Are conflicts getting in the way of your team’s project success? Just when you think everything is going as planned, one small, unexpected error can affect the overall workflow of your project.
Such errors are more likely to occur, especially with the increased stress and anxiety induced by the pandemic, created from miscommunication among team members or widened technical barrier gaps.
Here at BDM Squared, we have a dynamic project management process methodology that is fine-tuned to prevent major errors from arising by using extensive PM best practices and Risk Management Assessment techniques.
Use the tips below to get your team on the right track to deliver your project on time and within scope.
So, how do you resolve conflicts in your projects? Here are our top five tips that’ll help your team resolve conflicts quickly and tackle them early on.
- Team Alignment: Where Being on the Same Page Just Makes Sense
To prevent unnecessary conflicts in your projects, it’s crucial that you cultivate and maintain team alignment.
Team alignment occurs when each team member understands and supports your shared vision and goals of the project, and works collaboratively to achieve them.
It’s also about making sure that each person in your team understands and is satisfied with their role and responsibility in the project. (Note that this is really really important. Allow members to feel comfortable sharing their hesitations. We’ll discuss how you can implement a WBS below.)
By aligning your team, it provides many benefits for you, each team member, the team as a whole, and the company, including:
– Enhanced productivity
– Improved communication
– Increased motivation and morale
– Higher retention and efficiency
“Team alignment is the process of making sure that everyone in your company is on the same page and working toward a common object.”
Team alignment can be achieved by having one-on-one communication with your team members, which leads us to our next point for solving project conflicts. - Encourage One-on-One Communication with Team Members to Boost Honesty
With remote work normalized and with over 85% of one-on-one meetings being conducted online, most employees are dreading them.
The reason?
Well, for one, they view it as a report card on their performance–an anxiety-inducing experience that can create an imbalance of team dynamics.
Communicating one-on-one with your team allows you to make sure that each person can discuss any misunderstandings they have about the project.
It also allows you to make sure they are headed in the right direction for completing their task on time while preserving quality.
James Meincke, Senior Manager at CloserIQ, recommends, “establishing separate meetings for performance evaluations and using the one-on-ones to focus on development.”
With this in mind, you can achieve greater success between manager and employee and between employee and other team members–a win-win for a happier and collaborative work environment.
- Project Transparency Through a PM Solution: A Win-Win for Clients and Stakeholders
Before delving into, you need to be aware of the benefits and functions of a well-developed project management software.
Without the ability to create multiple communication channels for project teams and custom dashboard and tasks breakdown for team alignment, for example, your project is destined to fail.
A good project management tool, such as SmartSheet, which we use for internal and external team communication and task breakdowns, is one that creates a really great dynamic working environment.
It is one where your team has …
1. Increased communication and the ability to create multiple communication channels for improved trust and the exchange of feedback and ideas.
2. Accountability and the ability to see each task breakdown for each and every member of the team (e.g., WBS, see below).
3. Client dashboards for transparently displaying total team breakdown, performance and status, and the budget being allocated and utilized.
4. Restricted access dashboards for confidential information between stakeholders.
- A Robust Work Breakdown Structure (WBS): The Key to Clearer Roles and Responsibilities … and Project Success
In a recent post on our company page’s LinkedIn, we discussed the benefits of a well-defined Work Breakdown Structure (WBS).
Essentially, the main ways a WBS implementation can help to keep all team members focused on their tasks is that it allows them to see how their efforts fit into the grand scheme of the project and their colleagues’ work.
Not only is it a plan for your project but it is also a driving force of project execution, management, and engagement that ensures project success from start to finish.
Indeed, a motivating and reassuring way to engage your team members and let them see their work in action!
(If you are looking to have more successful projects in 2022 and need an expertise-driven WBS for your upcoming projects, consider reaching out to the BDM Squared team here and get the support you need.)
- Team Training: Keeping the Team Update-to-Date with the Latest Software & Changes
Keeping up with the latest technologies can be a headspin for your staff.
That’s why when boosting workplace performance and productivity, it’s always important to take note of the variables that can create tensions, stress, or communication barriers, especially the technical ones.
When technology upgrades are made, the knowledge gap for team members widens–a hindrance to team productivity. Make sure your project management team works cohesively and efficiently by implementing regular technology training.
In fact, did you know, a whopping 72% of organizations believe that e-learning helps their team increase their competitive edge by giving them the opportunity to keep up with the latest software and technology changes?
A comprehensive training program could mean greater team productivity and profit margins.
Companies that offered comprehensive training programs saw 218% higher income per employee than companies without formalized training initiatives in place.
At BDM Squared, we use the full suite of SmartSheet’s services for all of our PM execution and planning.
They have built a resource center that allows our team to assign any necessary assignments to team members for keeping updated with the latest platform updates through Smartsheet’s Learning Center.
