Managing diverse and multi-located teams poses challenges like communication issues, lack of team cohesiveness, and difficulty controlling projects. To address this, a case study program implemented strategies like standardizing communication in English, conducting team building activities, and setting up proper communication mechanisms. This led to benefits such as an encouraging work environment, employee satisfaction, and satisfied clients. Key lessons included understanding team and project needs, creating a conducive work culture, and having strong leadership and contingency plans.
Agile software development and the breed of agile methodologies like XP, SCRUM, Feature Driven
Development (FDD) and Dynamic System Development Method (DSDM) have gained immense
popularity since 2001. The necessity of finding right skilled people, sharing resource and limitation on
cost has made distributed software development indispensable. Software development today is more
complex than it was 20, 10 or even 5 years ago. Companies routinely perform software development in
one or more locations, testing in another location and release and packaging in yet another. This
distribution of resources strains the software development infrastructure and raises security, intellectual
property and auditing and compliance issues. This paper describes the problems of distributed
environment, different strategy and solutions to overcome the problems of agile distributed.
This course is designed to help companies better identify, select, train and support both program and project managers as a core competency within the organisation. Building around proven academic research, we will explore the various competency models, including those of PMI, AIPM, IPMA and GAPPS, and using those as the basis; actually conduct competency assessments in the classes.
We will also explore how to modify competencies to fit your specific organisation or application. Lastly, this course will also demonstrate how to use the Kirkpatrick 4 Step Model to evaluate and measure the effectiveness of project and program management training programs.
www.trueventusnews.com
Agile software development and the breed of agile methodologies like XP, SCRUM, Feature Driven
Development (FDD) and Dynamic System Development Method (DSDM) have gained immense
popularity since 2001. The necessity of finding right skilled people, sharing resource and limitation on
cost has made distributed software development indispensable. Software development today is more
complex than it was 20, 10 or even 5 years ago. Companies routinely perform software development in
one or more locations, testing in another location and release and packaging in yet another. This
distribution of resources strains the software development infrastructure and raises security, intellectual
property and auditing and compliance issues. This paper describes the problems of distributed
environment, different strategy and solutions to overcome the problems of agile distributed.
This course is designed to help companies better identify, select, train and support both program and project managers as a core competency within the organisation. Building around proven academic research, we will explore the various competency models, including those of PMI, AIPM, IPMA and GAPPS, and using those as the basis; actually conduct competency assessments in the classes.
We will also explore how to modify competencies to fit your specific organisation or application. Lastly, this course will also demonstrate how to use the Kirkpatrick 4 Step Model to evaluate and measure the effectiveness of project and program management training programs.
www.trueventusnews.com
The Porterโs Five Forces model is a simple tool that can be utilized to help strategic understanding where power lies in a business situation. The tool can also be used to understand both the strength of a companyโs current competitive position, alongside the strength of a position the company may be looking to move into. The Five forces framework focuses on business concerns rather than public policy but it can also emphasize extended competition for value rather than just competition among existing rivals. The ease of its use has inspired numerous companies as well as business schools to adopt it.
P-CMM is a process based model which focuses on effectively executing HR day-to-day processes and functions. Once these processes become standardized and continue to be improved for broader purposes, they can be simulated and even transferred to diverse areas within an organization. Also with this process orientation in a progressive scope, P-CMM provides an operational direction of HR benchmarking, which can not only be used to diagnose and analyze the current stage but also to predict and provide for the future stage.
Six-Box model was used primarily as an organizing device. It is allowed for logical organization of thoughts and data. It also facilitated the prioritization of recommendations. This model provides a strong foundation for assessing organizations. It is also useful as a "quick look" tool to determine one's strategy for dealing or working with an organization.
The term โproject managementโ initiated its journey in the early 1950s. By definition, project management is the practice of planning and organizing an organizationโs resources in order to move a specific task to completion. Before acquiring knowledge in project management, it is significant to know what a โprojectโ is. For this, you can avail our project management assignment help
e-Learning is now widely recognised as an appropriate solution to the problems of logistics, cost and consistency that often reduce the viability of classroom teaching in large, multinational companies. e-Learning has the capability to reach employees across the globe, but this solution brings its own difficulties, such as how to cater for those whose first language is not English. This problem in fact applies increasingly to the domestic employees of some companies, as well as those based in other countries.
