4

PROJECT STAKEHOLDERS
The people element in project management is largely represented by the stakeholder
knowledge area. Working with people is not an easy, straightforward endeavour.
People are a make-up of emotions and motivations. In order to achieve the best of
people you have to lead from the head and the heart. You have to understand people’s
fundamental bearing, reason they do what they do, what will make them buy into your
project, and grant them that psychological safety to commit. People succeed and the
project succeeds.

Stakeholders are a vital component of any project undertaking ranging from key
stakeholders who initiate the project, the team that will perform the work, the leaders
who will administer project efforts, regulatory bodies who will ensure compliance,
customers or end-users who will benefit from the deliverable and many more. Their
multiplicity requires different levels of management and engagement strategies to
manage their connection to the project and ensure the project’s success.


Who is a Project Stakeholder?


Project stakeholders come in many forms and in many broad categories. Stakeholders
can be individuals, groups, agencies, departments and organizations.

A stakeholder is one who:

• has an interest in the project.

• has an influence on the project, positively or negatively.
• can be affected by the project or the project’s outcome, positively or negatively.
• benefits from the project.

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A sponsor is a stakeholder because he provides the financial resources for the project.

Business partners are stakeholders because they contribute towards the project vision.

Customers and end-users are stakeholders because they benefit from the project.

A functional manager is a stakeholder because the project is being done for her department.

A project manager is a stakeholder because he leads the project.

The project management team are stakeholders because they administer project efforts.

The project team are stakeholders because they work to create the project’s deliverables.

A vendor is a stakeholder because she provides supply or support services for the project.


Stakeholder Identification and the Stakeholder Register


The stakeholder register is the output of the stakeholder identification process updated
continuously throughout the project life cycle. In fact, it begins its life as an offshoot of
the develop project charter process in which certain key stakeholders are previously
identified. The stakeholder register is a document of rows and columns where each
row identifies the stakeholder and the columns document further information about
them such as their respective interests, involvement, interdependencies, influence and
impact levels. Take note that the stakeholder register is updated from time to time to
include more stakeholders who are activated, identified or realized. It can also be
updated to exclude those who are no longer considered stakeholders to the project
such as when a vendor is withdrawn from an agreement.

The identify stakeholders process is perhaps a good moment to show how most
project management processes are performed [not just once] but from time to time as
and when the need arises. This process also demonstrates the relevance of progressive
elaboration as a key practice in project management as the stakeholder register
progressively goes through several levels of details.

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 
Stakeholder Analysis


Because stakeholders come in many forms, there is the need to have detailed
information about them in order to appropriately manage their expectations for the
project. For example, if a stakeholder has an interest in the project, to what degree is
this interest? If the stakeholder can affect the project, to what degree can she do this?
This will enable us to differentiate between Stakeholder A and Stakeholder B who both
have interest but vary in different degrees of intensity in order to design appropriate
engagement strategies that serve them well and the project’s best interest.

Stakeholder analysis is a technique performed to examine the degree of influence,

interest or potential impact a stakeholder has on a given project. Project teams often
utilize notable models to perform stakeholder analysis. For example, the Power-
Interest Grid, developed by Aubrey Mendelow, classifies stakeholders under two main
categories of power and interest on the x-y axis.

Aubrey Mendelow’s Power/Interest Grid

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On the power-interest grid, the following stakeholders may be derived on a given project:

o High Power – Low Interest: Keep satisfied, meet requirements.

o High Power – High Interest: Manage closely, regularly engage.
o Low Power – High Interest: Keep informed, maintain interest.
o Low Power – Low Interest: Monitor, can be informed using public media.

Most regulatory bodies have high power but low interest on a given project. The
metropolitan office that grants you permit to build a house can greatly affect your
project but whether or not your project succeeds falls short of their interest. Project
managers, sponsors, chief executive officers, functional managers are likely to have
high power and high interest on a project. Project team members are likely to have low
power but high interest on a project. And end-users may not care so much about an
organization’s project and will likely have low power and interest levels. These
examples may not be the case all the time. Project teams have a responsibility of
analyzing for their own projects since no two projects are the same.

The salience model is another notable stakeholder analysis tool that classifies
stakeholders into power, urgency and legitimacy.

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The word salience means the quality of being important or connected with what is
happening or being discussed. The salience model identifies three key attributes that
qualify stakeholders while cutting out other attributes in order to reduce the noise in
the system. The model underscores the fact that some stakeholders share two or three
attributes and uses the Venn diagram to interpret their behaviour.

The 3-Dimensional Labels:

Power – stakeholders who have an ability to impose their will.
Urgency – stakeholders who demand immediate attention or action.
Legitimacy – stakeholders who are genuinely involved or have a sense of ownership.

The Stakeholders on the Venn Diagram:

o Dormant Stakeholders – Only power but no urgency or legitimacy. Being aware of
their presence is enough. No need for involvement.
o Discretionary Stakeholders – Only legitimacy but no urgency or power. Keep informed.
o Demanding Stakeholders – Only urgency but no power or legitimacy. Easy to
ignore. Can be vocal. Manage carefully. Meet requirements.
o Dominant Stakeholders – Have power and legitimacy but no urgency. Must involve
them throughout the project life cycle.
o Dangerous Stakeholders – Have power and urgency but no legitimacy. Keep them
satisfied. Meet all requirements.
o Dependent Stakeholders – Have legitimacy and urgency but no power. Can be
beneficial in your connection to the organization. Don’t forsake them.
o Definitive Stakeholders – Have a good mix of power, urgency and legitimacy. Keep
them involved, satisfied and informed throughout the project life cycle.


