Collective Wisdom from the Experts 187
It helps for project managers to understand group dynamics and different
leadership styles. Different projects and various teams will require differ-
ent levels of control. Well-formed, high-performing groups will often resent
excess control unless they can see how it helps them.
The control will often be seen as “meddling” and though the groups may ver-
bally agree, their actions after leaving the meeting may not fully reflect what
you intended. However, with a newly formed team, more control may provide
the group with direction and establish clearer objectives for the project.
Great project managers exert just the right level of control, respecting what
skills, experiences, and connections team members bring to the project at
hand. They recognize the signs when more control may help move the group
toward its ultimate goal, as well as recognizing the signs when the same con-
trol may be slowing the group down.
Nowhere is this more crucial than when a non-IT project manager is asked
to lead a software development project. The team, often resentful of outside
interference in its workspace, may devalue the skill set the project manager
brings to the project.
But the organizational skills, the ability of the project manager to keep the
project in line with company goals, and the successful care of communication
lines between upper management and the customer can protect the IT team
and leave its members free to work.