The leadership can be considered as an art to direct the intentions, attention, and efforts of the employees into a needed direction for the project to succeed. It should be stated that the question concerning the leadership and how it affects the working process remains one of the most discussed and argued. The differences in approaches and methods of implementation theory on practice provide the project managers with the variety of techniques and strategies that can be chosen for the suitable reasons.
Although it is significantly important for the leader to develop the strategy that will lead the project and company for the successful outcome, it should be stressed that the role of the team should not be undervalued as the motivation and confidence in the accomplishment of the goals influences the working process greatly (Schunk 2012, p. 77).
The main objective of the paper is to discuss the role of the leadership and the teambuilding in the project management, to center attention on the theoretical models and identify the ways for the inspiration and staff motivation.
The motivational factors influence the efficiency of the employees and play an important role while project management. It should be highlighted that every individual in the group is different and unique, that is, their motivation is rooted in different things (Dwivedula & Bredillet 2010, p. 160). The major task of the leader is to find the key to every person and to use appropriate methods and techniques of motivation to increase the level of interest to the performing tasks.
Despite the fact that everyone is unique, some elements can motivate the whole group. The most difficult part is to understand what is needed to make people motivated; however, the deep listening technique, observation, and communication may be a helpful tool while identifying the motivational factors (Ervin 2012, p. 391).
To get the better understanding of the issue, one should pay close attention to certain motivational exercise. According to the recent researcher in the field of motivation on the workplace, there different approaches that can be implemented into the working process (Rose 2014, p. 30). First and foremost, one of the fundamental tasks of the leader is to bring the team closer. It should be pointed out that it may be beneficial to use the flipchart to save all the discussed ideas.
The purpose of every meeting should be clear to the team members; moreover, the workers should feel comfortable, respected, and be heard. Such attitude will encourage the employees and will satisfy them. During the meeting, the leader can ask everyone what the motivation is and what factors can motivate best. Usually, there are certain types of the motivation that can be considered as obvious one, for example, money, recognition, self-development, accomplishments, and promotion.
However, there is a hidden side of motivation like the flexible working schedule and the possibility to bring pets to the workplace. The leader should notice similarities and differences in motivation within the team. To avoid the misunderstanding, all the questions should be clarified as the flexibility of the working process may mean the ability to solve some issues over the phone, whereas some team members are sure that this is about coming to work earlier or later.
The next step is to prioritize every motivator. The team members should score their motivator elements from the most important to the less, and then put the results into the flipchart. This way, the leader gets the opportunity to identify the most significant motivators that should be used while the working process for the project to succeed. After identifying the significant tools that can motivate people, the leader should try to find the possible ways to apply the gained knowledge.
The most widespread motivational factors are the following, namely, responsibility, support, promotion, achievement, the feeling of progress, interest to work, flexible work arrangements, good relationship, and purpose (Shearer 2012, p. 50). Taking into consideration stated above motivators, it is significant to point out that responsibility can be used as a tool to increase the confidence and feeling of the personal power of the employee.
Support can be important for some team members, in this case, the leader should understand what can be frustrating and what should be done to improve the working conditions or eliminate the obstacles. People commonly lose motivation when they do not see results, progress, or the purpose of the work.
That is, it is significantly important to set realistic and short-term goals. However, it is not enough, as the team members should also understand that they are valued, so the thankful words for the hard work can contribute to the increasing level of the motivation. When people feel that they are involved in an interesting and unique project, it can be beneficial for the future outcome. By eliminating the stressful situations at the workplace, the leader gets a chance to improve the working conditions of the employees.
The distracting and tense atmosphere influences not only the mood of people but also the way they perform tasks. The flexibility of the working process may also contribute to the motivational level; however, in this case, everyone should understand what it means and what consequences it may have.
One of the opportunities is to make the starting and finishing hours flexible. Another approach is to change the working process and let some team members work freelance, although, sometimes it may influence the successful outcome of the project. The leader should pay a lot of attention towards this issue. The positive atmosphere within the team is one of the most significant factors for the team members to feel comfortable.
Team activities are the best tool that can be used to unite people. The employees should have a time before the meeting to exchange thoughts and ideas, or simply communicate. The involvement of the leader in such discussions is significant as the communication about personal information contributes to the trust development.
According to the recent studies, there are different types of the leaders and the techniques that can be implemented into the working process (Sethuraman & Suresh 2014, p. 168). First of all, it should be stated that the authoritative type describes the person who guides the members of the team using certain knowledge and shares his point of view and vision with other people (Saeed et al. 2014, p. 216). Such leaders understand the significance of collaboration.
The next type of the leadership is coercive. It should be stated that the project managers who work with a very young people usually address to this approach, although, some of the teammates can describe this style as a dictator one. However, one should pay close attention towards the implementation of the coercive technique as it is appropriate only while working with people who lack needed skills and knowledge.
