The project for my team was focused on repairing an old building that was planned to become storage. The plan was to keep construction materials, equipment, and car parts there for future use. The building was originally a medium-sized garage but then was repurposed as a storage area. Due to its neglected state, it needed to be cleaned, repaired, and repainted as it had been cluttered and abandoned for a long time. Our team was small, but we tackled the project with thorough preparations to keep our work efficient. We needed to divide the work and set up different duties for team members to help each other rather than interfere. While the task required considerable time and effort, we were ready to face it with proper preparation, resources, and thoughtful time management.
Team roles and responsibilities
My team consisted of five people, including myself. Because the project required a lot of physical work and some mental planning, we decided to divide the duties among us. We all contributed to the physical part of the job, but we had different roles. I was responsible primarily for planning and overlooking the project but also helped with the moving and cleaning part. Three team members were moving and cleaning things and focused only on that, while the last crew member became a driver. The labor division proved helpful, as it made sure that people responsible for specific tasks had complete control of their part (Bell, Brown, Colaneri, & Outland, 2018). The majority of the team did not have to keep in mind all the moments and details, leaving it to the chosen members. At the same time, such an approach also risks dividing people rather than their work if they feel like it gives their co-workers a more straightforward job to accomplish (Lacerenza, Marlow, Tannenbaum, & Salas, 2018). Thankfully, no conflict happened during the project due to these circumstances, except for an active discussion when setting up the schedule.
The project’s progression and preparation
The project was initially given one and a half weeks to finish, but when it became clear that it would require more time, we were given an extra week. Thanks to this, we did not have to rush our work and had enough time to finish it properly. Rushing a project like this could easily lead to numerous mistakes or the team getting burnt out. The schedule was split into two parts: firstly, we needed to clear out the area, and secondly, we needed to repair the damaged walls and ceiling. The garage door was functional but needed to be adjusted as it occasionally got stuck trying to open. Some of the present equipment was still in a decent shape, so instead of throwing it away, we decided to fix it up after the repairs. Once we were ready, we started the first phase until we were prepared to repair the garage.
The clean-up was a more straightforward part of the project, even if more physically straining. All we needed to do at first was to move out clutter and broken equipment out of the garage. The place was littered with old gear and other items that our team gradually placed in the moving truck. The process would repeat every day until the entire place was clean, and it took us approximately a week to completely clean the area. While it was not a large building, the garage had plenty of free space now. As most of our team, besides the driver, was focused on clearing the area, it took us less time to finish the job than we had previously planned. Thus we had a considerable portion of time left for repairs and repaint.
This was when we had to rearrange our team duties: the driver and I now worked on repairs, while the other three team members were directly responsible for the painting. Fixing the garage door was a simple task and took us less than a day, but fixing up cracks in the walls and ceiling took us two days. The rest of the team rested during that time and only came back after. It allowed them to gather strength to quickly finish the rest of the project (Driskell, Salas, & Driskell, 2018). The rest of the week, the entire team was painting the garage. After that was finished, too, we cleaned the place and let it dry. The project was completed within given two weeks without us stretching the deadline.
Conclusion
The project given to our team was a complex task that required a skilled team and time management and would be much more complicated if the team was not well coordinated. Thankfully, everyone followed the schedule and no impactful schedule changes occurred. Dividing the labor and making sure that everyone knew their role proved extremely helpful in the long run. While initially, we had to extend the deadline by several days before starting, we finished the project within the set deadline.
References
Bell, S. T., Brown, S. G., Colaneri, A., & Outland, N. (2018). Team composition and the ABCs of teamwork. American Psychologist, 73(4), 349.
Driskell, J. E., Salas, E., & Driskell, T. (2018). Foundations of teamwork and collaboration. American Psychologist, 73(4), 334.
Lacerenza, C. N., Marlow, S. L., Tannenbaum, S. I., & Salas, E. (2018). Team development interventions: Evidence-based approaches for improving teamwork. American Psychologist, 73(4), 517.