Chapter 6

Question 1

What are the steps in building a project team?

Answer 1

1. Identify Necessary Skill Set (from WBS)
2. Identify People who Match the Skills
3. Talk to potential team members
4. Negotiate with functional supervisor
   if Not successful build the fallback position:
   5.1 Try to negotiate partial assistance
   5.2 Adjust project schedules and priorities accordingly
   5.3 Notify Top Management of the consequences
   Assemble the team

Question 2

What are the characteristics of the effective team?

Answer 2

Clear Sense of Mission
Productive Interdependency
Cohesiveness
Trust
Enthusiasm
results orientation

Question 3

What are the reasons team fail?

Answer 3

Poorly developed or unclear goals
Poorly defined project team roles & inter dependencies
Lack of project team motivation
Poor communication
Poor leadership
Turnover among project team members
Dysfunctional behaviour

Question 4

What are the stages in group development?

Answer 4

1. Forming – members become acquainted
2. Storming – conflict begins
3. Norming – members reach agreement
4. Performing – members work together
5. Adjourning – group disbands
   Punctuated Equilibrium is a different model.

Question 5

What is a punctuated equilibrium?

Answer 5

Punctuated equilibrium proposes that rather than evolution occurring as a steady state of gradual change, real natural change comes about through long periods of stasis, interrupted by some cataclysmic event that propels upward, evolutionary adjustment.

Question 6

How to achieve cross functional cooperation?

Answer 6

Superordinate Goals
Rules and Procedures
Physical Proximity
Accessibility
Influence Task outcomes and Psychological Outcomes

Question 7

How to build High Performing Teams?

Answer 7

Make the project team tangible.
 Publicity
 Terminology & language
Reward good behavior.
 Flexibility
 Creativity
 Pragmatism
Develop a personal touch.
 Lead by example
 Positive feedback for good performance
 Accessibility & consistency

Question 8

What are virtual project teams and how can they be improved?

Answer 8

Use electronic media to link members of a
geographically dispersed project team.
How Can Virtual Teams Be Improved?
Use face-to-face communication when possible.
Don’t let team members disappear.
Establish a code of conduct.
Keep everyone in the communication loop.
Create a process for addressing conflict

Question 9

What is conflict management (categories and view)?

Answer 9

Conflict is a process that begins when you
perceive that someone has frustrated or is
about to frustrate a major concern of yours.
Categories:
•Goal-oriented
•Administrative
•Interpersonal
Views:
•Traditional
•Behavioral
•Interactionist

Question 10

What are some sources of conflict?

Answer 10

Organisational:
Reward systems
Scarce resources
Uncertainty
Differentiation
Interpersonal:
 Faulty attributions
 Faulty
communication
 Personal grudges &
prejudices

Question 11

What are the ways to resolve the conflict?

Answer 11

Mediate – diffusion/confrontation
Arbitrate – judgment
Control – cool down period
Accept – unmanageable
Eliminate – transfer

Question 12

What is negotiation?

Answer 12

Negotiation is a process that is
predicated on a manager’s ability to use
influence productively.
Questions to Ask Prior to Entering a
Negotiation
1. How much power do I have?
2. What sort of time pressures are there?
3. Do I trust my opponent?

Question 13

How to execute principled negotiation?

Answer 13

1. Separate the people from the
problem.
2. Focus on interests, not positions.
3. Invent options for mutual gain.
4. Insist on using objective criteria.