The Role of the Project Manager: Results or Process?
It seems simple, right? The role of the project manager is to successfully complete the project. You can use the traditional “on time, on budget, on scope” but sometimes there’s more. And that’s what I’m addressing here.
Sometimes, there are requirements that as a project manager you have to wonder, what’s the value? Seven or eight plans when one will do (for example, risk, communications, quality, staffing, Gantt charts when doing Agile, etc.) Weekly status reports when, if you are Agile, your board and other information radiators will tell the entire story. Estimates of deliverables that the project is held to, even when circumstances change and the client requires changes. Annual budgeting when, if you want to be Agile, daily (at least monthly) budgeting may be better. Detailed planning for the entire project, when you know that things will change immediately and a rolling plan would be better.
So, what does a PM do? If your organization values results, and you are an experienced PM, then minimizing the process & related paperwork (just enough to add value and demonstrate due diligence) is a very viable approach. No one argues when a project is successful.
If your organization values process over results, then you are in trouble as you’ll have to do the paperwork beyond what normally would be considered necessary (enough to help the project succeed, but no more). In this case, as a PM, you’ll have to play the game and tamp down your frustrations. However, make sure to deliver the project because if you don’t, no amount of paperwork will save you.
Note: this is not to disparage the need for process. On the contrary, process and documents/tools are key when inexperienced PMs are running projects. They’ll value the help that process provides. Or, for experienced PMs, to help them think (for example, a charter document is extremely helpful when starting a project. It acts as a checklist for the experienced PM to make sure nothing is forgotten). Once a PM is experienced, process and documentation are useful to the extent that they help achieve the project’s objective. No more.
If you are lucky enough to be running a project in an organization that values results over process, then there are a few tools available to help you focus on the results. If software development, any of the Agile approaches (Scrum being the most popular) are extremely helpful. You may need to educate the client, but with their focus on results, they’ll be amenable.
If not in software or in software with a requirement to follow waterfall, then a tool such as Commitment-Based Project Management (CBPM) will help you run the project, staying focused on the results and the success of it. CBPM focuses on deliverables, within and outside the team, holding the owners accountable for their delivery. It helps team members communicate with each other rather than through the PM, eliminating a bottleneck and increasing accountability. Some simple rules help the PM manage the effort to success.
Even if you are in a process-focused organization, these tools, Agile and CBPM, can still be very helpful. You’ll have to determine how to best fit them into your organization’s process.
Here’s to successful projects!
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