Project Management Plan: Workplace Culture and Teamwork Strategies

This project management plan, developed in a simulated environment, addresses key aspects of project execution, including fostering teamwork, cultivating a positive workplace culture, and evaluating project effectiveness. It outlines strategies for building rapport and influencing employee attitudes within diverse teams, emphasizing the importance of influential, motivated, and dependable team members with the necessary skills and experience. The plan explores the concepts of positive and negative synergy, providing techniques to ensure constructive interaction and mitigate potential conflicts. Furthermore, it delves into major theories of workplace culture, such as Hofstede's cultural dimensions and Deal and Kennedy's cultural model, to understand their impact on project team performance. The plan concludes by evaluating the positive and negative consequences of workplace culture on project outcomes, offering a comprehensive approach to project management that prioritizes collaboration, engagement, and a thriving work environment. Desklib provides access to similar solved assignments and resources for students.

Running head: PROJECT MANAGEMENT PLAN
Project management plan
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author note

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Executive Summary
This paper has been elaborated on the development of a management plan in a
simulated environment and has presented a plan in the form of a report to the stakeholders of
the project. It also demonstrated how one would ensure collaboration of all the relevant
stakeholders in the business projects. The paper has explained the key learning objectives
answering the questions based on the subject of ensuring team work, fostering positive
workplace culture and evaluating a project in the workplace

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Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................3
Body...........................................................................................................................................3
Task 1: Ensuring Team Work in the Workplace....................................................................3
Task 2: Fostering a Positive Workplace Culture....................................................................7
Task 3: Evaluating a project.................................................................................................12
Conclusion................................................................................................................................16
References:...............................................................................................................................17

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Introduction
Project Management is considered to be the application of the methods, processes,
skills knowledge and experiences in order to achieve the objectives of the project. This paper
will develop a project management plan which will be based on a simulated environment and
would further be presented to the stakeholders of the organization. There are three different
aspects to this project management plan and they are- improving team work within the
workforce, developing workforce culture that is positive and evaluation of the existing
project. It would also describe the various methods that are necessary for improving team
work and developing positive workplace culture.
Body
Task 1: Ensuring Team Work in the Workplace
LO3: Devise strategies to build a rapport and influence employee attitudes in teamwork
within a diverse workplace culture in project execution.
1. Describe any four characteristics of an effective project team.
Answer: The four strategies of an effective project team are as follows:
- Influential
All the members of an effective project team must positive and constructive influence
over their colleagues and peers. They must be potential enough to pursue the
community members who could be advantageous and helpful to the project and their
subordinates and superiors too (Serra & Kunc, 2015). The team members who are

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well influential would not only be able to persuade the key people for being involved
and engaged but also to inspire and encourage other members to take action as well.
- Motivational
The members of an effective project team are motivated by nature. Although, it is
crucial for the project manager to inspire the team for performing the necessary tasks,
but it is just as indispensable that all the members of the project team are able to
inspire as well as encourage each other and themselves as well. A motivated project
team would have a clear goals of project in their sight and have the tolerance to take
to completion (Aga, Noorderhaven & Vallejo, 2016).
- Dependable
All the members of an effective project team are accountable, responsible and reliable
to each other as well as to themselves (Tyssem, Wald & Spieth, 2014). They foster a
credible schedule which incorporates timeliness with the details and accuracy, leaving
some space for the unexpected obstacles.
- Proper skills and adequate experience
The members of an effective project team have proper knowledge, familiarity and
talent that are needed for accomplishing the undertakings that are assigned to them
(Rezvani et al., 2016).
2.
A) Describe positive synergy and develop two techniques for ensuring positive synergy in
a project team
Answer: Positive synergy refers to a positive and constructive interaction in between the
elements whereby they work together in a fashion for creating a combined outcome which is
much greater and positive than a simple sum of effects in isolation or individually (Rogers,
Corley & Ashforth, 2017). Sometimes, it is also referred to as 2 + 2 = 5 effect.

