Collective Wisdom from the Experts 167
In this situation, the manager had the cause and effect backward. People don’t
have high team morale because they socialize; they are more willing to social-
ize because they have high morale.
As a consultant, I have tried to think about ways to measure morale. I have
joked about metrics like “the ratio of cars in the parking lot at 5:05 p.m. and
4:55 p.m.,” and the “number of visible Dilbert cartoons per square foot of office
space.” But I have realized morale isn’t something to be measured, morale is
the measurement. We are measuring the team’s attitude. Morale is the measure
of the team’s confidence in its leader, confidence in its teammates, and faith in
its own ability to get things done.
It is your job as the software project manager to create a workplace with high
morale. If team members respect you as their leader, and if they feel they can
talk to you and influence the outcome of events, morale will improve.
High morale results in greater satisfaction among your employees, lower turn-
over, and higher productivity. On top of all that, it’s just nicer to be around
happy people. Don’t you agree?