For many organisations, producing training in multiple languages is a daunting prospect, and the potential problems appear numerous: how do we ensure uniformity of branding? How can we prevent corporate messages being lost in translation? How far can the effectiveness of the training itself be preserved?
This article explains why these difficulties demand careful thought, but are not insurmountable barriers. Considering various potential problems and solutions, and drawing on successful past projects as evidence, this article details the steps that must be taken to ensure that e-learning interventions become the accepted answer to international linguistic difficulties in training, and not the cause of them.
The Porterโs Five Forces model is a simple tool that can be utilized to help strategic understanding where power lies in a business situation. The tool can also be used to understand both the strength of a companyโs current competitive position, alongside the strength of a position the company may be looking to move into. The Five forces framework focuses on business concerns rather than public policy but it can also emphasize extended competition for value rather than just competition among existing rivals. The ease of its use has inspired numerous companies as well as business schools to adopt it.
P-CMM is a process based model which focuses on effectively executing HR day-to-day processes and functions. Once these processes become standardized and continue to be improved for broader purposes, they can be simulated and even transferred to diverse areas within an organization. Also with this process orientation in a progressive scope, P-CMM provides an operational direction of HR benchmarking, which can not only be used to diagnose and analyze the current stage but also to predict and provide for the future stage.
Six-Box model was used primarily as an organizing device. It is allowed for logical organization of thoughts and data. It also facilitated the prioritization of recommendations. This model provides a strong foundation for assessing organizations. It is also useful as a "quick look" tool to determine one's strategy for dealing or working with an organization.
The term โproject managementโ initiated its journey in the early 1950s. By definition, project management is the practice of planning and organizing an organizationโs resources in order to move a specific task to completion. Before acquiring knowledge in project management, it is significant to know what a โprojectโ is. For this, you can avail our project management assignment help
e-Learning is now widely recognised as an appropriate solution to the problems of logistics, cost and consistency that often reduce the viability of classroom teaching in large, multinational companies. e-Learning has the capability to reach employees across the globe, but this solution brings its own difficulties, such as how to cater for those whose first language is not English. This problem in fact applies increasingly to the domestic employees of some companies, as well as those based in other countries.
For many organisations, producing training in multiple languages is a daunting prospect, and the potential problems appear numerous: how do we ensure uniformity of branding? How can we prevent corporate messages being lost in translation? How far can the effectiveness of the training itself be preserved?
This article explains why these difficulties demand careful thought, but are not insurmountable barriers. Considering various potential problems and solutions, and drawing on successful past projects as evidence, this article details the steps that must be taken to ensure that e-learning interventions become the accepted answer to international linguistic difficulties in training, and not the cause of them.
The Guide addresses core improvement by teaching how to develop content for training. The Training Material Development Guide outlines clear expectations in the sequence of building content. The format engages improvement from what is assessed in engaging employees using a Communication and Measuring Learning technology.
Software Project Management: Project InitiationMinhas Kamal
ย
Software Project Management: ResearchColab- Project Initiation (Document-1)
Presented in 4th year of Bachelor of Science in Software Engineering (BSSE) course at Institute of Information Technology, University of Dhaka (IIT, DU).
10 Powerful Strategies for Leading Remote and Distributed Teams | The Entrepr...TheEntrepreneurRevie
ย
Mastering the Art of Leading Remote and Distributed Teams: Strategies for Success in the Digital Age. Explore tips on communication, technology, team building, and more.
POM 3 JUNE 2022 PROJECT MANAGEMENT QUESTION.pdfAlison Tutors
ย
This document has questions on Project management asked in the paper 3 June 2022
The paper tested on the following concepts :
-steps involved in creating a feasibility study
-definition of project manager and project management
-responsibilities of a project manager
-project management methodology
-Work Breakdown Structure
-Net Present Value
Project Management Application Form (Fully Customizable Template)MarjoToska
ย
E-Learning Software Platform/ App Documentation for Project Management subject (Bachelor's Degree). Full description of all its Life Cycles, Project Scope, Beneficiaries, Impact on Institution, Marketing, etc.
