Interpersonal skills &
Communication
Edina Nagy
Lajos Kiss
Szabolcs Hornyák
Overview
• Interpersonal skills
– Leadership
– Team building
– Motivation
– Communication
– Influencing
– Decision making
– Negotiation
• References
The leader…
If the leader is good the people will follow him.
Interpersonal skills
Project managers (leaders) use a combination of
technical, human, and conceptual skills to
analyze situations and interact appropriately
with team members. Using appropriate
interpersonal skills aids project managers in
capitalizing on the strengths of all team
members.
Interpersonal skills
Leadership
Leadership
Leadership involves focusing the efforts of a group of
people toward a common goal and enabling them to
work as a team. In general terms, leadership is the ability
to get things done through others.
Respect and trust, rather than fear and submission, are
the key elements of effective leadership. Although
important throughout all project phases, effective
leadership is critical during the beginning phases of a
project when the emphasis is on communicating the
vision and motivating and inspiring project participants to
achieve high performance.
Interpersonal skills
Team Building
Team Building
Team building is the process of helping a group of
individuals, bound by a common sense of purpose, to
work interdependently with each other, the leader,
external stakeholders, and the organization.
Team building activities consist of tasks and processes.
Developing a team environment involves handling
project team problems and discussing these as team
issues without placing blame on individuals.
Outcomes of team building include mutual trust, high
quality of information exchange, better decision making,
and effective project control.
Interpersonal skills
Motivation
Motivation
The overall success of the project depends upon the
project team’s commitment, which is directly related to
their level of motivation.
Motivating in a project environment involves creating an
environment to meet project objectives while offering
maximum self-satisfaction related to what people value
most.
These values may include job satisfaction, challenging
work, achievement and growth, sufficient financial
compensation, and other rewards and recognition the
individual considers necessary and important.
Motivation
In the lowest level of the
pyramid
is
the
basic
physiological needs, and then
towards the apex of the
pyramid there are higher
motives. All individual is in a
level of the pyramid.
According to maslow that the
next level's needs arises if the
underneath needs are fulfilled
in
parts.
Interpersonal skills
Communication
Communication
Communication has been identified as one of the
single biggest reasons for project success or failure.
Effective communication within the project team
and between the project manager, team members,
and all external stakeholders is essential.
Openness in communication is a gateway to
teamwork and high performance. It improves
relationships among project team members and
creates mutual trust.
Communication
To communicate effectively, the project manager
should be aware of the communication styles of
other parties, cultural issues, relationships,
personalities, and overall context of the situation.
Project managers should identify various
communication channels, understand what
information they need to provide, what information
they need to receive, and which interpersonal skills
will help them communicate effectively with various
project stakeholders.
Communication
Communication activity has many potential dimensions:
• Internal (within the project) and external
(customer, other projects, the media, the public),
• Formal (reports, memos, briefings) and informal
(emails, ad-hoc discussions),
• Vertical (up and down the organization) and horizontal
(with peers),
• Official (newsletters, annual report) and unofficial (off
the record communications),
• Written and oral
• Verbal and non-verbal (voice inflections, body
language).
Interpersonal skills
Influencing
Influencing
Influencing is a strategy of sharing power and
relying on interpersonal skills to get others to
cooperate towards common goals. Using the
following guidelines can influence team members:
• Lead by example, and follow through with
commitments
• Clarify how a decision will be made
• Use a flexible interpersonal style, adjust the style
to the audience
• Apply your power skillfully and cautiously. Think
of long-term collaboration.
Interpersonal skills
Decision Making
Decision Making
There are four basic decision styles normally used by
project managers:
• command
• consultation
• consensus
• coin flip (random)
There are four major factors that affect the decision
style: time constraints, trust, quality, and acceptance.
Project managers may make decisions individually, or
they may involve the project team in the decision-making
process.
Decision Making
Project managers and project teams sometimes use a
decision-making model or process such as the sixphase model shown below:
Problem
Definition
Problem
Solution
Generation
Ideas to
Action
Solution
Action
Planning
Solution
Evaluation
Planning
Evaluation
of the
Outcome
and
Process
Fully explore, clarify, and define the problem.
Decision Making
Project managers and project teams sometimes use a
decision-making model or process such as the sixphase model shown below:
Problem
Definition
Problem
Solution
Generation
Ideas to
Action
Solution
Action
Planning
Solution
Evaluation
Planning
Evaluation
of the
Outcome
and
Process
Prolong the new idea generating process by
brainstorming multiple solutions and discouraging
premature decisions.
Decision Making
Project managers and project teams sometimes use a
decision-making model or process such as the sixphase model shown below:
Problem
Definition
Problem
Solution
Generation
Ideas to
Action
Solution
Action
Planning
Solution
Evaluation
Planning
Evaluation
of the
Outcome
and
Process
Define evaluation criteria, rate pros and cons of
alternatives, select best solution.
Decision Making
Project managers and project teams sometimes use a
decision-making model or process such as the sixphase model shown below:
Problem
Definition
Problem
Solution
Generation
Ideas to
Action
Solution
Action
Planning
Solution
Evaluation
Planning
Evaluation
of the
Outcome
and
Process
Involve key participants to gain acceptance and
commitment to making the solution work.
Decision Making
Project managers and project teams sometimes use a
decision-making model or process such as the sixphase model shown below:
Problem
Definition
Problem
Solution
Generation
Ideas to
Action
Solution
Action
Planning
Solution
Evaluation
Planning
Evaluation
of the
Outcome
and
Process
Post-implementation analysis, evaluation, and
lessons learned.
Decision Making
Project managers and project teams sometimes use a
decision-making model or process such as the sixphase model shown below:
Problem
Definition
Problem
Solution
Generation
Ideas to
Action
Solution
Action
Planning
Solution
Evaluation
Planning
Evaluation
of the
Outcome
and
Process
Evaluate how well the problem was solved or project
goals were achieved (extension of previous phase).
Interpersonal skills
Negotiation
Negotiation
Negotiation is a strategy of conferring with
parties of shared or opposed interests with a
view to compromise or reach an agreement.
Negotiation is an integral part of project
management and done well, increases the
probability of project success.
Negotiation
The following skills are useful in negotiating successfully:
• Analyze the situation.
• Differentiate between wants and needs
• Focus on interests and issues rather than on positions.
• Ask high and offer low, but be realistic.
• Do a good job in listening and articulating.
References
PMBOK®—Fourth Edition
Interpersonal skills - APPENDIX G
Page: 417. - 421.
Chapter 10 - Project
Communications Management
Page: 243.
Thank you for your attention!