The Frontiers of Project Management Research

The findings briefly described below are arranged around seven questions that formed the basic purpose of the study. For each of the findings described there is more supporting evidence from the study than is included in this summary.

Question 1. How do project leaders and members understand team development?

Findings: Team development and project performance are often so closely associated and not conceptualized as separate processes that project managers and members often do not identify actions that focus on team development.

Discussion: Several interview questions produced responses that gave clear indications of how project leaders and members conceptualize and understand team development. Team development is not conceptualized as a process that starts on one level and proceeds to a higher level. Team development for leaders and members largely means putting groups of people to work on some common task. Interviewees demonstrated little or no awareness of the qualitative meaning of team development. They did not, for instance, describe any actions taken to strengthen the characteristics that they associated with the best or superior project teams, e.g., interdependence, cohesion, or commitment.

Question 2. In what way, if any, is team development related to project performance?

Findings: Measured perceptions of team development variables predict measured perceptions of project performance.

Discussion: The PTDS and the later modification, the NPTDS, have two sections. The first section (items 1–25, PTDS, or items 1–50, NPTDS) measures perceptions of team development. The second section (items 26–29, PTDS, or items 51–60, NPTDS) measures perceptions of project performance. Three statistics were used to compare responses to the team development items with responses to the performance items: regression analysis, step-wise regression analysis, and discriminant analysis. All three statistics produced strong indications that, if we know the way team members perceive team development, we can predict the way they will perceive project performance, i.e., the more positive they are about one, the more positive they will be about the other; the more negative they are about the one the more negative they will be about the other. For example, if we know how a person responds to a team development item like, "In my project we make sure that no member fails", we can predict better than 74 percent of the time how that person will respond to a performance item like, "In my project we will meet all technical requirements within our budget baseline."

Question 3. How do the perceptions of project members and leaders about a project's performance compare to the perceptions of key project stakeholders?

Findings: The assessment of project performance by customers and external evaluators are positively correlated with the perceptions of the project team.

Discussion: In the pilot study, project members were asked to rate the performance of their projects using a fever chart. Four variables were included on these charts: technical requirements, cost, schedule, and customer satisfaction. Interviewees were requested to rate each variable as follows:

• Green means the project is in good shape.

• Yellow means that you have concerns, but that these will be resolved within budget/schedule baseline.

• Red means there are concerns, and you are not sure that these will be resolved within budget/schedule baseline.

Numerical values of three for green, two for yellow, and one for red were assigned to responses and responses were compared by a two-way analysis of variance. Using a 0.05 level of significance, no differences were found to exist between the way project members, project managers, and project stakeholders and external evaluators perceived project performance. The data indicates that we can obtain reliable information about how well a project is doing by asking its members. Their candid assessments appear to be as objective as those of project stakeholders, e.g., principle investigators and external evaluators.

Question 4. What is the role of project managers in team development?

Findings: There is almost total agreement among the project members and leaders interviewed that the role of the project manager (and similarly placed leaders) determines how well projects develop as teams. In addition, there is a direct relationship between the number of team development actions that interviewees associated with their project leaders, and the average rating given to the items on the pilot phase PTDS that measured team development.

Discussion: Interviewees were asked the following question that yielded information about the specific team development actions undertaken by project leaders: "What are the most important things that the project manager has done to help your project become a team?" In addition, the mean response for items 1–25 in the PTDS was computed for each of the projects in the pilot study. The average number of team development actions mentioned by project members that were taken by their project manager were computed for each project and these means were placed in rank order. A Spearman Rank Order Correlation was computed. At the confidence level of 0.05 we can affirm that the number of project team development actions taken by project leaders correlates well with how project members perceive the development of their project teams.

Question 5. What are the characteristics of the best or superior project teams?

Findings: There is general agreement across projects about the characteristics that are associated with superior project teams.

