For a team to function properly, of course, the members of the team must be able to relate to each other in a professional, collaborative manner, even in times of stress or uncertainty. This means that strong working relationships between employees are a prerequisite for effective team building and project success.
In addition to traditional methods for strengthening workplace relationships, like corporate events, retreats and communication initiatives, organizations can also use their project management tools to build stronger, more productive relationships between employees at every level.
Communication and Collaboration
As with so many aspects of work and life, communication is critically important to building strong relationships between employees. Clear, consistent communication helps teams avoid common sources of workplace strife, such as missed assignments or misunderstandings about who is doing what.
Keeping executives informed as well as ensuring projects are aligned with business strategies are also critical elements to good communication and team success.
A good project management solution like Planview AdaptiveWork includes multiple communication and collaboration tools that let team members share important project details and work together effectively, even when they’re located in separate offices. These collaboration features allow employees to stay in contact throughout the day, without the need for disruptive meetings or unending cascades of emails. Team members can also use Planview AdaptiveWork’s collaboration solution for more effective internal networking, allowing them to learn more about each other’s strengths and interests.
Balanced Workloads
Few large organizations use a business model in which each employee is assigned to only one project at a time. In most cases, employees have responsibilities for multiple tasks at once, often requiring them to work with a different project manager for each one. In this type of environment, it can be easy for managers and senior leaders to lose sight of employee workloads. Too often, the result is that some employees are overworked and stressed out, while others are underutilized and restless. Clarizen’s robust project management software can help even the largest and most complex organizations keep their employee workloads balanced, their projects on track—and use the full ability of their teams’ “bench.”
Better Outcomes
Nothing builds workplace morale quite like a history of success. Companies that use Planview AdaptiveWork to manage their projects and portfolios typically see a significant improvement in budget performance, timeline performance and overall project quality. These improvements in project outcomes can also help create stronger workplace relationships across the entire organization – employees who work together on successful projects are much more likely to stay in close contact and to seek each other out for assistance in the future, creating an organizational environment which is built on trust, respect and collaboration.
Learn more about how to improve your work relationships with Planview AdaptiveWork by viewing a product tour here.
