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Tuesday, March 11, 2008 

Topic: Motivating Teams

Reference: Bryant. Rob. “12 Tips for a More Motivated Team and Better Results”. iSixSigma. http://www.isixsigma.com/library/content/c080310a.asp.

March 10, 2008.

Around this time of year everyone struggles with motivation and project charter’s start to fall off of schedule. It always appeared to me that motivation had to be intrinsic to the team members, the projects, and the individuals involved. Leadership can help keep the focus on the issues at hand, but focus is not the same as motivation. In fact focus needs to appear more where motivation is lacking, otherwise nothing gets done. 

Tuesday, March 11, 2008 

Topic: Motivating Teams

Reference: Bryant. Rob. “12 Tips for a More Motivated Team and Better Results”. iSixSigma. http://www.isixsigma.com/library/content/c080310a.asp.

March 10, 2008.

Around this time of year everyone struggles with motivation and project charter’s start to fall off of schedule. It always appeared to me that motivation had to be intrinsic to the team members, the projects, and the individuals involved. Leadership can help keep the focus on the issues at hand, but focus is not the same as motivation. In fact focus needs to appear more where motivation is lacking, otherwise nothing gets done.  Certainly, the spirit of competition can help get people back on track. Awards can also help to motivate contributions if they are identified in advance. However, once the weather begins to break mindshare begins to dwindle. I am always looking for counter cyclical approaches to keep things on track. In the referenced article the commentator sets out some critical steps for developing and maintaining motivation in teams. “Lean Six Sigma, a process-driven program to reduce defects, relies heavily on a decidedly process free emotion: passion. A motivated, driven team can make the difference between success and failure.” Consequently, the commentator sees all projects, project elements, and outcomes working better if sufficient passion and motivation exists. To encourage the necessary passion he sets out 12 direct points:

(1)  A passionate executive sponsor (2) Assemble a passionate team (3) Align the project charter with strategic initiatives (4) Set realistic goals (5) Apply lean first (6) Implement a phased approach (7) Instigate awards (8) Maintain motivated and accountable leaders (9) Create an amnesty program (10) Introduce team members properly (11) Schedule follow-up meetings (12) Share positive results

I do not take great exception to this list, but the most obvious things are usually the most difficult to find.  For instance it is difficult to get passionate leadership on projects that lack sizzle or appear routine. The projects may need to be done (e.g. maintenance) but it is difficult to keep enthusiasm high about the work. Also, because of conflicting schedules it may be difficult to keep the same leadership and keep it motivated. What if the goals have to be relatively unrealistic to resolve the problem or to deliver a workable result? Accountability can be maintained without motivation, but not the joy or the team spirit.  I have also seen the inclination to speak up taken out of context. As a result, I favor frank discussions at project meetings with closure as soon as possible. To me #12 is the most important; sharing positive results helps the atmospherics, encourages success, and contributes to sustaining momentum. I use it whenever possible. If there are others that are reliable for this effort, please share them with the CXOThoughts community.