We have all had these types of feelings when dealing with people who are located a distance from us. Or even from managing a project where everyone is co-located. Maybe it is just part of being a project manager; we are looking for any possible risks that can cause our projects to fail. Managing at a distance can exacerbate these feelings when you can’t see each other all of the time, or at a moment’s notice when the feeling comes up.
I have heard this phrase stated in several ways:
• “I have a feeling they won’t do what I need them to do”, or
• “He/she said yes he will do it, or he said he understands, but I have a feeling he/she doesn’t really understand.” Or a more general fear,
• “I have a feeling something is wrong, but I am not sure what?”
I think there are ways to mitigate these risks or feelings that can come up. One of those ways can be to ask more questions and another is to use the work completed as a guide.
First make sure you feel comfortable with what you have asked them to do and what you are concerned that they won’t do. Are you concerned that they won’t code something in a certain way? Are you concerned that if you ask them to make a change they won’t do it? Are you concerned that they “can’t” do what you need them to do? A lot of these issues are very different but most of them can be addressed by history, if there has been any history of working together, or by asking questions. For example, if you have not been working together long, and if you have a feeling they won’t code something in a certain way, ask them for a “design” of how they plan to code the feature (for those who are afraid of written documentation, this does not mean they have to write a large document, you are not asking for the world). This can also be done orally, and if not good enough, ask for a written explanation. If the design is not what you expected, you have other issues, and you will have to determine and make a judgment as to whether or not the issue is; they did a poor design, it would work, but it is not how you would have done it, or it would work but it is not how it needs to be done for this application. But at least you will have validated the “feeling” that you had and now you can deal with a concrete situation and not something abstract.
I will review another one of the “feelings” of concern later this week.
Tags: Managing Remote Teams, Outsourcing Ukraine, Project Management, Virtual Teams