The Responsibility vs. Authority Dilemma
Posted by Brad Egeland
If you work as a project manager in a matrix organization, chances are you’re going to run up against this issue on one of your project eventually – if you haven’t already. You’ve been given responsibility for a project and you’ve been assigned a team. You’re the project manager so you have ultimate responsibility for your resources on your team, the work they do, how your team performs for the customer, and – ultimately – the overall success of the project. Are you with me so far? Sounds like typical project management, right?
Now comes the hard part. Each one of your team members has 3-4 other project managers that they are working for on other engagements AND they have a resource manager who is their ultimate authority, who is responsible for their performance reviews and raises, and who also is assigning them work from time to time that has nothing to do with your project. You have the work you need them to do. You have the assignments that you’re making. Beyond that, you have to hope they are understanding the meaning of the project and their role in its success to perform the work you need them to perform and to do it well. But you truly lack the authority to ‘make’ them do it.
Firmly embedded in project management folklore is this one: the responsibility you’ve been given is not in line with the authority you believe you need to accomplish the mission. The size of the gap between responsibility and authority will partially depend upon the structure of your organization. If you’re in a purely functional organization – and in many cases, a matrix organization – you should not expect to be granted very much formal authority. The gap between responsibility and authority will be quite wide. To compensate for your perceived lack of formal authority, you’ll have to rely upon expert power (respect you can garner through superior knowledge or capability) or referent power (often accessed by practicing an excellent leadership style). You’ll also need to rely heavily upon your ability to influence and persuade.
If you sense that you may have problems with any of your team members and lack the authority to do much about it, then you’ll need to act proactively early in the project to help ensure the success of the team and the overall working relationship. Easier said than done? Probably, but by taking a couple of early actions you should find yourself more productive and less frustrated.
So You’re a New Project Manager
Posted by Brad Egeland
In his book “Project Management,” Gary Heerkens does a nice job laying out some of the pros and cons to the employee who basically is tossed into the role of project manager whether they like it or not. And, the truth is, that’s how many experienced project managers got to where they are today. Some sought it out, but others were handed projects to manage and either reluctantly accepted or maybe they had no choice but to accept.
Either way, I enjoyed Mr. Heerkens’ basic overview of what to expect and wanted to share it here…
New to the role
However we may feel about taking on that first project, the truth is that life as a project manager can be extremely rewarding. You’ll find it to be different from most any other thing you’ve ever done. It’s complex, varied, and interesting. If done well, it can lead to a very strong sense of accomplishment. These are among the aspects that project managers identify as the main draws to the job.
At the same time, however, being a project manager will test you in ways you may not be able to imagine now. You will become a focal point in the organization. Everyone will look to you for the answers, but you must be careful not to try to provide all the answers; after all, that’s why you have a team.
And speaking of the team, one of the biggest shifts in behavior (and thinking) you’ll encounter will be the need to rely upon others to get things done. In most cases, that’s your team. You’ll quickly discover that there’s far too much for you to do alone, yet delegation will prove to be a challenge for you. Empowering others, and then trusting them to follow through, may be a bit unsettling. You’ll find yourself uncomfortable with the idea that others are doing things for which you will be held responsible.
Responsibility without full authority
You’ll have lots of responsibility, but you’ll be missing the authority often perceived as being required to discharge that responsibility. You’ll have to get things done through the people on your team without having any direct control over them. Among your most valued tools will be the ability to persuade and influence, as you seek to form a group of diverse personalities into a unified team with commonalty of purpose.
Effectively Dealing with Conflict on Projects – Part 2
Posted by Brad Egeland
In Part 1 of this series we looked at the first five of ten ways to calmly and constructively work on dealing with conflict within your projects. How the project manager proceeds with conflict resolution can have a huge effect on the project and the team members involved and possibly on the overall outcome of the project. And let’s not forget the customer satisfaction component – especially if the customer is observing or involved in the conflict.
In this Part 2, we’ll examine ways six through ten of dealing with project conflicts….
6. The project manager keeps everyone focused on the cause of the conflict. He avoids the tendency to blame someone or to rationalize it away. Staying focused on what caused the conflict can be the best course toward actually resolving it. Straying from that can lead to the ‘blame game’ which we all know is not a product road to take.
7. The project manager keeps the big picture in focus. He asks himself what the best way is to resolve the conflict so as to achieve the project goal. Always be thinking in terms of the overall project goal. When you do that and allow that thought process to guide your actions, then you’re more likely to resolve project conflicts in ways that are not detrimental to the project and its forward momentum – assuming it has one.
8. The project manager sets a plan for resolving the conflict. He also remains objective. Planning is critical in all project management actions. And that applies to conflict resolution as well. Jumping in without proper planning could land you on one side or the other in the conflict or leave you less than objective in your actions. That is not a place you want to be as the project manager.
Effective Project Presentations
Posted by Brad Egeland
During the course of our projects, we sometimes have the opportunity to give presentations either to our customers or to our executive management staff. This may be a proof of concept presentation, a project kickoff presentation, or a presentation to startup a new phase of the project. Whether you are a project manager or team member, as a presenter it’s a good idea to must follow six fundamental steps:
Know yourself and the audience
Find out about the audience to ascertain your commonalities and differences. You can get useful information, for example, by interviewing people who know audience members. Follow up by making a list of what you share and don’t share with the audience. This knowledge will prove useful in preparing the presentation.
Perceive your audience and how it perceives you
Look at ways to influence the audience to see you in a favorable light. This will make it easier to communicate your message. You can win the audience over, for example, by expressing values or experiences you share with its members.
Determine the type and structure of the presentation
Answer all the who, what, when, where, and why questions pertaining to your topic. Determine if your presentation is meant to inform, persuade, or explain. Then formulate your overall strategy to achieve the goal of your presentation, and your tactics for executing that strategy. If you are able to anticipate most of the questions in advance, then you won’t be blindsided by questions that can torpedo your presentation. The more knowledgeable you sound, the more successful your presentation will be.
Develop the material
Build your presentation. Determine the content and logically arrange it. For example, you can arrange topics chronologically or by level of importance. Also incorporate visual aids, statistics, and other materials. When prepare for something like a project kickoff, base the order of your presentation and the information contained within on some common high-level document, such as the Statement of Work.
Delegate and escalate: two important skills
Posted by Elizabeth
When you kick off a project, you should know how you are going to get things done. You’ll have processes in place for many things already, thanks to your PMO, or as a result of having done them before. However, do you have a clear approach for delegation and escalation?
Delegation and escalation are two sides of the same coin. Delegation is giving work to someone in your team or maybe on the same hierarchical level as you. Escalation is giving work to someone above you, such as the project sponsor. The same principles apply for both task allocation exercises. The person receiving the tasks needs:
- Clear instructions on what to do with it
- A deadline by when you need it done
- An appreciation of what will happen if it doesn’t get done i.e. setting the task in the wider context of the project.
