Managing Virtual Project Teams

PMSU 1
Managing Distributed (Virtual)
Project Teams
Shawn Grubb (PMP)
September 2009
Project Management Symposium

2
Objective
• Map stages of team development & Trust
• How to develop trust in VT during stages
• Share a few stories I picked up
• My Ask: help develop a skill…

Born! Raised!
SERPAT Company Benchmark!
Manati Puerto Rico 9.3 of 10
Move to France
Flowed to Longjumeau FR to
help decommission the site
San Jose CA Fall River Mills CA Redding & Chico CA Chico CA
P&G: Cincinnati (Gov. Hill) Germany: Schwalbach (EBT + Local to Local) Germany: Weiterstadt
France: Longjumeau + Bondoufle US: Mason Business Center US: Central Building
Shawn Grubb
2000 2001 2004
2005 2007 2009
1995
Operations Mgmt.
Mgmt Info Systems.
ERP Systems Mgmt.
Graduate: SAP
University Alliance
Recognition
Shares!
Founder & Owner: Top Notch Entertainment ( 6 employees, $100M NOS) SOLD!
Recognition
Shares!
Core Logistics SAP:
Dreieich Germany
Core Logistics
SAP: Blois FR
Morocco SAP
Implementation
Project Manager
Italy Platform II
Core Logistics SAP:
Bournemouth UK
Core Logistics
Italy Plants & DCs
Guest Speaker:
“Managing a G-BPX team”
PM: Vita L&A
Barcelona ES
PM: Patheon CM
Longjumeau France
Career #3: Pharma Product Supply
Manage a Global Team of 12 SAP BEs
Married
Hasnaa!
Career #4:
Move to GBS BPM
IT Portfolio Manager
Core Financials SAP:
NA Accounts Payable
KARZK9FM
KPPL
KALF
KLRS
Career #1: Radio Music & Media
Career #2: SAP IT
GBS CLFS – Move to OH
Youngest of 4:
-F: Mechanic
-M: Homemaker
Values: Character – Integrity & Courage, Family & Faith
Passions: Learning – Leading – Coaching – Solving – Strategizing
Strengths Finder: Strategic – Futuristic – Command – Competition – Self-Assurance
1990
Expanded team of 12 to include Pharma & Personal
Healthcare Portfolio, PMO and SERPAT COE.
BandIII
BandII

7
Agenda
• Who am I and why should you listen
• Planning the Perfect Virtual Project
• The Tuckman Model of development
• Forming – Storming – Norming - Performing
1. Characteristics of the stage
2. What leaders should do in the stage
3. What's trust got to do with it
4. Practical steps to build trust in that stage
• Q&A

9
Planning
• Walk before you run
– Experience working on a virtual team?
• Select the Project Manager
– Be on a successful virtual project team
– Lead a successful project at home
– A poor PM in a Physical environment is
going to be worse in a Virtual one

10
Planning
• Select the right members – The team
– Go deeper than the role and function
– Have they worked on a virtual project?
• “how can she possibly know what we do here?”
– Interpersonal skills
– Ambiguity and stress
– Arrange for needed Training:
– Sharepoint, IM, Livemeeting, Outlook scheduling
– English for Native English speakers

11
Stages of team: Tuckman Model
• Bruce Tuckman, Psychologist
• Naval Medical Research Institute

13
Stages: Forming(pretending to get along with others)
• Characteristics:
– Most uncertain and ambiguous time
– The forming of the team takes place
– Independent - motivated - uninformed
– Usually on their best behavior
– Seek to understand the work

14
• What to do:
– Need to be directive during this phase
• Set some ground rules early
– Rules lead to reduction in uncertainty
• increase trust (there is something tangible)
• Actions:
– Be explicit about your thoughts
– Start meetings on time
– Observe deadlines
– Lay out your expectations
• RM: how to work with me .doc

15
Tangent: Trust
• Trust: Factor for overcoming barriers
– Necessary for
• Effective communication
• Obtaining Goals
• Developing higher performing team
• Quickly resolving issues
– Need for trust in Global teams are magnified
• It’s easy to blame someone you may never see
• Mis-understandings are too common
• Communication has to be more deliberate

16
Tangent: Trust
• How does trust fit into the virtual team?
• Normally trust is high to start
– Hard to maintain in the virtual world
• Hard for people to “see” themselves as a team
– PM sitting in CA, but leading ES project
• Interactions often are purely business
– After call banter, hallway talk,
• Lack of rich communication:
– Verbal vs. verbal + physical communication
– Tone, volume pitch and rhythm?
– Lots of room for noise
– Lack of understanding = trust?

