Engineering a Team Using Communication and Continuous Learning
Engineering a Team Using Communication and Continuous Learning
Building successful engineering teams begins with ensuring members have no fear of taking a risk or sharing an idea. Other factors include communication and continuous learning.
Since 2012, Google’s Project Aristotle has been an ongoing effort to determine the key factors that make a successful team. Google, like other organizations, understands that investing and taking time to assess the best characteristics of teams and team players is an endeavor that reaps rewards and pays future dividends.
A key finding of Project Aristotle was team members relinquishing fear of risk-taking and idea sharing. “If members are able to take risks, be vulnerable, and share ideas without anxiety about rejection, ridicule, and the like, they are psychologically safe,” according to the project’s findings. “Fear is a powerful motivator, and it can motivate people to hold back opinions and ideas that may actually be beneficial and good.”
The Google project also found that personality and individual skill sets are less important than how the team communicates, interacts, and develops. Dependability is one of the main factors that contributed to a professional team’s success, and that a culture of trust, respect, and openness is important, as well as letting everyone have a turn to speak.
Ant Liang is the CEO of Promax and a certified mechanical design engineer with over two decades of experience in leading strategic growth and innovation.
Promax is an international manufacturer that specializes in the design, production, and distribution of pogo pins, connectors, test probes, and precision sockets used in electrical and electronic applications. Such products support the latest in wearable technology, mobile communications, digital cameras, automotive solutions, and medical devices.
Liang explained that team building in engineering is crucial for innovation and success and helps bring about key attributes and characteristics of an effective engineer and, consequently, a very effective team. Similar to the Google findings, he emphasized effective communication but also included the importance of celebrating victories, job success, aligning goals, and fostering an environment of continual learning.
Liang noted that it’s important to foster a diverse set of skills across the team to be effective in finding solutions and design results that are important to innovation.
“In my experience, a team with varied skill sets fosters creativity and problem-solving,” Liang said. “Mixing veterans with fresh graduates can spark innovative ideas and solutions.”
He further explained that a key attribute of effective team members and teams is to have well-defined goals and objectives that are aligned. “Clearly defining the team’s objectives aligns everyone on the same path,” he said. “I ensure every team member knows their role in achieving our company’s mission.”
Liang emphasized the importance of communication skills—effectively communicating with each other, the team, and leadership. “Regular meetings and an open-door policy have proven effective in maintaining transparency and trust within our teams,” Liang said.
Building certain attributes such as goal setting and communication skills—both verbal and nonverbal—are paramount, but it’s also necessary to take time out to celebrate successes and failures. “Celebrating victories motivates the team, but equally discussing failures is essential to learn and improve,” he said.
Continuous learning
It is crucial that the team and its members have an ingrained curiosity about them that drives them to always be learning. Leaders should assist the team by providing learning platforms and programs to assist the team in constant education.
According to Liang, “Providing learning platforms helps keep engineers up to date with the latest technologies, which is instrumental in group progression and individual growth.”
The consulting firm McKinsey, in their 2023 article “Go, teams: When teams get healthier, the whole organization benefits” emphasized team building and taking time to discern “fact from fiction” reading the ingredients of effective teams. Great teams are built on experience, expertise, and leadership intuition, the consultants stressed.
“Intuition is often right, but it can also go wrong. We now have data to help tell fact from fiction when it comes to what makes teams work: identifying and prioritizing the behaviors that matter most, understanding team type and context, and putting in the effort to ensure that new behaviors stick,” the article reported. “Armed with this evidence, leaders can scale more healthy teams that raise performance levels and create more value across the organization.”
Jim Romeo is a technology writer in Chesapeake, Va.
A key finding of Project Aristotle was team members relinquishing fear of risk-taking and idea sharing. “If members are able to take risks, be vulnerable, and share ideas without anxiety about rejection, ridicule, and the like, they are psychologically safe,” according to the project’s findings. “Fear is a powerful motivator, and it can motivate people to hold back opinions and ideas that may actually be beneficial and good.”
Key team ingredients
The Google project also found that personality and individual skill sets are less important than how the team communicates, interacts, and develops. Dependability is one of the main factors that contributed to a professional team’s success, and that a culture of trust, respect, and openness is important, as well as letting everyone have a turn to speak.Ant Liang is the CEO of Promax and a certified mechanical design engineer with over two decades of experience in leading strategic growth and innovation.
Promax is an international manufacturer that specializes in the design, production, and distribution of pogo pins, connectors, test probes, and precision sockets used in electrical and electronic applications. Such products support the latest in wearable technology, mobile communications, digital cameras, automotive solutions, and medical devices.
Liang explained that team building in engineering is crucial for innovation and success and helps bring about key attributes and characteristics of an effective engineer and, consequently, a very effective team. Similar to the Google findings, he emphasized effective communication but also included the importance of celebrating victories, job success, aligning goals, and fostering an environment of continual learning.
Varied skill sets
Liang noted that it’s important to foster a diverse set of skills across the team to be effective in finding solutions and design results that are important to innovation. “In my experience, a team with varied skill sets fosters creativity and problem-solving,” Liang said. “Mixing veterans with fresh graduates can spark innovative ideas and solutions.”
He further explained that a key attribute of effective team members and teams is to have well-defined goals and objectives that are aligned. “Clearly defining the team’s objectives aligns everyone on the same path,” he said. “I ensure every team member knows their role in achieving our company’s mission.”
Effect communications
Liang emphasized the importance of communication skills—effectively communicating with each other, the team, and leadership. “Regular meetings and an open-door policy have proven effective in maintaining transparency and trust within our teams,” Liang said.
Building certain attributes such as goal setting and communication skills—both verbal and nonverbal—are paramount, but it’s also necessary to take time out to celebrate successes and failures. “Celebrating victories motivates the team, but equally discussing failures is essential to learn and improve,” he said.
Continuous learning
It is crucial that the team and its members have an ingrained curiosity about them that drives them to always be learning. Leaders should assist the team by providing learning platforms and programs to assist the team in constant education.
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The consulting firm McKinsey, in their 2023 article “Go, teams: When teams get healthier, the whole organization benefits” emphasized team building and taking time to discern “fact from fiction” reading the ingredients of effective teams. Great teams are built on experience, expertise, and leadership intuition, the consultants stressed.
“Intuition is often right, but it can also go wrong. We now have data to help tell fact from fiction when it comes to what makes teams work: identifying and prioritizing the behaviors that matter most, understanding team type and context, and putting in the effort to ensure that new behaviors stick,” the article reported. “Armed with this evidence, leaders can scale more healthy teams that raise performance levels and create more value across the organization.”
Jim Romeo is a technology writer in Chesapeake, Va.
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