Presentation of this project: https://www.slideshare.net/MarjoToska/e-learning-presentation-pptx/MarjoToska/e-learning-presentation-pptx
Don't forget to give credits.
Enjoy ;)
3.0 Project 2_ Developing My Brand Identity Kit.pptxtanyjahb
ย
A personal brand exploration presentation summarizes an individual's unique qualities and goals, covering strengths, values, passions, and target audience. It helps individuals understand what makes them stand out, their desired image, and how they aim to achieve it.
Falcon stands out as a top-tier P2P Invoice Discounting platform in India, bridging esteemed blue-chip companies and eager investors. Our goal is to transform the investment landscape in India by establishing a comprehensive destination for borrowers and investors with diverse profiles and needs, all while minimizing risk. What sets Falcon apart is the elimination of intermediaries such as commercial banks and depository institutions, allowing investors to enjoy higher yields.
What is the TDS Return Filing Due Date for FY 2024-25.pdfseoforlegalpillers
ย
It is crucial for the taxpayers to understand about the TDS Return Filing Due Date, so that they can fulfill your TDS obligations efficiently. Taxpayers can avoid penalties by sticking to the deadlines and by accurate filing of TDS. Timely filing of TDS will make sure about the availability of tax credits. You can also seek the professional guidance of experts like Legal Pillers for timely filing of the TDS Return.
"๐ฉ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ผ๐ต ๐พ๐ฐ๐ป๐ฏ ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฐ๐บ ๐ฏ๐จ๐ณ๐ญ ๐ซ๐ถ๐ต๐ฌ"
๐๐ ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ฌ (๐๐ ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ง๐ข๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ) is a professional event agency that includes experts in the event-organizing market in Vietnam, Korea, and ASEAN countries. We provide unlimited types of events from Music concerts, Fan meetings, and Culture festivals to Corporate events, Internal company events, Golf tournaments, MICE events, and Exhibitions.
๐๐ ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ฌ provides unlimited package services including such as Event organizing, Event planning, Event production, Manpower, PR marketing, Design 2D/3D, VIP protocols, Interpreter agency, etc.
Sports events - Golf competitions/billiards competitions/company sports events: dynamic and challenging
โญ ๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐๐ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ฃ๐๐๐ญ๐ฌ:
โข 2024 BAEKHYUN [Lonsdaleite] IN HO CHI MINH
โข SUPER JUNIOR-L.S.S. THE SHOW : Th3ee Guys in HO CHI MINH
โขFreenBecky 1st Fan Meeting in Vietnam
โขCHILDREN ART EXHIBITION 2024: BEYOND BARRIERS
โข WOW K-Music Festival 2023
โข Winner [CROSS] Tour in HCM
โข Super Show 9 in HCM with Super Junior
โข HCMC - Gyeongsangbuk-do Culture and Tourism Festival
โข Korean Vietnam Partnership - Fair with LG
โข Korean President visits Samsung Electronics R&D Center
โข Vietnam Food Expo with Lotte Wellfood
"๐๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ฒ ๐๐ฏ๐๐ง๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐ฒ, ๐ ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐๐ข๐๐ฅ ๐ฃ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ง๐๐ฒ. ๐๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ฐ๐๐ฒ๐ฌ ๐๐๐ฅ๐ข๐๐ฏ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ฌ๐ก๐จ๐ซ๐ญ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐๐ ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ญ ๐จ๐ ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐ข๐๐ฌ."
Affordable Stationery Printing Services in Jaipur | Navpack n PrintNavpack & Print
ย
Looking for professional printing services in Jaipur? Navpack n Print offers high-quality and affordable stationery printing for all your business needs. Stand out with custom stationery designs and fast turnaround times. Contact us today for a quote!
Implicitly or explicitly all competing businesses employ a strategy to select a mix
of marketing resources. Formulating such competitive strategies fundamentally
involves recognizing relationships between elements of the marketing mix (e.g.,
price and product quality), as well as assessing competitive and market conditions
(i.e., industry structure in the language of economics).
