Notes on Resource Management
- Conflict Management Approaches
- Compromising / Reconciling – Implies that one or both parties give up some of their interests in order to come to an agreement — may be seen as a “lose–lose”. Used when the individuals are not able to reach consensus.
- Collaborating / Problem Solving – Treating conflict as a problem to be solved by examining alternatives; requires a give-and-take attitude and open dialogue; the best way to manage conflict from the PMBOK® Guide perspective. Used when the team is working well together, has a cooperative attitude and open dialogue.
- Forcing / Direct – One person forces a solution on another. Used when the scenarios involve legal, safety, or ethical concerns.
- Withdrawing / Avoiding – Removing yourself from the conflict. Used when the conflict does not impact the project objectives and is not a legal, safety or ethical issue.
- Smoothing / Accommodating – A temporary way to solve a problem; focuses on common ground between the individuals and neutralizing the emotion. Used when the individuals are in a state of heightened emotion that is preventing them from reaching agreement.
- Stages of Team Development – Tuckman’s Ladder
- Forming – Begins when the team meets and learns about the project, their roles and responsibilities — at this point, the team members are isolated and not as open with each other.
- Storming – The team begins to address the project work, technical decisions, and the project management approach — the environment can become destructive if the team members are not working collaboratively or are not open to differing ideas and perspectives.
- Norming – Team members begin to work together and adjust work habits and behaviors to support the team, increasing their trust.
- Performing – For teams that reach the performing stage, they are a well-organized team and are interdependent, working through issues smoothly and effectively.
- Adjourning – The team completes the work and moves on to other activities.
- Organizational and Motivational Theorists
- Herzberg’s Two–Factor Theory: Motivators – Give positive satisfaction, arising from intrinsic conditions of the job itself, such as recognition, achievement, or personal growth. Hygiene factors – Do not give positive satisfaction, although dissatisfaction results from their absence. These are extrinsic to the work itself and include aspects such as company policies, supervisory practices, or salary.
- Vroom’s Expectancy Theory: Predicts that employees in an organization will be motivated when they believe that putting in more effort will yield rewards. Vroom’s theory assumes that behavior results from conscious choices among alternatives whose purpose it is to maximize pleasure and to minimize pain.
- McGregor’s Theory of X and Y: ‘X’ theory states that people are generally lazy, do not want to work and thus need to be micromanaged. ‘Y’ theory states that people are self-led and motivated and can accomplish things on their own with little intervention. McGregor believed that people can fall into either category.
- Ouchie’s Theory Z: Organizations can increase employee loyalty by providing a job for life with a strong focus on the well–being of the employees.
- McClelland’s Achievement Theory: Need for achievement is an individual’s desire for significant accomplishment. Those with low need may choose very easy tasks, in order to minimize risk of failure, or highly difficult tasks, such that a failure would not be embarrassing. Those with high need tend to choose moderately difficult tasks, feeling that they are challenging, but within reach.
- Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs: Lower level needs must be met before higher level needs are considered. Often depicted as a pyramid with 5 levels: physiological, safety, social, self-esteem, self-actualization.
