A project can use up many different kinds of resources. Depending on what kind of project it is that you're managing, you might be using any number of different kinds of raw materials, existing products or machinery. It could require the decisions or actions of third parties beyond your control. Almost certainly, it'll have money as a vital resource. Invariably, it will be dependent upon time. Many of these will be connected to one another - more time means spending more money, money can impact on the availability and suitability of materials, and so on. But there's one resource which arcs over all of these, without which all the other factors are irrelevant and useless.

People. Without a team to make it all happen, no part of the project gets moving. And the effectiveness of the team can make all the difference; problems with the team can easily turn into a slipping schedule, waste in the budget, shoddy work, or disagreement with third parties. This being the case, we can all see that it's absolutely critical that the team that embarks on the project with us.

Yet it's surprisingly common to find work being done by a team that either isn't entirely suited to the job in hand, or that simply can't work together at all. This may be because of a lack of awareness about how best to build a team, or a lack of will to ensure that the team is built in the best possible way - but whatever the cause, it's a problem that needs to be addressed if the project is going to run smoothly and efficiently, and bring all the intended benefits to the organisation.

Skills

If you want new windows fitted in your home, you bring in a professional window fitter; if your car breaks down, you hire a mechanic. It stands to reason that when a job needs to be done, it's best to work with those who have the skills to do the job well. When it comes to putting together a team for your project, it's essential to identify just what work will need to be done, and what skills each task will require - and you should also be aware of who could be available to be brought into your team, and what skills they have themselves. Pairing off skilled individuals to skills needed before the project gets underway - and making sure that everyone knows just what's expected of them - helps to ensure that tasks are completed as effectively and efficiently as possible right from the word go.

Cooperation

If there's one predominant cause for skill allocation not being a priority in forming a team, it would be the tendency to favour certain individuals ahead of others. Choosing someone because of a pre-existing relationship - we're friends, we've worked together often before, I owe them, they're well-liked by senior management - rather than because of what they can contribute is a natural enough reaction; indeed, if we have a long-standing friendship with a colleague we may unwittingly exaggerate their skills in comparison with another who we're not as close to. Bearing this in mind, it's important to detach ourselves from the situation as far as we can, and make an impartial judgement on just how able an individual is, regardless of how well we get on with them.

Yet that's not to say that issues of relationships and personalities aren't at all relevant. Your project won't get anywhere without teamwork, so your team has to be able to work together. The project as a whole shouldn't revolve around whether A gets on with B, but it's nonetheless essential to be aware of potential clashes or past problems - it's no use having a team member with just the right skills if their discomfort with certain colleagues means they aren't able to put those skills to use. The better you know the staff around you - not just your friends and long-term colleagues - the easier it'll be to build a team that feels able to work together.

Bringing everyone on board

Finding just the right mix of individuals to make your project team is critical if the project is going to prove successful, both in terms of its end result and also of the need to stay under budget and within schedule. Understanding your team, who they are and how they'll relate to one another, gives you the power to allocate tasks that make the most of individual abilities, but also to counter one person's weaknesses with another's strengths.

On the other hand, however, a poorly assembled team can create problems for any project, or potentially even ruin it entirely; given the importance of having your project carried through by the best possible team, it's certainly worth considering a short training course in project management skills and issues so you can always have the best team in place from the beginning. And with the best team, you can have confidence in a project that will only spell success for your organisation.