The Stakeholder Engagement Plan


The Stakeholder Engagement Plan contains the stakeholder engagement strategy

that puts forward an approach for engaging different categories of stakeholders
throughout the project based on their needs, expectations, interests and potential
impact on the project. The initial stakeholder community identified informs the content

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of this plan. But as new stakeholders are added and old stakeholders are removed, a
review of this plan may be required in order to stay relevant in meeting project
objectives. Situations resulting from other knowledge areas such as communications,
risks, procurements, etc. may also require an update to these engagement strategies
stipulated in the plan. Stakeholder management and communications management
have a very direct relationship on project. A discussion of stakeholder engagement
strategies invariably involves communication approaches and a discussion on effective
communications management systems make direct references to stakeholders. As
closely related as they are, it is important to know their unique purposes on projects.
The communications management plan serves as a guiding policy for communicating
on projects; the stakeholder engagement plan determines how stakeholders are to be
engaged and the degree of that engagement. The communications management plan
and the stakeholder engagement plan continually iterate on each other to improve
project communications and stakeholder satisfaction. The stakeholder engagement
plan is continually reinforced to effectively engage with all manner of stakeholders,
including difficult and resistant stakeholders. When new stakeholders are added to the
project, updates to project documents also become necessary. A new stakeholder
structure requires a tailoring of stakeholder engagement strategies (stakeholder
engagement plan) and that of communications too (communications management
plan). It is important to note that scheduling a meeting with new stakeholders in order
to understand their priorities is fundamental to the updates that are performed on these
documents.

Stakeholder Involvement:
Stakeholder Engagement Strategy & Stakeholder Engagement Assessment Matrix


For every project, there is the need to develop a stakeholder engagement strategy
that specifies approaches to effectively involve the different stakeholders across the
project life cycle. The variations in stakeholders feed into the creation of this
engagement strategy and addresses the involvement needs of each stakeholder.

Throughout the project life cycle, a stakeholder engagement assessment matrix is

used as a tool to compare current engagement levels to desired engagement levels

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as stipulated in the plan. If there are any discrepancies, the team can analyze, adjust
and optimize in order to achieve the intended objectives.


The Project Manager


The project manager is the person assigned by the performing organization to lead a
team to accomplish the project’s objectives. The project manager serves in various
capacities to fulfill a project’s objectives. He manages project work, coordinates project
efforts and integrates the various components on the project. But the most fundamental
role of a project manager is that of leadership – leadership is his first calling. As a
leader, he guides and motivates others to fulfill their own respective objectives on the
project. In his leadership role, the project manager spends over 90% of his time
communicating on the project. Because of this, the most important power skill a project
manager must command is that of communications.
The knowledge, skill and experience a project manager demonstrates allows him to
coordinate project resources to achieve successful outcomes, even with little technical
or domain expertise in a field. Although knowledge is great and acquaintance is a plus,
you don’t need to command the skill to write software codes in order to be a fantastic
project manager for software applications. The same applies to a host of other spaces
in varying degrees of intensity. Project managers we beheld in the past also commanded
domain expertise in the field so it sometimes becomes difficult to separate the two.
One thing we need to be clear about is that a project manager does not work alone.
There are domain experts who complement the work with technical expertise as the
project manager comes on board with project management expertise: translating
business value into executable tasks, leading team meetings, motivating and guiding
the work to schedule and to budget, coordinating team resources, integrating team
effort, keeping execution efforts aligned to the plan and to project objectives,
measuring performance, analyzing variances, addressing risks, managing vendors on
procurements, managing changes, documenting project results and many more.

The project manager also has the responsibility of performing integration on the
strategic level by keeping project objectives aligned to program, portfolio and strategic

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goals of the organization. As an advocate of sound project management practices, he
leads the organization and organizational decision-makers through various stages of
project management maturity as he stays informed about current industry trends. The
project manager is expected to have competencies and behaviours aligned to the PMI
talent triangle.

WAYS OF WORKING describes the knowledge, skills and behaviours needed to

select and apply appropriate project management processes.

POWER SKILLS demonstrates the knowledge, skills and behaviours needed to guide,
motivate, and direct others to achieve organizational goals.

BUSINESS ACUMEN depicts the knowledge and business intelligence needed to

contribute to strategic alignment, innovation and to deliver business value.

1 “The PMI TALENT TRIANGLE and the PMI Talent Triangle logo are marks of Project Management
Institute, Inc.” The PMI’s talent triangle showcases a combination of behaviour and expertise that is
required for modern-day professionals to excel in the field of project management.

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 
The Project Management Team


The project management team is a section of the project team supporting the project
manager to administer project work. On small projects with low budgets, it is typical
for a project manager to be assigned alone, in which case he manages all the
administrative and oversight concerns for each knowledge area. Some projects may
also assign a project manager together with a risk manager, procurement manager,
schedule manager, quality manager etc. depending on where risk is most concentrated
in order to provide optimum attention and to share in the project manager’s burden. In
the best-case scenario, a project may have subsidiary managers attending to all
knowledge areas of project management and reporting their outcomes to the project
manager who integrates their divisional works, manage their interdependencies to
increment business value.