17
• How trust fits in: Swift Trust
– Two sources of trust
• Personal endorsements
– Someone I trust tells me I should trust you
– Something I heard about you tells me I should trust you
• Role based information
– I understand your position, I can make assumptions
– I understand your role, I think I know what you will do

18
• How to build Swift trust
– Personal endorsements
• Meet each member in advance – take notes
• Follow each introduction with an endorsement
– what have they done that was significant?
– Where have they worked, how long in the role, level of
expertise
– In the absence of personal endorsements:
• Standard P&G intro: Name, location, function,

19
• Trust based on role based assumptions
– What are they here to do?
– What level are they, function?
– Stereotypes: country, voice, role in meeting
• Bonus: Virtual Teambuilding exercise
– At the second meeting, have each person
introduce another person
– Builds trust, encourages connections, and
starts to “gel” the team

VT:Predictability
Add text here
• VT: Sense of Order & Dependability
• Why: Virtual teams need structure regularity
• How: team meetings
– Establish team meetings & keep them!
– Never cancel a standing meetings
– Rotating meeting owners avoid OOO
– Why not: You will be bombarded with “are we
having a meeting on today?” messages

22
• Characteristics
– Competition of ideas
– What is the work, what are the issues
– How do we work: tools, meetings, processes
– Open up & confront ideas and perspectives.
• Quick storm:
– strong expertise, tolerance for ambiguity, objectives
• Long Storm:
– Too many experts / opinions, no clear “A”, concensus
– Empirical research:
• more expertise / longer stage
Stages: Storming (Real u+ down to business + tempers)

23
• Watch out: Maturity needed here
– People uncomfortable with Ambiguity
• Tend to focus on minutiae to evade real issues
• How will xxx work!
• Easily divert discussions & challenge patience
– TvN:
• Details not all worked out; get ideas and push on
• Courage; take some personal risks “I will own”

24
• What leaders should do
– Contentious, unpleasant and painful
• Cultural conflicts, misinterpretations, damage
– Recognize how people respond to conflict
• Strong opinions, disengage, only one solution
– Tolerance of ideas and opinions is required
– Create a safe environment;
– Encourage exchange of ideas
– Reward new and different ideas
– Encourage all participants
– Reward & Encourage inter-team feedback

25
• Watch outs:
– Tolerance & patience or else
• Destructive, de-motivating, damaging
– PM needs to have an open door policy
– Recognize the need for a decision
– Bring to a close with concrete decisions
• Agree not to revisit decisions
– Use the issues list:
• Lower priority items still needs to be agreed
• What needs worked out

26
• How trust fits in: Cognitive assessments
– Competency; ability to deliver the project
• how do the members participate in the debates
• Do they bring new ideas / fresh perspectives
• Are they subject matter experts?
– Integrity:
• Do they work beyond their own view?
• Do they encourage others to give their view
• Are they transparent / cogent?
• Do they work to move forward?

27
• How to build trust
– Give opportunities to showcase strengths
– Encourage each other to recognize each
other’s ideas
– Pull in the sideliner; doing that encourages
everyone
– Watch for positive and negative
communication patterns & provide feedback

28
• Storming is necessary but dangerous
– If done well:
• Team will therefore resolve their differences
• Be able to work with each other comfortably
• Will not feel they are being judged
• Will be comfortable sharing opinions and views

VT:PhoneConferences
Add text here
• VT: effective use of phone conference
– Expect multi-taskers
– Don’t surprise people
• Wallace what do you think of that?
– Signal a need for people to listen back in
• “Javier, what do you think about blah blah blah”
• Sam and Soufiane, you need to hear this one
• Mui, this one might touch you

31
• Characteristics:
– Team adjust behavior to each other
– Know each other better, views change
– Work habits seem more natural / fluid.
– Utilize rules, values, methods, tools, taboos
– Motivation increases
• Team gets more acquainted with the project
Stages: Norming (comfortable + trust + productivity)

VT:EnglishforEnglishSpeakers
Add text here
• VT: English for English speakers
– Slang, sports, television, music
– Broken phone
– J.B. Document
Bad Good
I’m bushed! I’m very tired!
I don’t have a clue. I don’t know.
This project is going to cost
an arm and a leg.
This project is going to be
very expensive.
What are you up to
tomorrow?
What are you doing
tomorrow?

