How can you motivate your project team to improve their performance?

Hire the best you can. find..over compensate them and let them make you a success !!! Winners know how to get things done.....mediocre folks will deliver mediocre performance..........don't ever lie to your self........If it's a great idea...You'll find the money....after that find the right people to implement the project......You cannot make chicken salad out of chicken #*@#&% !!!

I measure by metrics, data integrity, and multi-view reporting - for both the individual and team. By presenting good data in a relevant format (I prefer dashboard style reporting), it is easy to identify individual contributions and the impact on the overall team. If meeting milestones or deadlines becomes a challenge, you can easily reallocate resources and implement "all hands on deck" to meet the goal. This method has been successful for me because it fosters team collaboration, gives an underperforming employee the opportunity to get back on track, and forces accountability. It also allows management and project leaders to see a real-time snapshot of the project at any given time. Priorities can be adjusted based on business needs.

In my experience, truly grasping the needs of team members is paramount in preventing learning fatigue in project management. While we often emphasize timelines and KPIs, the human elements—individual aspirations and concerns—cannot be overlooked. For example, aligning tasks with a team member's professional growth aspirations can heighten their engagement. Active listening is another crucial component. It’s not just about having conversations, but genuinely understanding and validating their concerns. Ensuring psychological safety also plays a pivotal role. When team members feel comfortable voicing concerns, managers can address potential learning fatigue early on, ensuring a more effective and motivated team.

To motivate your team, you need to know what makes them tick. Talk to them regularly, ask about their goals, and listen to their worries. By truly caring and understanding their needs, you'll build trust. When they see that their needs align with the project's goals, they'll be more driven to perform better. It's like knowing the favorite tune of each team member and ensuring it's on the project's playlist.

Everyone gets better with positive feedback and encouragement. Motivating employees with praise and cheer makes all the difference. Mediocre can become winners and get things done. Call out their success and good ideas and encourage them to keep succeeding.

A clear vision is the cornerstone of motivation and success in any project. Here's why it's so crucial: 1. Alignment: A well-defined vision aligns everyone on the project. It ensures that all team members are moving in the same direction. 2. Inspiration: A compelling vision inspires your team. It's the 'why' behind the project. When team members know that their work contributes to a greater purpose, it ignites a sense of pride and motivation. 3. Clarity: Without a clear vision, confusion can reign. 4. Adaptability: In a fast-paced world, a clear vision provides stability. 5. Communication: Effective communication is rooted in a clear vision. In summary, a clear vision is the cornerstone of a motivated and high-performing project team.

I would go a step further - systematize the process of peer recognition. Recognition by your peers, acknowledged by leadership. Very powerful. Companies using Stage-Gate(R), cross-functional teams are invited to present their project to a leadership team at least 2x during its lifecycle (initiation to completion), and up to 4-5x for high-risk projects. These are called go/kill decision gates. One of the preparations for a gate review, is a cross-functional team meeting for members to assess key contributions thus far and their impact on the project's potential for success. This includes a recommendation to proceed (go) or kill the project. Teams highlight critical peer contribution(s) enabling their recommendation and seniors recognize it.

To create a much more significant impact, we need to completely rethink how we structure our People Management or HR organization to address this Hierarchy of Team Needs. We can no longer have separate HR functions managing learning, development, payroll/compensation, and performance management. There should be one centralized Employee Experience function responsible for connecting all these components or foundational needs that help to make a great team culture.

Hands down, the most effective way to encourage collaboration and innovation is to make visible the process to take ideas from inception to launch. Many employees within fast-growing and/or large companies simply do not know what they have "permission" to do, outside of the box. For example, what kinds of new ideas are valuable? How to navigate the organization to make a new idea happen? Or, how and when they can contribute to someone else's innovative project. When a process is written down and people are trained in how it works, they use it as a frame of reference. Even loosely structured processes offer guidance. Every time they have a new idea, they know what do with it. Every project they are invited to, they know how to approach it.

In mental health, the challenges we face can be complex and multi-dimensional. Our objective is to move beyond the conventional and embrace transformative methods that significantly improve outcomes for diverse populations. Team members share their thoughts, and expertise in solving problems, enhancing the quality of our work and the team's collective morale. We experiment with new methodologies and foster an environment ripe for innovation. The creation of a safe and supportive environment offers a platform for open dialogue. Team members discuss their concerns, share successes, and critique methods without fear of reprisal which serves as an incubator for inventive solutions, propelling us to high levels of engagement and efficacy.

Too many companies practice the hero culture - do whatever it takes, no complaints - you will be regarded as a hero. This is one of the fastest ways to burn out your best talent. Projects in particular are just one big continuous negotiation of a series of trade-offs. As such, you want people in projects to feel comfortable to bring forward the good, the bad and the ugly as quickly as possible. Why do people hesitate? The reactions they face are a big part of the problem: - you raised the problem, so YOU are the problem. - you found the problem, YOU solve it. - your setback or delay makes us ALL look bad... The irony is that your capability is developed in HOW you react to challenges (with a growth mindset), not that you avoided them.

Mentorship and team empowerment are two critical aspects of effective leadership and improving team performance. Empowering project teams to lead nurtures a culture of transformational leadership within an organization. What is required is a balanced approach that leverages mentorship to build skills and confidence amongst the project team while gradually enabling them to take ownership of their actions and decisions. Empowered teams are better equipped to handle unexpected challenges and disruptions, contributing to the organization's resilience. They have higher motivation and job satisfaction, which can lead to improved performance, enhanced ownership and commitment. Together this can result in a dynamic and resilient organization.

I find that the leaders who do the best in motivating their teams are what I call 'transformational leaders'. These executives excel at helping the entire team see the project as something that will transform the business, the industry, or some other great cause. People want to feel like they're part of something greater than just their day-to-day tasks. They want to have an impact on the world. And if you can't connect your project to a higher cause, maybe the project isn't worth the effort you're putting into it.