Kseniya Leshchenko: Shared development support service model as the way to ma...Lviv Startup Club
ย
Kseniya Leshchenko: Shared development support service model as the way to make small projects with small budgets profitable for the company (UA)
Kyiv PMDay 2024 Summer
Website โ www.pmday.org
Youtube โ https://www.youtube.com/startuplviv
FB โ https://www.facebook.com/pmdayconference
VAT Registration Outlined In UAE: Benefits and Requirementsuae taxgpt
ย
Vat Registration is a legal obligation for businesses meeting the threshold requirement, helping companies avoid fines and ramifications. Contact now!
https://viralsocialtrends.com/vat-registration-outlined-in-uae/
RMD24 | Debunking the non-endemic revenue myth Marvin Vacquier Droop | First ...BBPMedia1
ย
Marvin neemt je in deze presentatie mee in de voordelen van non-endemic advertising op retail media netwerken. Hij brengt ook de uitdagingen in beeld die de markt op dit moment heeft op het gebied van retail media voor niet-leveranciers.
Retail media wordt gezien als het nieuwe advertising-medium en ook mediabureaus richten massaal retail media-afdelingen op. Merken die niet in de betreffende winkel liggen staan ook nog niet in de rij om op de retail media netwerken te adverteren. Marvin belicht de uitdagingen die er zijn om echt aansluiting te vinden op die markt van non-endemic advertising.
Personal Brand Statement:
As an Army veteran dedicated to lifelong learning, I bring a disciplined, strategic mindset to my pursuits. I am constantly expanding my knowledge to innovate and lead effectively. My journey is driven by a commitment to excellence, and to make a meaningful impact in the world.
Cracking the Workplace Discipline Code Main.pptxWorkforce Group
ย
Cultivating and maintaining discipline within teams is a critical differentiator for successful organisations.
Forward-thinking leaders and business managers understand the impact that discipline has on organisational success. A disciplined workforce operates with clarity, focus, and a shared understanding of expectations, ultimately driving better results, optimising productivity, and facilitating seamless collaboration.
Although discipline is not a one-size-fits-all approach, it can help create a work environment that encourages personal growth and accountability rather than solely relying on punitive measures.
In this deck, you will learn the significance of workplace discipline for organisational success. Youโll also learn
โข Four (4) workplace discipline methods you should consider
โข The best and most practical approach to implementing workplace discipline.
โข Three (3) key tips to maintain a disciplined workplace.
2. Managing Diverse Teams โ An Effective
and Efficient Way
Rajesh Rajagopalan โ Assistant System Consultant,
TATA Consultancy Services Limited
3. Contents
1. Abstract ......................................................................................................................................... 4
2. Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 4
3. Case Study ................................................................................................................................... 4
4. Key Challenges ............................................................................................................................ 5
a) Managing Diverse teams: ......................................................................................................... 5
b) Managing teams in multiple locations: ................................................................................... 6
5. Methodology/Process Followed ................................................................................................. 7
a) For managing a diverse team: ................................................................................................. 7
b) For managing teams in multiple locations: ............................................................................ 9
6. Critical Success Factor ............................................................................................................. 10
7. Quantified Benefits To Business ............................................................................................. 11
8. Lessons Learnt ........................................................................................................................... 12
9. Conclusion .................................................................................................................................. 13
10. References ............................................................................................................................... 13
11. Authorโs Profile: ........................................................................................................................ 14
3 Page
4. 1. Abstract
Every project has its own complexities. Managing a project comprising of members from diverse
cultures and languages, always poses a challenge, more so, if the project team is divided across
multiple locations.
Projects with multi-lingual and multi-located team members pose numerous challenges. Overcoming
these challenges require careful planning and threadbare analysis. Each challenge requires timely
and precise intervention resulting in its permanent resolution.
Primary Challenges revolve around the efficiency of communication โ in terms of proper and timely
communication, project control, resource availability, team bonding, team recognition, providing
opportunity and team building activities.
This paper helps in finding an effective and efficient way to address these challenges.
2. Introduction
Any project or program, having multi-lingual and multi-located teams provides a stiffer test in a
dynamic global IT environment where an organisation has to keep pace with ever evolving customer
expectations while at the same time keeping competitors at bay.
Multi-lingual teams provide a chance for the management team to draw the insights of the teamโs
strengths and weaknesses. Presence of multi-located teams would help the management team to
assess the strength of the project lead. With the help of a case study which points out the challenges
faced in a multi-lingual and multi-located team(s), let us dwelve upon the approach to overcome these
challenges.
