Project Management. 1. Introduction

Transcription

1 Project Management 1. Introduction a. Course aim b. Business organization development c. The Project : definition and characteristics d. Project Management e. Conditions to manage a good project

2 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The Project Management idea is completely different from the functional-hierarchic model (Taylor), it actually needs a free-ofrules organizational environment, no rigid procedures, no hierarchy. Under these conditions, skills and duties of the person involved become effective only if there are good relationship conditions inside the team and in the environment the team works in. These conditions include a mutual relationship of influence and help.

3 RELATIONAL DIMENSION Therefore, in order to be effective in an organization, the manager s skills need to be not only hard like specialist, technical, economical knowledge but also soft skills like emotional intelligence and social intelligence, that are necessary to understand and manage relationship between people and inside teams.

4 RELATIONAL DIMENSION Social and emotional capabilities: Ability to establish personal relationships; Ability to fix conflict and to negotiate solutions; Ability to social analysis (discover interests, motivations, emotions); Ability to organize teams; Ability to acknowledge emotions and manage it. (D. Goleman, Emotional Intelligence, 1996)

5 RELATIONAL DIMENSION Emotions Emotions play a huge role in human behaviour. They influence motivation and duty intensity. The word emotion is connected to the Latin verb moveo, so emotion recalls movement and energy. Emotions have been studied starting from the 80 s, with the study of the structure, function, development, chemistry, physiology and pathology of the nervous system in order to understand the brain and the mindfulness (Damasio, Goleman, Gardner) neuroscience!

6 RELATIONAL DIMENSION Emotions The human nature, is made up of three aspects: Cognitive it is the evaluation aspect through which we evaluate, we weight. It is the so-called implicit self. The ability to evaluate (cognitive capability) is located in the frontal lobe of the cortical area of our brain. It is the most recent brain area ( years old). It represents about 3% of intellectual energy. Emotional it is the aspect identifiable with energy. It is the so-called explicit self. Emotions are located in the part of the brain called amigdala, that is the most ancient part of the brain, separate from the cortical zone. It represents about the 97% of the intellectual energy! Motivation represents the reason-why people act. These three aspects are the Brain trilogy (Bergamaschi, 2004)

7 RELATIONAL DIMENSION Emotions The most primitive part of the brain is the brain trunk that is around the spinal cord end. The trunk also called reptilian brain regulates the basic vegetative activities (like breathing) to allow surviving. The emotional centres (amigdala) derive from this primordial structure. The Emotional centres development, the limbic system, added the knowledge and the emotional memory and developed a list of emotions (pleasure, desire, anger, terror). Afterwards, in millions of years, the neobark, a thinking brain area, developed. That allows to elaborate emotive answers to the external stimulus.

8 RELATIONAL DIMENSION Emotions Nevertheless, when emotional emergencies happen, the amigdala-brain connections are faster to react (12 thousandth of second) than the neobark to elaborate. So, when something with high emotional value happens, the impulsive emotion prevails over the rational part, triggering non-control behaviours. TALAM NEOBARK Danger!!! AMIGDALA

9 RELATIONAL DIMENSION Emotions Primary emotions: Fear Anger Happiness Sadness Social emotions: Embarrass Shame Guilt These emotions have a strong biochemical aspect, they are implicit, i.e. are trigged without consciousness and influence thought and behaviour. If emotions are an energy source, it is really important they are well oriented by acting over the motivation (ethic choice). Clip Even given Sunday 501 emotions vs la motivations

10 RELATIONAL DIMENSION Emotions Therefore, what s important is to acknowlede emotions, give them a name, elaborate them to understand how some behaviours are influenced by them; But it is also important working on the context, on the structure, on the organization and its values: Do I work for something or against something? Am I pushed by.. Or am I attracted to..?. So we have two kinds of intelligence: rational and emotional (neobark and limbic system). Without the second, the first cannot run well. Both have to be in harmony. How? Consciousness of our own actions purpose: don t be dependant on it Emotions control purpose: setting appropriate emotions Self motivation manage emotions to achieve a target Acknowledgement of other people s emotions empathy, acknowledgement of needs Relationship management is the art to interpret other people s emotions (leadership) All these abilities are called emotional intelligence.

