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Tag: Leadership

PMs and Hockey Players

My son’s hockey team won a tournament recently that included a series of hard-fought, well-earned victories.  As the athletes came into the lobby from the locker room, everyone cheered, recognizing each individual contribution.  Another mom made a comment out loud that many of us hockey parents think just about every time we see them come out of the locker room: “They’re so little!”

It’s truly amazing to see 9-year-olds play hockey at the level that this team plays.  They skate on the ice as though they’re dancing on pavement.  They handle a stick with astounding skill.  They move the puck up and down the ice with agility that sometimes takes my breath away. 

It’s not hard to get caught up in this level of play and start cheering, shouting…OK screaming:  “Hustle!”  “Pass!”  “Move your feet!”  They are so good and they make it look so easy.  Fans sitting on the bench start to wonder, “What’s your problem? Shoot the puck!” 

Then after the game they come out of the locker room and you see them as…little boys.  With height not augmented by skates, bodies not donned in pads and equipment, faces not covered by helmets and masks, they’re just the little kids who like Saturday morning cartoons and still sleep with a favorite toy.

If it doesn’t make you feel a bit silly for all the screaming you did, it sure does make you appreciate how good they really are.

Project managers don’t wear pads and helmets while managing projects and we don’t get a locker room from which to exit looking like a humbler version of ourselves to invoke appreciation for what we do.  

We do, however, get senior level folks to sponsor our projects and advocate for what we’re trying to accomplish.  We get access to resources, support to schedule and run meetings, and we may get training to help us do our jobs better.  We get teams of people and the wealth of organizational knowledge about what’s worked and what hasn’t on past projects.  So there may be stakeholders on the sidelines wondering, “What’s your problem? Deliver on time!”

Well, it’s tough out there on the project ice. Even when we get the sponsorship, resources, and skills we need to do our job, stakeholders are conflicted, organizations are in flux, and resources change.  While it may not look that hard from the bench, some days it’s amazing that we get consensus or momentum on anything. 

High expectations for project managers are a good thing.  But sometimes after a hard day, it would be nice to have a locker room where we could take off all the emotional and intellectual equipment we wear to get our job done and emerge for others to get a little different perspective for who we are:  someone just trying to get the project done for the benefit of the organization and everyone in it.

Don’t forget to leave your comments below.


Andrea Brockmeier is the Client Solutions Director for Project Management at Watermark Learning.  Andrea is a PMP® as well as Certified ScrumMaster.  She has 20+ years of experience in project management practice and training. She writes and teaches courses in project management, including PMP® certification, as well as influencing skills. She has long been involved with the PMI® chapter in Minnesota where she was a member of the certification team for over eight years. She has a master’s degree in cultural anthropology and is particularly interested in the impact of social media and new technologies on organizations and projects.

Managing Your Boss

Most project managers have one. Yet attending to their demands and idiosyncrasies can be nerve-wracking. Wise project managers engage good boss management strategies. Boss support, guidance, mentoring and influence will be your reward.

After all, bosses are not exalted and invincible gods. They are human beings with special roles and authority as well as the requisite levels of human weaknesses, problems and pressures.

Under these demanding conditions, most boss relationships unfold in two possible directions: the 3Rs Resistance-Resentment-Revenge or the 3 Cs Clarity-Co-operation-Commitment.

The 3R cycle is characterized by ineffective communication. This causes levels of resentment. People expend valuable energies getting even. Such a work environment becomes destructive not only for individuals but for the entire organization.

On the other hand, the 3C cycle begins with people clarifying what is required. People cooperate and commit themselves to excellence. Personal self-esteem and group performance is enhanced.

Assess Leadership Style

Recognize leadership skills inherent in your own boss. This assists you to understand your boss better. You also benefit by becoming a better manager. The more effectively you manage subordinates, the more leverage you will command with your own boss. “To lead, one must follow” … Lau Tzu.

Leader #1: The Press Leader

These leaders pretend to be drill sergeants. Low self-esteem and a strong fear of failure drives them. They are impressed by outward displays of busyness rather than by results. The leader treats people as expeditors who obey orders. They tolerate no mistakes. Trivial details snare their energies and attention. They over-supervise and manage by punishment. Doing so squashes self-esteem amongst the ranks.

How to handle the press leader? Quickly discover on-the-job limits. Determine whether your boss is simply tough or ruthless. The tough leader precisely delegates authority balanced with appropriate responsibility. The ruthless one disregards human factors. If you choose to resist the press leader, do it privately, not within view of colleagues. This way your leader will not lose face.

