SKILLED PROJECT LEADERSHIP—THE ROAD TO SUCCESS (OR FAILURE)
By
Karen Sloat
Senior Consultant
I recently found myself asking why some endeavors seem to
almost implement themselves while others, no matter how much
effort appears to be expended, seem to falter and/or take much
longer than expected to achieve any measurable success.
As I
thought about it, I could have listed a number of factors that
impact how successful any given project will be. First of all,
the project must have the appropriate management support at
various levels throughout the organization. Without buy-in from
the management group that will be impacted, implementing change
will be an arduous process at best.
Second, there must be a
solid project plan. This road map alerts the project team to
the activities that must be done, time frames to be met, and
dependencies that may exist. The project plan becomes the gauge
as to whether the project team is on target to deliver on time
and meet the stated objectives of the project. It should be
the foundation for status reports that update management on
the team’s progress.
At this point, I realized that I have known
of projects that have had the appropriate management support
and what appeared to be a comprehensive and realistic project
plan, but which still struggled with the execution of the plan.
In retrospect, I can attribute this to project leadership.
The
appointment of a skilled project manager is critical to the
success of any major endeavor. Too often, the individual selected
is someone who may be technically proficient in a given area,
but who lacks the leadership skills needed to ensure project
execution. Ask yourself some of the following when selecting
someone to be your project manager:
- What is the individual’s
background? If it is a technology-driven project, does the person
also have an understanding of the business? If not, can the
person work with the business to strengthen his or her understanding
of the business process?
- Does the candidate possess strong written
and verbal communication skills? In any given project, much
of the project leader’s success will depend on his or her ability
to communicate with team members, other affected departments,
and the executive team sponsors. The ability to actively listen
to the project members to understand the requirements of the
venture is also essential.
- Is the individual comfortable interacting
with all levels of the organization? Depending on the scope
of the project, the leader may be called upon to give status
reports and presentations to executive management. The same
person may need to interact with the staff members who actually
perform the work in today’s environment. Selecting someone who
understands the nuances of dealing with different personality
types and job levels within the organization will increase the
chances for success.
- Does the individual have experience in
facilitating groups, meetings, or workshops? Can he or she direct
a multi-functional team of people toward a common goal?
- Finally,
has the person demonstrated strong problem-solving, decision-making,
and organizational skills? Does he or she know when to be independent
and when to escalate an issue to the appropriate individual?
Is the candidate goal-oriented?
As an organization, you have
probably invested significant time and resources in scoping
and defining the business issues that lead up to the decision
to go forth with a major technology or process-related project.
Give it every chance to succeed! Take the time to ensure that
you have selected a project manager who can lead the team to
a successful implementation.