3. Case Study
Web Based Reporting System (WBRS), a program, was launched, to view the audience for TV and
Internet Viewership, for the Customer โNESโ. The program had three projects namely Engine of
Statistics (EoS), Report Formatter (RF), Front-End And View (FEV). The program had offshore and
onsite delivery centres in India and USA. It had several delivery centres in India with Chennai as the
primary delivery centre, followed by Bhubaneswar, Bangalore.
Initially there were not only technical challenges in the program. There were also complex challenges
in managing the team members distributed across various locations and also the fact, the resources
of the project, came from various states of India and thereby imbibing different work culture and
styles. This hampered the smooth functioning of the project/program.
4 Page
5. 4. Key Challenges
There were quite a few challenges in managing diverse teams and managing teams distributed
across various locations.
a) Managing Diverse teams:
Communication:
The team in Chennai had a size of 30 on an average. Bhubaneswar had 3. Bangalore had 2. In
Chennai location, about 60% of resources in the team spoke Tamil. 20% spoke Hindi and the rest
spoke the other south Indian languages. As the program was done using Agile methodology,
communication played a key role in the program. Invariably most of the times, communication within
the project happened, in Tamil. This put the non-tamil speaking team members in a spot of bother as
well the project, at times. Figure 1 shows the communication process that existed in the earlier stages
of the program.
Figure 1: COPIS Diagram of the Original State (AS โ IS Process)
Team Cohesiveness:
Natural Alignment did not happen among team members because of different cultural styles/work
styles and different spoken languages. Also, because of the availability of more than one person
knowing a particular language, group affinity, based on language was formed, and as there was no
need for the team members to speak to the Organisationโs common language (English), the need for
cohesiveness, became irrelevant.
5 Page
6. Preferred Language:
Since the team members knew that they could affinitize themselves to resources/team members who
speak their languages, they chose their mother-tongue as their preferred language ignoring the
organisationโs preferred language of English.
Regional Bias:
In one of the project in the program, the Project Lead (PL) and one of the team members in the
project, shared the same geographical region. There was an open chance for that project team
members to showcase their mettle on a Business Opportunity. But the PL provided the opportunity to
the particular team member who came from his region.
b) Managing teams in multiple locations:
Control Over the Project:
The FEV Project team had its offshore team members split across Chennai and Bhubaneswar and
Bangalore. Initially the Project Lead did not have control over the project proceedings since there was
lack of effective work coordination and cooperation among the team members either due to work
culture of the place or due to the work style of the individual.
Project Environmental Setup:
The FEV project team members at Bangalore and Bhubaneswar, had to toil hard to setup their project
environments as they had to get the requisite softwares and their corresponding licenses after
obtaining necessary approvals and permissions, by which time, the project work had started .
Communication on Time:
At the start of the program, project communication between team members of FEV project did not
happen smoothly mainly because of the difference in the work culture/timings of the resources.
Availability of Resources on Project Need:
For some time, till the beginning of the development stage, FEV project lead did not have proper
control over the availability of the resources (team members) in Bangalore and Bhubaneswar at any
given point of time. This was because the team was often thinking themselves working in isolation
and not part as of a team.
Difficulty in Setting up Meetings/Trainings:
In the beginning of the FEV project, the project lead had trouble in arranging meetings and trainings.
It is because he could never ascertain that all the resources placed at the various offshore locations,
6 Page
7. would be available, at any given point of time, even though he had the Resource Calendar of the
team, at his disposal. Arranging a meeting/training often required some follow-ups or concurrent calls.
Recognition of the Remote Teams:
Project leads of the program, looked for the successful outcome without peeping into what will ensure
a successful outcome. In other words, they looked for the end results and not the means, to achieve
them. The efforts of the team members at remote locations were not fully understood and appreciated
by the leads.
5. Methodology/Process Followed
a) For managing a diverse team:
Following methodologies/steps were judiciously used, as the program/projects started to gain
ground, in order to overcome the challenges faced while managing a program with a multi-
culture background
Communication Standardization
Team Building Activity and Team Outing
Transparent way to provide an opportunity
Communication Standardization:
1. Awareness sessions were conducted to the team members, to speak in the Organisationโs official
language or client-specific language or a common language to all the project members, which
obviously was โEnglishโ.
