As an entrepreneur, you must have worked with, for, and hired an excellent number of project managers. Along the way, you might even have noticed that a lot of the challenges PMs face are common across industry, services and organizations.
A project manager is meant to be a facilitator, an advisor and an advocate, not just for the project, but also for the team, the business and therefore the cause. However, clients and stakeholders tend to confirm project managers as people of interest rather than as leaders, and this leads us to question what can PMs avoid to change this perception:
1. Taking Notes :
If you’re a project manager, and you’re complaining about how stakeholders treat you as an administrator. Then stop taking notes. You must have been taught throughout your career that amongst the main responsibilities of a project manager is to take notes, capture decisions and document, document, document.
SOLUTION :
Do things that empower you. Once you are taking notes during a meeting, you’re not actively engaged in discussion nor are you actively listening. You’re not seen as a facilitator, you’re not offering insights and opinions, and you’re not being strategic. You’re being tactical and administrative. Project managers have to elevate their game and begin driving value for their customers, whether internal or external.
BENEFIT :
Your value stems from your voice, your experience, your ideas, your planning, and your ability to steer a team. That’s what drives value, not taking notes.
2. Saying No :
Project managers have a really hard job. After all, they are constantly managing expectations and trying to make everyone happy. So when there are hiccups on a project, changes are made, new stakeholders get entangled , etc. the “no” answer becomes a kill word. Dialogue ends, collaboration falters, and innovation is stifled.
SOLUTION :
Focus on the “yes, and…” principle, which suggests taking note of what somebody else says and building upon it. For instance , when a stakeholder says, “I’ve done some research, and that I would really like to feature a replacement module to the system.” the solution should be, “Yes, I understand how it will assist you to achieve your business outcomes sooner. As a result, we might have to increase the budget by only 100K;” versus, the traditional freak out: “What? No, we can’t do this . it’ll make us re-evaluate budget, impact our timeline and introduce additional scope.“
BENEFIT :
The thought is to urge people to collaborate and understand that any ideas delivered to the table are often accepted, added upon and made better. ‘No’ people shut down; “Yes, and …” makes people cooperate and suggest or ask for better ideas.
3. Being On Time, On Budget, and On Scope:
One question PMs are always asked is: “How does one define project success?” Eight times out of ten we get “on time, on budget, and on scope.” This is often a canned answer that has been ingrained within the heads of most project managers.
SOLUTION :
An excellent project manager understands the business objectives and drives the project to deliver on those objectives, all the while proactively anticipating needs, managing expectations, facilitating engagement, and fostering satisfaction.
BENEFIT :
It’s about driving results and making people feel good about them.
4. Being a Journalist :
Project Managers understand that they need to know the true state of their projects and to report accurately on them. Sometimes, however, they lose sight of the WHY : ensuring the project achieves its objectives. They adopt, as their goal, the accurate portrayal of the state of the project in the least times. They become journalists.
SOLUTION :
Great project managers not only report news, they also publish news. They are leading the project direction towards a successful outcome. they’re active participants within the process and not innocent bystanders. Next time you write a standing report, confirm you’re not just reporting the news but that you simply have taken a lively role in making the news.
BENEFIT :
Be a pacesetter who helps solve the issues of tomorrow, versus just reporting on the issues of yesterday, and take accountability for outcomes.
5. Enamoring problems :
Your team is miserable. you’re up against tight timelines. Your client or stakeholders have unrealistic expectations. Most are complaining, including you. You’re not doing anyone any favors, but rather you’re contributing to the misery. As a project manager, you’re seen as a pacesetter (whether you’re one or not), and you’re held to those expectations.
SOLUTION :
Leaders don’t enamor problems; they’re problem solvers. They assist and contribute to the answer . You’ll listen, you’ll sympathize, and you will develop empathy for your team, but at some point you’ve got to shift your team faraway from enamoring problems and towards an answer . You’re empowered and will have the talents of influence and persuasion to assist shifting your team’s thinking and mindset.
BENEFIT :
Next time your team won’t be sitting around and complaining. By elevating yourself and driving them to require accountability of things . Your team will start asking: what is the small step that we will make to change the current situation?
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