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Two techniques for ensuring positive synergy in a project team includes:
- Recognising the differing opinions, perspectives and views of others as helpful while
seeking solutions
- Developing and fostering a win-win mentality (Molderez & Ceulemans, 2018).
Believe the fact that all the members who are involved in the project would gain more
enthusiasm, insights, growing and learning through working together.
B) Discuss negative synergy and two causes of negative synergy in project team.
Answer: Negative synergy refers to an interaction that is non-linear (Lindsey, Villavicencio
& Barnosky, 2015). It is where the combined results are less than the total sum of the
participants’ effects that are taken in isolation or individually.
The two causes of negative synergy in a project team includes:
- Lack of safety in meeting. The members do not feel safe to say what they truly
think and feel about the team (Jopke et al., 2015). Their want to be a part of the
team push them for agreeing with the decision of the team. Hence, this results in
false foundation
- Poor meeting fundamentals. The team members who are involved do not have an
agenda and are not sure and certain enough why they are in the meeting and
hence, they attempt to address and tackle the complex issues without any
preparation (Neatby, Rioux & Aube, 2015).
3. Discuss any six steps for developing rapport and ensuring cooperation in a project team. 6
Answer: The six steps for developing a rapport and ensuring cooperation in a project team
includes:

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- Building a culture of listening to each and every voice within the team through giving
full attention to them, minimizing the distractions, checking your own understanding
through asking questions and reflecting back the emotions (Bolden, 2016).
- Developing emotional intelligence and recognizing the emotions in other team
members.
- Using praise, as praises are great motivator when they are constructive and authentic
(Deutsch, 2016). This is because of the fact that praises foster positive emotions in the
team and could boost the overall performance of each and every team members. The
team leader must ensure that he is clearly identifying what the team members are
doing and whether they are effective or not. As a leader, sharing this knowledge with
the team members would boost positive emotions of the team members (Singh, 2016).
It would increase the reputation and visibility of the team.
- Developing shared values. Devoting some time for establishing values for the team by
not only building of great relationships between the team and the team leaders but
also with everyone else goes a long way in ensuring cooperation in a project team
(Bens, 2017). It is a one of the highly effective method for cementing a team when the
team members agree upon the values through providing a common relation in
between all the members of the project team.
- Asking questions. It is one of the most effective way of fostering communication and
cooperation in the project team. It determines the interest in the team, both
professionally and personally (Boles, Fiset & Gill, 2015). It would also allow the team
members to be more solution focused and this turn empowers the individuals. Also,
the questions could encourage a culture of innovation and exploration among the team
members.

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- Setting higher expectations from the team. It is the most important as in terms of
results and of culture and behavior. It allows the roles to be clarified, the individuals
to be empowered for making most of their knowledge and talents and the success to
be visualized (Dong et al., 2017). It also demonstrates the leader’s belief in his team.
Task 2: Fostering a Positive Workplace Culture
LO4: Apply techniques and strategies to foster positive workplace culture and team
engagement in project execution
1. Discuss any two major theories of workplace culture.
The two major theories of work place culture are the Hofstede’s cultural dimensions theory
and the Deal and Kennedy’s cultural model
- Hofstede’s cultural dimensions theory- As according to Geert Hofstede, there are no
such thing like management theory or universal management method in the world
(Mazanec et al., 2015). He has designed a framework that described a total of five
sorts of value perspectives in between the national cultures and they are of power
distance, masculinity versus femininity, individualism versus collectivism, uncertainty
avoidance and short-term versus long-term orientation. Firstly, Power distance refers
to the degree of inequality among the individuals which the population considers to be
normal. Secondly, the masculinity versus femininity refers to the extent to which a
culture is conducive to dominance, acquisition and assertiveness of things versus a
culture that is more conducive to the people, their quality of life and their feelings
(Beugelsdijk, Maseland & Hoorn, 2015). Thirdly, the individualism versus
collectivism refers to the extent to which the individuals feel that they are supposed to
be responsible for themselves as well as the entire team. All the team members are
supposed to help each other along with an unspoken clause of loyalty. The

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organizations which are rigidly divided into different departments and where there is
absolutely no or very less interaction in between those different departments follows
the individualistic approach. On the other hand, the organizations that have no
specific departments and where the people are expected to participate in all the works
regardless of their role are said to follows the approach of collectivism. Fourthly, the
uncertainty avoidance index refers to the potential of handling the unpredictability
and uncertainty of the results. In some of the contexts, it could also be a measure of
the conservatism, that is, a high index would show high resistance and conservatism
for accepts new ideas, while the low index would show a high acceptance and little
resistance. In the organizational context, both the approaches of the index could be
applied. For example, the willingness and the ability of the employees for handling
the unpredictability of the projects in their tasks and jobs could be evaluated through
means of uncertainty index, while the conservative approach of an organization in
dealing with the projects, employees and the clients could also be defined clearly by
this index. Lastly, the short-term versus long-term orientation dimension analyses the
ability of the team or the employees to adapt to the organizational changes and their
willingness to change as according to the given situations (Beugelsdijk, Kostova &
Roth, 2017). The organizational culture that is with long term pragmatic approach are
more open to accepting and welcoming changes in their ways of operating and keeps
in mind the long-term circumstances and welfare, while the short-term normative
indirect the unwillingness to let go of the former practices and accept the new and
innovative ones.
- Deal and Kennedy’s cultural model- Deal and Kennedy have defined the
organizational culture as the way in which the things are get done. They have created
a culture on the basis of four different types of organizations and they are process

