At Shingobee, project management is is an extremely important part of what we do for our clients, whether they’re going through the entire building process, or just looking to lease some office space. Shingobee Real Estate’s Jon Fahning explains why the team building and management trait is so important for a project manager to have.

As the old analogy states, “your team is only as good as the weakest member.”  This is true in ALL levels of real estate/land development, construction, and project execution.  It’s important to have a team of “planners” when planning and managing a project.  Therefore, it’s important to have a Project Manager that can establish, lead, and engage the team and its members.  The success of the project is dependent on the success of the team and its leader. There are some key elements in developing a successful team on each project:

• Establishing Ownership:  Buy-in and execution of this element is crucial in the success of the project.  Having members of the team working together results in a successful execution at all levels of the project.  Members of any team often are committed to their own ideas and objectives.  This is where the Project Manager comes into play.  Developing and establishing ownership of the objectives as a team develops like attitudes among the team, rather than adversarial actions.
• Remove Roadblocks:  As the “quarterback” of the team, the Project Manager needs to serve as the coach, the referee, the commentator, and the substitute, all on an as-needed basis.  Throughout the process, the Project Manager needs to maintain the process momentum, making changes to eliminate items that could hold up and/or damage the project and the team while jumping in and facilitating resolution.
• Enabler vs. Inhibitor:  Allowing the team to provide solutions and make decisions truly represents a team environment.  With the Project Manager’s ability to identify and secure quality team members and educating them on the strategy, they are empowered to make decisions that will assist in the success of the project.  The team members were contracted because of their expertise – let them demonstrate it!
• Trust:  Developing trust with the team is key to the success of the Project Manager.  Trust demonstrates confidence in the leadership and leads to the ability and desire of the team members to work through adversity and provide support throughout the project, while assisting in the potential loss mitigation process.  Committing to the vision and strategy first develops the team trust to move forward and commit to the vision.