Support your position with plenty of evidence. Otherwise, you lose.

Leader #2: The Laissez-Faire Leader

This leader abandons staff. These leaders provide little or no support in tough times. They stipulate little of what is expected of employees. They provide virtually no guidance on how to accomplish tasks. While the press leader may hover over an employee’s shoulder, this leader does nothing to train or guide. While the press leader over-manages, the default leader overlooks.

Managing The Laissez-Faire Leader: The individual who is self-motivated and needs little praise will work well under this type of leader. This leader craves facts such as costs, statistics and research findings. Provide these facts and figures for your boss, while at the same time try to stress some human elements. Encourage your boss to clarify exactly what is to be accomplished.

Leader #3: The Participatory Leader

The participatory leader is adept at communication procedures. Under this type of boss, employees are given precise feedback and recognition when deserved. The participatory leader strives to involve employees in the assessment process. He or she is inspirational and innovative. The participatory leader customizes the type and amount of feedback required for each employee.

Managing the participatory leader: The most effective way of dealing with the participatory leader is to feed back the same techniques that he or she uses with subordinates. Keep them informed of what does and does not work. Since this type of leader is interested in results, your opinions will be heeded.

Leader #4: The Develop Leader

This leader goes a step beyond the participatory leader. The develop leader fosters staff self-esteem, autonomy and competence. Techniques for success are isolated and taught to subordinates as the need arises. The develop leader empowers staff and nurtures a feeling of reverence, not in the boss, but in the employees themselves.

There is often a high staff turnover rate for employees of develop leaders. But it is a good one because it is upward. Because this type of leader creates such a high level of competence amongst the ranks, there is always someone to take over when someone moves up.

Both the develop and the participatory leader expect good performance from their subordinates. This expectation is communicated not only verbally but through a trusting working relationship that encourages autonomy.

Weaknesses and strengths exist within us all but being aware of the bosses can help manage the relationship on an on-going basis. Keep the below points in mind –

Boss Weaknesses

  • Lack of Training: Is your boss a whiz at finance, but uncomfortable dealing with human elements? Few managers score As on both task and people-oriented responsibilities.
  • Unclear purpose: Can your manager clearly define goals? A clearly understood purpose assists everyone to fulfil their roles.
  • Fear of rocking the boat: Does your boss resort to the familiar while stifling new ideas? Managers must adapt to changing values and needs.
  • Being a saviour: The boss who insists on expending valuable time and money to keep proven weak people afloat helps nobody. This boss ignores competent staff. At best, this approach postpones the inevitable dismissal day.
  • Having to be right: Even the most talented executive must be willing to make amends when they have been wrong.
  • Low compatibility: A manager must be willing and able to create alliances with peers, superiors and subordinates. Compatibility is mandatory in the executive suite.
  • Demanding agreement: Many bosses find it difficult to accept different points of view. Bosses should seek acceptance and assistance, not agreement.
  • Confusing efficiency and effectiveness: Efficient workers get things done quickly. Effective staff achieve the right goals. The two should be balanced, with priority going to effectiveness.

Boss Strengths

  • Causes agreement: Idea exchanges lead to the best possible solution. Everyone’s opinion is welcomed and valued.
  • Manages with continuity: Issues are discussed at regular intervals. This minimizes surprises and last-minute fire-fighting.
  • Matching people with work: An effective leader carefully considers not only work experience but personality traits when staffing an assignment.
  • Understands the job: A good leader will develop trusted, valuable employees who strive to contribute to the organization because they feel needed. The successful leader knows the way, shows the way and goes the way.
  • Respect feelings: Emotional needs of employees are recognized. Employees are offered a guiding hand when making decisions. They are not simply handed the solution.
  • Gives employees autonomy: Once a level of trust is attained, the more autonomy an employee can handle, the better the employee and organization will be.
  • Eliminates Boredom: Allows individuals to adapt the work to suit their needs, as long as the job gets done.
  • Seeks results, not methods: New methods to improve effectiveness should be sought, but not at the expense of results.
  • Employs positive feedback, not criticism: Focusing on the positive rather than the negative is a proven technique in affecting a desired change in behaviour. This boss “catches subordinates doing something right.” “A soft answer turneth away wrath” … Proverbs.
  • Combines co-operation with competition: Organizations, which encourage groups to be simultaneously co-operative and competitive, produce the greatest chances for success.

Follow these steps to keep the boss happy.

