The goal of today's post is to help you become one step closer to your goal of being a more people-oriented Technical program manager.
As usual, I will keep it short in a TLDR mode. I present to you two hacks that you could use even now to enrich your work life and bring some positive emotions to your fellow humans (and AI if you work with it)
Be nice for no reason.
If you are using Microsoft Teams, there is a way to set a status for the day, which everyone who communicates with you will see.
In my case, it looks like this:
I found this very useful when I first saw it from a colleague. Her message was, "Be nice for no reason." And I was nice. That was a good reminder that we are people, and we need to have a certain level of positivity in our work lives.
*Could you please try this and see how the tone of the communication changes? *
If you are not using this specific software, I am sure the one that you use supports a similar mode as well.
Friday - the feedback day.
Encouraging people to give their best for our joint success works if it's honest.
If you are working remotely and never see the people f2f as I do, here is a trick that could help you and your team to be positive.
- You can book yourself a 15-minute slot each Friday.
- When the time comes, reflect on who did something exceptional this week.
- Write them a short e-mail stating their achievement.
- If appropriate, CC their manager.
Here is an example I sent out, which is a case sent to their manager, and the person is in the CC. That works in some cases as well.
Dxxx, I hope you have had a wonderful day so far. I just wanted to spend 30 seconds to say how I greatly appreciate all the support I receive from Vxxx. Looking at the interactions with his team, he is a great manager and a catalyst of change, which helps my work. I also hear good feedback from my peers, and I am so happy we work together.
Kudos one more time!
"Stand Up And Shout"
As usual, my last section is about metal and how the great masters of this music coach us through their songs on how to be better people and better at what we do.
You, as a TPM, are the most robust chain in most cases. You are the glue that holds the program together, and this is what your job description is.
For the rest, I will let Ronnie James Dio tell you this:
You are the strongest chain
And not just some reflection
So never hide again
You are the driver
You own the road
You are the fire, go on, explode
Homework for you :)
Friday is approaching; why don't you try the feedback hack and let me know how it went?
Kudos
Thanks go to the two people who discovered my mentorship link and booked me for a meeting. If you want to talk to me and we can learn from each other, here is the not-so-secret link. 💚
Be nice for no reason!
Bogo
Top comments (5)
I'd like Friday's email. I think this is a great reward for your mates. It is even creating more engagement with the team and creates a rich fellowship culture. Nice to see if people start copying you and rewarding for your work.
I'll start doing it. 😃
Thanks, Jamie. Let me know how it goes!
As a manager I think that every time we post updates for the non-technical team it's important to memorize the following mantra:
"All good things come as a result of teamwork, all bad things come as a result of bad management" (and yes, that manager is me!).
It can be a hard rule to follow sometimes, but it definitely improves the tech team's output in the long run 💪
If you have any other hacks, please share them with me! I am here to learn from you!
Today's Friday :) So a gentle reminder to do something nice for your colleagues!