8.2 Development of a Project Team

The development of a project team is the strategic process of improving the team competencies, interactions, and the team environment to increase project performance. Some of the main benefits of this process are the improvement of teamwork, enhancement of interpersonal skills and competencies, team members’ motivation, decreased attrition, and the improvement of the overall project performance (Ravid, Shtub, & Rafaeli, 2013). Often, project managers carry out the project’s development as a continuous process that takes place throughout the project duration. It is because it facilitates team integration and continuous improvement that is crucial for the company’s success. 

Although the development of a project team is a crucial process, it is dependent on the skill and expertise of the project manager. According to the Sixth Edition PMBOK Guide, project managers must have the necessary skills required to identify, inspire, motivate, and lead project teams to attain high team performance and meet the objectives and goals of the project (“A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge: (PMBOK® GUIDE) Sixth Edition”, 2017). They must recognize that teamwork is an essential factor that defines project success. Therefore, effective project teams’ development should be one of the core responsibilities that managers should take up. In addition to this, effective project managers must create a conducive environment that promotes teamwork while continually motivating the project team by providing challenges and opportunities, support, and recognizing or otherwise rewarding excellent performance (Katzenbach & Smith, 2015). Therefore, the achievement of high project team performance can be through the adoption of these behaviors:

  • Employing open and effective communication
  • Creation of team-building opportunities
  • The constructive management of conflicts
  • Encouragement of collaborative problem-solving approaches
  • Promoting collaborative decision-making

Today, project managers operate in an international environment and take up projects characterized by multicultural diversity. Notably, the global business environment encompasses people from different parts of the world with varying ethnicities, races, and cultures. It means that project managers should consider cultural diversity as one of the fundamental elements that guide project management. Studies reveal that team members must have diverse industry experience and be proficient in different languages or cultures (Vlahov, Misic, & Radujkovic, 2016). Project teams should always aim at capitalizing on cultural differences while focusing on the development of the group. Therefore, the project team’s development seeks to improve their interpersonal skills, technical competencies, project performance, and the team environment throughout the project duration. It necessitates efficient, effective, clear, and timely communication between the project team members all through the project’s life cycle. Thus, project managers should consider the following facets as the objectives for developing the project team. 

  1. Improvement of the project team members’ knowledge and skills, thus increasing their ability to complete the project deliverables effectively
  2. Increasing the competencies of the project team while lowering costs
  3. Reduction of schedules
  4. Improvement of quality
  5. Improving trust among the team members thereby raising their morale while lowering team conflicts
  6. Increasing teamwork
  7. Creating a project culture linked with collaboration, team spirit, cooperation, and team cohesion

Empowerment of the team members and promoting their participation to improve team productivity and efficacy: One model that a project manager can employ to achieve this is the Tuckman ladder, inclusive of five development stages. When these stages are carried out sequentially, it promotes team empowerment, thus improving team productivity and efficacy. The Tuckman ladder includes forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning.

Emmanuel Addo
Founder

Emmanuel Addo is the founder of the Young Global Leaders Network, an international non-governmental organization registered in six (6) countries namely, Ghana, United Kingdom, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Democratic Republic of Congo, and South Sudan and has a membership strength of over 15,000 young black professionals, students, graduates, and aspiring leaders.

The organization also operates in 25 other African countries. Emmanuel also doubles as the chief convener and founder of the Young African Leaders Summit, one of the largest continental youth summits in Africa.  

Currently works at Kingston University as a Business Engagement Team Member in their Partnerships and Engagement Department. 

He characterizes energy, integrity, result-oriented, and ground-breaking service in each detail of strategic management, change management, stakeholder management, and leadership acquaintances.
Emmanuel owns a core background in Sociology and Psychology from the University of Ghana.

Leveraging his experience as a youth activist and a dynamic young man, Emmanuel founded the Young Global Leaders Network, a youth organization that comprises young diplomats, young politicians, and aspiring politicians, business/entrepreneurial business leaders with the aim of championing a mutual agenda for the African youth and promoting youth participation in governance as well as promoting entrepreneurial culture.
Emmanuel nurtures an environment of teamwork and has expertise in data collection and analysis as well as both quantitative and qualitative methods.

Emmanuel worked as an Associate Lecturer at the London College of Advanced Management where he delivered a wide range of business management courses that involved principles of marketing, leadership, operation management, and research methods. Emmanuel has always maintained high teaching and learning standards to ensure that his students’ stand out in academic achievements and successful progression. As a stout believer and passionate key player in volunteering; Emmanuel creates quality time to giving back gladly to his community what he has learned and to educate individuals with free consultancy on career development. He is a leader anyone would love to look up to and with great integrity, commitment, and passion to make the world a better place.
Emmanuel worked as Qualifications Manager at the Open University in the UK.

Emmanuel is also the founder of Kickstart Innovation Hub Ltd, the entrepreneurial hub of Young Global Leaders Network.