There are likely some things that you want your team to know as a project manager. These points were obvious when you first started managing projects. Now, you know the truth. You should inform your team members if you want them to understand something. You should tell your team members if you expect them to behave in a certain manner or follow specific guidelines. This letter to team members might help you cover some of your key points. If it is not, you can use it as a guideline and ask your team members, “What do they need to know? And how will you tell them?”
Dear Team Members
You might wonder sometimes, “What does my manager want me to do?” Here are some points to consider:
1) A work that has not begun is 0% completed. It is not 7% done, ‘in progress’, or looking good. We understand that you don’t like it when things don’t go according to plan. Let it be as it is, and we will work together to deal with it. This leads to…
2) Status reports are not fiction, they are not creative writing. Your status report should reflect the truth of your work on the project. It doesn’t matter what you want or how things will look in a few days. Let it be as it is, and we will work together to get it resolved.
3) Let us know if you are going to be late for work. This will allow us to plan around it. It is uncool to wait until the deadline to tell you that you will miss the deadline.
4) Don’t assume that we know everything. Tell us if there is anything we should know about your work. It is great if we already know. Your perspective is valuable and it might help us to understand why this particular thing is important. If we were psychics, we would know the winning numbers to the lottery. We are that dedicated, so we would still work.
5) Let us know if you see a problem coming up. It might turn into nothing. But it could be. We don’t like to hear you say “I knew that would happen,” especially if you didn’t share your insights with us.
6) We want to make sure you have fun on your vacation and get your days off. We only ask that you let us know in advance. We prefer that you do not take off during a major implementation. We don’t like to hear that you have disconnected from your voicemail or email auto-responder. We’re funny like that.
7) Let us know if you have any preferences on how we can work together. We are happy to help you if you have to miss afternoon meetings to pick up your child from school. We will accommodate your preference for text messages over emails. We cannot promise that you will not be asked to work overtime or to attend meetings. We can help you create a more positive work environment by learning more about your preferences.
8) We appreciate you. We know that you work hard. We want to make sure you are happy to be a part of our project team.
Your Project Managers are treated with respect
