Feb 2010 Issue: Project Leadership

Welcome to Our February Issue

In this month’s issue, our main topic is Project Leadership. Project managers are very often in the unique position of having to lead up, down and across an organization - working with their own boss, functional managers, sponsors, team members and other stakeholders. Successful project managers not only have to be technically proficient and knowledgeable, they also need to know how to draw upon people at multiple levels to find information and expertise that is relevant to the project, hold others accountable for their commitments and manage stakeholder expectations.

Included in this issue:

• Creating Trust as a Leader
• Project Management Q&A
• Self-Reflection: Are You Ready to Lead?
• Delegating Work and Empowering Others
• Handling Personal Feedback
• The Project Manager as Team Coach
• Reading Room: Leadership
• Project Leadership Quick Tips

Next Month’s Topic: Project Control

If you’re not a regular subscriber, sign up for pmPractitioner today and be notified when next month’s issue is available!

pmPractitioner is published as a service to the project management community. Each issue provides practical project management solutions and tips adapted from a variety of business publications and resources.

Creating Trust as a Leader

It’s possible that the word “trust” could be defined as a decision to rely on another party under a condition of risk. Risk here refers to the possibility that the trusting party will experience costs or damage if the other party proves untrustworthy. The implications are huge, as trust levels within a project team could be reflected in a significant performance advantage (or disadvantage), depending on whether team trust is high or whether the team exists in an atmosphere of suspicion and unease.

Effective project leaders will set out to deliberately build a climate of trust and support its development within the team and project stakeholders. They know that the point of biggest leverage is through the human networks that exist within the organization, outside the rigid rules of the hierarchy. This is how work really gets done. Everyone operating within an organization is interdependent, not independent.

Increasing openness, information flow, dialogue, opportunities to connect, and speed of response to information will automatically increase trust. Keep an eye out for strong networkers when you put together your project team. Understand how they connect, on a daily basis, directly or indirectly to your stakeholders.

Trust Builders

• Address the issue of trust up-front with your team – define what it is and confront any historical issues that may get in the way.
• Be authentic, tell the truth, do not “spin” it.
• Always assume the other person has good intentions.
• Reward and recognize others for their performance.
• Admit when you are wrong, or have made a mistake.
• Listen to people, value their input and show respect for their abilities.
• Demonstrate confidence in your project team members by delegating responsibility and follow-up.
Effective project leaders will set out to deliberately build a climate of trust and support its development within the team and project stakeholders.

Trust Destroyers

• Be inconsistent in your messages.
• Fail to support your team.
• Back down to challenges.
• Take the credit when others truly deserve it.
• Fail to deal with and resolve significant problems or issues.
• Allow your ego to override your common sense.
• Fail to align your project with organizational strategy and goals.

Adapted from mScholar’s Strategic Project Leadership, Action for Results, Inc. 2006

February Project Management Q&A

Test your project management knowledge with these questions or use them as an exercise to help prepare for your PMP certification exam.

1. Project Integration Management entails all of the following except:

2. In risk response planning, strategies for responding to negative risks include all of the following except: 

Answers appear at the end of the newsletter.

Self-Reflection: Are You Ready to Lead?

Are you ready to be a project leader? Here are some questions that will help you assess your readiness to lead a project team and manage stakeholder and sponsor relationships.

Are You Willing to Lead?

• Do you have the courage to be candid and forthright?
• Do you believe in the project you are being asked to manage?

Do You Play Well With Others?

• Do you believe that others have something to offer?
• Are you respectful of others and empathetic as well?

Can You Influence Others?

• Can you be persuasive up, down and across the organization?
• Is your communication style flexible and adaptable?

Are You Decisive and Fair?

• Do you take smart risks and have good judgment?
• Can you facilitate creative problem solving?

Do You Create Focus and Positive Spirit?

• Do you show initiative and high personal energy?
• Are you goal-oriented, persistent and open to others’ good ideas?

Think about the points above. Where do your strengths lie? What are the areas where you may need to further develop your leadership skills?

Adapted from Practicing Project Leadership, Action for Results, Inc., 2008

Delegating Work and Empowering Others

For some, delegating work – giving up control to others – can be very difficult to do. However, delegating ensures that the project manager can oversee the total project instead of being drowned in details, and increases the overall ability to deliver and meet timeframes. In addition, it stimulates a sense of initiative and trust in the team, while helping members to grow and develop in their own right.

In the process of delegation, both the project manager and the team member accept certain responsibilities.

Project Manager Responsibilities:

• Select the work to be delegated and make sure that it is organized for delegation.
• Pick the right resource(s) to do the work.
• Define success criteria/standards.
• Communicate clear goals and milestones, and the results expected.
• Provide necessary support and training.
• Show trust, be aware of progress and review results.
• Give feedback and praise.

Project Team Member Responsibilities:

• Confirm that the task is realistic.
• Clearly establish and understand success criteria, milestones, priorities and expected results.
• Clarify how and when to communicate with the project manager.
• Carry out the work and report progress regularly.
• Maintain necessary records.
• Determine new opportunities or better ways of getting the task done.

Adapted from Essential Leadership, Action for Results, Inc., 2002

Handling Personal Feedback

An extremely useful step in leadership development is seeing yourself as others see you. Others’ perceptions form their part of the reality of your relationship. However, to gain this insight means opening yourself up to personal feedback from members of your team as well as stakeholders.

