@feb21-cohort I’m sorry for the delay with my follow-up after this week’s session. Things may have been a bit rushed towards the end of our session, so my apologies for that. I’ll be sure to mind the pace during our session next week! In advance of that, I may suggest you all do some thinking to identify any immediate gaps in terms of team members, skills, expertise that you think is missing on your team. As always, if you have any questions or want to bounce ideas, I’m available to help!
Chat Transcript and Resources
I’ve saved our chat transcript, and rounded up the resources shared in the list to follow. I’ve also added a few more links as I’d promised during the session:
Session Recap
Teams are going to be inevitable, as you’re going to end up working with someone on your project eventually, so we recommend you start thinking about how to cultivate and manage a good team (see a summary of what makes a good team in our slides). Teams can come in all shapes and sizes, and should be composed of people with diverse perspectives, roles, and skill sets (look at who all can be involved in the slides). Teams are beneficial for more than just sharing the workload (see some other reasons in our slides). When you’re setting your team up, keep in mind that roles can be mixed and matched, and that the combination of an administrative team (that focuses on day to day tasks) and an advisory team or steering committee (that guides high level process) can prove useful. As a project manager, you want to manage and encourage your team without taking advantage of the passion that volunteers have. Take a look at the strategies we suggest, and remember that a good team needs more than just a taskmaster. Everyone’s well-being is just as important as the project itself and ultimately, having a team that’s happy also makes the process a whole lot more enjoyable. If complex situations arise with team members, refer to documentation you’ve prepared, and be understanding and open to conversation before you make any decisions. Things may occasionally deviate from the plan, but remember that we’re all human. In that spirit, remember to look after yourself too — take breaks as you would on any other project and set the example for how you’d like other team members to participate and contribute.