2. Trainings on mail etiquette and basic communication were conducted by experienced
professionals in the program, to all the members in the team.
3. Activities 1 and 2 were included as part of the Induction Program.
The resultant effect was that the team understood the need of the hour and started to appreciate the
work ambience and embrace the situation. Figure 2 shows the modified communication process
(depicting these activities) that was later followed in the program.
7 Page
8. Figure 2: COPIS Diagram of the New State (Improved Process)
Team Building Activity and Team Outing:
Team Building: Team building activities evolved as the program started to develop. Following were
the activities used in the program:
a).โFridayโ Fun Time: This helped in team members having a camaraderie among the team
members. Team Building games were organised .Some of the games were โConstruction of Bridge
(using Straws)โ, โGroup games like Anthakshris, Quizzing on Movies/Technicalโ etc.,.
b).โBirthday Bashโ: Birthdays were celebrated at the end of every month, with a gift, given to the
birthday boy/girl.
Team Outing: Team Outing activities started to flourish as an extension of team building activities.
This became useful when and there were stressful times and also when there was a project/program
success.
These activities effectively had a terrific positive impact on the team and the team members started to
know each other better and there was better rapport among themselves which in turn started to
improve the productivity and quality of the project.
Transparent way to provide an opportunity:
Any initiative or business opportunity that came to the program, were intimated in detail, to the team
members immediately. This made the team members think that the project management think tank
team was open and transparent to them and that the project management team was transparent to
their aspirations. This motivated the team members to excel in their respective projects.
8 Page
9. b) For managing teams in multiple locations:
Following were the methodologies /approaches used to overcome the challenges faced in managing
the project teams (members) distributed at Chennai, Bangalore and Bhubaneswar.
Availability of a strong lead with a good process background.
Set up proper communication mechanism.
Creation of flexible and contingency plans.
Proper Planning prevented delays in meetings/trainings.
Routine Feedback, timely appreciations and providing opportunities.
Availability of a strong lead with a good process background:
A resource with leadership traits and with a good process background was identified for FEV project.
This helped in resolving the logistical and project communicational issues and enabled the smooth
functioning of the project and hence the program.
Set up proper communication mechanism:
A proper communication mechanism was setup through proper planning. Apart from the normal back-
up plans , judicious usage of open source status reporting tools such as Bugzilla and internal
repositories of the organisation, helped in tracking of the project work statuses of the team members,
which ensured project communication gap was reduced to a great extent.
Creation of flexible and contingency plans:
At times, the resource calendar, which had the details of resource availability for a given year, would
go in disarray as there were unavoidable leaves taken by or absence of the team members. In the
case of such scenarios, as a contingency, the back-up persons were called for, into actions.
Every project lead had discussions with her/his team members on what each one of the team
members are doing. Apart from that the entire project team had almost regular status call with the
clients on what was achieved on a single day. This gave each one, an insight of what the other team
member is doing with his/her deliverable. This helped the project lead to find the right back up person
easily.
As the projects had onsite location (USA) as well, project communication had to happen between
onsite and offshore locations. This was a problem for onsite team members, who were less in size
when compared with offshore. They were given the โwork from homeโ option and they worked in a
secured network.
The FEV project which had the biggest team in the program got affected, often, with these resource
issues and were bailed out with the contingency and flexible plans.
9 Page
10. Proper planning prevented delays in Meetings/Trainings:
Diligent Planning by the project lead of the FEV project, in the development stage of the project
helped him to conduct timely meetings and trainings. Key Meetings and Trainings were scheduled
after getting consensus from the team members and were planned in advance. Meeting Minutes were
taken as well to ensure that the gist of the meetings/trainings were shared to the absentees, due to
unavoidable circumstances and also to emphasise the importance of the meetings.
Planning steps Involved:
1. Advance mail communication to all the Stakeholders
2. Reminder mail : Automatic Alarm sent to all stakeholders excluding the client
3. Tasks were setup on the Internal Project Management System of the Organisation and also task
activities were created on Bugzilla tool.