Getting feedback from others on our personal behavior is tough – it may even hurt. We nod our head to the positive and supportive statements that agree with our own views. However, when it comes to our weaknesses or improvement areas we take those to heart, sometimes dwelling on them and sometimes denying them. 

When trying to absorb this type of feedback, keep in mind the “SARAH” process: Shock, Anger, Resentment, Acceptance and Help.

“When I get open and honest feedback on how others perceive me, I may be Shocked, Angry, and Resentful. But unless I Accept that as their perceptions of me, I’ll never progress to seeking Help in making the changes called for to become a better leader, project manager and person.”

Human nature seems to endow us with the ability to size up everybody but ourselves. Therefore, feedback is often a key element in personal learning and improvement.  Even if we don’t agree with the perceptions of others, we know how we’re perceived and that helps us to build relationships.

Remember that not all feedback is valid and helpful. Ultimately you have to decide what fits and what doesn’t. You have to choose the feedback that rings true to you.

Adapted from Growing the Distance: Timeless Principles for Personal, Career, and Family Success, Jim Clemmer, 1999

The Project Manager as Team Coach

Coaching is a vital competency of project team leadership and supports improved project performance by increasing the effectiveness of your team. The team members gain not only the ability to excel in their current project role, but also in their permanent job, or subsequent roles within the organization. As a coach, your role is to help them gain the knowledge, skills and abilities to increase both their potential and performance.

To be a good project team coach, you need some basic skills, including the ability to…

Communicate effectively: You must be able to ask the right questions without creating discomfort in the person you are coaching. You must also be a good listener.

Set clear direction: As a leader you are responsible for ensuring that the purpose and objectives of the team are clear, and that the team stays on course.

Organize: As a leader you bring the team together, and connect them with the information and resources they need to do the job. You also provide the oversight and follow-up on project milestones and deliverables.

Facilitate: This is a key skill within a diverse project team. You have to be competent in creating the environment for the productive exchange of ideas and ensure all ideas are surfaced and handled proactively, without criticism or infighting.

Summarize: Distilling the key points of a conversation, as well as reviewing meeting progress, outputs and commitments, is key to efficient team interaction and operation.

Develop others: Leadership impels you to teach others the skills they need to work together.

Adapted from Coaching and Motivation for Results, Action for Results, Inc., 2006

Reading Room: Leadership

eXtreme Project Management: Using Leadership, Principles, and Tools to Deliver Value in the Face of Volatility, Doug DeCarlo, Jossey-Bass, 2004

The Leadership Challenge, 4th Edition, James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner, Jossey-Bass, 2008

Powerful Project Leadership, Wayne Strider, Management Concepts, 2002

Results Without Authority: Controlling a Project When the Team Doesn’t Report to You – A Project Manager’s Guide, Tom Kendrick, AMACOM, 2006

The Strategic Project Leader: Mastering Service-Based Project Leadership, Jack Ferraro, Auerbach Publications, 2007

Project Leadership Quick Tips

Buy Yourself Time to Make the Right Decision
When faced with a challenge, effective leaders resist rushing forward with “The Answer.” Instead, they often look for ways to buy themselves a little time so that they can think about the most sensible way to proceed. Finding time to make the right decision can sometimes seem like playing organizational games (“Our system went down. Can you re-send the file?”). However, it’s often more important in the long run to be a bit creative in your tactics if it allows you the time to come up with the correct solution to the problem. 

Adapted From Leading Quietly, Joseph Badaracco, Jr., Harvard Business School Press, 2002.

Taking the First Steps to Project Success
Make a promise to yourself at the beginning of your project to be proactive – it’s one of the keys to project success. As you begin your project, remember these simple statements:

• Seek out information because you know you need it.
• Follow the process because you know it’s the best way.
• Involve people whom you know are important for the project.
• Raise issues and risks, analyze them and elicit support to address them.
• Share information with people you know should have it.
• Put all important information in writing.
• Commit to a project and then ask and expect others to do the same.

Adapted From Project Management for Dummies, Stanley E. Portny, Dummies Press, 2006

Establish a Personal Advisory Board
Everyone needs guidance, role models and support, and this can be especially true if you’re a new project manager or running a project in an unfamiliar situation. Establishing your own personal advisory board enables you to obtain assistance from several people. Choose members based on their ability to make a unique contribution to your success.

Here are a few important tips for developing your advisory board:

• Select people whom you trust.
• Keep in mind that the alliances you form with your advisors are substantive, strategically important, and meaningful relationships.
• Clarify each person’s expectations for the relationship. Negotiate how long you expect the relationship to proceed in this form.
• Understand what your mentor needs in order for the relationship to be mutually rewarding. For some advisors, helping another person succeed is sufficient. Others might feel rewarded by your offers to assist them in their own work.

Adapted From 20 Ways to Become a Leader, Ellen Ostrow, Ph.D.

Answers to February Project Management Q&A

1. (d) is correct.

Managing scope is properly the function of the Scope Management knowledge area. Answer (C) is very much part of Integration Management and can be said to be its heart and soul.

[Planning] PMBOK Guide 4th Edition, p. 71

2. (d) is correct.

Deferring is not a strategy for responding to risk.  Answer A (Avoid) is incorrect. “Avoid” is indeed a primary negative risk response strategy, involving changing the project management plan to eliminate the threat posed by an adverse risk.

[Planning], PMBOK Guide, Fourth Edition, pp. 303-304