In contrast to the coercive is the democratic approach, which is considered to be the one that lacks the guidance, it can be compared to the football game without the coach. One of the most popular styles of the leadership is all for one and one for all, that allows every team member to use personal creativity and to get involved in all the levels of the project organization.
The team leader is the person who draws conclusions from the challenges and mistakes and implements the appropriate techniques of the leadership to improve the work of the team for the project to succeed. The question concerning the best type of the management and leadership style seems to be unanswered as there is no approach that could satisfy the needs of every project.
As the matter of fact, the prolific work of the team depends on the leader, that is, the pacesetter should be inspiring, flexible, set realistic goals, and be open to the new ideas. It should be pointed out that the successful leader understands the importance of changing the approaches with the development of the project as it is significant to correct or modify the style to achieve greater results.
Leadership is believed to be the essential part of every successful project as the pacesetter can be seen as a guiding element towards the prosperous realization of the task. It is significantly important to be able to influence workers and the way they see their work for the accomplishment of the goals that were set in the beginning. The primary role of the leader is to set the direction and to evaluate the efforts that need to be done for the achievement of the objectives (Maley 2012, p. 99).
There are certain characteristics that can be considered as the typical ones for the leader, among them are the following: the leader sees and uses every possibility, he is communicator, coach, learner, listener, coordinator, inspirator, the one who makes the difference not only in the working process but also in the life of the employees. However, it should be highlighted that the stated above description of the leader is not full as the guiding person is much more.
The manager should combine every needed trait of character for the success of the project. The leader is not someone who is born with the all needed characteristics; moreover, one should understand that the leader skills should be developed. The background and the experience can help to gain appropriate knowledge; however, it is not enough for the true leader to arise. It should be pointed out that the learning process should be implemented for the leader skills to improve.
The leadership theory deals with three aspects, namely situation, behavior, and traits (Northouse 2013, p. 19). The deeper involvement into the stated above approaches will provide the deeper understanding of the question. The theory, dealing with the trait description, is focused on an individual and the characteristics that are essential for the leader (Northouse 2013, p. 19).
The traits usually involve the ones that can be learned, improved, and implemented from theory to practice. It should be pointed out that the leaders usually share the following traits, such as loyalty, motivation, integrity, enterprising spirit, confidence, and desire for learning and gaining knowledge (Bull 2010, p. 54).
The enterprising spirit is about the understanding that one should be ambitious for the accomplishment of the goals, seek for development and improvement, and be demanding for the future results. One of the most significant leader traits is loyalty and the ability to admit that some mistakes were made to eliminate them while working for the project’s improvement. The employees usually reflect the traits of the leader, that is, it is important for the manager to obtain as much leader skills and knowledge as possible.
Taking into account the behavioral approach, it should be highlighted that the modern researchers usually determine three categories of the behavioral theory, namely the task performance, group maintenance, and the behavior while the decision-making process (Kerzner 2013, p. 34).
The pivotal objective of the task performance is to communicate with the team, to stress the significance of the positive outcome, and focus on the results, quality, and efforts needed for the accomplishment of the discussed aims. The group maintenance behavior is centered on the importance of the working atmosphere, respectful and trustful relationship with every member of the group.
As the matter of fact, the condition of the workplace and the overall mood in the organization influences not only the working process but also the outcome of every project. The fact that the employees can participate in the decision-making process can contribute to the feelings of the subordinates that they are valued, respected, and their opinion matters.
Such type of the interaction between the leader and the employees is called democratic; whereas when the leader takes the decision on his own and does not consult the workers is believed to be autocratic. It should be pointed out that the ongoing debates concerning the question what style of the leadership is beneficial are still not solved as every approach has drawbacks and strength sides. The essential characteristic of the leader is the ability to adjust skills and knowledge to the different situation.
The leader is essential to the success of the project; however, one of the most significant aspects is a team, and that is, teambuilding approach should be not undervalued. The different types of the team aimed to satisfy various needs of the company.
It should be stated that the functional team consists of people who perform their tasks on the permanent basis and make the company work stable, whereas the project team functions for the certain time that is needed for the goals accomplishment. People from various functional teams are grouped together for the achievement of the specific aims and will be disbanded when the task is performed.
According to Bruce Tuckman, the specialist in the field of the dynamic of the group, every team should go through certain stages of development to be characterized as successful, namely forming, storming, norming, and performing (Johnson 2009, p. 368). While the phase of the forming the group is on the way towards the understanding the goals and objectives of the project, every member of the team works as an independent element.
The primary task of the project manager is to direct the team towards the goal accomplishment. The next stage occurs when the team members exchange their ideas of how the working process should be improved for the goal accomplishment (Tuckman 2010, p. 342). It should be stressed that during this period the team usually faces some kinds of conflicts and misunderstandings (Schulze, Stade, & Netzel 2014, p. 71).
