This is a response to my one of my peer’s discussion post. Please read original discussion post and peer’s discussion response post instructions, as well as my original discussion post and ‘s original discussion post for perspective. Additionally, please use references, other references and attachments to support response.
Peer’s Discussion Post Response Instructions:
Identify the peer’s position and identify whether the ideas would work. Why or why not?
Monica’s discussion Post:
Question One
The success or failure of any project is highly dependent on communication. An example of a successful project I read about involved the construction of a business premise. The construction process entailed the use of both active and passive communication. In this project, active communication that entailed physical meetings formed a major part of the project’s success. During these meetings, the project manager practiced a downward channel of communication where workers were informed of their schedule and activities (Morin et al., 2020). The project manager also practiced a written form of communication, a type of passive communication. The project manager wrote reports on the project’s progress through written communication, which was submitted to the stakeholders. Thus, active and passive communication allows for project effectiveness and success. Sony Betamax is an example of a failed project about which I read. This product was very innovative, but it failed in the marketing process. Nowadays, marketing is highly dependent on effective communication (Morin et al., 2020). They are, for example, virtual platforms such as social media and email. However, Sony Betamax failed to communicate to its targeted customers to the extent that its competition overthrew the product out of the market. For this product to be successful, effective communication to customers using appropriate channels like television advertisements would have enhanced its sales.
Question Two
Delivering bad news is always challenging. For example, Shack Restaurant had to deliver bad news on projected layoffs. The company faced low operations and financial returns. These issues resulted in the managing director having to make decisions on layoff and informing each individual on the matter. Nevertheless, the information leaked to the local media before the employees were acknowledged. In this situation, the organization’s management faced a dilemma where the managing director had to respond to layoff rumors that surfaced in the local media. On the other hand, employees were already distorted at work because of the rumors. This scenario left the managing director with no solution except to confirm the rumors in an interview held by the media. Therefore, the company’s communication method was impersonal since it involved a public announcement on a media platform other than a private meeting.
Addressing rumors through the local media on layoffs was damaging for the organization. It damaged its reputation, future contracts prospects, and the ability to acquire future financing for its operations. Therefore, I opine that the organization communicated entirely wrong and unfair to its employees. This situation demanded addressing the challenge while maintaining the trust and integrity of the public and its employees (Sguera et al., 2021). Thus, before addressing the rumors of the local media, the managing director needed to address the employees’ concerns then issue a public statement assuring the public that the organization is in perfect condition, thus preserving the trust and integrity of the organization.
Question Three
The slacking employee has a poor work ethic, and it is necessary to confront the issue through verbal communication. Therefore, it is critical to open a dialogue with the employee, which can be done with a live private meeting. In the meeting, as the project manager, I would inquire whether the employee has personal issues or other genuine issues of concerns warranting his behavior. If the employee faces issues impacting their productivity, I will brainstorm strategies to address their problems. Nevertheless, if the employee misbehaves without a valid reason, I would have to go over their responsibilities and give a warning for suspension without pay upon persisting in their behavior. I would use email for the warning, a virtual type of communication. The rest of the team would be informed on the need to report personal issues that might impact their productivity at work. Failure to report and persistent underachievement would attract suspension without pay or even layoffs (Woldu, 2020). Employees with perfect records will further be awarded for their remarkable work. Thus, awarding is significant motivation for employees, ensuring consistent workplace productivity.
Question Four
There are techniques to resolve inter-team conflicts caused by ineffective communication. First, it is necessary to call an informal one-on-one meeting with each individual involved in the conflict. Speaking to each member individually creates a safe and confidential environment to express their concerns (Gustavsson, 2020). After the individual meeting, it is necessary to bring relevant parties to a meeting with a mediator. The relevant parties should agree on a mutual action for reconciliation and commit to the strategy. Finally, the mediator should follow up to ensure the issues are adequately resolved to avoid chaos in the future. Therefore, negotiation is the most effective technique for resolving inter-team conflicts.
It is necessary to communicate effectively and transparently to all team members in a project. However, ineffective communication creates misinformation and loss of trust. Hence, creating an open communication channel that allows each employee to send messages directly to the manager is vital (Gustavsson, 2020). As the project manager, it is also necessary to lead by example in committing to effective communication. For instance, when team members doubt an activity, it is necessary to clarify to avoid spreading rumors. As a result, team members will start to rebuild trust. Further, it is necessary to recommit to the values that bind the team. Such values include integrity and inclusiveness, which are necessary to enhance trust. Overall, trust can be reinforced by enhancing effective communication.
Question Five
The employee is committing theft and violating the policy of the project. This situation attracts serious consequences that could cost me my job as the project supervisor. I would write the employee an email, a virtual method of communication, to explain his actions formally. Since it is a serious concern, I would have to share the email with the human resource department. Escalating the matter to the human resource department is necessary to avoid defamation claims from the employee (Kaasinen et al., 2020). Moreover, it will enhance proper resolving of the issue. Overall, the employee might be given a warning or performance improvement plan or be fired depending on the misrepresented hours.