33
– Be the leader, but take a careful step back
– Watch outs:
• Threatened by responsibility, revert to storming
• Norming becomes too strong:
– Lose their creativity
– stifle healthy dissent
– exhibit groupthink

34
• How trust fits in: Cognitive assessments
– Competency; ability to deliver the project
• Perspective of competence and reliability
• Expertise is accepted, Trust in decisions made
• Trust in the process, people start using the tools
– Integrity:
• Trust to “do the right thing” becomes stronger
• May not agree on the how, but the what is clear

35
– Model trust in peoples integrity
• I trust you will make the best decision
– Stefano, I am going to leave this one to you to work out
– Kim, you made a good decision, thanks
• Once decisions are made, TRUST THEM
(you type “A” people you… )

36
– Continue to encourage social relationships
• Model: get to know people (according to culture)
– Think of your current core teams
– Do they have kids? How many do they have?
• People get to know one another personally
– Regional or national events (news clipper for country)
– I saw there was a big storm in your area, was it bad?
• Watch outs:
– Sensitive to political / religious situations
– Family situations “can I ask about….”
– Admit, you are learning…
• Emotional bonds start to build

37
• Global Godfathers

38
• Benevolence (affective trust)
– Personal experiences vs. cognitive trust.
– Confidence in a partner based on:
• Feelings generated by the level of care
• Amount of concern the partner demonstrates
• Reliance on a partner based on emotions
– It is characterized by:
• feelings of security
• perceived strength of the relationship.
• Venture beyond available knowledge?

VT:ExtremeFB
Add text here
• VT: Seek Extreme Feedback
– Need the pulse of the virtual team
– Leadership trust by Extreme Feedback
• “Leadership opinions are often very
strong – If the own opinion or pov is
incongruent it is hard / impossible to
convince the leader”

40
Stages: Performing (team + goal + efficient + cooperative)

41
• Characteristics: High performing teams
– Team
• Function as a seamless unit: smooth & effective
• No inappropriate conflict, little supervision
• Team members have become interdependent.
– Members:
• Motivated, knowledgeable, & able to decide
• Competent, autonomous, and confident
• Dissent: expected, allowed, and channeled
– Not all teams reach this stage

42
– Celebrate success
• Virtually this is done via power of you awards
• Awards page complete with photos and awards
• Hand written letters delivered by post-mail
– Make progress transparent
• Publish the GANTT chart
• Publicly congratulate milestones
• Encourage others to congratulate (reward)
– Release members from local tasks

43
• How trust fits in
– Integrity gives way to benevolence:
• Relationships are built, a sense of care develops
• We have a relationship, you will help me
• Go on holiday, I will finish for you over the weekend
– What if you don’t have benevolence?
• Transactional Relationships (that’s not my job)
• Examine your relationships with your team
• Provide a foundation for understanding

VT:Whydotheydowhattheydo?
Add text here
• VT: Understand why they do that?
– Mediterranean example live with SAP
• Don’t follow job aids, always late
– S. Plate: why do they do what they do?
• No process or the process does not work.
– French example in Longjumeau
• Taking forever to get to resolution
• Descartes – the process, not the resolution

45
• Forming
– Swift Trust: Introduce people, virtual intro exercise
• Storming
– Ability: Showcase talent, encourage peer feedback,
• Norming
– Integrity: “I trust you”, model personal connections
• Performing
– Is “Benevolence” in your culture?
Summary: Trust on Virtual Teams

46
Objective
• Map stages of team development & Trust
• How to develop trust in VT during stages
• Share a few stories I picked up
• My Ask: help develop a skill…

Sources:
• “Creating & sustaining trust in Virtual teams” Penelope Sue Greenberg, Ralph H.
Greenberg, Yvonne Lederer Antonucci. Kelly School of Business 2007
• “Communicating in Virtual Project Teams” Harvard Management Communication
Letter, 2000
• “The Art of Managing Virtual Teams: Eight Lessons” Charles Wardell, Harvard
Management Update, 1998
• “How will you make your team a team?” Paul Michelman, Harvard Business School
Publishing 2004
• “Trust Makes A Team Go ‘Round” Judith A Ross, Business School Publishing, 2006
• “Long-Distance Relationship Troubles” Michael O’Brien, HRExecutive.com, 2009
• “Frontline Leadership” Lt. Colonel Diane Ryan, Harvard Business Review Voices, 2009
• “How the Right Measures Help Teams Excel” Christopher Meyer, Harvard Business
Review, 1994
• “Managing Multicultural Teams” Jeanne Brett, Kristen Behfar, & Mary C. Kern, Harvard
Business Review, 2006
• “Why Some Teams Succeed (and So Many Don’t)” Harvard Management Update,
2008
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