Business

Signs your project team is flagging

 

No matter what industry you work in or what role you play in your project team there may come a point where the start of the project and the enthusiasm that you had for the work in front of you has dwindled and you find yourself wondering if the project will ever end. As project manager it can sometimes be a good idea to take a step back from any project that you are involved in and see what is really going on. You may find that a project management course will help you with the necessary skills to identify the signs that your team are flagging. 

Lack of enthusiasm

All too often when a project drags, and original deadlines get moved or become less likely to be achieved the members of your team can become disheartened. Its understandable, especially when you have all worked really hard for a significant length of time only to have the deadlines changed to accommodate all those unpredictable issues that might have occurred along the way, leaving those team members who thought they were almost finished with a long list of tasks that still need doing. If this is the case, then you may well notice that the team begin to lack the enthusiasm for the project that they had in the beginning. If this does happen it can be a good idea to sit the team down and discuss any issues that they might have with them. Not only with this ensure that they can voice their concerns to everyone but also that possible solutions can be found that will help boost everyone’s enthusiasm for the project.

Productivity is down

If during the course of the project you encounter some unexpected issues that result in a heavier workload it can be a good idea to check the existing workloads of your team before working out where to assign the new work. This  may mean moving workloads around a little if you have a particular team member you feel would be best suited to the work but if you don’t do this you run the risk of overloading one member of the team with work which may significantly hamper productivity across the entire project. This is one instance where project management training skills may prove invaluable.

People are leaving

Sometimes team members who are unhappy feel that the only way in which they can solve the issue is to find work elsewhere. This can be very demoralising to the remaining members of the team and can make them less productive as they worry about the outcome of the project and even the security of their own roles. If a number of important team members leave then you really need to take a look at why this might have happened so that you can look at changing an issues that might exist within the team.