In some cases, an entity may choose to manage some works on the organizational level
and have them integrated with mainstream project efforts. It is typical for an organization’s
procurement department elect to administer all project procurements especially when

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a policy of centralized contracting is in place – a provision where the organization has
streamlined all of its contracting works to a specific unit. Centralized contracting allows
the project to benefit from the accumulated experience of this unit. The disadvantage
is that they are not solely dedicated to the project and may share their attention with
other organizational concerns.


The Project Team


The project team mostly comprises the professionals who work on project tasks to
create deliverables supported by the project management team. The project team is
coordinated as part of project resources and managed under the resource management
plan. The resource management plan shows how resources will be planned, acquired
and used on the project. On the basis of people, it shows how people will be brought
into and signed off the project. As part of human resource planning, project planning
estimates for the roles and responsibilities required to complete project work – roles
are designations and offices whereas responsibilities are the functions that are
performed under each role. This way, we get to know which human resources are
needed by the project, then go on to plan on how to get them in.

Personnel who are noted for working on particular projects in an organization may be
used to accomplish project efforts anytime such projects are authorized. These are
called pre-assigned personnel. Pre-assigned personnel may also be used to refer to
persons who were specifically mentioned in the charter before planning even begins.
Large and projectized organizations may have personnel specifically dedicated to
projects. Other situations may require ad hoc project teams to be formed from various
functional units of the organization – to return once project is completed. Part-time
team members may also be used – team members who share their attention between
projects and operational endeavours. Take note that when projects are done in a
matrix organization, resources are typically contributed by the functional units.

Every project manager loves to work with personnel who are fully dedicated to projects
without having to share their time and attention with other organizational endeavours.

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This is not always possible as project managers sometimes have to share personnel
especially in matrix organizations. Context-switching reduces output. The use of
dedicated team members is the solution to that problem. Negotiating with managers
of such team members in order to have them commit more to project work is the next
best option in the midst of the constraint. Similarly, if a project manager needs support
from resources dedicated to other projects, he can negotiate with their project
managers and ask for help. It is unethical to engage directly or seek assistance from
resources dedicated to other projects without going through their project manager.

There are also situations of mergers, partnerships and joint ventures where team
members are contributed from each of the participating organizations. In each of these
unions, it is important for the participating team members to establish a mutually
agreeable way of working.

Team members may also be recruited from external sources such as professional
bodies or the job markets. Project managers have a responsibility of ensuring that
each team member is placed in the right role where they can be most productive.


Working with Virtual Teams


In today’s advanced world, projects can maintain both physical team members who
will be co-located in the team’s physical space as well as virtual team members who
will contribute remotely from a geographic distance. Advancement of virtual systems in
recent times has offered great possibility for people to contribute to project efforts
regardless of geographic location by working remotely. Virtual team members mostly
use electric Kanban boards to visualize workflow and to collaborate with other team
members wherever they may be. Virtual team members establish common objectives
united by the project vision in working together. Especially when they are located in
different countries or continents, face-to-face meetings may not be possible or ideal.
Virtual tools are used to communicate and to get most things done for remote teams.
The project manager has a duty of ensuring appropriate systems to manage and
support virtual team members if the plan will have them on the project.

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 
Project Team-Building and the Tuckman’s Model


Project teams are built up for teamwork; teamwork produces results. As simple as it
may sound teamwork is not easy to achieve. It is built through conscious and concerted
efforts and the application of several skills. A group of people working together is not
necessarily a team until they become a team. There are features that characterize a
team, beginning from its constitution. Some experts believe every team must have the
presence of analytics and cheerleaders who balance both sides of the game. Some
experts also believe two leader-centric persons cannot work together in the same
team. Following from the team’s constitution there are various practices that must be
incorporated to help the constitution harmonize quickly and achieve the full range of
benefits of teamwork.

The Tuckman’s model shows how constitutions go through various stages in order to
become a fully functional team.

- The forming stage is when members first come together, get to know one another
and learn of their various roles and responsibilities on the team.

- The storming stage, representing the most difficult stage in every team’s life, is
when team members begin to clash against each other by virtue of their individual
differences and background: differences in their culture, upbringing, temperament,
perspectives, prejudices and biases.

- The norming stage is a triumphant graduation from the storming stage, and it’s a
period when things begin to normalize. It is when individuals in the group begin to
understand and appreciate the fact that we are all fundamentally different, and in
our differences lie our strength, the team’s strength. In this stage, people begin to
adjust their mindset and way of doing things in order to accommodate others. They
begin to appreciate differences in opinion and enjoy the advantages that come with
diversity, positioning the ultimate objectives of the team above their individual
preferences.

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- The performing stage is when the team is working in remarkable harmony and
experiencing peak in performance. It is the height of every team’s performance and
the dream of every project manager.

- The adjourning stage is when team members complete their objectives on the
team and disperse or move on to other endeavours.

According to this model, every team goes through all the stages, albeit, faster for
teams that have been working together often.


Defining the Work Culture


Culture is important in every team’s life. It defines the way we work, what is acceptable
and what is not in order to promote the team harmony and the team environment. A team
charter defines the ground rules, the dos and don’ts, rules and regulations, norms and
values and the manifesto that embodies the team’s spirit and bind them together.


Ground Rules


Ground rules are established in a project environment to ensure conformance and

promote harmony. They get everyone on the same page and to agree on how to relate
and interact in the project environment. In situations of cacophony, ground rules are
necessary to restore order. Commonly agreed ground rules reinforce a social contract,
make the team more independent, self-organizing and self-servicing, putting less
pressure on the management team and freeing up leadership time to respond to other
calls. Ground rules also communicate the format for work distribution, determine who
does what, making team work easier and more productive. Ground rules focus on
official duties and work hours.

