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remote teams

Can I Get A Word In Edgewise?

August 8, 2020 by abuttiglieri

Woman looking at video conf call screen

Remember the days of being in the same room as your team?

Most of the world has been remote for a long time. But I’ve heard rumblings that some people are heading back to the office…and some aren’t.

While I don’t bring this up to comment on the state of the world in the coming months, I do want to talk about the difficulties managing a team that’s only partially remote.

One particular time sticks in my head. I was on a conference call with my Core Team. Usually, I was in the room and could keep the meeting on track. But this time I was one of the team members who dialed in, while others were in the office.

WOW. That was one tough meeting.

I felt like I was “on mute” the whole time – I couldn’t get a word in without someone talking over me! It was as if the people in the room felt like they were the only people involved in the project – those on the phone were on the outside looking in.

As the leader, I struggled to communicate with the folks in the room. It was a really big reminder of how my remote team members feel whenever I held a meeting from the main office.

The reality moving forward may be a partially remote team. That’s so much more difficult than everyone remote!

So what’s the solution? How can we make sure everyone feels involved?

One way is what I call “All On or All In”.

That means, if everyone isn’t in the room, everyone dials in from their desk. I realize that “all on” can be challenging, as some people work next door to each other in the office.

But there are ways to handle that. The most obvious is to use headphones so you don’t hear audio from the cubicle next door.

What it does not mean is “cheating” and having 3 people in a conference room looking at 1 person’s projection on the wall.

Make it a level playing ground. If no one can have a sidebar conversation, the whole team feels included. And that makes team bonding a whole lot easier.

Stay safe, stay healthy – and lead on!

Filed Under: Effective Leadership, Project Management, Remote Tagged With: leadership, project leadership, remote project management, remote teams, team leadership

Sticky Note or Video On?

July 19, 2020 by abuttiglieri

Sticky Note Over Camera

Be honest – how many of you have a sticky note covering the camera on your laptop?

Even if you don’t, I’ll bet half your team does…or wishes they could!

My husband is one of those “sticky note” people. I got used to being “video on” during meetings. It’s 2nd nature to our kids!

So what’s going on? Why do some of us prefer video on, and some can’t stand it?

Some of it is personality based. But part of the difference is generational.

If you’re not familiar with generational preferences, let me explain what I’m talking about.

I attended a project management presentation a few years ago on communication between the generations. I always knew that people in different age groups sometimes struggle to communicate with each other…I just didn’t know why.

This speaker taught us that not only is it the technology that shapes each generation’s communication style and preference, but the social norms, political environment, and economic realities during our formative years.

A really high level overview of the impact on generational attitudes toward work and career:

  • Baby Boomers grew up in the post-war era that supported both economic and population growth. They expect, and were rewarded for, hard work, loyalty, and following the direction of management
  • GenX was the first to have widespread 2-income households, plus economic unrest, so they tend to overwork and worry about job security
  • Millennials were shaped by 9/11 and value freedom and family over job security. They don’t expect loyalty from their employer
  • Gen Z grew up with absolute access to technology and doesn’t know what life was like before 9/11 – they live on-line and accept the security risks (and mitigations) as part of life

When you are leading your project, you’ll likely have people representing all 4 generations. And each reacts to your leadership in different ways.

For example, if you’re a new PM working with folks who have been with the same company for their entire career, it might be a struggle for them to take direction from someone who may be the youngest team member.

On the other hand, if you are a seasoned PM and your team has a lot of brand new college graduates, they may view your role as too dictatorial.

How do we work together?

The next time you have a meeting, consider not just what your message is, but how you are conveying it. If you find it difficult to reach a particular stakeholder, maybe it’s a simple generational-mismatch.

Once you know this, you can learn how to adapt. Because clear communication leads to success for both your project – and you!

…and remember that not everyone is comfortable being on camera, no matter how easy it is these days.

Filed Under: Effective Leadership, Remote Tagged With: generations, project leadership, project management, remote teams

Pivot

March 26, 2020 by abuttiglieri

Neon sign: think about things differently, with the word Differently upside down

The world is demanding that we change the way we live, work, and communicate. We?re in crisis mode right now, and people are feeling everything from ?mildly unsettled? to ?completely panicked?.

When a crisis happens on your project…because the SteerCo chopped your timeline, the company decided to reorg, or you lose a key resource:

  • How does your team react?
  • Who do they turn to?
  • How do you settle them down?
  • How do you get your project running smoothly again?

I bet you can answer these questions without having to think about them very long.

You are a Project Manager. You are used to shifting and flexing based on changes in the environment. It?s what you do and who you are.
And what your team relies on you for.

So my question for you is: what is the difference between a crisis due to an internal factor and an external one? 

The fact is, people will panic when something happens! 

  • Not everyone on your team is going to be comfortable ? or able to ? work from home
  • Some extended team members may not be available right now
  • IT may be backed up

So what do you do when the world shakes everything up? The exact same things you do when the reason is internal.

Need more convincing? Let’s see what your new challenges could look like in the old world (aka 3 weeks ago):

New World: You are being held to the SAME timeline, but your team isn?t as efficient
Old World: Your timeline got chopped

New World: you can?t reach your Sponsor because they are in crisis-management meetings every day. Or one of your Leads suddenly gets pulled for additional responsibilities in the plant because the usual supervisor is considered high risk and must stay home
Old World: The company reorganized

New World: A key resource doesn’t have a laptop, or they need to home-school their kids during the day. Or all the IT folks have been re-purposed to supporting all the resources who suddenly need to work from home.
Old World: You lost a key resource

Same effect, different cause.

Trust yourself in this new world. You pivot. You adjust. You are the rudder for your team no matter where the storm is coming from. You’re the Project Manager and YOU’VE GOT THIS!

Filed Under: Effective Leadership, Project Management, Remote Tagged With: project management, project teams, remote project management, remote projects, remote teams, team leadership

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