  1. Learn what your boss expects and values.
  2. Strive for high-quality results.
  3. Solve as many problems as possible without the help of your boss.
  4. Keep your boss informed.
  5. Be your strongest critic.
  6. Get regular feedback from your boss.
  7. Differ with your boss only in private.
  8. Save money and earn revenue.
  9. Be a good leader yourself.
  10. Promote only valuable ideas.

Your boss is not interested in the storms you encountered, but whether you brought in the ship.

Don’t forget to leave your comments below.


Harry B. Mingail combines a Project Management Professional (PMP), Certified Business Analyst Professional (CBAP), Mathematics/Computer Science and Business Administration designations with 25 years of BA, PM and management consulting as well delivery of webinars, workshops, mentoring and keynotes. 

How to Determine PMO’s Identity

The establishment of PMOs is a daunting task that requires great wisdom and perseverance. What is of paramount importance for the PMO’s success and longevity is to make the management of executive interests an intrinsic feature of PMOs, while weaving them into the very fabric of the project organization. This implies that the design and construction of the PMO must happen organically, i.e., the structure of the PMO cannot be imposed or rushed, but must develop naturally. However, in practice, there is a strong impulse to simply ‘cut & paste’ PMO solutions. This is often done without a correct understanding of the problems affecting projects and possessing an inaccurate assessment of executive views on role of the PMO. In most cases, PMOs are established based on an arbitrary executive instruction. The purpose of this article is to explore techniques on how to analyze and assess what executives really want from PMOs.

The most important facet in the establishment of the PMO is to clearly recognize what role the executives want the PMO to play. Some conventional approaches rely on questionnaires that ask executives to respond to pre-defined roles for PMOs, i.e., ‘Would you like the PMO to play a supporting or directing role in project management?’ Views captured in this manner are then debated and the majority view is taken to determine the role of the PMO (although sometimes the CEO’s decision is invoked to expedite a conclusion). By taking this approach, discussions are not very productive as they are framed within an artificial and somewhat imposed context that is often disconnected from the current problems of the company. The identity of the PMO that is synthesized from such a process is usually prone to vagueness and diffidence.

To avoid such outcomes, it is important to understand the background of executives and their past interactions with PMOs. The two matrices presented below enable one to accurately identify PMO competencies, map their maturity and accommodate the interests of the CxOs. Figure 1-1 is a simple matrix that highlights the exposure of executives to PMO functions.

Abid11

Figure 1-1 Past Executive interactions with PMOs denoted by ‘x’

In this particular example, the overwhelming PMO experience for many of the executives includes exposure to executive meetings, followed by launch office and business processes activities. Important inferences can be drawn from this information. Both the CCO and COO come from a program delivery background, whereas the CPO (Chief Project Officer) has more of a project/program support background. Hence, this could be a potential source of conflict between executive management. Another point of contention might be the drafting and monitoring of business processes. Utilizing matrices such as this highlight the disposition of CxOs toward PMO functions and can help mitigate sources of conflict.

However, to define a PMO’s identity, it is not sufficient to scrutinize executive experiences with past PMOs. Instead, the CxOs must be encouraged to think about the role of the PMO within the context of their present work environment, which must be related to the execution of initiatives. A second matrix described in figure 1.2 below can be used to illustrate this point.

Abid1

Figure 1-2 Present-day executive requirements for PMO (denoted by ‘x’)

In this example, few executives see the need to align initiatives with the company’s strategy or manage a portfolio; even though this is regarded as vital for ‘doing the right things’ and is normally considered as industry best practice. Rather, the focus for the majority is on program delivery, monitoring operational KPIs and task force work. Hence, a clear conflict of interest awaits the CPO with his or her peers. Oddly enough, there is also no mention of the PMO performing one of its core activities that is the standardization of project methodology, tools and standards, i.e., ‘doing things right.’ Again, a matrix such as this can be used to identify what CxOs would like their PMO to do. It is recommended to use such a matrix after the CxOs have either struggled to deliver a particular initiative (one that involves all of them), or they have repeatedly encountered project/program failure.

So here’s the challenge: how does one make the CxOs cognizant about the importance of PMO’s core competencies, while at the same time, not alienate one’s personal dispositions? This conundrum cannot be resolved by simply taking a majority decision on what the PMO should or should not be doing, as this will prompt some executives to merely pay lip service and withhold their wholehearted support for the more important initiatives.

