How to Create a Successful Project Management Team

Companies shouldn’t need proof that good project management is beneficial to business. The IT sector, for example, focuses strongly on delivering products that are both functional and user-friendly. This can only be done to a high quality with good project management.

Founder of JAMA Software, Eric Winquist, said that there are two kinds of project management teams in the industry – ones that see themselves as “victims” and ones that are “victors.” Those who identify themselves as the latter are the ones who will bring success to a business.

One key difference between victims and victors is that victims are overly focused on cost-cutting and meeting deadlines, so much so that somewhere along the way they lose track of what the customer actually wants. Winquist explains: “The victors, on the other hand, are the teams concentrating on the end product and results.”

Their higher success rates are rooted in the fact that instead of pressuring employees, leaders of “victor” teams empower them to make better decisions on their own. Read our blog about empowering teams here. Winquist goes on to outline the pattern, pointing out three features all successful teams in his industry have:

It starts with bringing employees in, keeping them connected and ensuring they stay in the loop. This has become even more important in a world dealing with a pandemic. This way everyone in the team has the same vision regarding the project and things run more smoothly.

Informed people also make better decisions, so the second step is to empower them to do so. This brings up employee morale and prompts them to make efforts that aren’t mandatory.

This way the team members can focus on the client’s requirements instead of their bosses’ – which is the third pillar of IT project management success.

For more information about creating winning project management teams, contact Esther McMorris estherm@ninefeettall.com

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