PREW4: Mission Possible – Partnering to Unlock the Full Potential of Project Teams

Presentation Description: While successful project delivery requires technical expertise, the technical solutions are the ‘easy’ button in comparison to the soft skills required to navigate people and personalities throughout project delivery. Through partnering, leaders can unlock the full potential of team communication, cultivating a team vested in both relationship and results, which address unproductive team dynamics head on. Key takeaways from this workshop include:

• Three factors that determine the success of partnering.
• Effective ways to conduct partnering and chartering sessions.
• Signs that communication is breaking down within the team.
• How to professionally engage in difficult conversations with your team and instill trust and transparency throughout.

Lack of communication is the root cause of inefficiencies, and the current virtual-hybrid environment adds layers of complexity to our ability to develop high performing teams. This presentation offers an approach to returning to mindful communication by aligning people towards a common goal (Chartering), creating clear expectations with trust at the core (Operating Principles), and leaning into the tension that is bound to arise between individuals (Leadership and Accountability).

This workshop will engage attendees in a mock chartering session providing attendees with firsthand experience in this setting. The workshop will include exercises that help push participants to trust, open-up and express professional vulnerabilities while connecting to ‘why’ this is important and helpful in improving team dynamics. And finally, the workshop will provide lessons learned that confirm the importance of leadership in the successful implementation of the Operating Principles.

Continuous leadership is paramount in the successful implementation of a partnering program and a key component to project delivery. Workshop participants will hear from Orange County Sanitation District and Brown and Caldwell project partners, including the partnering facilitator, regarding the challenges and successful outcomes resulting from elevating partnering as a key component of successful project delivery. This workshop will be valuable to those leading or participating in project teams seeking to successfully deliver a project.