Share this
Mister Wong
Digg
Del.icio.us
Slashdot
Furl
Yahoo
Technorati
Newsvine
Googlize this
Blinklist
Facebook
Wikio
Hear this text
Export PDF
Print
E-mail
Tags
What are the personality traits that set apart truly excellent project managers?There is certainly more to being a project manager than meets the eye. Mastering the technical aspects and processes are important, but many would argue that innate personal characteristics are what set apart great project managers. The Project Manager spoke to three people who work as, or with project managers in the fields of engineering, construction and telecommunications, for their thoughts about the traits that good project managers should possess or aim to develop in order to be great.
Bianca Brits, planner at consulting engineering firm Arup says, “The role of the project manager is changing rapidly, from being a technical expert to leading the project teams who possess skills necessary to deliver. Technical knowledge can be acquired, but leadership skills
are inherent.
“Imagine having to lead a (often very large) team of people within multidimensional environments, i.e. day-to-day operations of the project team within the project office, parent organisation and contractors. Not to mention inter-organisation or external organisations with a vested interest or a supervisory authority in the project office.
“This complex environment requires a leadership style unrivalled by any other management position.
“With large project teams comes large diversity consisting of multifaceted mixes of multidisciplinary, inter-organisational, geographically disbursed, internally employed and outsourced or contract staff, which all come with their own lines of authority if ‘borrowed’ from another department or project partner,” she explains.
“All this responsibility does not always come with the necessary authority.
Therefore the need for excellent interpersonal, or soft skills, are necessary requisites for success, with a touch of technical knowledge.
“The ability to negotiate and persuade is paramount to success. Some of these abilities can be acquired, but for the most part it has to be natural and instinctive, ensuring consistency – which builds trust.
“So, if you have the ability to inspire and lead people with the talent and technical know-how to deliver a project successfully, then yes, you can be a remarkable project manager,” adds Brits.
Samuel Mtetwa, network engineer with MTN Business SA, believes that not everyone is cut out to be a project manager. “Project management requires the use of many different skills sets. It involves tasks of limitless variety. One must live by curious combinations of process compliance and individual judgment, of gut feelings and data, of people and things.
“By the nature of projects – being an art and science at the same time – project management requires keen knowledge of human behaviour and the ability to apply appropriate inter-personal skills,” Mtetwa says.
“Possession of hard skills is not a pre-requisite for one to be a PM; however, it is beneficial in gaining respect and co-operation from team members. If one lacks hard skills, one may find it difficult to perform tasks such as risk management, quality control, problem-solving, team building and decision-making.
“With ever-changing conditions, resources need to be reorganised and re-prioritised. Decisions are to be made continuously. A PM needs to facilitate and stimulate stakeholders to take action. What would a PM do without negotiation skills?
“Yes, anyone can be a PM; however, the right employment of both the soft and hard skills sets a great project manager apart from a mediocre one,” says Mtetwa.
Maphike Tsepetsi, who works in project management in the plumbing and construction environment, answers the question saying, “Not really, particularly when we understand the qualities of a project manager versus an ordinary person who is in the field or intending to be a project manager.”
He explains, “The PM’s responsibilities evolved around three constraints: scope, resources and scheduling – and I believe these constraints can only be overcome when one has the following qualities:
“Creativity – is a fundamental element that creates a base that enables different pieces to pull together into a cohesive whole, adding zest and appeal in the process.
“Structure – the basic is to work within a prescribed structure and know the structure intimately, so as to guide others to effectively work within the given parameters of the process or the project.
“Commitment – a manager is committed to the success of the project and all team members. A good project manager holds the vision for the collective team and moves the team closer to the end result.
“Good communicator – the ability to interact with all kinds of human beings is, in my opinion, the most important skill of a project manager. Goals, responsibility, performances, expectation and feedback have to be communicated clearly to all project team players as the project manager links his team to the larger organisation.
“Ability to delegate tasks – an essential element in the relationship of the project leader and his team is based on delegating responsibilities, and making the team accountable.
“Cool under pressure – projects are not always delivered on time and are executed under budget constraints, and a leader with a hardy attitude will take these problems in his/her stride. A good project manager, when encountering a stressful event, considers it an interesting challenge,” concludes Tsepetsi.