11 RELATIONAL DIMENSION Emotions The knowledge of interactions between parts of brain responsible of our emotions, shows a lot about the way some emotions can jeopardize our best intentions, and teaches us to manage our most destructive and..(frustrating) instincts. This is emotional intelligence. The emotional intelligence is the capability to motivate ourselves and to carry on achieving targets (even if we are frustrated); to control instincts and postpone gratification; to modulate emotions in order to avoid suffering reducing thoughts; to feel empathy and hope.

12 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The team Team is the first and most important resource of the project. Team is an organizational unit with a low bureaucracy level. Within the team, start-up conditions are very important, but relationship methods that are defined during the team life are even more important. Team will work only if we are able to create positive relationship dynamics among members, in this way individual differences become a value and not contrast sources. Clip We Were Soldiers 107 The team

13 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The team Cohesion we have cohesion whenever in a team, members create a balance between differences; members accept each others and cooperate. Leadership is when one or more members develop the capacity to make the team action easier improving the interaction quality among members. Clip Coach Carter Team spirit

14 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The leadership The Team Leader s main task is to create positive feeling within team members The leader has to create resonance: a reserve of positiveness that activates the best resources in every man. The leader must avoid the diffusion of toxic emotions. Toxic emotions create dissonance So the leader duty is mainly emotional Neurosciences help to clarify the way leadership inspires passion, inspiration, enthusiasm, commitment and involvement

15 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The leadership The leader is someone everyone watches to be reassured and guided in dangerous and unknown situations; the leader knows how to orient the team emotions Everyone s emotion is strictly connected to each other by a system called open circuit of limbic system The open circuit is a limbic regulation we have to transmit signals able to modify the hormonal level, cardio functions, sleep rhythms and someone else s immune functions (i.e..: two people in love who generate oxitocina that gives a sense of wellbeing)

16 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The leadership The open circuit of limbic system makes us open to external stimuli, allowing us to modify our emotions (i.e.: after a 15- minute talk, the psychological profiles of two people become very similar: mirror effect) Leaders, being more seen, more dynamic in the team, more participative, tend to emotionally infect the team (through praises, critics, sustain, capability to set goals, delegate, etc ). In this, true leaders are like a human magnets

17 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The leadership Moods influence outcomes. Positive or negative moods tend to be perpetuated through open circuits and resonance, even though negative moods (stress) tend to secrete hormones which are slower to be reabsorbed by our organism (this is why we can t sleep at night after an argument ) Negative emotions are factors that can cause a great amount of trouble at a professional level because they confine the attention taking it off the job you should be performing

18 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The leadership Being in a good mood is particularly important within groups: the leader s ability to convey enthusiasm and team spirit can be crucial to succeed The power of laughter that directly connects two or more limbic systems into a sort of positive emotional confinement On the other hand, possible emotional conflicts that divert the group s attention and energy from common goals can jeopardize the final performance Clip Saving Private Ryan 108 Motivation for the target and circle communication

19 RELATIONAL DIMENSION Situational leadership Leader s ability to adapt its own behaviour to the situation (maturity) and to his team member s contingent needs

20 RELATIONAL DIMENSION Situational leadership S1 Telling / Directing : Follower: Low competence, low commitment / Unable and unwilling or insecure Leader: High task focus, low relationship focus S2 - Selling / Coaching: Follower: Some competence, variable commitment / Unable but willing or motivated Leader: High task focus, high relationship focus S3 - Participating / Supporting: Follower: High competence, variable commitment / Able but unwilling or insecure Leader: Low task focus, high relationship focus S4 - Delegating / Observing: Follower: High competence, high commitment / Able and willing or motivated Leader: Low task focus, low relationship focus

21 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The team Some obstacles: Do not listen to each other Do not leave space for others Not being able to deliver one s own opinion Not being open to confrontation Do not perceive other s needs Destructive criticism (angel s advocate) Feel defeated if your ideas do not prevail Individualism Self-admiration Individual aggressiveness / intolerance / fatigue Despotic leader Trouble in accepting mistakes and temporary failures Clip polar Express - Leadership

22 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The team The main effect when relationship conditions are not fully satisfied is skill and competence underutilization. Therefore, the final result will be probably attained, but it will easily be beneath the group s potential. Such condition increases a widespread dissatisfaction among the team s members.

23 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The team Guide-lines to positive evolution of group dynamics Number of the team members from 4 to? Criteria for a team setup skill heterogeneity, experiences, personality, working habits, values. Team life cycle control the group goes through various phases where values, emotions and relations play different roles Meetings procedure many or few? To get information or to coordinate? Organized. Brief. To the point.

