collaboration tools
Tackling the global project problem, part 2
Launching a global project presents many problems that are completely foreign to most project leaders and managers. Last month I pointed out that we have to deal with a lot more than language barriers with global projects. For example, in some cultures, speaking openly is not to be expected, in any setting. For this second installment, I thought I’d share a few concrete ideas for tackling some of these issues, things that can make a real difference and that are easy to put into play. To keep on a theme, I’ll focus on strategies to tackle the common, core issue raised in last month’s article: communication and execution problems. One of the first things I generally want to take a close look at are the techniques and processes used to manage a project. Most of the time, they are not adequate for one reason: They weren’t designed to support a global, multi-cultural organization.
Tackling the global project problem
Launching a global project presents many problems that are completely foreign to most project leaders and managers. Understanding the cultural differences, communication differences, and interpersonal relations of a global team is only the beginning. Business environment, local regulatory and compliance issues, and international laws scratch a bit deeper, but managing a global project is more complicated than most project managers anticipate.
Managing risk in global projects
One of the most significant risks we identify is a globally disparate (geographically separated) team. Teams working in separate regions face tremendous challenges that a co-located team doesn’t have to think about, a situation made worse when outsourcing, where conflicts in language, time, culture, and business environment all affect the organization.
Be human on your “about page”
Seth Godin offers some good advice regarding your company image: “When someone comes to your site for the first time, they’re likely to hit ‘about’ or ‘bio’. Why? Because they want a human, a story and reassurance.” Don’t use meaningless jargon, talk like a normal person, and if you put up a picture don’t use [...]
Not a panacea, but trying: Comindwork is attractive
Management tools probably don’t bring to mind excitement and visions of “getting things done” the agile way. Nevertheless, it’s an important aspect of running any project — whether agile or not — and there are some tools, believe it or not, that are easy to use, hugely helpful in managing a project and sometimes even [...]
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