Showing posts with label leadership. Show all posts
Showing posts with label leadership. Show all posts

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Critical Professional Abilities: Managing Projects

Every field requires that you have skills of controlling projects properly and proficiently. It is really not a business specific issue, but rather a work mentality. There are plenty of benefits to being a great project manager. Excellent project management knowledge are seen as the trick to achieve goals proficiently. Project management education is a vital course to be taken by every hopeful project manager in addition to sound Information technology classes (to get things done fast and presentably). Making a project a success is mostly about following a number of essential principles, a few of which include things like:

Sticking with the handful of pointers discussed below should allow somebody to develop into a prosperous project manager:

  1. Organizing team workload is a capacity you should implement in a working environment. Organizing capacity is not simply mental accomplishment of work schedule, it should be reflected in the practical application of the work plan i.e. in the preparation of work schedule in paper as well as in practical. A work charter prepared and followed in the right order is sure to land you as a renowned organizer in the business.
  2. One needs to group the project into easily workable parts and give proper attention to each division of work so that it is completed perfectly. This way, an entire project can be completed successfully in time to produce desired results.
  3. Knowledge of and comfort with a variety of hardware and software is generally more effective and preferred. Work performance, time management and efficiency are heavily determined by the skilled use of computers, the web and digital formats.
  4. Leadership is not a skill you are born with. With the fast evolving management styles, it is a requirement nowadays that managers should take regular training to update and enhance their skills. Good management includes hard work and up-to-date training not just recruiting those who know what you need them to.
  5. One should never feel shy of asking for help at the time of need. No one becomes inferior when he is unable to handle a specific task, but can accomplish everything by seeking help from other experienced people. One can politely ask for advice from his superiors to complete the projects successfully.

Preparedness of mind and proper planning are important factors, apart from the rules of thumb elucidated above. The final result of any project carried out by an individual is always decided by the planning that he followed - which is the most important aspect of project management. Everything will be in a confused state if planning is not done properly as there won't be a clear way to understand things.

For younger individuals, it is imperative to go for training to manage projects, as they do not bear any experience in what they are supposed to do. However, working constantly and over a period of time infuses that experience which always proves helpful in future tasks and projects. Make sure to get training in usage of computers and IT which will speed up the work being done.

Friday, September 23, 2011

Abraham Maslow's Workforce Motivation Wizardry

Abraham MaslowMaslow's Hierarchy of Needs was written as he tried to convey the basics of human concern and desire. He based his research on the more intellectual people of his era. Abraham Maslow's Needs Hierarchy has five different tiers. Included in these five tiers are Physiological, Safety, Love and Belonging, Esteem, and Self Actualization. In his theory, Maslow says that lower tiers must be reached before one can attend to the higher levels. It's important to know where your team sits as a whole, as well as knowing the placement of each person in the group.

The lowest level is a human's physiological concerns. In order to survive, we must feed ourselves, quench our thirst, breath, use the bathroom, and procreate. If we did not do these things, then we could not survive. A leader must make sure that his employee's basic concerns and comforts are met in order for them to reach their full potential. For example, if an employee is freezing cold in the work place, then she will not work as quickly and efficiently as if she were in a comfortable environment.

Safety and security occupy the second tier of needs that humans have to fulfill in Maslow's Needs Hierarchy. For adults, safety is achieved by having employment and monetary security. At work, employers should create a secure environment for the workers. Employees who fear layoffs or termination will not invest as much care or effort as they could. Without job security, employees might do sub-par work. Even worse, insecure employees might resort to causing harm to the company as a form of revenge.

The third step covers a person's desire to belong and feel loved. By helping employees establish friendships with one another, an employer can help create an environment in which employees enjoy working. Scheduling social events or pairing compatible individuals on tasks are ways an employer can provide bonding opportunities.

The fourth level involves a person's esteem. Humans have the desire to feel as though they are part of a group. In group situations, we have the ability to feel emotions of achievement and confidence. We start to gain the respect of others which in return boosts our self esteem. An employer can create activities outside of work to help engage his employees. Whether it is a team sport or relay picnic event, co-workers can bond over the activities, have a great time, and boost their confidence in themselves.

Self-actualization is the last level of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. This level includes our ability to solve problems, reach moral decisions, and use our creativity. This tier cannot be reached until all of the previously summarized levels have been accomplished. Once we have achieved self-actualization, we become fully mature adults.