Accidental Project Manager … Is That You?
A ‘people person‘ isn’t always valued or appreciated in organizations dominated by professionals, such as scientists, engineers and the numbers folks.
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Sidebar: Coming Soon!
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Why Are “People Oriented” People Not ‘Cool?’
The current (evolving hybrid and flexible) workplace regularly requires team members of all levels to coordinate and manage projects.
With Fortune 500 companies, especially Life Sciences and Pharma companies where “professional” project managers happen to also be science and process oriented (read: “certified”), it creates what I refer to with our clients as “understandable problems.“
There’s a good chance you’re one of those people if this post caught your eye…or you may be a leader or manager of an individual or group facing this challenge.
And if your workplace regularly requires you to coordinate and manage projects even though you’re not a “professional” project manager, then you my friend, are an “ACCIDENTAL” project manager.
Here’s what you need to know…
One source I came across a while back (I believe it was PMI’s Pulse of the Profession?), stated that…
…for every $100 invested in projects worldwide, there’s a net loss of $13.50.
And that…
- 45% of projects are either overdue or cancelled entirely.
- On average, only 45% of projects actually achieve their goals.
- In the area of managing projects, only 8% of organizations are considered to be “high performers.“
Those are investments that have become “costs” gone forever…never to be recovered.
If people can’t confidently, competently and persuasively engage a group of good people to handle projects or programs, then no matter how “good” the organization’s program or project management “processes” might be, they won’t be effective.
It’s my belief, and clients’ results continue to prove that there’s no need to be drowned in EPMO, PMO or project management methodologies and frameworks in order to competently manage a project that delivers.
Even and especially when the leaders of the project are “accidental” project managers, maybe functional managers ordinary or high-performing, high potential team members of any function of any level within an organization.
Sadly, many companies insist on using out-of-date, and often complex but “documented somwehere” EPMO and PMO processes that quite frankly, add little to no value, unnecessarily complicate things, discourage organizational change from being embraced and contribute to already high project failure rates.
So, what’s needed?
A good understanding of a few basic principles of people management and how to implement them is what’s required, and this is simple but by no means easy.
As someone whose worked with clients around the globe for over twenty years, I’ve innocently but intentionally asked hundreds of people the following question:
“So, tell me, how much of your professional life do you think you spend working on projects?
Most people I ask this question respond with “Anywhere between 70% to 80% of my time at work is project based.”
However, when I dig deeper to find out if their official job title is “Project Manager” or “PM” the answer is often … 100% response of the time “No!”
And remember, this is across different industry sectors and especially in highly regulated industries and companies ex: pharma, life sciences, financial services, telecoms etc.,
Most described themselves as “…anything but a project manager.”
But wait, there’s more.
What do you think happens when asked if they’ve ever been given project management training to handle that 70% to 80% of their time at work?
You got it.
Very few people say “Yes” they have.
The vast majority confirm (sometimes secretly for fear of retribution) that they’ve never had a single day of formal project management training but are expected to manage and deliver projects.
Those are the people I refer to as “accidental” project managers. The people the tips, tools the resource “Accidental Project Manager” is being designed for.
The Accidental Project Manager
Q: What is the Accidental Project Manager and who is it for?
A: A resource designed for busy managers, supervisors, leads and functional team members asked to lead projects without formal PM training or certification and who want to avoid overwhelm, confusion and eliminate failure.
Next Step
If this is something you know you need follow me on LinkedIn at bayoao and you’ll be notified as the Accidental Project Manager resources become available in the next couple of weeks, including tips, checklists, training, a limited number of coaching spots and more.
*Follow me here
*Similar to many other professionals on LinkedIn I receive many connection requests on a daily and weekly basis and can’t meaningfully respond to them all, so following me guarantees you don’t miss out on next steps and you recieve other helpful tips in the interim.
A Reason Why Many Fortune 500 Projects Fail …
What is one of the main reasons projects fail in many Fortune 500 companies?
It’s due to something that’s not so obvious, and not just to those that certified PM types consider not to be “professional” project managers!
The problem is that projects and processes are often innocently confused with big impacts.
So, let’s clear things up once and for all.
What a Project is Not …
A project is not the same as a process.
Processes are:
- Routine.
- Predefined steps.
- Used to perform specific functions.
An example that comes to mind is L&D expense reimbursement approvals.
This isn’t a “one-off” activity.
Every time a particular function is performed, a process determines the way it’s going to be performed.
When it comes to processes, they’re (often) system-driven while the next steps for projects are defined by people (often Subject Matter Experts/SMEs).
Often, this arises from the need for flexibility and the ad-hoc nature of many projects.
And finally …
- Projects normally have a clear start and end date (even in the case of projects using an agile iterative approach).
- The project creates and delivers something or some things new.
- Some constraints apply to the project.
- It’s not by any definition business as usual (“BAU”)..
Understanding this distinction will solve many of the problems with your projects of any size or complexity in any department or function.
I guarantee it!
Bayo AO
Change is Risky …
Every change you make holds the possibility of working out well or backfiring.
This is called a “change risk” in business.
Change risk is the chance that a change project won’t accomplish its stated goals. This is simply because there are a lot of factors that make projects “change-risky”.
Smart organizations conduct risk change assessments so they can understand, document, and reduce the risks associated with change.
But what do you do when the changes are about you?
You should always do your own risk change assessment whenever you’re going through a change.
Why?
It’s worth it for you too, whether it’s your career or your personal goals.
Don’t write off the bold move because taking a leap of faith backed by some intentional risk assessment can help us grow in ways we can’t imagine!
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Our understanding of mastery has improved thanks to new research on neural pathways, not just repetition and muscle memory. Here’s how to minimize distractions so you can devote yourself to learning, practicing, and mastering what you set your mind to.