What steps must a team leader take to motivate the team?
A team leader should:
1. Encourage the team to reach the target.
2. Inspire them to work as a team and teach them, 1 + 1 = 3 (synergey).
3. Appreciate the team as an when the days targets are met.
4. Give few inspiratinal quotes on a daily basis when team meeting is held.
5. Tell the team that our team is second to none and we shall not take help from other team, but we will help them when requested.
How do you evaluate your team member performance and what are the parameters you are going to take in this scenario? (server or network or desktop or storage team member)
In this case I would see the following things
1) Output of task assigned to team member
2) Communication skills
3) Self initiative or not
4) Flexibility
5) Technical skills
6) Responsibility
How will you control attrition when you are a team lead?
Having a good understanding with the team members and good Rapport will do...
As per my understanding periodic counseling with individual team members, can help to reduce the attrition and keep the resources bound to the organization.
1. Understand the pulse of the resource, any intention of job change.
2. Find out their requirements and explain how organization can help them.
3. Explain the future plans on the resource.
4. How much he/she is involved in the current role, how best they can contribute.
What are the Core skills needed for Team Lead?
Good technical skills
Supportive
Approachable
Offers advice
Praises a job well done
A team leader should possess calmness with right attitude maintain friendship rather than being bossy with his/her team members. He should make a practice to record for himself about the team performance so that during performance appraisal he will be at ease to express and portray his team in better way.
An executive in the team is absconding for 10 days and did not inform his team leader. He text his leader on 11th day that he is unwell but when TL tried calling him back, he did not respond. After 1 week, he came back to office with a medical certificate. How should the TL handle this situation?
Its the primary concern for any peer to inform TL about his whereabouts. In this scenario, TL first would need to cross verify the employee with his Manager. According to the company Absenteeism Policy the executive details would go to ABSCONDING already.
Hence with proper One-on-One with HR and Reporting Manager, the genuinity of the scenario with executive would be judged and he again would be referred his employment for Start from the Scratch. He cannot be allowed to direct productive team as he has not informed and he would lack the process updates. This would be the best suggestion.
Why Are You Leaving Your Job?
I am interested in a job with more responsibility, and I am very ready for a new challenge.
I am interested in a new challenge and an opportunity to use my technical skills and experience in a different capacity than I have in the past.
What Can You Contribute to the Company?
I can contribute my organizational skills and my ability to work well in a group.
I have the experience, contacts, and knowledge to contribute to the rapid growth of this business.
How Will Your Greatest Strength Help You Perform?
I am a quick learner. I have great problem-solving skills and am willing to learn new things to get the job done
One of my biggest strengths is my communication skills, I always communicate well with others:
I always maintain good communication with my team members, manager and client.
I am quick learner and I am flexible to adjust any kind of environment.
What is Your Greatest Weakness?
I tend to argue with wrong decisions
I want so much time to take decisions.
How Do You Handle Stress / Pressure?
If the people I am managing are contributing to my stress level, I discuss options for better handling difficult situations with them.
I'm the kind of person who stays calm under pressure, and handles stress fairly easily
"I evaluate success based on not only my work, but the work of my team. In order for me to be considered successful, the team needs to achieve both our individual and our team goals."
How do you motivate your team members?
I motivate my team members by two things acknowledgement and attention. acknowledgement of the minutest thing gives team member enough motivation for his work being further recognized, while attention gives him enough confidence to put forth his thinking that his suggestions wont go unattented ;)
Recognising their wo
In your team one member is very rude how do you handle this guy?
One to one meeting has done three times, till the guy is very rude, what
is your next step.
Well in such case if you have taken many one to one meetings with that rude guy to make him convince to work property.
Then next step is to talk with him as a friend and try to get the matter because of which he is behaving like this. If you can get the problem that why his behaving like this then there may be a many solutions. If his reason of behaving like this is correct then you can try to resolve the issue according to him.
But the reason you get by the rude guy is not proper or correct then you can explain him the draw backs of his behavior. If it is his tendency to behave like this then you can explain him about his future with this attitude.
And finally if he is not able to understand your language...then warn him once or two and after that just sit with him against the managing team and try to get the solution from management regarding his rude behavior.
How you are going to be a or become a role model of you team?
By your friendly leadership skills.
You can be a role model for your team by following the 4 basic principles i.e :-
Responsible: Be a responsible person. If you say that you will get back to a team member on a particular topic then make sure you do it.
Be Calm: You might have many problems but your team is not responsible for that. So make sure you maintain your calm.
Honesty: No need to stress on this point. You lose your right of leadership once you lose your honest.
Be humble with everyone in the team regardless of their designation/ranks.
Expertise : As a role model first of all he must be expert in his field. It is very necessary because he must be able to resolve the technical issues which cannot be able to solved by his team members.
