INFORMING TEAM CANDIDATES

As the team leader, you are responsible not only for selecting the “right” members for your team but also for informing potential team members what is expected of them once they join the team. Don’t confuse this step with defining roles and responsibilities for confirmed team members; that comes later in the project launch and team-formation process.

This step is a precursor to defining team member roles and responsibilities. It enables you as the team leader to inform team candidates what you expect of all team members once they join the team and lets you view their reaction before you ask them to join the team. For example, candidates for the Blue Angels are made aware that they will be away from home a lot before they volunteer for duty with the team, and the pilots are selected in part on the basis of their ability to cope with not only family separation but also a strenuous practice and show schedule.

Many project teams experience a turnover in team membership throughout the life of the project. This happens for a variety of reasons, including voluntary resignations, reductions in workforce, and changes that require additional or different resources to support new needs. Regardless of why team changes occur, be prepared. A change in team membership will affect the group, regardless of how high-performing the team might be.

When selecting new members to join an existing team, take care to ensure that new members will fit with existing team members. This is particularly important with project teams in full implementation mode; new team members must quickly adapt to existing team practices and also be able to contribute to the team in a seamless manner.

As team leader, you will have little time to fully assess how a new team member will fit into the existing team culture. When you interview the new candidate, include one or two other team members in the screening process. If possible, invite the potential new team member to meet with the existing team as a whole, so everyone can get a feel for one another. The best approach is through a face-to-face session; virtual teams will need to adjust their screening and assessment processes accordingly.

Forming a project team should be a deliberate act in which candidates are considered in terms of the skills and experience they offer and their motivation to participate and to contribute to the team as a whole. Ideally, team members should be equally committed to the project goal and to the health of the team, have a clear sense of roles and responsibilities, and be accountable for getting things done as and when needed.

Once you have selected your team members, you must begin to solidify the team. One way to do this is to clarify team goals. We’ll explore ways to collectively clarify team goals in the next chapter.