Congratulations ... You’re the Project Manager !

Vinay picks up the phone before the second ring. It’s his boss, Shikha. “Vinay, I’d like you to stop by my office right after lunch today.”

Vinay is not really sure why the boss is calling him into her office, which makes for a long lunch hour. He knows he’s been doing a good job lately. As a matter of fact, he knows that he’s probably the most technically capable person in the group.

Vinay’s mind begins to race…. Maybe it’s an award? Could it be a promotion? “No, wait,” he says to himself in a frenzy of self-doubt. “Maybe I did something I wasn’t supposed to? Or maybe I didn’t do something I should have?”

Countless positive and negative scenarios run through Vinay’s overworked mind until one o’clock finally rolls around and he cautiously enters Shikha’s office.

“Vinay, I’ve got some great news for you,” Shikha begins.

“Since it’s so closely related to what we do here, Project Apex has been assigned to our group.” Vinay smiles without knowing why !

Shikha continues, “You’re one of the best engineers I have.”

Vinay’s smile widens in anticipation. And then—without warning— Shikha utters those fateful words. “Congratulations, Vinay, I’m assigning you as the project manager for Project Apex.”

Great news? Did she say great news? “What do I know about managing projects?” Vinay thinks to himself.

As Vinay begins to leave Shikha’s office, she delivers the knockout punch. “By the way, Vinay,” Shikha says with a curious inflection in her voice, “I think you should be aware ... management is really going to be watching closely. There’s an awful lot resting on the success of your project.”

As Vinay slips out of Shikha’s office, the same two words keep ringing in his ears—“your project.”

The Accidental Project Manager

The story above is not an isolated incident. Every day, engineers, salespeople, technicians, and countless others are thrust into the role of project manager. They’re very good at what they do.

In fact, they’re typically the most technically knowledgeable engineers or the most successful salespeople. Now they’re about to become project managers.

Actually it’s probably appropriate to refer to them by their more popular (however informal) name—accidental project managers.

An accidental project manager is a person who is placed into the role by organizational necessity and chance, rather than by design or through choice of career path.