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 
Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct


A defined code of ethics and professional conduct details issues of responsibility and
proper behaviour, respect, fairness and honesty in the project environment. Project
team members are expected to exhibit and promote proper behaviour at the
workplace. Under no circumstances should people compromise their integrity. Under
no circumstances should any project activity or ceremony violate the code of conduct
of the organization.

Project team members must2

o be responsible for their actions, take ownership for their decisions and the
consequences thereof.
o deliver on their promise.
o show commitment for their job.
o be honest about their skills, expertise and experience.
o take actions in the best interest of society and the environment.
o be responsible for properties entrusted to them.
o approach directly persons with whom there is a conflict or disagreement.
o report on unethical and illegal conducts.
o not abuse or act in an abusive manner.
o respect the property rights of others.
o be tolerant of others.
o respect the opinions and culture of others. Encourage team members to talk about
their cultures.
o be transparent.
o give equal opportunities to all qualified persons.
o not discriminate.
o not be involved in issues of bribery and corruption, favoritism, nepotism, dishonesty
and unlawful practices.

2 Extraction from the PMI Code of Ethics. Download PMI Code of Ethics from www.pmi.org

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o not be involved in situations in which there is a conflict of interest.
o be sincere, fair and honest.
o not mislead or engage in half-truths.


Project Team Directory


A Project Team Directory is a documented list of project team members with their roles
and responsibilities.


Resource Calendar


A Resource Calendar shows the availability of resources to be allocated to tasks. It

also indicates when each resource will start their portion of the project and when their
part will come to an end, including on-time and off-time moments.


Resource Histogram


A Resource Histogram is a visual representation tool – a bar chart – that shows

resource allocation by time unit. A resource histogram reveals if a particular resource
has been over or under-allocated.


Resource Levelling Chart


A Resource Levelling Chart is used to balance or keep resource usage at a constant

level or consistent pace so resources are not over or under-whelmed. Over-utilizing
resources typically lead to burnout, fatigue, breakdown and errors. Under-utilizing
resources, particularly the human resources, typically leads to loss of morale.

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 
Responsibility Assignment Matrix


Responsibility Assignment Matrix (RAM) is used to assign tasks or activities of work

packages to team members and other stakeholders in order to clarify their participation
or level of involvement in completing project deliverables (who does what). A typical
example is the RACI chart that shares tasks in the order of:

Responsible – who does the work to complete the task;

Accountable – who will review the work and confirm completion;
Consult – who will provide input to the work;
Informed – who must be continually informed on the project’s progress.


Hierarchical Charts


Hierarchical charts are used to communicate reporting relationships and lines of authority.

PM

Role 1 Role 2 Role 3 Role 4

Role 10 Role 12

Hierarchical Chart Sample

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 
Organizational Breakdown Structure


An Organizational Breakdown Structure (OBS) shows which employees or

departments will be responsible for specific portions of a project. This is mostly helpful
when departments are included to complete project tasks. An OBS can be used together
with a WBS to allocate project tasks and show responsibilities by departments.


Resource Breakdown Structure


A resource breakdown structure (RBS) shows a breakdown of project resources by

types or categories. During project resource estimation we use bottom-estimation
techniques to determine the types and quantities of resources such as people,
machinery, equipment, supplies, etc. needed to complete project work. An RBS is
usually done during the preliminary stages of resource planning before we assign
resources to task and estimate for their time. An RBS identifies and breaks down the
resources needed to complete project work by their types and categories. Supposing
you are developing a web application, what do you do? You pick the human resources
element and further break down the categories of human resources you need in order
to complete project work just as in the illustration below.

Human Resources

Frontend Developers (4) Database Admin (1) Content Writers (2)

Backend Developers (2) Graphic Designers (2) Testers (3)

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 
Issue Log


An issue is a negative risk event that has occurred. The issue log is a document where
issues are captured, tracked, monitored and addressed to resolution. It also captures
a description of the issue, status or priority, who is responsible for resolution, target
date for resolution and finally updated with the date and time the issue is resolved.
Concerns of team members and other stakeholders are also updated to the issue log
and tracked to their final resolution.


Creating a High-Performing Team


Creating a high-performing team is essential for project success. High-performing

teams are self-aware and operate in environments of trust. It begins with the type of
leadership philosophy that is adopted by the project. In today’s world, project
management leadership is moving away from traditional autocratic leadership to a
more laissez-faire kind of leadership that serves the people and allows them to unearth
and explore their creativity in the best interest of the project. In agile development
where iterations occur on solutions through repetitive trials, servant leadership is
required to allow team members the psychological safety to take up empirical
challenges without the fear of making mistakes. Creativity and innovation do not excel
where there is little psychological safety.

High performing teams are also self-servicing and work well with little or no supervision.
Proper rules of working reinforce a social contract that allows team members to be
productive without micromanagement.

Negative rumours and hearsays have a tendency of disrupting high-performing teams.

Project managers do not take action based on rumours and hearsays. Which is why
leaders have a responsibility of establishing close relationships with their team
members, verifying facts for themselves in private meetings and helping them become

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the best version of themselves. Additionally, project leaders need to find ways of
discouraging behaviours that seem to have negative feedback on the team.

High-performing teams are attentive to work with a great sense of responsibility. Non-
responsive team members will need to be worked up into active commitment. If a team
member is non-responsive, unreachable or dormant, new resources may have to be
assigned immediately in order to complete the work on time.