24 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The team Team life cycle 1. Forming the group is forming, Individuals are not clear about their contribution (uncertainty) and react in different ways. Some express the wish to take the centre, to prevail as for relational and cognitive variables (goals, rules, work methods). 2. Storming If the emotional phase is reassuring, individuals start to come out looking for more effective ways to exploit all the skills available in order to understand the group s potential.

25 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The team Team life cycle 3. Norming if dynamics in phase 1 and 2 have been positively settled, the group is formed and aware. During this phase there are lots of internal discussions and members are not afraid to contribute personally any more. The group is able to come to common decisions. There is a higher interaction and involvement, problems are solved through negotiation and problem solving abilities. Single member s potential is released and the group becomes able to overcome considerable obstacles. The group is ready to deal with its tasks.

26 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The team Team life cycle 4. Performing The group is aware of its own team nature that is able to show tested abilities referring to given targets. This boosts a sense of belonging and a tendency to shift tensions outside. Great importance to attained result recognition. The team starts to operate on higher levels of trust and loyalty and relationships develop.

27 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The Project Manager He is in charge of the project. He has to guarantee for targets achievement according to costs, timing and initial criteria. Coordinates and helps integration among resources that take part in the project and towards the rest of the organization. Controls a context where he has to guarantee the highest effectiveness as for relationships of the team s members, to functional managers of the organization, to sponsors, to final customers, to other project managers.

28 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The Project Manager He works within high uncertainty. He has to integrate different resources without having any fixed rule. Through planning, organization, evaluation, direction, controlling, sustains activities, drives and relationships it is a naturally on edge role compared to traditional roles. He cannot use hierarchical authority. It is based on expertises coming from his skills and competences. It requires a relationship-oriented leadership style

29 The Ideal Project Manager.

30 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The Project Manager Roles within the Role According to situations and contexts the PM can play different roles: Interpersonal Roles connection & relationship with internal and external actors to negotiate support, inform, get informed; leadership, central role within the team to solve conflicts, anticipate drifts, address and create a trusting and loyal environment within the team; delegate, in formal occasions (i.e: with the final customer). Information Roles monitor, receives and dispatches information and signals by being the collector; disseminator, conveys information to the organization; spokesman, towards the outside community as well as the institutional one.

31 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The Project Manager Roles within the Role Decision making roles change manager change agent, especially when the project has an important organizational change value; disturbance handler handles troubles and conflicts that threaten the project s success; resource allocator connected to resource planning and management; negotiator towards internal and external actors (2 dimensions)

32 RELATIONAL DIMENSION The Project Manager PM s competences and skills Technical a PM needs to be able to read and manage some corporate and economical key variables; he needs to be able to actively interact with the sector specialists. Managerial these competences include the capability to build and manage complex contracts and the knowledge of economical, financial, programming and ICT tools; Relational he needs to be able to listen and interpret relational dynamics inside the team and inside the organizational context; negotiation, motivation, conflict management, leadership, communication abilities.

33 RELATIONAL DIMENSION the sponsorship The project s sponsor is essential and strongly prejudicial for its success. The sponsor is usually a top management member or the CEO (needed when projects involve different departments so as to assure the overcoming of possible inter-functional conflicts). Yet, there are some organizational projects (i.e.: BPR or Change Project) that require a sponsorship from the workforce, the people who the project s output will be addressed to.

34 RELATIONAL DIMENSION the sponsorship The sponsor s support to the project can take place in the following ways: Goal setting the sponsor sets the targets, in line with the corporate strategy, or gives directions for the PM to set the targets. Approves the targets. Resources the sponsor helps the PM to find internal and external resources. Its influence is often needed within negotiations with other functional managers.

35 RELATIONAL DIMENSION the sponsorship Communication the sponsor makes sure that the project and its essential information are known throughout the organization. In case of organizational project with a high change level, this communication becomes strategic, therefore the choice regarding tools, ways, and timing is really important. Visibility the sponsor makes sure that the project, its targets and the progress made are completely visible by the whole organization. Often, the project s success is strictly related to the sponsor s status within the organization.

36 Main conditions for a project s success: Clear and strong sponsorship Clear target (objective) Clear Project plan (who-what-how-when-how much) Availability of all required competences Autonomy of the project s team Communication to the organization Clearness about the way of getting back into the organization PM s competences and reputation Evaluation and control of middle and final targets