According to PMI®, a Project Manager should spend 90% of their time communicating. When it comes to communication, we all suffer from what psychologists call illusory superiority, i.e., we all think we are better at it than we actually are. In a survey of more than 1,400 corporate executives, employees, and educators, 86% blamed workplace failures on ineffective communication or collaboration. Additionally, more than 70% thought that lack of candor affected their company's ability to perform at its best. This research was done before COVID and implementation of virtual / hybrid working models that further affect communication.
The June meeting of PMINJ’s Life Science LCI focused on the heart of effective communication and collaboration, which is understanding our teams, ourselves, our colleagues and establishing trust. The session was co-presented by Kimberly Azzinaro, Learning & Development Partner with Merck & Co., Inc. and Dr. Bobbi Jo Curtis, Founder, CCG Consultant Group. While the session was run for the Life Science LCI, the content is usable by all Project Managers. The intent of this article is to share the highlights as well as provide links to the recording, slides, and resources. If you are interested in learning more about teaming, contact Kimberly Azzinaro via
LinkedIn. If you are interested in learning more about different communication styles and valuing differences based on the Insights Discovery model, Dr. Curtis can be reached via
LinkedIn or email
.
As Project Mangers, a critical component of our work is done through and with teams. One of the first steps in successfully working with teams is to understand how well they are performing. While there are many models to help with this assessment, the Drexler/Sibbet (DS) model proves to be a pragmatic tool. Of the seven stages on the DS model, two stages - Trust Building and Implementation - are where Project Managers can have the most influence on team performance.
So how do Project Mangers influence team performance at the Trust Building and Implementation stages? Through effective communication and collaboration which starts with understanding ourselves, then our colleagues and ultimately our teams. One approach for building self-awareness is to understand our psychological preferences, as a factor that influence our perceptions. The Insights Discovery model is a powerful platform from which a team can build essential skills, such as: collaboration, communication, connecting to deliver results, valuing differences, and leveraging collective strengths. It is a simple and accessible four-colour model which, accompanied by an Insights Discovery Personal Profile, helps people to understand more about themselves and others. The four-color energies are: Fiery Red, Earth Green, Sunshine Yellow and Cool Blue.
Fiery Red can be described as “be brief, be bright and be gone”.
Earth Green can be described as “show me you care”.
Sunshine Yellow can be described as “involve me”.
Cool Blue can be described as “give me the details”.
Everyone has all four of these energies in different compositions. During the June session, when polled regarding their dominant color energy, respondents answered the following way: 33% Cool Blue, 31% Earth Green, 21% Sunshine Yellow and 14% Fiery Red. When you understand your dominant energy, your composition, how and when you use each of these energies - in addition to your colleagues’ compositions - you then have the ingredients to be adaptively authentic. For example, someone with a preference for Cool Blue energy may want to consider all the facts, while the opposite preference for Sunshine Yellow energy prefers being open and flexible ready to discuss a wide variety of topics. Both would benefit from flexing their personal style a bit to best meet the needs of the other person.
To see leading color energy by job role, age, or continent, view the
Demographic Infographic on page 25 of the PDF. It is when we are authentically adaptive and honest to ourselves, we can build effective connections, collaboration, and communication.
Interested in learning more about Insights Discovery®? Please view the
June 16th recording and the
slides, or reach out to Dr. Curtis at
LinkedIn or email
.
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