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culture, work-hard, play-hard culture, tough-guy macho culture and Bet-the-company
culture (Bortolotti, Boscari & Danese, 2015). Firstly, the process culture has very
slow feedback and low risk that results in plodding work, low stress, security and
comfort. The stress that comes from the stupidity and internal politics of the system.
Secondly, the work-hard, play-hard culture has a rapid reward and has low risk
resulting in the stress coming from the quantity of the work, instead of uncertainty.
The high speed actions leads to high speed recreation. Thirdly, the tough-guy macho
culture has rapid reward and has high risk that results in the stress coming from the
potential loss or gain of the reward and high risk. Lastly, the Bet-the-company culture
has slow reward and very high risk that results in the stress coming from the high risk
and delay right before knowing if the actions are paid off.
2. Evaluate any two positive impacts and any two negative consequences of workplace
culture on the performance of a project team.
The two positive impacts of workplace culture on the performance of a project team are:
- Good culture within a project team could help in keeping the work of the project
management in synchronized manner with the objectives of the project team and
aligned with the already established practices (Hornstein, 2015).
- Good and a well-developed culture brings a significant increase in the openness to
the change and the desire of the members of the project team to make the changes to
work.
The two negative impacts of workplace culture on the performance of a project team are:
- The members who are unmotivated usually breed a negative culture with the ones
around them and that work could quickly disintegrate and drive all the other members
of the project team.

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- The project team where the culture is low, the team members are likely to have low
communication and less cooperation with each other (Gurung & Prater, 2017). This
results in the project team to end up having the members working in silos and towards
determining the thing detrimental for the overall health of the project team.
3. Identify and discuss the impact of any four techniques for developing positive workplace
culture to ensuring successful completion of a project.
Answer: The impact of four techniques for developing positive workplace culture to ensuring
successful completion of a project are as follows:
- Fostering mutual respect- It is very important that the project team members respect
their peers’ and colleague’s ideas and inputs (Carmeli, Dutton & Hardin, 2015). When
one lose respect for the any member of the team, he or she will be less likely to go to
them for their assistance, even though if they excels in that particular area. With the
same, the same member would also be less likely to come to the other when he or she
would be getting benefit from his expertise. However, such condition results in less
collaboration within the team and would ultimately result in an ineffective completion
of the project. Hence, if the team members feels that their leaders and the peers are
supportive and respectful, their efforts would not be undermined by the fragile egos or
jealousy of the others. Also, mutual respects tend to be positive and creating a more
productive and virtuous result.
- Establishing trust- The sense of trust is very important to all the professional and
personal relationships. Active listening and open communication in the project team is
the best way of building trust (Boies, Fiset & Gill, 2015). If the team members are
trust worthy and they trust one another, the project is likely to be successful.

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- Showing appreciation- Showing appreciation would foster better work attendance and
higher degree of attention to the details by the team members. It also creates a greater
sense of “ownership: of a project or a task. It also foster more investment in the
overall completion and success of the project. Furthermore, showing appreciation to
the project team members would also develop better camaraderie with the peers along
with higher opinion of the team shared with others.
- Maintaining a positive attitude- Positive attitude brings in the winner attitude within
the team members (Vasilescu et al., 2015). It is a fact that attitude determines
productivity. An individual with positive attitude would always think of the several
ways through which he could accomplish his task in a well-defined manner rather
than finding excuses and complaining for not performing well. Also, positive attitude
help the team members in taking more interest in what they do and deliver to the team
project. With the same, they also produce better and more effective quality of work
with minimum errors. It improves the overall outcome and the productivity of the
team members. It is also to note that positive attitudes help the team members to
appreciate and motivate the competencies of each other and to work as a team for
achieving successful completion of the project.
4. Develop four strategies for ensure effective team engagement during the process of project
management.
Answer: The four strategies for ensure effective team engagement during the process of
project management are as follows:
- Matching the projects, proficiency and passion- In a project, there are many members
involved. Each and every members are with different combination of personal values,
goals and talents. If the project leader assist them to build a bridge between what is