Question 1

How effective has Daming been as a project manager? Explain.

Daming has been effective as a project manager given the actions that he has been taking along the way. Despite there being glitches with the final product at different phases, Daming was doing a good job managing the project team. Among the instances that show that Daming was effective in his capacity was when he instituted a team-building retreat upon realizing the tension that was there among employees. Given that these employees worked in different capacities, there are those that thought others were being favored at their expense. Team building activities help to enhance socializing, networking and employees knowing each other better. It is an easy way of making friends with other people at the workplace and helps to increase productivity in the workplace. Team building also helps to build trust. Trust is important for the workplace environment more so when a team is expected to work together on a daily basis to achieve a common objective (Binder 67). There is also enhancement of effective communication through teambuilding. Communication prospects are improved due to the activities conducted while on the team building. There is also enhancement of increased collaboration, easing of conflicts, and fostering creativity among other things.

Daming also recognizes the employees when they have done a good job by parting them on the back. This is something that would easily work as a morale booster to the employees. The knowledge that one is doing what is expected of them creates the urge to do even better for the recognition. This works even best with those employees that are competitive in nature. Recognition from the project manager goes a long way into improving their spirits.

The aspect of reviewing what has been accomplished at a given time before moving forward also shows Daming’s competence in management. It is through these reviews that it becomes possible to identify things that are working and those that are not working. Necessary changes can be made in the process to help achieve the desired objective. Giving feedback to employees also helps them to identify areas where they can make adjustments for the better functioning of the entire team(Binder 81). This is because the feedback shows areas of weaknesses that can be worked upon. When the feedback is positive, it also works as a morale booster to the employees to continue working hard. It also comes as some form of appreciation since employees feel like members of the team due to recognition.

Question 2

What problem(s) does Daming face?

Among the problems that Daming is facing is that of uniting the team to work in partnership throughout the project cycles. It is evident that there is tension between the software and hardware engineers. Most of these tension has culminated from the remuneration aspects involved and the different ways of life that these employees lead. This is an issue that cannot be easily solved since it is not caused by the current issues, but it is something that has been there for some time. Daming needs to find a working formula between these categories of employees in light of the prevailing issues causing these conflicts.

Another problem that Daming is facing is that of keeping the employees motivated all through. This project is something that has not been put into practice before. What exists is only a theory that this team is required to put into practice. Going with this idea, it means that there is no blueprint that can be used along the way for verification purposes. As a result, there are likely to be failures along the way as it has been evidenced by the case. When failure beacons employees tend to get frustrated as they are falling behind schedules; something which has an impact on the bonuses that are likely to earn. Blame games usually arise, and the bond that had been established starts to crumble. Moving forward as a team now becomes even less feasible.

Deciding on what to do next in case the project fails at the last phase is another problem. This is a phase when everything has now been put in place, and expectations are high for every member involved with the project. There is always optimism that since the other phases have worked well, the final phase will be okay. In case of failure, Daming has a problem of making a decision for the next move. This problem comes because there is already a deadline for this project, which does not appear feasible now. The employees are also demoralized as they efforts now feel futile.

Question 3

How would you go about solving them? Why?

When it comes to uniting the team amid the conflicting attitudes, I will use the same approach that Daming used. Using of team building is an effective approach for easing conflict among team members. This is because it makes it possible for the members to see each other differently. Some people will despise others since they do not know the other side of them apart from what they perceive from the workplace. Some people can be having a lot in common, but have never had the chance of noting this. These realizations make it possible to work in partnership for future projects.

When it comes to keeping employees motivated, it is a tricky affair since it is apparent that the employees are motivated by the bonuses involved in the completion of the project. As a result, I would motivate these employees by showing them how feasible it is to complete the project before the set period. This would come with breaking down varied tasks that should be done within specific periods. When the employees see that there is a probability of completing the project before the set time, they will feel motivated since their objective of realizing the relevant bonuses remains alive.

Making the decision on what to do next after the failure in the last phase will be based on the assessment of whether the project’s deliverables are still feasible. In case the answer is yes, I will urge the team to continue with relevant adjustments to the last phase despite lagging behind on the set deadline. I will encourage the team that despite the prospects of attaining bonuses not being feasible, that they will be recognized for successfully completing a project that has not been actualized before. This is something that is likely to motivate an engineer due to the high self-esteem involved.

Work Cited

Binder, Jean. Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration And Management Across Borders. CRC Press, 2016,.

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