Discussion: Protocols were developed for content analysis of the interviews from the combined studies. A working list of team characteristics was developed. All statements were next placed on cards and sent to two independent experts on project management and team development. These researchers were tasked to place the cards in logical categories. The primary researchers resolved the few differences that resulted from the sorts. The key characteristics of the best or superior project teams are:

• Team Focus—Members see beyond their individual wants to what the project needs. Problems are worked with a clear understanding of the project's requirements. Members stay clear about the difference between "nice to have" and "must have" and focus on what constitutes project success.

• Communication—Everyone, from top to bottom is committed to sharing information that may be preliminary, but is always honest and open.

• Empowerment—Members can influence everything that goes on in a project. Influence is balanced with competence. Empowered team members are members who influence through competence and who have the freedom to influence through competence. Continuous learning is stressed.

• Competence—Members have the knowledge and skill to perform technical tasks; the willingness or motivation to perform; and the ability to fit their own competency into the larger needs of the project.

• Interdependence—Members make full use of each other's competencies, understand how what they do affects the work of others, are fully confident that other members will do what they say they will do, and believe the information given by other members.

• Cohesion—Members exhibit strong team identity. Members typically enjoy each other's company and socialize. They exhibit intense loyalty to the project and to each other. There is a strong sense of inclusion and there are no second-class citizens.

• Commitment—Problems are worked until they are solved. People refuse to fail. They put the project first and make personal sacrifices to ensure the success of each project task.

• Diversity—Teams are characterized by diversity of gender, culture, and age. Members represent a broad range of experience and technical competence. Differences are accepted and made powerful positive assets.

• Structure—Individuals and teams know the boundaries of their jobs and how jobs are connected. They know the process for making changes that affect schedules, requirements, and interfaces. Their team focus, however, keeps them from becoming rigid. Responsibilities are fixed, but the work of the project is everyone's work. People have complete freedom in contacting any person or team within the project when they need help. The only important distinctions have to do with competence rather than position.

• Recognition—The project assumes responsibility to recognize its own success and the contributions of individuals and teams within the project. A portion of most meeting time is used to draw attention to the achievements and contributions of members. Best project teams celebrate with project outings and social events.

Question 6. What are the key team development functions that project managers (and other leaders) typically perform?

Findings: There is general agreement across projects about the key specific functions performed by project leaders in developing the project into a superior team.

Discussion: The same process described above in question 5 was followed in identifying the key team development functions that project managers (and other leaders) perform. The most valued team development functions performed by project managers and leaders are:

• Provides Resources—Obtains the personnel with the skills and knowledge needed to accomplish the project goals. Secures a budget and schedule adequate for the project objectives.

• Shields—Protects project members from outside distractions that are not focused on the accomplishment of the projects primary goals.

• Models Team Work—Through personal behavior the leader models use of feedback from team members on personal team performance. Stimulates shared learning. Demonstrates openness and trust.

• Builds Cohesion—Includes everyone in the project as equal members of the team. Supports and encourages efforts of members. Consistently shows respect in interactions with members. Demonstrates concern for team members—on and off the job. Encourages team social activities.

• Builds Commitment—Ensures clarity regarding norms, tasks, responsibilities, and relationships. Involves members in setting performance expectations and schedules. Stimulates developing new competencies. Rewards and celebrates individual and team successes.

• Coaches—Practices high level of interpersonal competency. Responds to problems. Plays the role of a teacher, coach, and mentor. Challenges members to higher and higher levels of performance.

• Plans Team Development—Develops expectations for team development. Allocates time and resources for planning team development.

• Initiates Team Development—Communicates team development expectations/vision for the project. Involves the team in developing team development, performance requirements, and strategies.

• Integrates Project Team Development and Project Performance—Involves the team in all key project tasks. Supports key team development practices like making decision by consensus. Includes team development as variable in project reviews.

• Illustrates with Concrete Examples—Communicates key concepts and strategies through the use of stories that illustrate premises. Can effectively lead through stories that reinforce project management guidelines and demonstrate personal experience and tacit knowledge.