Supervision : Team leader is responsible for the planning of project and long term out put of the project. He has to think big and broad. He must be able to find out the long term output of the steps he is taking to develop the project.
Hard Work: Team leader must be hard worker. In stress time he must have the dedication toward his work... because if he do hard work then his team will the same.
Friendly: In free time he should be a friend not a team leader. He must be familiar with everyone as a close friend. This attitude helps him to know each and every person in a team closely.
Problem solver: He must be able to solve his team member’s problems weather they are related to work or personal. In a work hi must be a team leader and in free time he must be a close friend.
Good communicator: He must be able to explain his view and ideas in a effective way. Good communication help him to handle client and explain him what hi is exception with us and what he can extra give to him..
What is service quality? How do you improve your team member’s service quality?
Excellent communication on timely manner.
Working according to the SLA
diplomatically handling (never say no)
Service is related to the outcome of a group effort. To provide a good service a complete team needs to work accordingly to get the desired target within time provided by client.
Up to some extent team leader has the responsibility to make a team or to manage a team in such a way that everyone in the team work as a responsible person. If everyone in the team knows his responsibility and fulfills them then automatically the output will be desired and service will be good one.
Team lead must have the one to one correspondence in a team. He must know his team member’s capabilities and behaviors... then only hi can assign the task to them accordingly. Team leader’s main responsibility to achieve the desired target with in deadline without stressing the team members. He has to decide who can in his team perform which task successfully and with responsibility and without having much stress to complete the task. If he can do so then it is sure that he is a good team leader and the service will be up to the mark.
What tactics you apply to develop the leadership skills?
ensure that you are communicating the vision of your management and organization properly to your team at the same time you should understand what your employees want from the organization and try to help them achieve it in a proper method this shows them that they can trust you and that you will look out for them.
Delegate more responsibility to the team.
Be an active listener to problems and suggestions.
Develop professional and personal rapport in the team.
Do not forward the pressure to the subbordinates until you explain to them why such pressure is needed and what is the benefit to the company and themselves..
Gain their confidence on you
1. Never think that x no of people are working under me. they are never under you. instead develop a thinking that those employees are working with me for the same goal.
2. Try not to be biased to any one in team. Act neutral.
3. Active listening.
How do you resolve team conflicts in your team?
Conflict isn't necessarily a bad thing, though. Healthy and constructive conflict is a component of high functioning teams. Conflict arises from differences between people; the same differences that often make diverse teams more effective than those made up of people with similar experience. When people with varying viewpoints, experiences, skills, and opinions are tasked with a project or challenge, the combined effort can far surpass what any group of similar individual could achieve. Team members must be open to these differences and not let them rise into full-blown disputes.
Understanding and appreciating the various viewpoints involved in conflict are key factors in its resolution. These are key skills for all team members to develop. The important thing is to maintain a healthy balance of constructive difference of opinion, and avoid negative conflict that's destructive and disruptive.
Getting to, and maintaining, that balance requires well-developed team skills, particularly the ability to resolve conflict when it does happens, and the ability to keep it healthy and avoid conflict in the day-to-day course of team working.
As a team lead How will you handle a situation where an employee frequently takes unplanned leaves?
I shall talk to the candidate personally 1st and try to understand the problem behind his unplanned leaves. If possible i will suggest him to rectify his problem asap. This would be done for once or twice and if the same is repeating from his end.. then next level of escalations would be taken care…
The main 2 reasons will be
a) That member is not interested in the work that he/she is doing.
b) He/she is not happy with the immediate supervisor.
Best way to solve this is by face to face talk. Always it should be a gain - gain situation for anyone who is working.both the individual and the project should be benefited by the work that he/she is doing.
Another reason can be personal. A good lead should be able to identiy this too. It should be like professional at work and personal friend.
How does a team lead identify performance problems and solve the same among their team members?
Assuming performance problems refers to individual job performance problems ...A successful team lead will have laid out clearly defined objectives for each member of his team and therefore held accountable for reaching those individual goals. Team leads should periodically review the level of effort put forth by each team member. This makes it easier to identify and efficiently rectify performance problems. Periodic feedback to members is crucial in ensuring that any concerns are promptly resolved.
How can a team lead keep the team organized to meet deadlines or goals?
Team members have to be provided access to the bigger picture. This not only assists them in attaining their goals but is also a moral booster when they realize the overall impact of their contribution.- Periodic feedback to members allows them to gauge their progress and mitigate any issues before they go out of control- Nip it in the bud: conflict resolution skills are vital. Organize the team to ensure that sub-teams members respect each other i.e do not have personality conflicts
What are the attributes a team leader must look for while selecting members for their team?
