Team Management Problem: BOOT Model

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Team Management Problem: BOOT Model

I face a very unique problem in my problem related to team management. It is like this: I am project manager of an e-governance project and working at site location. My present team of only developers is around 18 people and most of them have been told that after 3-4 months they will be sent back to our Head Office i.e. Delhi, but the project is a BOOT model which will run for 10 years. Now all them are asking me to take action and I cannot do it till the implementation is over. Suggest. It is a common thinking that company is not treating them well? What should I do?

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		4 Gerhard Krude CEO, Germany
	Team Management Problem Well, I'm leading teams now for something like 15 years - very international and very interesting ones to say the least... The only way to stay credible in front of your guys and your management is that you find your own position in this 'dilemma'. I could tell you what I think about your 'problem' but it wouldn't help - cause I'm not you! And whatever it is you have to say, it should be something from you - or at least something you can sell as it would be you. Having an altitude and go for it this is what leadership is all about. All the best, Gerhard.

		3 Tuiasosopo Saufaiga Cecilia, American Samoa
	Team Management Problem I am not quite sure what a BOOT model is exactly but the comment is strictly towards the request from the developers... I strongly agree with Gerhard Krude. You need to take a stand and say what you believe in your heart. You were picked to lead for a reason and I believe it is in your heart what you need to do, it is there - you just need to listen. If it were me, I would have gathered my team, recognise their concern, suggest what can be done from your stand point, then pursue your actions. Find out who you know will listen to your concerns and issues and at the same time provide backup information on the performance level of your team. I went through a similar situation, but only with four team members and at the time we were slowly gaining the numbers that will and can be used in our data report. The more accomplishments, the more the team work is recognized, and the more recognition, the better the turnouts can become. Take care and good luck.

		2 Prabhavathi A Coach, India
	Suggestion to Problem The team pretty well might know that the project is in booting process and needs their cooperation and time. One suggestion is to make them aware in a positive way. The second thing would be make the place interesting to stay. They want to go back as they miss the city life and family. This need to be compensated with parties [ weekend of course] or in-office challenges or something like that. After all it is not work always.

		4 Jagdish B Acharya Consultant, India
	Have Different Specialized Teams in Stages of BOOT Model BOOT has four distinct phases: Build - Own - Operate - Transfer. It is during the Build phase that you need develpers who work on requirements and develop a system which optimally takes all inputs and gives a robust system. During the Own phase and Operate phase you need to have local teams which have interest in keeping the project successful and beneficial to local population. They will be motivated persons and would not be interested in going back. In the Transfer phase it is essential to have a local team which has long term interest in succes of the project. If as per your estimation the build phase requires longer, please share the same with team and motivate them to do so with dedication.

		2 Krishna, India
	Process or People Dependent BOOT Process? It would be interesting to know if the project setup has been done on people basis or process basis. I would take this as process basis, which leaves less dependency on an individual. This is where I would connect Mr. Jagdish's definition - in the build phase you would need the current set of developers - and move on to having local ones as project moves from one phase to the next. But this can succeed only in cases where entire project is run on defined process (like in CMMI) and well documented so that your person specific dependency is minimized. Other supporting activities could include HR team building activities, get togethers, motivational game playing and the like. But the one that I have seen makes the maximum impact is to engage them in a part time personal value enhancement program. When a person sees a WIIFME (What's In It For ME), (s)he tends to give enhanced productivity. All the best.

		1 Tina, United States
	WIIFME (What's in it for ME) WIIFME is a valuable tool applicable to various situations. Once one understands how their contribution provides a return or benefit to them individually, as well as to the team, he/she is more apt to engage. Sometimes we have to walk others through that thought process of identifying WIIFME. Its your responsibility as a leader and once your team does engage celebrating smaller successes and having fun are critical to ongoing success. Editor: also consider Expectancy Theory as a more in-depth, scientific method to backup WIIFME.

		0 Philippe Guenet Coach, United Kingdom
	Separation of Issues The first question is what makes business sense. You seem to be a software development project manager, will the value creation to the customers be at risk with this transfer? From a project outcome perspective, this is all that matters. This is all the stakeholders will really care about too. Now, in this risk, the potential exodus of people that are annoyed and decide to jump ship is indeed part of the decision, and you need to find out how this gets addressed. You should also place this consideration with the team and set the clear context that it is not about what they individually want, but what makes sense for the business. They need to uphold a level of professionalism here. How about asking them to justify with business arguments what justifies the work to continue happening where it is, and how they are justifying the additional value-add compared to additional costs. If they cannot articulate it, I am afraid that it will not add up. But you never know, they may have some valid points that will allow you to learn some perspectives in the process.

		2 Jaap de Jonge Editor, Netherlands
	What is a Boot Contract? The BOOT Model Here's some more info about the BOOT model… The BOOT Model (Build, Own, Operate, Transfer) is a public-private partnership (PPP) project financing model and development contract. In this contract, a private organization conducts a (typically large) development project under contract to a public-sector partner (e.g., a government agency). A BOOT project is regarded as a way to develop a large public project with private funding. How the BOOT project model works: The public-sector partner contracts with some private developer - typically a large corporation or consortium of businesses with specific expertise - to design and implement a large ICT (e.g., a mobile network or some software platform) or construction (e.g., a bridge or tunnel) project. The public-sector partner may provide limited funding or other benefits (such as a tax exempt status) but the private-sector partner assumes the risks associated with planning, constructing, operating and maintaining the project for a specified time period. During that time, the developer may also charge customers who use the system or infrastructure that's being built to realize a profit. At the end of the specified concession period, the private-sector partner transfers the ownership asset to the funding organization for the amount stipulated in the original contract which can be little or even zero. BOOT contracts are typically long-term and may extend to 40 or more years. BOOT is also referred to as BOT (Build, Own, Transfer). Variations on the BOOT model are BOO (Build, Own, Operate), BLT (Build, Lease, Transfer) and BLOT (Build, Lease, Operate, Transfer). The idea behind them is all the same. Source: Techtaget.