How do you maintain your professional identity and boundaries while working on cross-team projects?

1 Define your role and scope

Before you start working on a cross-team project, make sure you have a clear understanding of your role and scope. What are your responsibilities, deliverables, and deadlines? What are the boundaries of your authority and autonomy? How do you communicate your progress and feedback? Having a clear role and scope can help you avoid overlapping or conflicting tasks, set realistic expectations, and manage your workload. It can also help you showcase your skills and value to other teams, and establish trust and credibility.

2 Respect other team's cultures and norms

Each team has its own culture and norms, such as communication styles, decision-making processes, work hours, and feedback preferences. When you work on a cross-team project, you need to respect and adapt to these differences, without compromising your own identity and standards. For example, you can use the preferred tools and channels of the other team, follow their meeting etiquette, and acknowledge their achievements and challenges. You can also ask questions, share your insights, and offer suggestions, but avoid being judgmental, critical, or imposing.

3 Communicate clearly and frequently

Communication is key to successful cross-team collaboration. You need to communicate clearly and frequently with your own team and the other teams involved in the project. You need to share relevant information, updates, and concerns, as well as ask for help, feedback, and clarification. You also need to listen actively, empathize, and acknowledge the contributions and opinions of others. Communication can help you align your goals, expectations, and strategies, resolve issues, and build rapport and trust.

4 Set boundaries and prioritize

Working on a cross-team project can be demanding and stressful. You may face competing priorities, deadlines, and requests from different teams. You may also feel pressured to perform well, please everyone, and avoid conflicts. To prevent overwhelm and burnout, you need to set boundaries and prioritize your tasks. You need to say no to unreasonable or unrealistic demands, delegate or outsource some work, and take breaks and recharge. You also need to focus on the most important and urgent tasks, and avoid distractions and interruptions.

5 Seek feedback and learn

One of the benefits of working on a cross-team project is that you can learn from different perspectives, experiences, and skills. You can use this opportunity to seek feedback and learn from your own team and the other teams. You can ask for constructive criticism, suggestions, and compliments on your work, and use them to improve your performance and skills. You can also ask for advice, mentorship, or coaching from someone who has more expertise or experience in a certain area. Seeking feedback and learning can help you grow professionally and personally.

6 Celebrate success and gratitude

Working on a cross-team project can also be rewarding and satisfying. You can celebrate your success and gratitude with your own team and the other teams. You can acknowledge the achievements, efforts, and contributions of everyone involved in the project, and express your appreciation and recognition. You can also celebrate the milestones, outcomes, and impact of the project, and share your learnings and insights. Celebrating success and gratitude can help you strengthen your relationships, boost your morale, and motivate you for future projects.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?