Zeal to learn. As the technologies are changing everyday a person who has a zeal to learn new things will learn it fast
2. Good team player. Person should not have an attitude of his/her knowledge
3. Flexibility
4. Sincerity
5. Honesty
Describe a situation where you had a conflict with another individual, and how you dealt with it. What was the outcome?
The interviewer needs to know about your managerial talents and skills, but also whether you are a realist. No workplace is ever free of conflict, and any type of Utopian response will be seen as slightly delusional.
Sample Response:
I feel it is always best to first address the source of any conflict whenever possible. I believe that a majority of conflicts come as result of misunderstanding and /or mis-communication, and these issues are most quickly cleared-up when working directly with the individual involved. Although I am, by nature, rather non-confrontational, I find that by being direct, open and honest, not only is resolution most quickly achieved, but I feel better for having dealt with the problem. Once, when dealing with an issue regarding personal property, I realized that there was no tip-toeing around the subject. Initially, both I and the other individual were uncomfortable. When I had the opportunity to state my position, and then ask for feedback from the other individual, we realized that we had a common goal... the resolution of the issue. The situation was taken care of, and both us felt as though the solution was mutually beneficial.
Team members do not like you
What will you do if your team members do not like you ?
Not everyone has a same perspective. If a team lead is new to the orginization, he is definately treated with respect. However if a person from same orginization is been promoted, his nature of work, his overall attitiude is already know. To gauge the above question, I would spend quality time with team members asking questions about their work, and other issues related to office and try and build a approachable attitue within team members.
By-Pass the Team Leader
One of the team member trying to by-pass the team leader for becoming team leader? How will you handle him?
The best way to tackle this issue is to counter attack.
Try to bring more innovative solutions to all the problems of your boss.
This would be in the +VE JEALOUSLY category please.No hard feelings for that guy. Don't foget WE WORK & ACHIEVE AS A 1 TEAM.
Some facts: People usually by-pass another only when they think it is ok if I can by-pass him. :) So make sure you make others feel that NO, IT IS NOT SO.
I think if someone is having a talent to become team lead, then you should be more happy. You can train them or teach them what you can do so and allow him to become team lead. Talent is what matters to the company.
Team Management
At a time two high priority (S1) tickets in you bin, only one engineer is available in this situations , what is your solutions for in this situation?
(Here no chance to call other engineer and you are not at all technical guy)
In this case importance to be given to the one which can be resolved in less time. So that you can answer to the superiors and give some confidence that the other will also resolve quickly even though the other will take more time at least you can reduce the stress of alone engineers to concentrate on the other.
Leadership Challenges
What are the challenges you face while leading the team?
- Team attitude problem.
- Different views
- Cultural problems
- They understanding problems and so on...
All these challenges can be handled if we get friendly with them and try to understand their problem.
Unplanned Leaves
As a team lead How will you handle a situation where an employee frequently takes unplanned leaves?
Every company has some leave policy. Usually the person can take 6 or 8 unplanned leave which may either be called as sick leave. The rest of the leaves have to be informed atleast two day before.
In my first meeting with the team, I will inform the group to let me know about your leave a week ahead. usually in those meeting your manager will be present and inform in front of him so that the team member will say ahhh... we will deal with manager at last moments.
The main 2 reasons will be
a) That member is not interested in the work that he/she is doing.
b) He/she is not happy with the immediate supervisor.
Best way to solve this is by face to face talk. Always it should be a gain - gain situation for anyone who is working.both the individual and the project should be benefited by the work that he/she is doing.
Another reason can be personal. A good lead should be able to identiy this too. It should be like professional at work and personal friend.
Leadership Skills Tactics
What tactics you apply to develop the leadership skills?
Actually both the below answers are good but they miss a key point which is to ensure that you are communicating the vision of your management and orginisation properly to your team at the same time you should understand what your employees want from the orginisation and try to help them achieve it in a proper method this shows them that they can trust you and that you will look out for them.
Deligate more responsibility to the team.
Be an active listener to problems and suggestions.
Develope professional and personal rapport in the team.
Do not forward the pressure to the subbordinates until you explain to them why such pressure is needed and what is the benefit to the company and themselves..
Gain their confidence on you
1. Never think that x no of people are working under me. they are never under you. instaed develop a thinking that those employees are working with me for the same goal.
2. Try not to be biased to any one in team. Act neutral.
3. Active listening.
What is RCA (Root Cause Analysis ) when you are going to ask RCA from Your team member? Explain the process?
RCA is problem solving methods aimed at identifying the root causes of problems predicated on the belief that problems are best solved by attempting to correct or eliminate root causes, as opposed to merely addressing the immediate symptoms.
Service Quality
What is service quality? How do you improve your team members service quality?