The pivotal objective of the project manager is to unite people and get closer to the achievement of the task. The stage of the norming is featured with the understanding of how to achieve the desired outcome, what approaches should be changed and implemented into the working process (Bonebright 2010, p. 115).
The work of the team is centered on trustful relationships. Managers should provide the workers with the appropriate guidance and contribute to the success of the teamwork. The performing stage occurs when the team is operating as the united organism and shows high results without the supervision.
Every member of the team applies the skills and knowledge to the successful outcome. It is important to understand that the role of the leader during all the stages is significant while the whole group and effectiveness of the work depend on the leader and the traits that he obtains.
Being a good problem solver and decision maker one can succeed in the teambuilding process as it requires abilities, skills, and knowledge to be able to negotiate stressful situations and eliminate conflicts (Ding & Zho 2015, p. 241). Moreover, the positive attitude of the leader towards the working process and every team member will be beneficial not only for the motivational level of the employees but also for the successful performing of the long and short-term goals (Burke & Barron 2014, p. 37).
The teambuilding techniques and approaches are essential for the project manager to implement into the working process as it will be beneficial for the development of the team and will contribute to the trustful, honest, and loyal relationship whiting the group (Coles 2015, p. 76).
Teambuilding is not only about the activities that unite people or evaluation of every participant of the working process; usually, it is about the combination of various techniques, approaches, and tools for the positive outcome. The relationship within the team affects the working process; the team will function best if every member feels comfortable and knows how to operate in the group.
Certain agreements and clarifications should take place to ease communication and contribute to the better involvement into the process. Functional teams have already faced challenges and went through all the stages of the team development process (Daspit et al. 2013, p. 53). The newly formed group is changeable, and the project manager should create the rules and objective that everyone should respect and follow.
The deeper understanding of how the task should be performed is beneficial for the team. Although, the project manager should direct the effort to unite the individuals, one should pay close attention to the conflict solving process. When everyone works independently, there is a possibility that the way the other person views the problem will be contrasting to the other workers, that is, the leader should undertake the needed actions to prevent conflicts and misunderstandings as it affects the working atmosphere.
The ability of the leader to solve the conflict during the early stage will be beneficial for the storming stage of the team development process (Williams 2013, p. 306). It should be pointed out that the personality assessments play an important role while forming a team. The maturing and the development of the team is impossible without the events that involve every member.
The improvement of trust relationship within the group seems to be crucial for the team effectiveness. When people are engaged with each other outside of the working process, it provides a chance to get to know each other from the unknown side that does not deal with the project (Binder 2012, p. 56). Social events can become a turning point on the way for the team maturing and development.
It should be pointed out that the individual or team coaching is an essential element in the project management that deals with the improvement of the communication, collaboration, and negotiation skills (Cobb 2012, p. 175). The successful leader understands the significance of the role of the recognition and rewards in the working process. People will work beyond the limits if they feel respected and see that their work is appreciated and valued.
The motivational level of the employees affects the result of the project in a great way. According to the recent researches, the motivated team is more likely to achieve the goals and struggle less on the way towards the accomplishment (Beersma 2010, p. 1115). The project manager should be aware that there are certain differences in the motivation of the individual employee and the project team.
The deeper involvement into the issue will allow the leader to choose appropriate theories, methods, and techniques to reach every team member (Arroyo 2010, p. 705). With the beginning of the project, most of the workers are motivated to perform the task successfully. The reason for such strong motivation is that people usually view the new project or job in a very optimistic perspective, and that is, eager to work hard and contribute to the overall good of the company (DeShon 2009, p. 47).
The pivotal objective of the leader during this phase is to maintain the motivational level of every team member. One of the best approaches to do that is to keep to the participative leadership style that involves planning and decision making with the team members and celebrating accomplishments. It should be also highlighted that the positive atmosphere is fundamental for the creating of the prolific environment.
In conclusion, it should be stressed that the role of the leader seems to be essential and significant for every team, and should not be undervalued, especially when the projects become more globalized and should be taken under control. It is important to understand that the leadership does not depend on the position, rank, or age, as these factors are not enough for becoming a leader. The leader should obtain the needed skills, knowledge, and characteristics and be able to adjust the gained experience to the practice.
The teamwork and the overall success of the project are highly connected to the professionalism of the leader and the way he uses appropriate knowledge and implements techniques and strategies.
The motivational factors and the understanding of the team members the purpose of the work, feelings of accomplishment and progress contribute to the successful relationship within the team and influence the positive performing of the tasks. That is, the leader should pay close attention to the methods of the skills and work improvement as they influence not only the working process but also lives of the employees.
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