While there is no one solution, every company is different and the interplay of CxOs varies from organization to organization. Therefore, it is important for the one charged with the responsibility of establishing the PMO to do their utmost to define the PMO competencies and chart their respective evolution, in the best interest of the company. This means that all the interests of the CxOs—no matter how miniscule—must be accommodated. Furthermore, many competencies take a great deal of time to develop and mature. Consequently, the CxOs have to be informed and persuaded about the availability of such competencies. For instance, in figure 1.2, portfolio management, or program delivery, cannot be instigated unless the PMO possesses a sound project methodology. CxOs must be won over on the value of this truth, as opposed to just being told.

In summary, to ‘cut and paste’ PMO solutions, or to convince CxOs about the implementation of best practice PMO methodologies, is a recipe for failure and extremely expensive! Instead, a great deal of time and effort needs to be invested to cultivate the right PMO identity, with continued executive support. Unfortunately, this is an arduous journey and there are no shortcuts on the way.

Don’t forget to leave your comments below.


Abid Mustafa is a seasoned professional with 18 years’ experience in the IT and Telecommunications industry, specializing in enhancing corporate performance through the establishment and operation of executive PMOs and delivering tangible benefits through the management of complex transformation programs and projects. Currently, he is working as a director of corporate programs for a leading telecoms operator in the MENA region.

Challenges and Sustainability of the Program Management Office

What’s a Program Management Office (PMO)?  Good question and one that’s at the heart of why many seemingly successful PMOs fail to thrive.  That is, they haven’t clearly stated why they should exist and exactly what they are supposed to accomplish.

Having established a PMO in the IT department of a local government, been a member of a team that established the PMO in a travel department of a fortune 500 company, and established many of the processes in an IT PMO at a gaming company, it’s no surprise to me that so many PMOs are born then die within a relatively short time.

  • 2006 PMI survey: Only 17% of PMOs have been in existence for more than five years
  • PMI 2007 white paper analyzing the current state of play: Almost 50% of survey respondents indicated the existence of their PMO was being, or had recently been, seriously questioned.
  • PM Solutions 2010 survey shows 50% of PMOs closed over the prior four years.

When you hear about seemingly successful, yet ultimately failed PMOs, you’ll find these recurring themes:

  1. No clear mission
  2. Lack of the right sponsorship
  3. Lack of compliance to PMO processes
  4. Failure to integrate into the business
  5. Lack of mature project, program, and/or portfolio management
  6. Failure to establish metrics and success criteria

1. Off-Target – No Clear Mission

The PMO must have a charter with a clear mission and vision statement so there is no confusion as to its aims and value.  Each PMO is different so it’s essential to the success of the PMO to identify what it will do in your organization.  Which areas will the PMO govern?  What specific objectives do you want the PMO to achieve in each of those areas?

Your sponsor didn’t request a charter for your PMO? – do one anyway. 

The business’s identifies their strategy, that is what they want to accomplish, and their tactical action plans, aka projects, define how they will accomplish it.  It is imperative to see a major objective of the PMO as the business unit’s key partner in achieving their tactical action plans.  If you do projects as an order taker, ‘tell me what you want’, without understanding the business need, you leave yourself vulnerable to implementing solutions that fail to achieve the business need.  If at the fundamental level your PMO is all about processes and not about helping the business achieve their plans, you’re on a road to failure.  It’s not about templates or dashboards it’s about enabling the business to achieve their business strategy through projects. The PMO must be seen as the enabler of business change.

2. Who’s Driving the Bus – Lack of the right sponsorship

When the PMO is viewed as a process organization it is often placed under a lower level manager.  This is consistent with PMOs that lack a business aligned mission, fail to report metrics, and with the perception in the organization that the PMO is just project process cops.

It’s easy to see, then, why when budget cuts come around the PMO is high on the list for elimination.  With no high level sponsor to fight for the continued value of the PMO and lack of understanding how the PMO is essential to achieving business strategy, PMOs become dispensable.

Clearly it’s not just having a high level sponsor, but having one that believes and understands the PMO mission.  In fact, to be safe, assume they have no idea what project management is, let alone what program and portfolio management is, nor what a PMO can do.   Remember that most people are unaware that project management is an approach to doing projects that requires special training and experience.  Worse yet, they believe that they do know what project management is.  After all they know what a ‘project’ is and they know what ‘management’ is, therefore they believe they know what ‘project management’ is.  I call this “the Donald Trump version of project management” a la the way he assigns a project manager in his Celebrity Apprentice show.  You know the “Hey you.  You’ve done projects before and you’ve managed before, right?  You’re the project manager”.