If a team member decides to leave the project before it is completed, a knowledge-

sharing workshop that allows her to transfer knowledge and experience gained on the
project becomes necessary.


Skill Training, Coaching and Mentorship


High-performing teams exhibit great skills in performing project work. After all, great
results are produced by great teams with great competencies and excellent motivation.
Project leaders have a duty to nurture the skills of their team members in continuous
training and empowerment to rise up to complex challenges. It is their duty to ensure
team members receive proper training – with the cost of training being a direct cost to
the project. Team members need to measure up in their responsibilities, and
assessing gaps that require capacity-building is vital to achieving project objectives.
There are countless number of options where team members can have their skills
enhanced for project work. Project managers also have a responsibility of updating
the team member’s records when new skills have been acquired.

After training comes on-the-job training, coaching and mentorship. Mentorship guides
team members to relate their skills to the job and to apply simulated learning to
practical situations in order to fill in possible gaps and become more productive. It is
important to note that mentorship is a form of impartation that can get team members
to acquire certain skills – the act of sharing and engaging in itself constitutes
knowledge transfer. Training, however, is faster than mentorship in transferring
knowledge. Getting team members trained will get them acquire requisite skills faster

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in order to deliver to tight deadlines. The goal of mentorship is to direct and guide less
experienced resources. Senior team members can join in supporting, training and
coaching new and junior team members.


A Multi-Cultural Project Environment


As the world continues to evolve into a global village, it is nearly impossible now to
work well and deliver to global mandates without insights into multiple cultures.
Projects create an advantage by exploring skills and talents in other parts of the world.
But the need to understand different cultures that the diversity and inclusiveness bring
to the project is a step forward in modern-day global leadership. Cultural sensitivity is
essential in managing globally-distributed teams. It is not uncommon now to find
project teams holding special sessions that allow team members to share their
different cultures. Project leaders should not shy away from multi-national projects that
require cultural sensitivity. They should take up the challenge, capitalize on these
cultural differences, devote to the study of the cultures of other people and grow
themselves into global and better leaders.


The Fallacy of Halo and Horns


The Halo Effect: the assumption that because someone performed well at a task,
forming your first impression of him, any task you put him to, he will equally deliver well.

The Horns Effect: the assumption that because someone performed poorly on a task,
forming your first impression of him, he can’t be good anywhere else you put him.

The halo and horns effect are positive and negative biases or perceptions we have of
people based on our first-time experiences of them. They are both fallacious. For the
halo effect, it causes us to ignore any weaknesses the person may have because we
are all about their strengths. For the horns effect, it causes us to ignore any strengths
they have because we are all about their weaknesses. Knowing this is vital in creating
a high-performing team.

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 
The Peter Principle


The Peter principle postulates that in promoting people, organizational leaders could
land into error where people might be promoted out of their competencies into roles they
are least prepared for.


Sandbagging


Sandbagging is a behavioral practice in which people deliberately under-promise in

order to lower stakeholders’ expectations of them with the objective of overdoing in
order to exceed stakeholders’ expectations. When people sandbag, they set
expectations they know they can easily hit.


Dropped Baton


Dropped baton refers to time that is wasted on a handover in a sequential relationship

when a predecessor finishes work early but the successor is not ready to receive it
leading to wastage of the opportunity.


Student Syndrome


Student syndrome refers to the behavioral phenomenon where people procrastinate

tasks until the last moment before the deadline when it is no longer possible to
postpone. The terminology comes from that common behavior among students who
pile up and only intensify learning when examination is close or use the last moments
to complete an assignment. Experts have analyzed the phenomenon and concluded

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that the syndrome is caused by a quest for adequate motivation to get things done.
This syndrome can also be exhibited on projects. It affects productivity, consumes any
possible safety slack and places undue pressure or stress on personnel.


Parkinson’s Law


The Parkinson’s Law postulates that work expands magically to occupy the time
allotted for it; work expands magically to consume the budget allocated for it. To
illustrate, if the work could be completed in three days for $4,000; and you ask the
team to complete in four days for $5,000, that is exactly what will happen. It is the
same law that states that no matter how much people earn, they never have enough
– their lifestyle changes to adapt to the rise in income.


Co-location and the Use of Collaboration Tools


Team members working from one physical space is known as co-located teams as
distinct from remote team members who are geographically dispersed. Co-location is
also differentiated from team members who work in separate cubicle offices as has
been the case in most traditional offices. In the world today, many organizations are
pulling down physical walls to enable large open spaces for open interactions to take
place. Communication is easier, issues get addressed quickly and team members
bond faster and more easily. Co-location is vital for team interaction and collaboration
and for the benefit of osmotic communication. Osmotic communication is when other
people eavesdrop on conversations that may not be directed at them but may prove
useful to them on the project. Co-locations are synonymous to project war-room and
tight matrix. The concept of caves and commons are notable on agile projects – where
commons represent the team area of co-location while caves represent specially
designed cubicles where individuals may isolate to perform some individual or closet
brainstorming away from the clutter when the need arises.

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It is best for the project team to create task boards to visualize and show the progress
of their work. Task boards are information radiators that can be created on a flat surface
such as a wall in a co-located environment with various columns representing different
stages of the work. Task boards are also called Kanban boards or collaboration tools.
In today’s hybrid work system, electronic Kanban boards are more preferred. Team
members can still collaborate and share their work after work hours or away from the
project site. Virtual team members can also leverage on the use of electronic boards to
collaborate with other team members regardless of geographical distance.


