Always good to revisit some of these points especially when working in a team…. 

**********************************************************************************************************************************************************************

Get to know your team’s strengths and weaknesses.

Not every team member is created equal. When you as the project manager take the time to get to know the individuals that make up the group, you can leverage the strengths and mitigate the weaknesses.

Why do this?

“It increases job satisfaction since it allows people to better succeed in their work and you [typically] get a better product faster,” says Nick Warman, PMP, a software project manager at Peopleclick Inc., Raleigh, North Carolina, USA.

By learning team members’ weaknesses, you can help them improve or avoid projects in which their expertise may be lacking.

Here, a panel of project management professionals shares seven tips on how to bring out the best in your team members.

1. Get to know your team.
You can only benefit from getting to know your team. Sometimes this means making contact with them outside of project-related meetings.

Visit your team members at their work spaces and acquaint yourself with their roles, their everyday tasks and the other projects they work on. This contact gives you a first-hand account of where problems may arise (for example, if their other tasks or projects have competing deadlines).

2. Watch and learn.
If you don’t have time to meet personally with your team members, you can learn more about them through their inputs during regular project status meetings. Pay attention to the topics they seem passionate about. This will help you take advantage of their knowledge.

If their comments are particularly insightful, encourage them to develop their skills through the project. This will make your team members feel like you are in-tune with their professional needs and ambitions, and possibly make them that much more committed to you and the project.

3. Look beyond first impressions.
Sometimes your initial impressions may need reevaluating. For example, a team member who seems abrupt at first might instead have a certain talent for directness in communicating about the project. When you make an effort to understand your team members’ individual perspectives, you are better able to reframe perceived weaknesses into assets.

4. Initiate communication.
It’s easy to get caught up in the details of project tasks. Communication may not be the top priority. Team members may also feel they are bothering you if they send you too many e-mails about the project.

By initiating communication and asking questions or starting conversations, you not only increase your chance of obtaining the necessary information but also encourage the team to collaborate and to be a part of the process. Once team members feel you want to hear from them, they may feel more comfortable sharing problems. In the end, open communication will help team members excel in their roles.

5. Encourage innovation.
Project management frequently ventures into unmapped territory, forcing team members to develop new solutions and strategies under very tight deadlines. Oftentimes, under such circumstances, the team brings better, more innovative ideas to the table, which can have a genuine effect on an organization’s goals and the project’s results.

It’s important to establish an atmosphere conducive to creativity and to foster innovation. Encouraging team members to share their ideas often and without hesitation could lead to an innovative solution or to the discovery of a new revenue stream.

6. Let team members do the teaching.
Have your team members educate each other about a skill they have mastered like how to create a work breakdown structure or use of specific software. These learning sessions could happen in wikis, one-on-one conversations, or during group learning sessions.

This tactic instills confidence in the “instructors” and keeps them engaged because they feel valued for their contributions. Further, this will increase morale for the team members who are gaining a new skill that can improve their performance. You benefit by having more than one person on the team with a particular expertise.

7. Offer rewards and recognition.
Rewards and recognition can strengthen the bond between employees and the organization, and help employees feel more attached to and responsible for their work. Acknowledging a good performance with an official nod of approval can go a long way when motivating a team and ultimately, getting better results.

External source: http://www.pmi.org/passport/dec09/non-members/passport_dec09_nonmembers_seven-tips-for-making-the-most-of-every-team-member.html