10 Strong Opinions I Have About Project Management
Some of which you may disagree with, even as a Project Manager.
1-
One of the top reasons projects fail is because, for some reason, companies haven't created a C-level role called Chief Project Officer (CPO), even when most of their business is project-driven.
2-
COROLLARY: PMO Heads in big enough companies should really be CPOs.
3-
Project management is one of the toughest and most underestimated roles. The title "Project Manager" should be changed to "Project Leader". Unlike Product Managers, Project managers lead People, not things or ideas.
4-
Any aspiring top leader should be tested as a project manager first, be given fluid specifications, limited resources, and limited authority, and checked back on a few months later, on how they performed.
5-
COROLLARY: it's the great project managers, equipped with strategic insight and business acumen, who are the best candidates for a CEO role. The best leaders any company can have are often their best project managers
6-
Project management is 80% Change management, which means that the most important thing is not "Scope, Time, and Cost", but the WHY of the project, the wanted business value.
7-
COROLLARY: Many projects should NOT be projects because they are "repeats" of previous engagements, have relatively low risks, and use the same resources
领英推荐
8-
Companies don't kill enough projects. Due to a combination of loss aversion, image management (politics), corporate inertia, ignorance of opportunity costs, and weak or ineffective PMOs, there are unfortunately a lot of zombies.
9-
All executives and senior leaders must be trained in project management sponsorship.
10-
Most of the time, projects fail not due to incompetent PMs, but due to incompetent senior management, who do not understand project management. The worst culprit is the imbalance between Sales and Delivery, where Sales routinely sells the moon and knows it.
BONUS 1:
After a certain level, project managers should stop accumulating certifications and acronyms to their names, and instead focus on elevating their leadership and business skills.
BONUS 2:
A lot of project managers are mere "paper pushers", Gantt chart managers, and simple methodology guardians (Agile or whatever). This doesn't help the profession.
PS: I am launching a secret PM Club
By Invitation Only (capped and paid membership)
DM me "CLUB" if interested, or go directly here: https://www.pelios.io/
Fully agree with most of your opinions
Compliance Manager at Sologic LLC
9 个月I agree with each of these and have seen the results in many of the failed project investigations we have conducted. Two entries strike me as major issues. 8. Companies don't kill enough projects - whether it is ego, unwillingness to be the bad guy, or something else. Management often fails to kill a project instead they allow it to use up resources (people, time, and money) which should be deployed elsewhere. These projects are not delivering and/or not performing; everybody knows it so act and stop the bleeding. 10. Senior management often fails to properly support projects. Senior management assigns a project and then walks away; they fail to hold up their side of the project charter. Part of the management role is to monitor and support the project; not ignore it. It is often the result of senior management not understanding their role in a project but sometimes it is because they don't care.
Eric - it also demonstrates considerable insight based on years of aware lived experience :-)
I help Project Managers simplify project management with actionable systems and effective approaches that deliver results.
9 个月Point 3, I 100% agree with. You say, 'Project managers lead People' This is something I often speak about when coaching PMs. The majority of problems on projects are caused by people rather than the methodology, processes or tools. So, focus on education and support problem-solving for your team, stakeholders, 3rd parties, and anyone involved in the project. And yes, PMs are leaders!?
R&D Project Lead at Galderma
9 个月The companies that (finally) give project management a seat at the C-level table will be the ones who will thrive in the near future. Let's see who has the vision/courage to do this...