Rebles Guide to PM

1. 5 Types of project stakeholder (and how to manage them)

   

   Managing project stakeholders can feel like herding cats—each one has their quirks, demands, and personalities. If you’ve been in the project management game for any length of time, you know how important it is to understand who you’re dealing with and how to keep things running smoothly.

   From the ever-elusive busy bee to the relentless micro-manager, I’ve worked with them all!

   Here are 5 types of project customer that you may come across, along with some tips about how to manage your relationships with them like a pro.

   1. The stakeholder who won’t commit

   The stakeholder who won’t commit frequently comes up with new requirements and submits changes. They might even use the official scope management process, but more often than not they’ll expect that because they have mentioned it in an email or while you were both at the office coffee machine, that’s enough.

   Trust me, it’s never enough.

   Record and analyze all the changes that they propose and help them see the impact of changing their mind so often.

   They might still want all their changes to go ahead, but at least you’ll have a clear idea of how it is going to impact the schedule and budget and – most importantly – have those impacts approved so you aren’t trying to deliver more with the same money within the same time.

   

   2. The stakeholder who is too busy

   The busy bee stakeholder doesn’t reply to your emails. They don’t return your calls (or if they do, it’s at a time when they know that you aren’t going to be available to take the call and they leave the briefest of messages).

   They accept your meeting invites and then decline the night before.

   They are busy. I get it. I’m busy too.

   But for projects that are important to me, and for work that pays the bills, I make the time. And I can’t help feeling that they should too.

   After all, why should my team and I be slogging away delivering something when the person who is ultimately going to benefit can’t find a moment to prioritise answering a query or making a decision?

   When you can’t get hold of a customer it slows your project down. Without their input or sign off at critical times you can’t move forward. You shouldn’t expect your team to act in the absence of critical decisions – so whole workstreams might come to a halt.

   Leave messages for your customer to explain that. Make it easy for them to get back to you and let them know the impact of any delay. Review different ways to engage stakeholders and how you can switch up what you’re doing to better support them.

   If necessary, ask your project sponsor to get involved, assuming that the person causing the problem is not your sponsor.

   Proactively manage these stakeholders (here are some tips on how to do just that). Ultimately, if they can’t give the project the time it requires, they should be nominating someone else to be the main point of contact for that team.

   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdphbawdvyo

   3. The stakeholder who micro-manages

   Micro-managing is another way to really slow down a project. It’s when you have to run every decision past your customer.

   They are the kind of stakeholder who wants to come to every project meeting, and because they have diary commitments like everyone else, you can’t meet as quickly as you would like.

   I’ve even met stakeholders who insist on reviewing the technical spec even if they have no idea of what they are actually reading (I’m pretty sure that he wasn’t an IT developer in a previous job).

   You’ll have to use your negotiation skills to make sure that you set boundaries you can both work to. explain that there are certain things that you can get on with without needing their involvement.

   Talk about the kind of things where their input really does add value and be honest about how much their involvement in other areas is slowing you down. Make sure that they get project reports that are detailed enough for their needs.

   You may still have to live with them micro-managing, and if they are paying you there isn’t a lot more you can do about it, but you should adjust your project schedule accordingly.

   Read next: The 6 things every stakeholder wants

   4. The stakeholder who doesn’t know what s/he wants

   The flip flop stakeholder changes their mind frequently but not with clear requests: it’s all very woolly. This problem is most acute at the beginning of the project when you are trying to get started and are finding it almost impossible to pin down what you should do.

   You may have clear objectives and a project vision, which is great, but the difficulty comes in trying to work out how to get there.

   You need the help of a business analyst – someone who is an expert at eliciting business requirements. You should also plan enough time in the project initiation and planning phases to really work out exactly what is required, and if you can, build in some cost contingency because you’ll have scoped something incorrectly.

   When your customer can’t tell you what he or she wants, you aren’t going to be able to deliver that outcome. They need to know this, and what they are risking by being so vague.

   

   5. The stakeholder who wants it faster

   Most project stakeholders want it faster. And why wouldn’t they? If you can deliver faster you’ll normally unlock the business benefits more quickly and get those savings/extra sales/lower staff turnover or whatever faster.

   But it becomes a problem when the customer doesn’t understand just how long things take, or refuses to believe you.

   For example, they ask you to cut the time for testing, when your estimating over the last 6 projects like this one show that you really do need the full month.

   Be clear. Let them see the workings of the project. Help them understand where your estimates have come from. This is a situation that you can turn around, and if you have good stakeholder relationships you should be able to do so relatively easily with a few honest discussions.

   And be honest yourself too: how much padding is in those estimates? There might be a compromise to be had that involves making your contingency time and schedule buffers transparent and then moving dates up as you don’t use them.

