Question

Ground rules describe how a team will operate and interact with each other. They may deal with respect or with communication, and are generally about interpersonal interactions.

Develop a list of at least five, but no more than ten, ground rules that you would implement as a project manager leading this multi-national team. Also state the reason or rationale for each ground rule.

Consider the issues you might run into with a global team, and develop your ground rules to help manage those issues.

Answer 1

1. Senior manager should take responsibility of supporting the employees- While working on this multi-national project, disputes might arise among the employees and these may take a turn to personal disagreements. Hence, the senior manager will need to act as a risk-manager, support-provider and a final decision-maker.

2. Time should be invested in planning and innovation- Because this is a multi-national project, there is a little latitude between different time-zones. Everything should be decided upfront e.g., process timelines, knowledge requirements need to be thoroughly understood so that everyone who is working on the project has a feeling of equality.

3. Resources should be allocation on the basis of capability of an employee-Work should never be distributed on the basis of availability of employees, but on the basis of their capability. They should never be over-burdened or given the work which is not as per their knowledge.

4. Number of partners should be limited-As keeping partners and subcontractors take a large amount of time and money, these should be minimum in order to benefit the business.

5. Communicate regularly- Communication is the most vital part of handling a team. It should be a face-to-face communication among the team to maintain transparency.