The art of managing different personality types in your team

Success of a team lies in working together. While it is the responsibility of the human resources department to bring the best talent for the team, it is the responsibility of a manager to make sure those resources are utilized to their full potential. This is where the whole ‘Management Skills’ come into the picture.

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A general notion is that a manager must be adept at taking care of project scope, client requirements and planning the entire project delivery process. But the most important aspect of the job of a manager is - People Management. If you are not good with the people you are managing, you cannot expect them to give their best for you - it’s as simple as that!

But that’s what most managers tend to ignore. The entire scenario is summed up in a beautiful quote by Peter Drucker - ‘Most of what we call management consists of making it difficult for people to get their work done.’

If you know your team

There are two types of managers. First are the ones who focus on projects more than people. They know the ins and outs of the project scope. They have the best resources in their team. They get the work done. But they are unable to take their team to the next level. Why? Because they don’t know how to bring the best out of their resources. And that’s because they fail to understand different personality types in the team.

On the other hand, there is a second creed of managers. These kick-ass managers know the linchpins in their teams. And they know how to leverage the different types of personalities in their team to create not just a winning-team, but a team that can thrive in the most adverse conditions.

So, what can a manager do to create that kick-ass team? Well, here are my ten cents that can help -

• Assess first, and then process

Whenever in life, I’ve been given the charge to manage a team the first thing I’ve always done is invested a little time in getting to know the team. I am not sure how many managers do this. But there are not many that I know.

What kind of work that person has been doing in the past? Has he the experience of working in teams? Has he worked on similar projects? What are his expectations from the team? Knowing all this can help you become a better judge of how to get the best out his talent.

• Perspire to inspire

No matter how smart we become, there is still no replacement for hard work. And when it comes to getting the team together and managing different personality styles, you need to do a lot of sweating.

It’s important for a manager to understand different personality types in a team. But it is equally important for team members also to understand they are going to work together to achieve a common goal - success in projects. As a manager you need to play to the strengths of the team, keep them in a position where they can contribute towards both the success of a project, and at the same time their personal growth as well.

• Praise in public, criticize in private

The most important part of the process is to make people aware of what they are doing which does not go as per the expectations of the business. But feedback does not always mean pointing out the mistake. Feedback also means praising them for doing things the right way as well.

It has been observed that there is a sharp increase in productivity when the employees feel appreciated by the manager. So, it becomes important to always keep your team motivated. No matter how big the team is, no one likes to get a hard word from the boss in public. Praising in public and criticize in private should be your mantra to make sure that no one in team gets offended or thinks that you are favoring someone.

Freedom, Flexibility and Trust

On a parting note, all I’d like to say is that Freedom , Flexibility and Trust are the three pillars that lay the foundation of a successful team. If you provide them with the freedom and flexibility to work in a way they love to, but at the same time make them aware about your expectations from them as an individual and as a team player, then you are on the path to create that winning team!

No matter the diverse personality types, you are going to have a team that thrives on success and dominates every project!

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Vartika Kashyap is a seasoned marketing professional who is an expert in digital marketing and entrepreneurship. She’s been featured among LinkedIn’s Top Voices for the year 2016. She currently runs the marketing team at ProofHub — a project management software for teams of all sizes. Connect with Vartika on LinkedIn, Medium and Twitter.

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