A Project Manager Who Gets It
Have you ever worked with a project manager who was so focused on project management that the project failed? Me too. Its maddening and costly when common sense business and relationship savvy is missng from a project manager's skill set.
My combined experience as a project manager, technologist, manager, consultant, and salesperson opened my eyes to the value and pitfalls of project managers who only focus on their one dimension of a business opportunity or relationship. Here is Kim Wendland's list of successful project manager behaviors. These serve as the foundation of my project management philosophy.
Top 10 Savvy Project Manager Behaviors
- Accomplished in all aspects of the Project Management Lifecycle: Initiation, Planning, Execution, Control, Close-out.
- Understands and effectively communicates within the sensitive business relationships between customers, vendors, and internal organizations.
- Understands the business and industry needs of the companies, organizations, and governments which serve as the context of the project, and makes decisions with this context in mind.
- Understands the business, technical, and relational requirements and scope, and manages to them in context.
- Understands that communication is the most important aspect of every project.
- Communicates truth to power effectively.
- Communicates all types of information to all stakeholders of the project effectively to assure that the project moves forward.
- Understands the importance of time, budget and quality; and holds the project team accountable to them while effectively communicating, managing issues, and managing change.
- Understands the difference between leadership and management, and is accomplished in both of them.
- Accepts full responsibility for the results of the project, and celebrates the team who accomplishes it.
