In Titansoft, learning something new is pretty much the norm and very recently, I have taken up the role of the Team Coordinator for our HR team. This particular role contains plenty of learning! In essence, one should be prepared (especially the HR team as we rotate this role monthly).

What does it take to be a Team Coordinator?

Before any of us fully take on the role of a Team Coordinator, it is essential for the team to define the expectations of such a role as well as how the team can commit to assisting the team coordinator in accomplishing team goals. We had a brainstorming session and came up with the following expectations of a Team Coordinator and I would like to share some of our findings with you.

Members’ Expectations of the Team Coordinator

1. Be clear on task requirements
2. Provide timely communication to both the team as well as the management
3. Be on the ball (not literally of course, but updated on project statuses)

Team Coordinator’s Expectations on Members

1. On time work delivery
2. Good work quality (We measure by number of revisions)
3. Possess a pro-active and positive attitude

While this may sound rather straightforward, it is not always easy to pull it off. The sheer amount of projects to keep track of is staggering and it took nearly a week to ensure that 90% of all projects are covered with each of their statuses tracked. Furthermore, as a newly minted Team Coordinator, we still have our own individual projects to execute, which adds to the amount of work to complete.

The Team Coordinator Role

The role of the team coordinator is actually not as bad as I made it to sound. It is much worse..

(Ok, kidding. It’s alright.)

As the Team Coordinator, the first thing to do was to understand what is going on in each member’s projects, the current status, the current action plan, the next step, the next action to take, the milestones and the objective (which should really be top of this list). I set out to create a simple map detailing all of these ongoing projects (and annoying my co-workers as well with my incessant questioning on their projects).

Aside from being on the ball, additional duties include compiling and providing the team’s monthly report to our Manager, attending more meetings than usual and poking my nose into everyone’s projects. It can be fulfilling however, knowing that things are progressing. There are probably more things to do as a Team Coordinator and for some reason, I cannot think of them at the moment, but those will do… I hope.

My Takeaway as a Team Coordinator

Be Organized

As the team coordinator, the very first thing I had to do was organize my files. Both electronic and physical ones. Here is why.

My co-workers would probably know that I am one of those who function very well under ‘organized chaos’ (since they enjoy packing my table each time I’m away for an extended period of time). As the Team Coordinator, I have to be able to fish out information fast and organized chaos just won’t cut it anymore. One has to omit chaos and simply be organized, well more organized (it’s subjective).

Be Pro-Active

The next thing I learned is to actually become more pro-active. I strongly believe in leading by example and while this is not exactly a leadership position, this is something I would expect of my Team Coordinator as a team member. Personal beliefs I suppose, but it definitely helps as I am able to point out more issues and also understand more of my abilities when under critique.

Communication is King

Once again the term ‘communication’ appears. Yes, it may seem obvious, but everyone should be comfortable enough with one another to share their thoughts and concerns. This eliminates doubt and misconceptions and is the key foundation in teamwork as well as in relationships (but that’s a story for another post).

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The Team Coordinator role allows one to have a sneak preview as what is to come should one be interested in the role of management. It is not going to be easy, but the experience and fulfillment is well worth it.