Routine Feedback, Timely Appreciations and providing Opportunities:
As the program started rolling, the Project leads started to understand the importance of timely
feedback of their wardsโ work and started to provide them, routine feedback and timely appreciations
from the project lead and the client. Rewards were given in recognition of the performance of the
team members.
Certification and Rewards were given for Best Performer of the project/program, both at project level
and at the Customer relationship level. Team members who were aspiring to go in a particular
area/domain were identified and were given opportunities to enhance their skills in their area of liking
whenever there was an opportunity.
6. Critical Success Factor
Three critical factors occured as a result of overcoming these challenges
Encouraging Work Environment
Employee Satisfaction
Satisfied Clients
Encouraging Work Environment:
The work ambience in the program helped the team members to motivate themselves to work hard
when needed. Also there was good gelling within the team members, through which they helped one
another.
10 Page
11. Employee Satisfaction:
Because the project management team took care of the teamโs needs and aspirations, there was a
high level of satisfaction among the team members
Satisfied Clients:
A highly satisfied team produced a high performance from the team which resulted in a high quality
and on-time delivery of the project. This obviously provided a delight to the clients, who gave a very
good Customer Satisfaction Rating.
7. Quantified Benefits To Business
Table 1 and 2 illustrate the benefits of the project that was, before resolving the challenges (issues),
Statistic Before Resolving the After Resolving the Challenges
Challenges
Communication Hassle, Less Productivity Improved Productivity
Team Cohesiveness
Communication Hassle, No appreciable change in the High Quality Product
Team Cohesiveness, quality
Planning
Communication Hassle, No new Business More Business Opportunity, as
Team Cohesiveness Opportunity. It remained as clients were satisfied
such.
the program faced, and after resolving the challenges
Table1: Quantification of Benefits: Qualitative Analysis
Statistic Before Resolving the After Resolving the
Challenges Challenges
Communication Hassle, Not Applicable Saved 5 Working Days = $ 1000
Team Cohesiveness
Communication Hassle, Not Applicable Saved 2 Days in rework effort =$
Team Cohesiveness, 384
Planning
Table2: Quantification of Benefits: Quantitative Analysis
11 Page
12. Team Cohesiveness involves the Motivational activities such as Team Building and Team Outing
activities which rekindled the spirit of the team members and made them refreshing while doing their
project work. This was useful especially in hectic work periods. This improved the productivity of the
team and the clients were happy to see such wonderfully well-knit dedicated team.
8. Lessons Learnt
The team did not understand the project needs initially. This created a lot of challenges. The project
management team also slowly started to understand the needs of the team, better, as the program
started to progress. The expectations of both the parties were set and the expectations (needs) being
depicted with the help of a Kano Model. Figure 3 depicts the prioritization of Project needs i.e, it set
the expectations on the team members and Figure 4 depicts the prioritization of team (members)
needs (expectation set on the project / project management team).
Figure 3: Prioritization of Project Needs
12 Page
13. Figure 4: Prioritization of Team (Members) Needs
The Basic needs in the Kano model indicates that those needs (expectations) ultimately became
must. The โExciting Needsโ were delighters which ultimately became a โmustโ over a period.
9. Conclusion
Successfully managing a project team, that has a diverse culture and which is distributed across
multiple locations/delivery centres relies upon several factors:
Project expectations clearly needs to be known, to the team members.
Creating a vibrant and conducive work atmosphere has to be a prerequisite.
Timely communication to all stakeholders is of paramount importance.
Routine team outing and team building activities is a must in the longer run for the welfare of the
project.
Timely Recognition of work performance of the project members
Project should have strong project leads with good process background.
Having an effective contingency plan (backup plan/options) / with some flexible plans will give the
project much needed stability even in emergency situations.
10. References
None.
13 Page
14. 11. Authorโs Profile:
Rajesh Rajagopalan is a Delivery Manager, who has 13+ years of IT
experience, with 8 years in Tata Consultancy Services and is a Six
Sigma Green Belt certified professional. Has been a Program
Manager/Project Manager for the past 5 years and has been in
Retail domain for the past 6 years.
Mail Id: rajesh.rajagopalan@tcs.com
14 Page