Original Discussion Post instructions:
As we have learned in this module, managing project teams can be one of the most complicated and essential parts of managing a project. A project manager must be able to listen and understand the real issues when discussing problems with team members. Unfortunately, because of the diversity of cultures, personalities, and priorities of the individuals involved, misunderstandings and complications often arise.
A skilled project manager will not only help solve problems, but will inspire loyalty and dedication by valuing the uniqueness of each team member and the overall diversity within the team.
Assignment instructions:
Discuss the following topics in your initial post about project team dynamics and the methods of communication best suited to each situation.
Consider a project that went successfully and a project that did not end successfully. It may be a project you worked on or read about in the news or have knowledge of. Consider the sorts of communication that would be necessary to complete that project.
Give an example of a situation where an individual or an organization had to communicate bad news, the method of communication used, and your opinion of how they communicated.
Consider a project team where you are the project manager. You have identified a team member, through personal observation and team member complaints, who has not been completing their fair share of the work; in essence, that person has been slacking. What methods of communication would you use and what message would you have for this individual? What information should be relayed to the rest of the team?
If communication is not effective or has caused inter-team conflicts, are there any techniques that can be used to repair the damage? How can a team regain trust in each member or the project manager once trust is lost?
In the module notes, you learn of an employee who has routinely padded his hours on his time sheet and justifies the practice by stating that all projects run over at the end and he is only making sure he is fairly paid. How would you handle this situation? What communication methods would you employ? Is this a situation that should be escalated? If so, when would that escalation be required and to whom would the escalation proceed?
Required
Textbook:
Larson, E. W., & Gray, C. F. (2021). Project management: The managerial process (8th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw- Hill Companies, Inc.
Chapter 10: Leadership: Being an Effective Project Manager
Chapter 11: Managing Project Teams
Articles from the Excelsior College Library (ECL): Articles attached in pdf format.
Rozhkov, M., Cheung, B., & Tsui, E. (2013). Project context and its effect on individual competencies and project team performance (Links to an external site.). Proceedings of The International Conference On Intellectual Capital, Knowledge Management & Organizational Learning, 602-611. Retrieved from http://vlib.excelsior.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=91955841&site=eds-live&scope=site
Shepherd, D. A., Patzelt, H., Williams, T. A., & Warnecke, D. (2014). How does project termination impact project team members? Rapid termination, ‘creeping death’, and learning from failure. Download How does project termination impact project team members? Rapid termination, ‘creeping death’, and learning from failure. Journal of Management Studies, 51(4), 513-546. doi:10.1111/joms.12068.
Rao, A. N. (2015). Trust and team performance: Assessing the moderating role of risk in global outsourcing teams (Links to an external site.). International Management Review, 11(1), 5-16. Retrieved from http://vlib.excelsior.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=109425721&site=eds-live&scope=site
My Original Discussion Post:
Communication plays a crucial role in project management as it is pertinent to the successful completion of every objective and goal encompassed in the project. Different types of projects require different communication requirements. Communication can be divided into two categories, namely the internal and external. While internal communication generally refers to the transfer of information between the team members actively working on a project, external communication is defined as the transfer of information between members of a team in a project and relevant stakeholders not directly part of the project team.
Toyota was one successful project that I once read about and was highly successful. Toyota has had many successful and several unsuccessful projects as a multinational company. The successful project that I chose was the development of the Toyota HiLux truck, which was first designed in 1968 (Soramo et al., 2020). After the first model, the HiLux has become one of the bestselling vehicles in the company. The successful completion of the project required both vertical and horizontal communication, which according to Rao (2015), refers to the transfer of information between people of different hierarchical order and those at the same level in the hierarchy. On the other hand, Toyota built a sports car that was unsuccessfully named the Lexus LFA. The car was developed in 9 years with regular metal, but after the release of carbon fiber, a new car building material had been developed, the concept was returned for redesigning with the new material. As a result, the company did not sell many units of the carbon fiber version. One of the main issues of the car was the higher price and limited features in the car. The best communication for the project would have been diagonal, which happens between companies and institutions. In this case, Toyota should have consulted for market research to identify the best market entry prices.
One example of a situation where a person had to communicate bad news was the laying off of Starbucks employees in a zoom meeting in 2020. The laying off of numerous employees by a senior manager seemed emotionally difficult for the manager, and the feedback of the affected employees also revealed their devastation. In my opinion, the manager should have used a discreet and more formal method like the email to all employees. This method would have had less backlash from the public.
Successful project management requires an extensive understanding of emotional intelligence to deal with different people as per their emotional characteristics. As an effective project manager, dealing with a slacken team member would require an examination of that person’s behavior, skills, and capacities. Additionally, it is crucial to ensure that the person does not have psychological challenges such as stress or depression. Most importantly, I would ensure that the person has been receiving all the necessary information about their tasks and then initiate a vertical communication to understand they are not delivering as required fully.
Regaining the team members’ trust can be resolved through a formal apology, debunking the inaccurate information, and clarifying. Moreover, I would seek an external independent investigation to establish aspects of communication that caused the loss of trust, especially if it is a big project that warrants external services. Rozhkov et al. (2013) stated that the reason for hiring external investigation services is to increase the employees’ confidence. Therefore, regaining trust would require ultimate independence of the investigation.
Last Completed Projects
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