   Working with different personalities is part of the job

   Project stakeholders generally are committed to the project and want to see it be a success. That’s why stakeholders contribute: because they want the deliverables that are due at the end.

   But from time to time in your career as a project manager you’ll come across stakeholders who aren’t as easy to work with.

   Great stakeholder communication skills, time and patience are a good start in making sure those customers understand the project and everything that you are trying to do. Talking to them about the nature of project work can be a good way to open lines of communication.

   While it might take longer than you had hoped, the results will be better and you’ll build great ongoing relationships with your stakeholder community.

   This article first appeared on Rebel's Guide to Project Management and can be read here: 5 Types of project stakeholder (and how to manage them)

2. 5 Scenarios where you should escalate a project issue

   

   No one likes escalating problems to their Project Board or sponsor. It kind of smacks of ‘I can’t deal with this myself and need help’ and most of the project managers I know would rather struggle on than ask for help in most situations.

   When they do ask, you know it’s a huge deal and definitely worthy of their sponsor getting involved.

   So what kind of situations is escalation appropriate for? When can’t you deal with the problems yourself? Here are 5 scenarios where it pays to escalate.

   1. When you don’t know who will make the decision

   You are not the person making the core, strategic decisions about your project. Yes, you can decide that if you jiggle your IT budget a bit you can spend extra on testing and less on some kit you managed to get at a discount, but you don’t get to make the call on whether the project is delivering the right things.

   Someone else does that and you need to know who they are. If no one around you can give you a straight answer about who has the final say on design, sign off, functionality, branding and so on, then that’s a red flag for an escalation.

   When you escalate this to your sponsor, be conscious of the fact that it might be them who is the right person to make the decision, and approach the conversation carefully!

   

   2. When you can’t break down the silos

   Teams that work in silos are difficult. If you’ve done everything in your power to get them to work together: regular team meetings, cross-functional workshops, bringing people together in person and virtually – and nothing is working, then escalation might be the answer.

   You don’t want this to come across to your sponsor as ‘I can’t make my team play nicely together’ so be sure you have a real problem before you take up your sponsor’s time with it. Equally, it helps if you go to them with a solution in mind, and a list of the things you have tried that haven’t made a difference.

   3. When you can’t control the extravagant changes

   I know you have a strong change control process, and you’re great at communicating upwards and ensuring the team doesn’t engage with scope creep. But sometimes you get a stakeholder (or even the sponsor themselves) who says: “I don’t care, just do it.”

   Be honest, you’ve probably met someone in your career who has this attitude. They can pull rank and get new stuff included in the scope of their project because they are who they are and no one says no to them. Or because the client they work with is the most important client for the business.

   Changes are fine, as long as they are managed in a reasonable and controlled way. It’s the changes that come from people with greater authority and influence than you, who don’t seem to get that you can’t use nine women to deliver a baby in a month.

   When you can’t ‘just do it’ within your existing scope, time, budget and quality targets then you need help to resolve that. Hopefully your manager or someone senior will be able to get through to your stakeholder that it isn’t possible and that the options are… whatever the options are.

   

   4. When you can’t meet unrealistic expectations

   A bit like the point above: you’ll sometimes come across stakeholders who want too much for what they are prepared to offer in return. It will either be a tiny budget or a tiny timescale. Everyone wants their project faster and cheaper and in many respects it’s your responsibility to ensure that you can schedule work appropriately and to use your budget management skills to deliver that.

   But when you’ve exhausted schedule compression, crashing, paying overtime and adding extra people to the team, there comes a point where you just can’t get any faster. If your stakeholders are still demanding that you shave days off the delivery milestone, it’s time to escalate.

   Before you do so, make sure you have sat with them to explain why you can’t do things faster and what you have done to ensure the work takes as little time as possible. Or costs as little as possible, if the challenge is on the budget.

   It may just be an issue of education. Not everyone knows how projects are put together and what goes into getting the work delivered on time.

   5. When you can’t manage the politics

   All projects have politics – it’s simply the nature of the organisation. If you’re lucky, you won’t notice them because they are positive and the relationships at play work in favour of your project. If you aren’t so lucky the gossip, power plays and in-fighting will bring your project to a halt.

   Sometimes you can handle conflict (because that’s what it is) yourself. It depends on the severity of the situation and the people involved. It might just take a conversation with the line managers involved, focusing on the overall business benefits and highlighting what their teams will get out of the project.

   But when you can’t handle the discussions yourself, or the people involved are way above your pay grade, then that’s the time to escalate.

   Issues on projects are normal: you are going to hit some problems that you can’t deal with alone. Once you’ve exhausted the channels that are open to you, it’s time to consider your next options.

   You could struggle on in a difficult situation, putting more pressure on the team and delivering less and less. Or you could ask for help – which is effectively what an escalation is.