New Tools and New Ways of Working


There are a wide range of tools teams use to facilitate project work. Typically, rules
are incorporated to guide the use of these tools. There are arbitrary cases in which a
new tool emerges and seems to serve the team better than an earlier tool stated in the
project management plan. The best is for the tool to be integrated into the project and
rules for its application enforced. If the new tool or new way of working is disruptive
enough, it must be stopped immediately for the team to create the necessary harmony
for its inclusion and rules for its use.

Tools are made for people, and their purpose is to facilitate work. New tools and
technology will always get into the team’s way of work. It is important to prepare people
for new tools and new ways of working. Above all, it is important to reassure the team
of their importance to projects especially in situations that threaten their relevance or
undermine their human and manual efforts in relation to what new tools are able to do.


Emotional Intelligence for Team Performance


In an ever-growing complex world, emotional intelligence has become imperative for

any leadership, not only project leadership, to excel. People have now become more
self-aware and expect bespoke treatment. Leaders are expected to connect on an

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emotional level in order to bring out the best in people in team situations. But we are
all different in how we perceive things, individually and collectively. Face-to-face
interactions are fantastic. Another great way to understand people and gain their
commitment is through the use of emotional intelligence. Project managers use
emotional intelligence to lead, motivate and coach team members to improve
performance. There are matters that require technical solutions and will require
facilitation as a team lead to bring about those solutions; and there are matters that
require the use of emotional intelligence as a servant leader. Knowing where each is
called for is crucial to your role as a project manager. Even in situations of personal
challenges, how a leader demonstrates empathy towards team members go a long
way in helping them recover from the difficulties and positioning them back on the
paths to becoming the best of themselves.

Emotional intelligence begins with self-awareness. How well you know yourself and
your own emotions in a variety of situations. Some people act in ways they never
expect in the face of certain situations. They never knew themselves in that way until
the situations triggered that part of their personality. In accurate self-assessments, we
are able to identify our personality traits, our temperaments, our emotions in a variety
of situations, our strengths and weaknesses, our personal values, our dreams and
goals, our priorities in life, our habits, our passions and many more.

Emotional intelligence continues with self-regulation elements – how well we can

control our emotions and master these identified traits. If there is a situation that
challenges your personal values, to what extent can you maintain your values.

The next thing with emotional intelligence has to do with our motivations – what drives
us to do the things we do. What makes us commit to things and what fuels our drive
to follow through. What drives us to look to the brighter side of life in the face of
adversity. One of the charges you have as a project manager is to understand each
of your team member’s motivation on the project. This helps you know where to start
from, how to improve their buy-in and how to drive their commitment.

Empathy elements look at how well we are able to read, understand and appreciate the
emotions of others. Empathy is enabled when we appreciate the differences in people
and understand their personality traits, political, religious and ethnic backgrounds.

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Emotional intelligence ends with a mastery of social skills that enables us to build
relationships and rapport with others; build emotional bonds, cooperate and
collaborate with others, manage conflict, influence positively, listen actively and
connect with people.

Emotional intelligence shows you when to communicate, what to say and how.
Emotional intelligence drives the zeal in others to perform. Leaders who are better
able to connect with people on the emotional level become better leaders. When you
touch the heart, you touch everything.


Theories of Motivation


Paying people and commissioning them for work does not guarantee optimum
performance. As we have already mentioned, in order to get the best out of people,
you will need to connect with them in a particular way. There are different motivational
theories that have addressed human behaviours under different conditions and how
project leaders can leverage those discoveries to motivate their team members.

The Maslow’s Hierarch of Needs identifies human needs and fulfillment on five
different levels.

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- The physiological stage which is the most basic stage represents the first
fundamental needs in people: the need for food, clothing, shelter, etc.
- The second stage refers to people’s need for safety.
- The third level represents the need for love or association.
- The fourth stage is the need for respect and esteem.
- The final stage talks about the need for fulfilment or self-actualization.

The model further posits that an individual will not climb to the next level until an initial
level of need is satisfied. As a leader, if you want to motivate your team members, you
must examine their current level on the Maslow’s hierarchy, and use the elements on
that level to motivate them. Giving a team member who is still on the physiological
stage items like food or clothing etc. will lead to motivation because those are his daily
concerns. The rule, however, as explained from the Maslow’s model is that when the
team member has left a stage, although any item on that stage may be received with
thanksgiving, it will have no effect and will not lead to the intended motivation. We are
all on different stages on the hierarchy and will thus be motivated by different things.
While some people’s primary concern is about a safe work environment and healthy
conditions of service, others are motivated by words of appreciation and a feeling of
belongingness. Some others are also turned on by titles.

McGregor Theory identifies two types of leaders. Theory X Managers believe workers
are naturally lazy and will avoid work as much as possible, hence the need to micro-
manage them for optimum productivity to take place. Theory Y Managers do not think
workers are lazy. They believe workers will work if they are given more responsibilities
and trust to get the work done.

David McClelland’s Theory of Needs posits that people have three types of
emotional needs: achievement, affiliation and power in different degrees of mix.
Achievement is the need to set and accomplish goals; affiliation is the need to belong;
and power is the need to be in control. Achievement as a motivation allows people to
pursue challenging [but not impossible] tasks and overcoming difficult situations. Affiliation
as a motivation enables optimum productivity when people work in a group. There are
some people who can do far more when they work in a group. Power as a motivation is
the kind of zeal or proactiveness people exhibit when they are put in charge.

