70% of the variance in employee engagement scores.
If you, as a manager, show your involvement, communication skills and willingness to contribute, then the rest of the team members will follow your example and will soon become just as passionate and productive.
“Remember: the best leaders treat their team members with the kind of attitude they expect to receive in return,” says Peter Barron Stark in his post on managing different personality types in employees.
Resolving conflicts in the project team
Even the most successful project managers know that, despite their best efforts, conflicts will inevitably arise when executing a project. Moreover, according to a report from CPP Global, personality conflicts are the most common conflict in the workplace, accounting for up to 49% of all professional disagreements.
“Remember: conflict is not always a bad thing,” concludes Susan Madsen. “They are necessary to create the best possible work environment and require the strengths of each participant to be showcased. What is important is how to resolve conflicts. A project manager should encourage people to share diverse views so that the rest of the team can respectfully evaluate the pros and cons of each approach and decide how to move forward.”
Recognized charismatic leader
Such personalities best correspond to classic American success stories - a person without a higher education builds a business from scratch with his own hands. He is able to inspire anyone with his ideas - and lead them.
He infects everyone and everything with his inexhaustible energy. In companies with leaders of this type, technical revolutions most often occur. Such a person can always and everywhere listen to the opinion of any employee (though this does not mean that he will agree with it). Employees treat such a boss with sincere respect and loyalty.
Under the leadership of such a person, almost any talented and hardworking employee can “grow up” and make a career in the company. A charismatic leader hates defeats and failures; he simply does not recognize them. Self-confidence and great willpower are the main features of his Ego. The fact that such people encourage risk-taking and fresh ideas gives talented employees a chance to shine.
But everything in this world is relative, and the type of charismatic leader, despite all its attractiveness, is not relevant everywhere. For example, in the countries of Asia and Australia, this type of leader is simply unacceptable - such are the cultural traditions in these countries.
It should also be noted that this type of leadership is very effective at the initial stage of business development - when a strong will and unshakable belief in success sometimes play a decisive role. One of the most famous leaders of this type is Steve Jobs, the founder of the world famous company Apple.