This is related to the Customer Relation Management the way you handle client.
Excellent communication on timely manner.
Working according to the SLA
Diplomatically handling (never say no)
Critical Issue
Ticket is Severity 1 and it is very critical one, your team members they not able to resolve the issue and you are the least person to solve a problem? How do you resolve the issue?
In case of critical issue if no one in the team can resolve the issue.... then here the role of team leader starts.
As a team lead he first need to understand what the issue is about. If he can able to get the problem then of course he must have several options to resolve problem.
In most cases what happen we cannot understand the problem and working hard to get answer or solution.. which is of course not up to the mark.
In such condition once team lead understand the issue his first responsibility is to explain it to the other related peoples in the team. Instead of finding solution alone there is always beneficial that to take other peoples to get the solution. Everyone has its own knowledge and issue solving techniques. So every one can get the answer in their different ways and solution will find easily.
What are the weakest qualities or attributes a team leader should avoid definitely?
The team lead must avoid these attributes of his/her personality:
He/she always have greater understanding of project they should never ask about the project plan or anything which they are supposed to know because this degrade them in eye of other Team members.
This is basic fact that all leading position doesn't matter he is project manager or team lead are very sensitive there are always other people who want to jump on those positions so be always loaded with extra knowledge, skills and discipline.
During lack of right person in team (let's say QA) the team lead should be able to work instead.
Be critical about your performance before somebody else become.
What are the communication methods you followed within team and to client ?
Within Team: Team meeting,Email,One-on-One meeting,Free talk
To Client: Conf meeting,IM,Email
What is Self-managed team leadership?
Self-managed team leadership is different from traditional leadership and provides an alternative to traditional leader’s role. Self-managed team leaders lead without positional authority. Self-managed team leadership is moving inside one’s subordinate work group to lead. Self-managed team leadership defines a different role for the leader. The leader is not responsible for making decisions, developing action plans or giving orders. In these situations, the team is given the responsibility, authority and accountability for managing a defined area of responsibility. When the work group is given control over one or more defined areas of team responsibility, it is the leader’s role to use self-managed leadership skills and systematic processes to help the team to operate effectively and efficiently.
What steps must a team lead take to focus the skills of team members to higher authorities?
One of the good quality of a leader is to search the leadership qualities in his team, if he find the qualities in one of the team member then it should not be kept within himself but to exposed to other higher authorities, some of the points which he needs to taken care while explaning the qualitites to authorities. The team lead should test the memeber in all situation, all the recognization should be on paper and if the authority ask to prove his talent or give the scenario were he has explicit himself on document, that is the reason that documents are very important.
Explain how you estimate your project / task end dates and then monitor them to ensure that dead lines are met.
Assign the tasks to the team members. Ask then to break the task into sub tasks so that each sub task’s completion time is round a day or two and ask him to estimate the time. Once they have estimated sit with the team members and review the task/ sub tasks time and review the time lines and make adjustments if needed. Once this is done, you can meet every morning for 10-15 minutes to track the tasks/sub tasks. Since the tasks are now granular the tracking of the tasks completion are easy. Even if you are slipping and if there are any bottle necks it is easy to track it very early so that you take appropriate action/decision.
Use bottom up method -- break work in smaller units based on its complexity. then prepare estimate of what is required and how much time it would take and also who would do it.if this estimate is accurate you come to the accurate estimate for the project.based on this then monitor the work and take regular reports for completion of work.Do a PERT analysis and using tools like MS Project keep track of the work to meet dead lines.
What are vital Contingency plans a team lead must take care?
TL should be able to foresee Project loopholes and based on the same should make the contingency plan.
Vital contingency plans are -- resource allocation plan: what if a resource is absent -- who will replace.
in case more time is needed to complete the work -- how to handle the project support contingency risk budget - how much
How can a team lead keep the team organized to meet deadlines or goals?
Team members have to be provided access to the bigger picture. This not only assists them in attaining their goals but is also a moral booster when they realize the overall impact of their contribution.- Periodic feedback to members allows them to gauge their progress and mitigate any issues before they go out of control- Nip it in the bud: conflict resolution skills are vital. Organize the team to ensure that sub-teams members respect each other i.e do not have personality conflicts
1. by having PSR (Project status Review)
2. status call to set goals and sub goals, address issues and monitor the status
3. Equip team to prioritize their task.
4. Sharingpressure in constructive manner.
Team Appraisals :
For team appraisals first the following needs to be done :
clarification of roles and responsibilities
constructive feedback to team members
discovery of unknown and unresolved issues
development of individual training plan
establishment of specific goals for future.
then a feedback as a standard form should be taken from individuals of the team:
recognition and rewards for the desirable behavior, team efforts etc