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Herzberg’s Theory deals with hygiene factors and motivating agents: that poor
hygiene and environment will lead to dissatisfaction but improving them will not
necessarily lead to increased satisfaction. According to Herzberg, what motivates
people is the work itself – there are elements of the work that motivate people:
responsibility, fulfillment, self-actualization, professional growth, recognition, etc.

Vroom’s Expectancy Theory states that employees will remain productive as

rewards meet their expectations. The linkage between performance and reward must
be made clear. Behaviour results from conscious choices and the theory is based on
the assumption that people will choose to maximize pleasure and minimize pain. If an
employee values the reward of an outcome, the more motivated they will be to achieve
it. For example, if the employee values more time, there will be a disconnect between
reward and expectations if you give him money as a reward instead of some days off.
In the same way, if he values more money, there will be a disconnect between reward
and expectations if you give him some time off instead of more money.

Ouchi Theory Z states that job for life increases satisfaction. Theory Z makes a case
for stable employment, high productivity, high morality and employee satisfaction. The
theory states that the loyalty of employees is increased when there is security in the
long-term and there is great concern for employee general well-being.

Fringe Benefits and Perquisites (Perks): Fringe benefits are a form of non-wage
compensation meant to supplement salary. Fringe benefits are typically made
available to all workers and may include benefits such as medical allowance and
educational benefits. Perquisites are usually given to some employees and typically
include benefits such as company car, hotel suites and assigned parking spaces.


Conflicts


Conflict is a natural part of our human interaction. As long as we work together with
different priorities and motivations, conflicts are bound to occur. Here are some truths
about conflicts:

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- Conflicts are not necessarily bad. Conflicts provide some benefits to the project by
revealing underlying issues that could potentially endanger the project’s objectives,
providing opportunities for learning and improvement.

- The commonest source of conflict is schedule, followed by project priorities,

resources, technical opinions, administrative procedures, cost and differences in
personality.

- Conflicts are best addressed using face-to-face approaches.

- Conflicts are best addressed through openness and transparency, and by

identifying the root causes of the conflicts.

- Conflicts are best addressed by the parties involved in the conflict, facilitated by
their immediate managers. If the project manager is their immediate manager, the
responsibility falls to her. If not, another manager who has primary responsibility
over the personnel takes over.

- In situations of conflicts, stakeholders and teams must work together to reach an

agreeable solution in the best interest of the project.

- A consensus document is an objective way of addressing conflicts and concerns

raised by stakeholders on project requirements.

- The demands of key stakeholders override other stakeholders in situations of

conflict. But even key stakeholders must have their objectives supported by facts
that ultimately support the project objectives.

- A project manager must protect the objectives of her project from adversity even
in the face of scarce resources.

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 
The 5 Levels of Conflict – Speed Leas Model


5. World
War
4. Crusade

3. Contest

2. Disagreement

1. Problem to solve

A conflict is like a small bruise; if not treated early, the wound festers. Conflicts often
begin as small problems or minor disagreements but if left unmanaged, the problems
get worse and the strategies required to address the conflicts at later stages become
increasingly demanding. The Speed Leas model showcases various exacerbating
stages by which conflicts are developed, helping organizational leaders assess the
level of the conflict and selecting a strategy that fit the level.

1. Problem to solve is the early stage of a conflict’s development where we probably

don’t even see it as a conflict; and a moment when the conflict can easily be addressed.
It is when there are conflicting needs, values or goals. On this stage the conflicts are
less personal. They are more problem-oriented.

2. Disagreement is the next stage of the conflict’s development where the parties
have different views and begin to declare who is right and who is wrong. On this stage,
personalities and issues are mixed up, and people take actions based on assumptions
and perceptions. Personal emotions become visible. Self-protection becomes visible.
Persons involved in the conflict talk to others to test strategies or seek advice and
support. Language gets a bit nasty although attempts are made to sugarcoat but still
gets to the other party as bitter. People interpret facts differently.

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3. Contest: People switch to the next level where they assign importance to their
position of being right and personal attacks begin. This is the stage when factions and
camps are formed. The politics begin.

4. Crusade: This is the stage when people move into defensive and offensive mode
and plan on how to inflict physical or emotional pain with the objective of winning or
causing the other party to give up. On this stage, compromise counts as a loss. There
is no communication or trust. Wild assumptions take over. Any action is hostile to the
other party. People believe the only solution is to remove the other party from the team
or get removed themselves.

5. World War: This is when energies are focused on separation, getting rid,
destruction or termination. Winning is not enough. The other must be destroyed!


Conflict Management and the Thomas-Kilmann Model


Different people address conflicts differently in varying degrees of assertiveness and

cooperation. It is important to understand the various ways, behaviours and
inclinations people may have towards conflict resolution, and the advantages and
disadvantages that come with each approach.

Let’s take a look at five different conflict resolution strategies as presented by the
Thomas-Kilmann model:

o Withdrawal/Avoiding: When the leader avoids, circumvents or shies away from the
issue hoping it will resolve itself or ‘just go.’ This mostly happens with people who
do not want to engage in the conflict and end up postponing the issue when
responsibility is expected of them.

o Smoothing/Accommodating: When one party decides to give up their own

satisfaction by taking steps to satisfy the other party’s concerns. This “as you wish”
approach leads to a win-lose situation.

