Utpal Writes          On Project Management, Leadership, Technology and Self-Help

1. Only talk about what is important – do not waste team member’s time in the information they do not care about.
2. Educate each of the team member about importance of Work Breakdown Sheet (WBS) – teach them how to “Divide and Rule”
3. Hold each team member accountable for specific tasks – then you would be able to be hold accountable for the project’s success.
4. Celebrate successes; reward great performances.
5. Institute realistic deadlines and stick to it – Make sure to highlight missed deadlines in red and bold on the reports; same as you are used to highlight successes and client testimonials.
6. Rather than asking for percent complete, ask how much work is pending and how much work is done – percentages are just some numbers.
7. Have a Report Manual in place where each field of all the reports is explained. Ask each team member to go through it and understand thoroughly. It doesn’t matter if the manual is not much formal – it should serve the purpose.
8. Allocate tasks based on individual’s capabilities and zeal rather than seniority or positions – even a Software Engineer could act as Chief Executive for some of the tasks.
9. Allocate the tasks such that each of the team members is accountable for at least one specific activity. Accomplishing what was expected gives satisfaction – leverage it.
10. Make sure that everyone who should be in the loop is well informed with project status reports, concerns and successes. The list should include team member’s bosses if you work in a functional organization or so.
11. Do exactly what you say you would do – Exhibit genuine integrity to build trust.
12. Every week, ask team members about 3 major problems that they are facing – keep no stones unturned to eliminate those problems.
13. Ask team members if they see the project as success – it is fine if it is anonymous. It should be followed by “Why” and “What” — why do they think so and what the team needs to do in order to make the project a success.
14. When you think, you have communicated enough, communicate once more.

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6. Leadership Virtues That A Software Project Manager Should Have
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