To micromanage or not to micromanage: that is not the question. Rather you should ask yourself how each member of your project needs to be managed.  And to answer that question, you need to be very aware of the strengths, weaknesses, and personalities of each member of your team.

Some people need the constant attention and are only effective when they are micromanaged. They need the daily check in with the positive (or negative) reinforcement that comes with that. Their ability to focus requires they feel aligned with you and know that they are on track with the project. They need to feel that you care about what they are doing. Are you engaged with them, with their success on the project? Regular reinforcement that you are giving will keep them motivated and driven to accomplish the tasks you have set for them.

Other people are driven by independent accomplishment and do not want to see you on a regular basis. They prefer to be heads down, digging into a project and getting things done. If you stop by their desk for a check in, they assume you don’t trust their ability to get the project done. In effect, they feel their competence, work ethic, or commitment to the team is in question. In some cases, they may shut down if you provide what they perceive as too much oversight. Some people will even quit the project – or the company.

The danger for you as a project manager is that if you get it wrong – you may have a project going off the rails. Did someone need more attention than you provided? They may be way behind. Did someone find your daily chats irritating but refused to confront you about it? You might lose that key person from your team! This is why it is essential from the very beginning of the relationship to invest your political and personal capital in your team members. Find out what kind of management style they prefer and need. And align yourself to that.

When you are in the medical device space, there is a level of competence and intelligence that you expect from every member of your team. The fact that your team has the ability to design, manufacture, and put a product through FDA testing means they are above average intelligence and capability.

With that said, we also know there are some people who excel even among this rarified air. These are people who are smarter and more clever than the rest of us. They see through to a solution immediately while the rest of us have to work through problems and conundrums to achieve a solution.

When it comes to project management, caution is advised with superstars. Working on a project is a team effort; not one shining star with a supporting cast. Any exceptional talent who works on a team must be able to play well with others, be held to the same standards as each member of the team, and be willing, and even eager, to have their solutions challenged.

Some superstars do not play well with others. And it can be dangerous to have them on your project. You might think you can’t live without them, that they are too important. Their genius tempts you to think they are the only one who knows – or has the capacity to learn certain technical details. Worse yet, perhaps the superstar is favored by management.

Superstars can be solid contributors or they can be a cancer. And if you have a superstar who does not play well with others you must get rid of them immediately. Do not put it off as it can destroy your team and derail your project.  It may be one of the hardest decisions you’ll make, and there will no doubt be consequences…  but it’s the best plan.

We all know that person who thinks everything will be smooth sailing and there won’t be any problems on a project. The great thing about these team members is that they are positive about the project and bring an upbeat energy. However, balancing a team out with people who recognize there will be hurdles and obstacles to overcome is useful. These realists should help hold the team accountable.

As a project manager, you need to identify which team members are optimistic and pessimistic. If someone is predicting things will be done very quickly and with low stress, challenge their assertions. One method? Dive into the details and learn about the assumptions together.

Further, the whole team should have buy in.  To accomplish this, the team has to build the plan, link the tasks, and identify the timelines for what needs to be delivered and when it needs to be delivered. The completion of the whole project depends on each member of the team delivering their part on time and on budget. Intimate knowledge of those interdependencies will help motivate the team with both positive energy and accountability. Regular review of these schedules with the team will both keep the optimists grounded and the project on track.

As the project manager it is vital you know each member of the team, their demeanor for the project, their history with other projects, and what issues they might have with scheduling. Factor that information into your project plan. You also need to know yourself. Are you too optimistic? What is your own history? If you have a history of being too optimistic, be intentional about inserting slack time into the project so that you will hit deadlines and achieve goals.

Finally, with almost every project, the end of the project is a challenge for both the optimists and realists…  With your entire team, build enough interpersonal capital in the first two thirds of a project so that when crunch time comes, they know you have their back. And they will have yours. Then the optimists will be right…  the project will go well.