The brief we were given was a campaign about legal high’s and its effect while driving within this we had to show links to the Lincolnshire police, Lincolnshire county council, Lincolnshire primary health care trust and the Lincolnshire fire service. When we first got this pitch, it seemed a little intimidating as it was such a big issue with a very specific criterion. Clients get in touch when they want something, they want to launch something, and they have to communicate too many different audiences. Public relations teams are often asked to anticipate issues or to sort out a crisis or to improve public relations on the web.
Timing is extremely important and as a team it should be kept; you need to think about how long things take to do? Do you need to order materials? If so how long do you need to wait for delivery? Are there any projects that coincide? If so can you fit both in? As a team our group took time into consideration because it was important that we had enough time to make our pitch stand out and ensure that we have a good enough knowledge of the pitch and legal highs so that if any questions arise we would not feel under pressure.
When working with a client you should agree the target audience and communication channel, you should know the message prior to talking to the media. We learnt that we should always practice the pitch so that when it comes to presenting, you do not get caught off guard. Within the world of public relations you should always keep researching as there is always something changing. Some examples of this are; email communication instead of faxes, blogs are especially useful these days as it is a form of diary and can show the client how you are getting on, a blog is also an excellent way of gathering information. When gathering information to use in our pitch we looked towards social networking sites such as facebook, myspace and twitter, this was very useful as it helped us to find that legal highs were not as well known as illegal highs, but they were very up and coming.
The way a team is managed reflects upon the reputation of the service it provides, when managing a project you should treat the client as you would like them to treat you, always work to time and within budget, but it is worth nothing unless it is to a high standard. When working on a project you should not let enthusiasm drop or lose objectivity. Always make sure that you manage to keep your focus on delivering great consultancy and great results as if you lose focus for a short while, it can seriously affect the client relationship. It is important that when a crisis could emerge to nip it in the bus as soon as possible. When talking to the client about the issue the team should be upfront and offer solutions rather than just leaving them with a problem to solve. Although you should always stand your ground when it is important, because a wrong decision could look bad on you and your team. Clients are important as they are our business and if you manage to keep them happy then they will invest with you and it will save your team time looking for new business. It is also important to maintain a strong relationship as if a problem arises they will be more forgiving. When trying to make sure that you will be picked by the client do your homework, so you don’t become unstuck when asked questions, always make sure you do as much as possible to make sure you stand out from the crowd as a client will buy the team not the paperwork they read. Always show your enthusiasm and passion for the brief.
Thursday, 11 February 2010
so ... teamwork
To begin with I would like to explain what this blog is all about. It is describing the best way to work as part of a team. It is about the relationships and skills I developed while involved in teamwork. This blog is about creating a “dream team” and the roles that are needed. The task that was set was part of my “managing pr” module. We had to build a team within our group to respond to a brief we had presented to us by another group. We also had to create our brief to present; this helped us to imagine what it is like to be a client. So this blog is about my personal experience as a member of the team.
A definition of the teamwork is: a joint action between two or more people, in which each person contributes a different skill and expresses their own individual opinion. This does not mean the individual is not important, however, it does mean that teamwork can go beyond individual accomplishments. The most effective teamwork is produced when all individuals involved harmonize their contributions and work towards a common goal. On the bhaim website it is said that there are seven essential skills when working within a team. These are listening, questioning, persuading, respecting, helping, sharing and participating.
On the tips4teamwork website they also have seven skills these are listening; it states that the time to listen happens twice as often as the time to talk. It is often found that we are too busy thinking about what we want to say rather than really listening to other people opinions and ideas. Sacrifice; the team has to evaluate what they really are willing to sacrifice. For example: time, resources or the position of power. Sharing; every member of the team has to be willing to share the information the research, even it makes somebody else look good. Communication; everyone who is part of the team must be willing to communicate effectively what is going well and what is going not so well with the project. Language; it is important to keep your tone uplifting because if some members speak with a more dominating tone then it make rivalry within the team. Hard work; as an individual you have to work hard but then you also need to be able to hand the information over to the group to achieve the overall goal. Your hard work cannot stop at the individual you have to carry on as part of the team. Persuade; every member of a team should be encouraged, defend and re think their ideas, to make a plan which will be best for the team and the client.
