Cross-company projects involve different communities with different perspectives and sometimes divergent priorities. How to federate these potentially diverging interests around a common project?
Clarify objectives and operating practices
- Defining how to work together is critical to minimize misunderstandings, which are a potential source of tension and inefficiency, e.g. Hold a project kick-off meeting to establish clear game rules.
Share decision making
- People tend to give their best when they feel responsible for the overall result of the projects in which they are involved, e.g. Ask team members to express their views from the start of the project to make decisions collectively.
Build a solid foundation of trust
- Critical to the quality of interpersonal communication, trust takes deliberate efforts to build, e.g. Impose rigorous information dissemination practices to keep people up to date on progress.
Be open to different approaches
- Cross-company projects are particularly beneficial because they take account of different perspectives, e.g. Try to understand the basis for divergent opinions, and encourage your subordinates to do likewise.
Take action
Organize the celebration of a small victory with the team (5 min)
When someone feels the efforts are paying off, it triggers perseverance.
Name a team member – for example a junior one, to be responsible for celebrating progress.
Don’t hesitate organizing a simple event, such as bringing cookies for breakfast or having a drink together, to celebrate intermediary results. E.g. a successful milestone, a well-performed complex delivery… If you speak, don’t forget to thank each of the contributors.
Regularly walk through the office and/or write a personal email to congratulate for even minor achievements. If it’s sincere, it is always pleasing.
Are all project team members fully involved? Take a check (10 min)
A project’s success often depends on the implication of all team members involved.
Look over the list of project team members. In your opinion, do they all really feel engaged and jointly responsible for the project’s success? Do you think each contributes to the best of his/her ability and mission?
Draw out the responsibilities. Is each task correctly allocated to someone? And, more importantly, does each person have a topic for which he/she feels responsible? Knowing that each plays an active part in the endeavor is an essential commitment factor.
Schedule regular information and exchange sessions so that everyone is aware of the project’s progress, even on those topics that are not directly of his or her concern.
Set up visual tracking of the project (15 min)
Being able to see the concrete progress of a project is a mobilizing factor for the entire team.
Select a place where members of the team have frequent occasions to be. E.g.: a dedicated meeting room, a board at the coffee machine, the wall of the project manager, etc.
Display the key performance indicators, the main tasks remaining, the people responsible for these, the delays and the critical milestones, to be seen by all. Make sure you select these indicators in a careful way: too much information would be counter-productive. Choose an attractive display: colors, diagrams, etc.
Update this display board every day, and set up a routine. E.g.: a daily or weekly status review with the team, standing in front of the board for 15 minutes.
Practical Tips
> Rally people behind your project
> A few pitfalls to avoid to prevent a project going off the rails
Find out more
> Leading cross-functional teams
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