Project Management and Human Nature

“You don’t really understand human nature unless you know why a child on a merry-go-round will wave at his parents every time around — and why his parents will always wave back.” – journalist William D. Tammeus

As a father, I completely understand this quote and I’ve done this many times. It’s absolutely true. As an author and reader, I’m intrigued by it. And that I heard it on an episode of Criminal Minds this year surprises me. In fact, I posted it to my Facebook account and numerous people commented on it and ‘liked it’, but I bet they would all be surprised it came from that show.

Enough about the quote, let’s talk about human nature. What is human nature? Wikipedia states that ‘human nature’ is the concept that there are a set of characteristics, including ways of thinking, feeling and acting, that all ‘normal’ humans have in common. Ok…hopefully I’m categorized as normal…depends on the day of the week probably. Answers.com defines ‘human nature’ as the sum of all qualities and traits shared by all humans. And the online Merriam-Webster dictionary site defines ‘human nature’ as the nature of humans – especially the fundamental dispositions and traits of humans.

So, back to the topic of project management. How does human nature apply to project management? Here are my thoughts…. I’m thinking it centers around a few concepts or activities such as communication, organization, control, ambition. While we don’t all have those traits, I think most individuals who would be categorized as somewhat normal have something within their being that, under the right circumstances, strives to achieve those traits. Yes, that’s what I’ll cling to. Now let me quickly apply that to project management.

Communication

As humans, we all feel the need to communicate with each other from time to time. It’s my experience that your average project manager is – or should be – on the high end of that need. Communication is key, but it still must be good, timely and effective communication. If you’re on the quiet side, you’re probably in the wrong profession.

Organization

Ok, as for me, I’m not the most organized person at home…just ask my wife. But as a project manager, I’m usually pretty organized. I wake up late at night if I’ve failed to send out an email or feel the need to update my team or the customer on something and I have to get out of bed and do it then or I’ll never get back to sleep. I must have a routine schedule for each of my projects – a regular weekly formal status call with the team and customer, a specific day of the week when the revised project schedule and status report goes out, and a specific day of the week when I have a ‘scheduled’ call with my team – I say scheduled because there’s always a lot of unscheduled communication with them also.

Control

Control kind of goes hand-in-hand with organization. The project manager must remain in control – they must be the person that the organization, the team and the customer sees as always ‘in charge.’ Otherwise, chaos will take over. It takes a certain personality….a certain confidence. If you don’t have it, you’ll likely find out soon enough. At least your team and customer will.

Ambition

Finally, ambition. The project manager must have ambition…ambition to reach the final goal for the project. Ambition to take on more responsibility. Ambition to progress in their field. If you lack that ambition, then you’re less likely to stay on top of processes and the current technology to do your job well. And it will show in your work. Project success is hard enough to achieve given all of the potential obstacles and factors. It’s critical that the PM have the ambition and drive to succeed and lead their team and customer to similar successes.

IT Leaders Struggle with Bringing Social Networking into Formalized PM Processes

The July 20, 2009 issue of InformationWeek brings us an article by John Soat on how IT leaders are wrestling to bring informal collaboration into rigorous processes such as global project management and product development. I’ve included a portion of that article – including a discussion on how one company is using IWMS vendor Skire’s Unifier product to managing their project, collaboration and communication needs.

I’ve personally worked with several people at Skire during an evaluation of their product and found this article very interesting. Please read on….

The Right Place for Social Networking?

Nevsun Resources is a mining company with headquarters in Vancouver, Canada, and its biggest project is developing mines in Eritrea, a small country on the east coast of Africa. Using a browser-based, software-as-a-service project management tool, logistics clerks, engineers, and project managers are sharing documents, cost outlines, and project schedules across continents, giving CFO Peter Hardie in North America what he calls a “real-time review” of the project in a fairly remote area of Africa. “The spectrum of people using it is broad, and that’s what we were hoping we would get out of the system,” Hardie says.

The system – called Unifier, from the vendor Skire – lets Hardie “bridge the time and distance gaps that exist between the project principals in Vancouver, Eritrea, and South Africa,” he says. It helps Nevsun control costs and track expenditures down to the invoice level.

Social networking norms increasingly are creeping into formal project planning and product development tools and processes. And at many companies, the rules both formal and informal for how to use those social computing tools often aren’t written down. Nevsun’s system let’s people comment and ask questions about a record or specific aspect of the project. But there’s always a way to opt out of the collaboration flow. Asked if he uses the ad hoc communication capability in the Unifier system, Hardie says: “Me, personally? No.” Instead, if he’s reviewing specific costs and has a question, he’ll simply pick up the phone and call somebody.

