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The Power Of Team Belonging
The sense of belonging to a team increases an individual’s commitment to working towards a common goal in synergy with others.
Social belonging was recognized by Abraham Maslow as a critical human need, following physiological and safety needs in his hierarchy. This need and the need for esteem or recognition combine in project teams to become essential to optimizing team performance.
Belonging to a team takes different forms. Sometimes it means being in the center, part of decision-making and implementation. Sometimes it is on the periphery as a doer instead of the decision maker or as part of a broader team, like a department or organization, just looking on as others do their thing. In most situations, people are members of multiple teams simultaneously, for example, on multiple projects as a member of a functional group.
It is a natural aspect of social relationships.
It appears whenever groups form. In the workplace, particularly in projects, the sense of belonging fuels productivity because it contributes to open and meaningful conversation, avoids unnecessary conflict, and maximizes the effective use of each member’s skills and knowledge.
Belonging is influenced by communication and clarity regarding expectations, roles, and responsibilities within established work processes, mutual respect and caring, familiarity, and commitment to shared goals and values. Belonging is a perception the team members hold based on a combination of definite rules, boundaries, and subjective feelings. The less formal the team’s definition, the more subjective feelings drive the sense of belonging.
When subjectivity is in play, the other members may perceive an individual as a team member but not feel that they belong. Another team member may feel like a member of the team while the rest of the team doesn’t.
Sleeping Beauty
In the fairy tale of the sleeping beauty, a princess is put into a lengthy sleep, only to be awakened by the kiss of a Prince. The curse of a 100-year sleep was a reprieve from the death curse imposed by a fairy who was overlooked by the princess’ parents when the child’s birth was celebrated. The moral of this story is “If you leave a stakeholder out of your team, they might curse your project.
Formal Definitions
A project team has core team stakeholders, those who are usually there for the duration and play key roles. Others play various roles, each with a specific duration of involvement and impact on the project’s performance. When these roles and relationships are defined in a project charter, the understanding of who is on the team is more likely to be mutually understood. Hierarchies fade when the team realizes that we need every role to achieve objectives.
The players not on the core team are part of the project team. It is easy to understand that the team required to accomplish the project’s objectives is far more extensive and more complex than the core team.
When the peripheral stakeholders are formally engaged as team members and reminded of their belonging and ability to share in the project’s victory or defeat, they are more likely to promote the team’s welfare. When they do not see themselves as a team, they may withhold information, fail to work optimally, withhold constructive criticism, or work against the team’s best interests. When a team does not recognize a peripheral player as a team member, it loses valuable input and may create unnecessary conflict.
Case Of The Left-Out Manager
The time constraint was tight in a business project to implement a sales campaign. Several technical, legal, and procedural issues had to be resolved to release the campaign across multiple media.
A functional manager, Chuck, was not engaged, though a few department members were involved. Under time pressure, the team felt they would be more likely to be successful if they limited the team to the smallest number of players and limited the number of alternative views on how best to proceed. Chuck felt slighted and believed that the team was taking a less effective approach than the one he would have recommended. While not overtly addressing the issue, side comments, body language, and other “tells” made Chuck’s feelings known.
The team met its deadline with an acceptable product, though the success was not fully celebrated, mainly owing to Chuck’s feelings.
Improving The Process
Especially when there is a relatively informal portfolio and project management process, all team members must be sensitive to the needs of others, the project, and themselves.
In the case above, the team would have taken the time and effort to explain their decision not to engage Chuck better in the project. The explanation shows the respect and caring fundamental to giving people a sense of belonging. It doesn’t take more than an hour.
The decision to eliminate a voice that might raise uncomfortable questions and alternative solutions is a judgment call by the project manager and the sponsor. While there are exceptions, most often, it is best to at least hear various voices up front before plunging ahead to hit a deadline. Taking the time to document the justification for critical decisions avoids problems later in the project. At the same time, there may be a need for speed.
The trade-offs between the perceived burden of communicating, managing relationships, and doing due diligence in decision-making and the benefits of healthy long-term relationships, problem avoidance, and optimal product quality should drive the decision-makers. Small, isolated teams may be more efficient than large, open teams. However, the trade-offs must be assessed before deciding how best to proceed.
While a proactive project manager in a well-established process is responsible for promoting a sense of team members across all stakeholders, it is also the stakeholder’s responsibility to assess their relationship with the team and speak up when feeling left out or feeling that another person is being left out. Chuck could have expressed his feelings and explained why he felt excluded.
Establish guidelines and values. Review projects and the process to improve continuously.
Above all, recognize that everyone has belonging and recognition as needs, and be sensitive to how you candidly and sensitively communicate about membership and exclusion decisions.
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