What must senior executives, functional managers, and project leaders do to make a matrix structure more effective?

The effectiveness of matrix structures is very much dependent on the abilities and motivation of senior executives, functional managers and project leaders.Top management must learn to maintain a proper balance of power between project leaders and functional managers.They must not play favorites; otherwise the delicate balance between the dual management structures leans too far in one direction or the other.
Project leaders require a general management orientation because they are working with a diverse group of people on a semi-temporary basis.Thus, project managers must be able to keep the team focused on the task and resolve the conflicts that typically occur in heterogeneous work units.
Functional managers coordinate the specialists assigned to the various projects.They are typically responsible for human resource planning and conducting performance appraisals of these specialists, even though the employees do not spend much time in the 'home' department.Functional managers must learn to be fair in the allocation of human resources, particularly where several project managers want the same person to work for them.This requires effective negotiation skills as well as decision-making skills.