On the happy manager website it describes Bruce Tuckmans (1965) theory “team stages model” Tuckman suggests that teams grow through stages from their creation as groups of individuals, to task focussed teams. He discovered phases while he was observing small groups of people; he also read 50 articles to help his research. There are 4 phases as the diagram shows. Forming; this is the initial stage of team development during which the team has not yet gelled together. Everybody is finding their place in the team, sizing each other up and asking why they are here. Storming; this is where members of the team see themselves as part of the team. However, they may challenge each other about such things as what the team is doing and how things should be done. Conflict and confrontation is typical at this stage, hence there is often a loss of performance. Norming; this is where the team members come together and the developing processes begin, often ground rules are established and the group clarifies who does what and how things will be done at this stage. Performing; this is the final stage this is where focus is increased on both the task and team relationships. This is mainly where the best work is done as the team works efficiently together.
We began by getting into teams, which is not my strongest skill, I find that I work best individually but this experience has brought me many skills to help build up my ability to work as part as team. We were told that we were to create a brief for another group, then to receive a brief ourselves for which we were to create a pitch to present to the group. Our team decided to have meetings every week at a certain time and place. This worked well for our group, as it made it easy to make sure that everyone knew where and when we were meeting. When we were discussing the brief, we found that we all had similar ideas, as we all wanted to give the group a brief which would give the group the ability to be imaginative and creative in their pitch to us. We decided to include who we were and what we did in the brief more, so they knew who we were and what we wanted briefly rather than being too specific. We also decided not to give a budget as it would restrict the other group, so we were really rather nice to the group. As we were completing this it was clear that some of the group were naturally good at leading. But luckily there was no conflict and we all seemed to work well as a team together.
A definition of the teamwork is: a joint action between two or more people, in which each person contributes a different skill and expresses their own individual opinion. This does not mean the individual is not important, however, it does mean that teamwork can go beyond individual accomplishments. The most effective teamwork is produced when all individuals involved harmonize their contributions and work towards a common goal. On the bhaim website it is said that there are seven essential skills when working within a team. These are listening, questioning, persuading, respecting, helping, sharing and participating.
On the tips4teamwork website they also have seven skills these are listening; it states that the time to listen happens twice as often as the time to talk. It is often found that we are too busy thinking about what we want to say rather than really listening to other people opinions and ideas. Sacrifice; the team has to evaluate what they really are willing to sacrifice. For example: time, resources or the position of power. Sharing; every member of the team has to be willing to share the information the research, even it makes somebody else look good. Communication; everyone who is part of the team must be willing to communicate effectively what is going well and what is going not so well with the project. Language; it is important to keep your tone uplifting because if some members speak with a more dominating tone then it make rivalry within the team. Hard work; as an individual you have to work hard but then you also need to be able to hand the information over to the group to achieve the overall goal. Your hard work cannot stop at the individual you have to carry on as part of the team. Persuade; every member of a team should be encouraged, defend and re think their ideas, to make a plan which will be best for the team and the client.
On the happy manager website it describes Bruce Tuckmans (1965) theory “team stages model” Tuckman suggests that teams grow through stages from their creation as groups of individuals, to task focussed teams. He discovered phases while he was observing small groups of people; he also read 50 articles to help his research. There are 4 phases as the diagram shows. Forming; this is the initial stage of team development during which the team has not yet gelled together. Everybody is finding their place in the team, sizing each other up and asking why they are here. Storming; this is where members of the team see themselves as part of the team. However, they may challenge each other about such things as what the team is doing and how things should be done. Conflict and confrontation is typical at this stage, hence there is often a loss of performance. Norming; this is where the team members come together and the developing processes begin, often ground rules are established and the group clarifies who does what and how things will be done at this stage. Performing; this is the final stage this is where focus is increased on both the task and team relationships. This is mainly where the best work is done as the team works efficiently together.
We began by getting into teams, which is not my strongest skill, I find that I work best individually but this experience has brought me many skills to help build up my ability to work as part as team. We were told that we were to create a brief for another group, then to receive a brief ourselves for which we were to create a pitch to present to the group. Our team decided to have meetings every week at a certain time and place. This worked well for our group, as it made it easy to make sure that everyone knew where and when we were meeting. When we were discussing the brief, we found that we all had similar ideas, as we all wanted to give the group a brief which would give the group the ability to be imaginative and creative in their pitch to us. We decided to include who we were and what we did in the brief more, so they knew who we were and what we wanted briefly rather than being too specific. We also decided not to give a budget as it would restrict the other group, so we were really rather nice to the group. As we were completing this it was clear that some of the group were naturally good at leading. But luckily there was no conflict and we all seemed to work well as a team together.
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