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o Compromising/Reconciling: When an amicable solution is found that brings some
degree of satisfaction to both parties. It’s a mutual way of settling a dispute in which
each candidate forfeits some degree of satisfaction in order to reach an agreement.

o Forcing/Directing/Competing: When one party satisfy themselves completely or

force their opinion at the expense of the other. This is another win-lose situation.

o Collaborating/Problem-solving: When a solution is found that satisfies the concerns

of all parties. In this approach, the parties involved work together and incorporate
multiple viewpoints to find a mutually agreeable solution. This is the best approach
for addressing conflicts leading to consensus and a win-win situation. There is
more inclination of offering a hearing from both sides. Even when geographically
dispersed teams are engaged in conflicts, the use of conferencing tools to offer
hearing to all parties to the conflict are used.


Managing with Power and Influence


The right use of power and influence to obtain maximum cooperation from the team
and the larger stakeholder community is very important. Power gets things done. But
the right use of power ensures maximum benefits for the project while maintaining
harmony and satisfaction among stakeholders. In today’s world, it is not enough to
solve problems. We need to solve problems in the most convenient way. The use of
personal influence to deal with challenges involving people is strategic especially when
prior relationships exist. The use of third-parties that are closer or have personal
influence over persons with whom we have difficulties can also be beneficial to the
project. Our goal in this section is to understand different forms of power leaders tend
to use to drive influence and direct actions.

o Coercive/penalty power involves the use of threats to force people to do your

bidding, established in your ability to punish for non-compliance.

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o Reward power involves the use of incentives and benefits to motivate people to
achieve certain desired results.
o Formal/legitimate power is the authority you have to issue instructions because of
the position you occupy.
o Expert power is the credibility you have to drive actions due to your technical
knowledge, expertise and experience in the concerned field.
o Referent power is the natural influence you have over people because of your
personality that inspires likingness, trust, respect and charisma.

While expert and reward power present the best forms of power, coercive/penalty
power is the least effective.


Team Performance Assessments


In team performance assessments, the project management team makes an

assessment of how the team work together to produce results and the overall team’s
effectiveness in order to determine what will need to be improved on – skills/capacity,
teambuilding, communication, colocation, etc.


Some Key Points to Remember


1. The Resource Management Plan is the management plan for project resources
serving as a guiding and policy document for any action that will be taken under
resource management: planning, execution, change management and closure.

2. Project resource plans are created to cover for human resources, machinery and
equipment, raw materials and supply.

3. A Project Team Directory is a documented list of project team members with their
roles and responsibilities.

4. A Resource Calendar shows the availability of resources to be allocated to tasks.

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5. Resource histogram shows resource usage by time.

6. A Resource Levelling Chart is used to balance or keep resource usage at a

constant level or consistent pace so resources are not over or under-whelmed.

7. Hierarchical charts are used to communicate reporting relationships and lines of

authority.

8. A resource breakdown structure (RBS) shows a breakdown of project resources

by types or categories.

9. The issue log is a document where issues are captured, tracked, monitored and
addressed to resolution.

10. Responsibility Assignment Matrix is suitable for sharing of responsibilities among

team members.

11. Responsibility Assignment Matrix show who does what on a project.

12. An Organizational Breakdown Structure shows department by work packages.

13. Stakeholder Engagement and Assessment Matrix compares actual involvement of

stakeholders to desired levels of engagement in order to identify and correct any
discrepancies.

14. On projects, training and development of team members is the responsibility of the
project manager.

15. When two people have an issue, they need to resolve it themselves. If it doesn’t
work on that level, the responsibility falls to their immediate manager.

16. In withdrawal or avoiding, the leader avoids, circumvents or shies away from the
issue hoping it will resolve itself or ‘just go,’ typically by postponing the resolution
of the issue.

17. In smoothing or accommodating one party decides to give up their own satisfaction
by taking steps to satisfy the other party’s concerns.

18. In compromising or reconciling the candidates involved forfeit some degree of

satisfaction in order to reach a consensus.

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19. In forcing, directing or competing, one party satisfy themselves completely, insist
on their opinion or have their way at the expense of the other party.

20. In collaborating or problem-solving, all parties involved in the conflict work together
to find a mutually agreeable solution.

21. Human resources are likely to be contributed by the functional manager when the
organization is a matrix organization.

22. In order to make motivation systems effective, you must make the link between
performance and reward clear.

23. Knowing what each team member’s motivation is on a project is fundamental to

developing a strategy that manages and motivates them.

24. The commonest source of conflict is schedule, followed by project priorities, resources,
technical opinions, administrative procedures, cost and differences in personality.

25. Training cost is calculated as part of the cost baseline.

26. When a team member goes through training and acquires a new skill, the records
must be updated to reflect the new skills the team member has acquired.

27. Issues and concerns of stakeholders are addressed in the issue log and attended
to accordingly.

28. Specific reward systems are created for each project.

29. Problem-solving is the best conflict resolution technique that provides the most
effective solution because it incorporates multiple viewpoints.

30. Project performance appraisals look at how each team member is performing on
the project whereas team performance assessments evaluate the overall team
performance and effectiveness.

31. Team members in a matrix organization are harder to motivate mostly because
their primary loyalty is to the functional manager rather than the project manager.

32. The role of each stakeholder is determined by the project manager and the
stakeholder.

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33. A mental picture of a desired future is an expectation.

34. A project with multiple stakeholders from different backgrounds or cultural diversity
will most likely have many competing needs that must be satisfied.

35. We manage stakeholders to achieve stakeholder satisfaction.

36. A stakeholder engagement strategy specifies approaches to effectively involve

stakeholders throughout the project life cycle.

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