As almost all business becomes global in nature and business processes increasingly are managed online, companies continue to push the limits of technology created to manage projects and teams across time zones and geographies. The goal is to communicate more effectively, work more closely with partners, leverage ephemeral information sources, and ultimately get as close as possible to the feel of what’s really going on.

Nevsun’s experience with Skire is just one cross-continent example. In product development, vendors such as Dassault Systemes, Siemens, and others are plowing Web 2.0 capabilities into their product life-cycle management platforms, adding collaboration and complexity.

Running alongside these formal platforms is the aggressive use of Internet-centric social networking platforms and tools – wikis, blogs, instant messaging, presence awareness, peer reviews, search – to foster internal teamwork and tap into wider communities of knowledge. Yet IT teams are wrestling with how these tools function in concert with collaboration technology, such as document management, project management, and product development systems. Are they adjuncts, integral parts, or even replacements for tried-and-true software?

Plenty of CIOs also are wary of the data integration, security, and productivity issues raised by the introduction of social networking technology in the enterprise, especially when tied to a process as critical as developing a new product or completing a project. Yet some of embraced the dynamic nature of social computing and turned it to their advantage.

Four Challenges to Ad Hoc Collaboration

Creating Norms. When you have a wiki and formal project or product development software, what conversations happen where? One idea: If it’s tied to a process step, keep it in the formal tool. If it’s about improving that process, go to the wiki.

Breaking Convention. Product development is a high-stakes process. Injecting social networking conventions adds risks. Yet it could be vital to global teams that innovate ideas as well as execute.

Finding Insights. Done wrong, wikis can create islands of insights that the right people will never find.

Conquering Fear. Subject experts might be wary of sharing hard-earned insights, since they see that as their value.

More Discussion on Twitter and Facebook as Collaborative Tools

I already touched on this in my earlier article entitled “Twitter and Facebook as Project Management Tools?” In that article, I came to the conclusion that there is no real viable use in PM for either Twitter or Facebook. I explained that I see Facebook as a good connector for family and friends with no real business application at all. And Twitter is, at best, a networking or promotion tool, but isn’t of any real value to the world of a Project Manager.

Facebook Still a No-Go

The original article garnered quite a few comments. I expected this given the high usage of each site. Nearly everyone agreed that there really isn’t a good application in the PM world for Facebook. If one were to setup a group just for a specific project, then possibly I could see some value. On going comments could be seen by all team members subscribed to the group and files could be shared.

However, this just seems to be a case of introducing something “just to use it” when tried and true communications still work and do not need replaced. The frustrating thing about using a new method like this when it’s not needed is that you end up using both, taking twice as much time to do what you were already doing and then never being certain who’s using which tool so there’s always a question mark. As the PM, I never want to be uncertain whether my team received the information I sent over. But if I have to post send it 2 ways (email and Facebook) to accommodate both types of users, then I’ve doubled the chance (not halved it) that information could be missed.

Twitter – Minor Pluses

After receiving comments and rethinking, I will now admit that I can see some minor good that can come from Twitter usage in the business world beyond just networking and self-promotion. One individual commented that a Twitter message sent out to the general community got a critical question answered and rescued a project.

I can see that happening very easily because with Twitter, you’re sending it out to the world. Anyone can find it even though they may not be following you – you just have to make sure you put relevant search words in the message. The 140-character limit is frustrating, but you can link to something longer, if necessary. Since getting that feedback comment, I’ve used it to reach out to others on information I needed for software and issue resolution.

However, I still contend that Twitter is really not a useful tool for collaboration and project management. It may get you an answer you need – not very quickly though…the best you can probably hope for is 24 hours. But someone will eventually reach out to you most likely. But in terms of disseminating critical information on a project to team members and customers… I still don’t see it as having any viable application in the PM world. It still remains to me, just a tool for networking with other like-minded individuals, a means of promoting your thoughts or work or whatever it is you’re doing, or possibly a way to get some questions answered. For true collaboration as a team, stick with email, phone and other devices to share knowledge like sharepoints and wikis.

What Does Cloud Computing Mean to Project Managers?