3. If Momma aint’ happy – Lack of compliance with PMO Processes

You know the expression “If momma ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy”?  Well the same is true for project managers.  If the project managers ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy.  For the PMO to be successful projects need to be successful.  For projects to be successful, program, project and portfolio management needs to be successful.  For these to be successful, project managers need to be successful.

If the project managers perceive the PMO processes to be just over head with little value, then they’ll do everything they can to short cut those processes.  So be sure the processes work for them and they’re not working for the processes.

Adopting new processes is a cultural change and it’s important to address how you will effect that change in the PMO implementation and sustainability strategy.  How are changes introduced?  Did the PMs have any input?  How were the PMs trained?  What support do the PMs have now?    

When project managers short cut PMO processes, the whole house of cards falls.  To ensure PMO processes are being followed, mandatory Toll Gate Reviews can be very valuable.  

PMOs that are involved in project manager quality, not just processes, are more likely to succeed.  Involvement can mean hiring the project managers (regardless of who they report to), providing skill development, and providing coaching and mentoring. 

PMOs who believe they exist to maintain dashboards and reports for upper management don’t get it.  Your key to PMO sustainability is to ensure that project managers are successful.

4. Because I said so – Failing to integrate into the business

Project participation from the business unit is essential to the success of projects.  Stakeholder representation, subject matter expertise, project champions, deliverable reviewers and verifiers, are business roles.  If the PMO has developed its processes without considering the impact on each business unit, then cooperation and support from the business will be hard to come by. 

Like the PMs, if the PMO expects the business to adopt new processes then this is a cultural change and it’s important to address how you will effect that change in the PMO implementation and sustainability strategy.  How are changes introduced?  Did the business have any input?  How were business representatives trained?  What ongoing project support does the PMO provide?  How do the PMO processes fit with the way the business operates? 

An overly burdensome project request process can alienate the business.  PMOs that require very little information at request time will be more accepted by the business than those that expect the business to provide highly complex and detailed information at request time.  It’s more business friendly to meet with the requester after the request is received and assist them with whatever additional information you need.  Don’t make them provide volumes of information up front just to get a request submitted.  It’s essential that the PMO is perceived as a partner of the business, not an adversary.  Be what helps them get things done.  Don’t be the biggest road block they have to getting things done.

5.  You can’t build the building without a firm foundation – Lack of mature project, program, and/or portfolio management

Expecting to implement a mature PMO with a “big bang” approach is another set-up for failure.  Assess your company’s maturity in project, program and portfolio management.  Then if there are major gaps to where you should be, address those gaps first.  It’s not uncommon for a sustainable PMO to take several years to reach a high maturity level.  Just be sure to bring value at every step along the way by ensuring the organization’s pain points are alleviated early in the PMO’s life.

Become successful in project management before working on program management.  Be sure your project manager’s skills and capabilities are at a level for them to succeed.  When that foundation is strong, develop a mature portfolio management. 

Don’t forget Resource Management.  This can be a real deal breaker for many PMOs.  PMOs that fail to do good resource management will be perceived as being ineffective.   The challenge is that you cannot manage resources effectively without being able to accurately estimate project durations so that you know when resources will be available.  Understanding this means ‘estimation capabilities’ rise to the top of the PMO’s ‘to do’ list and are critical to Project, Program and Portfolio success and therefore to PMO success.

Assess whether the PMO is nothing more than a repository of tools and templates, or if it is an enabler of achieving business benefits.  When the business perceives the PMO as the essential organization that enables them to achieve project benefits, then you have arrived.  If you’re viewed as process cops, you’re doomed.

To avoid being perceived as no-added-value overhead, be sure to have the right balance of process and governance with flexibility.  Take “lean” to heart and get the paperwork down to the bare bones.  Become the ‘go to’ people when projects are stuck or in trouble and any time a project manager needs assistance.  Never ever let PMO compliance be the cause of project delays.  Create scalable processes that vary by project type and size. 

6. You can’t manage what you don’t measure – Failure to establish metrics and success criteria

No one asked you to establish metrics for your PMO? – do it anyway.  No one asked you to define the success criteria? – do it anyway.  The concept that you have to “sell” the value of a PMO comes up in many PMO articles.  But if you look at other business units in your company they don’t sell the value of their unit, do they?  What they do is show their value in reports and scorecards. 

To do that they need to have their target goals (criteria of success) and their metrics that shows where they are against those goals.  You’ll see the sales goals and their current sales.  You’ll see Human Resources reporting their personnel retention goals vs. the number retained. 

