An ideal project team will consist of people who are confident in their work, their abilities , and their commitment to the project. They will always complete their tasks on time, without flaw, and happily report to you that everything is perfect and on schedule. In fact, they ll say, we re a little ahead of schedule. Now let s step into the real world. Team members will be nervous about their duties . They won t always complete their tasks on time or without flaw. Team members may report to you that everything is fine when, in fact, it s far from that.
One of your responsibilities as the project manager will be to mold this team into a reliable, interdependent collection of professionals who can rely on each other, themselves , and you. Through regular team meetings, outings, and one-to-one conferences, you ll develop a working relationship with each member and learn how to motivate, inspire , and lead each individual. (Chapter 11 discusses leading a team in more detail.)