I was watching an online video the other day where some IT industry experts were asked what cloud computing meant to them. It’s funny how it means something a little different to everyone and some of them were at a loss of words to describe which gives you an idea of how new it still is to everyone…and yet how simple the concept really is. And that’s mostly what it is…a concept. Like the flow chart that would have this big box that said “and something happens here” when no one could figure out the right process to show or how to solve the problem.

Defining Cloud Computing

Cloud computing isn’t quite like that…it isn’t something that just happens…but done right it is something that sort of “just happens.” Like the internet…you turn your computer on and there it is and your connected to information, networks, servers somewhere else, a remote printer, etc. You don’t really worry about it, it’s there. And that’s the concept of cloud computing.

Cloud means Internet. The computing takes place on the Internet – in place of the software you use executing on your desktop pc, it’s hosted on the Internet on a server installed in a data centre usually staffed by people who are experts in managing technology. This type of “cloud” software is sometimes called “on demand” or Software as a Service (SaaS).

After all, the cloud idea came from the image used to display the concept of the Internet in diagrams. Like a big cloud that we connect to not caring really what is in that cloud and how we get information and services from it. Back to the video I was watching…one individual described it simply as…”if you need more than your laptop and an Internet connection, then it’s not cloud computing.”

Cloud Computing and the Project

So what does cloud computing mean to project managers? What does it mean for our projects? At a minimum, this is what I believe it means to me as a project manager:

• New web-based testing processes (see my article on startup Skytap teaming with HP)
• Web-based project management software (ProjectOffice.net, Liquid Planner, MindManager, etc.)
• Greener project management
• Lower costs
• Elimination of unnecessary hardware
• Incredible scalability
• Ease of information sharing between delivery team members, customer team members and executive management
• Rapid dashboard info on portfolio of projects
• Information sharing through Wiki’s, etc.
• More remote management
• Meetings using web-based tools
• Add-on software part of the cloud and not a requirement for your customer to have loaded on his users’ machines

Summary

To me, as a Project Manager, cloud computing means a more green, less costly, and more carefree processing environment for the customer. Does this mean a more carefree and less costly implementation? Possibly less costly, but from the PM perspective I don’t believe it’s any more carefree. Everything must still be tested, everything still must work upon deployment, and everything must still be supported.

Document Controller SITE/ PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Location: United Arab Emirates
Salary: Excellent TAX FREE salary
Company: Stepp Recruitment
Sector: Commercial
Job role: Project manager
Job type: Permanent
Date posted: 22/06/2009 18:50

Document ControllerSITE/ PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Ref: A1022
Location: Abu Dhabi UAE
Date Posted: 19 June 2009
Salary: Excellent TAX FREE salary

Details:

Stepp Recruitment Limited has been placing candidates to the Middle East for almost TWENTY YEARS!! No other recruitment Company has more experience in placing CURTAIN WALLING/ CLADDING/ FACADES skilled applicants to this prosperous and stunning region of the world.

We are delighted to be working with one of our most prestigious client Curtain Walling companies in the Middle East, a company which can offer its clients complete expertise in Architectural Aluminum and Glazing product’s design, manufacture and installation and having a coveted portfolio of some of the most outstanding and architecturally award winning projects throughout the region.

Document Controller – part of a vital team assisting the Project Manager in a role that is highly computer orientated. The successful person will have intelligence and common sense and be able to document any changes to projects by recording the information and liaison with various departments to ensure awareness and implementation of any amendments. This will require an ability to read and understand drawings.

Experience Required:

Be computer literate with at least 2 years (ideally 5) experience in curtain walling and be familiar with all the components – extrusions, glass, brackets, silicon screws, nuts, etc. Able to speak clear and fluent English, so more suitable to an English, American, South African or Australian nationality. Methodical, highly organised

This is a highly pressurised, challenging role that will suit someone who has worked in the Middle or Far East previously, understand the culture, climate and working conditions. MUST be a ‘doer’ who will give everything to the role. Someone who will roll up their sleeves and go out and push. Practical experience is more important that qualifications.

A mature person who has worked in the same environment and has an acceptance of stress levels. In return you will a superb TAX FREE salary plus accommodation, with the opportunity to work alongside some of the most experienced and techncially competent people in the Curtain Wall industry and be involved in award winning, internationally acclaimed projects throughout the world. This is a GLOBAL company and prospects are superb for ambitious, hardworking, technically competent people.

To apply for this position please forward your CV in PDF or Word format by clicking the apply button.

Apply here..