Then when the ‘what have you done for me lately’ question comes up in budget cutting discussions, units that have consistently shown their value are not hit as hard as those who have not demonstrated value.  It’s no wonder that PMOs who do not continually and consistently show their value to the company are often the first to go in hard economic times. 

According to Gartner, IS organizations that properly implement a PMO will experience half of the project cost and schedule overruns compared with those who do not.  Metrics can show the business value (e.g. 95% of project KPIs are achieved in 90% of projects), functional performance value (e.g. rework is reduced by 15%) and service level value (e.g. Customer satisfaction 90% satisfied or very satisfied) the PMO brings to the organization.  Metrics are essential for getting needed support.  They demonstrate progress, value, and productivity.

And don’t forget to celebrate.  Celebrate project successes, project manager successes and PMO successes.

It’s unbelievable the number of apparently successful PMOs that end up closing their doors after a few years.  There’s no need for yours to be one of them.  

Don’t forget to leave your comments below.


Ricki Henry,

  • 19+ years as a project manager
  • Established the PMO at Clark County NV, co-developed two other PMOs
  • PMP, Six Sigma Green Belt, Certified Scrum Master, MS Project Server Black Belt, PMP exam preparation Trainer
  • Speaker on BA and PM topics


Project Success; It Begins and Ends with Leadership

In today’s global economy, project success can make or break any company, as the race is more challenging than it’s been in decades to grow the business and continue to find new ways to trim costs.  Every company I consult with has already addressed low-hanging fruit.  It will no longer be as easy to find ways to be competitive.  Thus, when there is an opportunity, there’s nothing more important than ensuring it delivers results – project success.  And, as my HR mentor used to say, “Success begins and ends with leadership.

To make matters more difficult, it is increasingly hard to find effective leaders.  One would think with unemployment as high as it is in the U.S. and even worse in the manufacturing hubs, it would be simple to find leaders.  It’s not.  I’ve talked with a half dozen executive recruiters in the last month, and they have all said that it remains a tall order.  What do the best leaders do differently than the rest

Clarify Targets/Objectives.

It is amazing how overlooked and simple yet incredibly important this secret to success is to achieving project objectives.  Interestingly, in hundreds of projects I’ve participated with over the years, those with clear objectives have had an 80% greater chance of success than those without them.  So, why in the world don’t project leaders clarify objectives more frequently?  I’ve found that it isn’t as simple as it sounds, as it often requires unwavering commitment

For example, on a recent integration project, the objectives seemed clear.  As usual, project teams start off on the right foot.  However, at the first sign of trouble, the objectives become less clear.  Politics entered the scene.  If the project leader stood by the clarity of the objectives, he stood the chance of taking the heat for side impacts for other departments, which could result in unhappy employees as the workload would be temporarily increased.  Of course, overall, this was similar to a $100 investment to save $100,000, and if he communicated it effectively, it might not be a problem; however, it was uncomfortable.  Thus, he wavered, and the project team became less sure of the objectives – and less successful. 

Ability to Translate the Target/Objectives for the Team.

This is not nearly as simple as just repeating the objectives, stating support and threatening if required.  A project leader has to be able to translate the objectives for the team in a clear and insightful manner.  It doesn’t require that the project leader understands the entire subject matter; however, he/she must be able to ask effective questions and be respected by the team.  Otherwise, it’s likely to result in immediate failure.  

For example, I’ve participated in two projects where the project leader wasn’t too familiar with the details of the subject matter.  In one case, the project leader asked effective questions and was able to lead the project to an early delivery with better than anticipated results.  In the other case, the leader was in over his head and resorted to threats.  This project team not only made lackluster progress at best but was extremely frustrated. 

A Focus on Results.  

Last but not least, the project leader must focus on results.  One of the most common mistakes I see with my clients is getting distracted with thousands of non-essential details.  Instead, those who are successful maintain a rigorous focus on the critical path – in essence, just those tasks required to achieve the project objectives. 

For example, I’ve often seen project teams distracted with the optimal way to use project tracking software, or what format to use for tracking progress yet little to no time is spent proactively communicating with project team members.   Instead, a steadfast focus on the project objectives can achieve wonders.  

As businesses struggle to stand out in the crowd in the “new normal” business environment, there’s no doubt project success is vital to maintaining and improving profitability.  Although there are several keys to achieving success, there is nothing more important than leadership.  I’ve never seen a project succeed without an effective leader – at a minimum, there was an informal leader who drove project success.

Don’t forget to leave your comments below