Close the Gratitude Gap on Your IT Project Team
Think about the past twelve months on your projects. Somewhere, a stakeholder showed up to every review and actually read the materials. How many of those people heard a specific thank-you from you?
November has a way of slowing people down, at least for a day or two. Thanksgiving gives most of us a reason to look back at the year and think about who helped us get through it. For IT project leaders, that list is usually long.
Think about the past twelve months on your projects. There was probably a business analyst who caught a requirement gap before it turned into rework. Maybe a developer stayed late to get a release out, or a contractor stepped in mid-project and got up to speed in a week. Somewhere, a stakeholder showed up to every review and actually read the materials.
How many of those people heard a specific thank-you from you?
The gap is bigger than most leaders think
Many managers believe they say thanks often enough. Their teams tend to see it differently. Gallup found that about 59% of managers think they do a good job recognizing their team’s work, while only 35% of individual contributors agree. The same research found that just 12% of employees have ever been asked how they like to be recognized.
That gap has real costs. In a survey of 2,500 employees across eight countries, Achievers found that only 25% feel genuinely appreciated at work, and those who do are 2.5 times more likely to stay with their company. On a project team, losing one experienced person in the middle of a delivery can set the schedule back weeks.
Make the thanks specific
A general “great job, everyone” at the end of a status call is fine, but people forget it by lunch. What sticks is a thank-you that names the work. “Your test plan for the payment integration caught two defects we would have shipped” tells someone you noticed what they did and why it mattered.
Specific thanks also costs nothing, and it takes about two minutes to write. Send it the same day if you can. Gratitude that arrives three weeks later feels more like a formality.
Look beyond your direct reports
Projects depend on people who never show up on your org chart. Vendor partners, contract staff, help desk teams and end users who sat through UAT all played a part. A short note to a contractor’s manager, or a mention of a vendor’s project lead in the closeout report, goes a long way. It also makes those people more willing to help the next time you need them.
Don’t forget your sponsors either. Executives rarely get thanked for clearing a roadblock or defending a budget in a tough meeting. A quick message telling them what that support made possible strengthens the relationship for your next project.
Ask how people want to be recognized
Some people love a public shout-out in the team channel. Others would much rather get a private message or a word with their manager. Since so few employees are ever asked, simply asking puts you ahead. Add the question to your next one-on-ones and write down the answers.
Build it into how projects run
Gratitude works best as a regular habit. A few project leaders we know add a short “thanks” section to every sprint review. Others make recognition a standing part of project closeout, right next to lessons learned. However you do it, the goal is to make thanking people part of the work, so it doesn’t depend on remembering.
For project managers and business analysts reading this, the same idea applies upward and sideways. Thank the peer who covered your meetings during a crunch, or the manager who went to bat for your promotion. Those relationships carry careers.
All of us at PMO Partners are grateful for the hiring managers who trust us with their open roles, and for the IT project managers and business analysts who let us be part of their career moves. Happy Thanksgiving. Whenever you’re ready to talk about your team or your next role, we’re here.
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