   A good project sponsor will never mind that you have asked for their advice and intervention. If you know what you need them to do, ask them to do it. If you don’t, tell them what you have tried and what you think might be the next steps, and ask for their help in working out whether that’s the right path.

   Escalations can be awkward conversations as you don’t want them to come across as if you aren’t in control or you are blaming someone else for issues outside your responsibility.

   Stay factual, talk about the implications for the project in terms of impact on key success criteria and take the emotions out of the conversation. Get over the awkwardness and you could find that your problems disappear quickly once your sponsor has resolved the issue on behalf of the team.

   This article first appeared on Rebel's Guide to Project Management and can be read here: 5 Scenarios where you should escalate a project issue

3. How to use a bullet journal for project management

   

   How do you manage your projects? If you're anything like me, you've got a notebook on your desk right now.

   Whatever it is you’re managing you’ll probably use, or need, a tool to help you do it. Maybe it’s a Trello board, a Kanban board, a system of sticky notes…Asana, Toggl… a wall calendar and planner, or a combination of them all!

   What remains the same is that there is a lot to manage. And a lot to remember. There are different tasks, different meetings, and multiple deadlines to meet.

   Ideas, notes, and dates for your diary.

   You might have multiple long-term projects on the go, as well as smaller one-off tasks.

   And then there’s all the other stuff filling up your headspace…all the good stuff outside of work.

   It can be overwhelming.

   So, could structuring your notepad bullet-journal style be a solution? A way to manage the feeling of overwhelm and easily and confidently manage your project? Let's get into why a bullet journal (whether you go electronic or stay on paper) could be the answer.

   

   Bullet journal basics: the productivity tool you didn't know you needed

   The bullet journal system’s creator Ryder Carroll describes his simple method of daily journaling as:

   “The mindfulness practice disguised as a productivity system”.

   A quick Google search for bullet journals presents you with an array of beautifully crafted and decorated page layouts though, and you would be forgiven for thinking it’s just a very pretty (and time-consuming!) way of creating to-do lists.

   But, at its most basic level – and that’s where you should start – it’s made up of a simple system of 4 different components:

   • the Index
   • a Future Log
   • the Monthly Log
   • the Daily Log.

   These components combine elements of the essential project management tools – a task list, notebook, and calendar – in one.

   If bullet journaling sounds like it's too much effort for you, check out my guide for how to structure your notebook for work, to stay organized without having to go full on bullet-y!

   Get organized with the Index

   Sitting at the front of your journal, the Index page acts as a table of contents, allowing you to quickly and easily find what you’re looking for.

   Dedicated indexes can be created separately to manage multiple or complex projects and to make these accessible at a glance.

   Your index doesn't need to slow you down. Bilyana Ivanova from TheCasualReader recommends the 'threading' method for physical notebooks.

   "I choose symbols to represent different types of content—a dot is for tasks, a circle for events, a dash is for notes, and so on," she says. "It doesn’t have to follow this specific system; you can choose whichever symbols you like or use color coding instead.

   "Then, whenever something on one page connects to another, I write the page number of the related information next to the symbol. This way, I can quickly jump between connected content without flipping back and forth through my index."

   Read next: 20 Practical tips to get (and stay) organized at work

   Look ahead with a Future Log

   A Future Log is your planner for a quick-to-view look ahead at the next 6 months (or more). You can add important events, deadlines, and dates which is ideal for long-term projects. Important things live here.

   If you have a new project on the horizon, drop it in here, along with any important dates to reference as you get closer to kicking it off. This supports your planning system by making sure nothing falls through the cracks and you don’t forget about commitments or longer-term priorities.

   Later on you can create project plans for upcoming work, or transfer the details into your project management software.

   Stay on track with the Monthly Log

   This acts as both a calendar and a task list for the month ahead. The Monthly Log helps you to keep track of what’s coming up over the next few weeks.

   It is set across a 2-page spread and makes it easy to see where you’ll be busier and where you have time to take on more. Ideal when you’re managing multiple projects, which is something you can learn more about here.

   The monthly spread is a new idea for me but I use a similar view in Outlook. Digital tools aren’t really the go-to product of choice for bullet journaling but if you can’t break away from your screen, then take a look around and see what note-taking app is going to give you the closest results as a notebook.

   Manage the day-to-day with the Daily Log 

   The Daily Log works at a day-to-day level to detail specific tasks, events, and notes. Each action item is listed with a set of symbols making it easy to differentiate between what you need to do and what you need to remember.

   The things you need to do are your next actions. Think of this section as your To-Do list for a single day. Tomorrow, you’ll have a new page and a new Daily Log.

   Prioritize your tasks with icons

   "Important tasks can get buried in the clutter of to-do lists," says Karolina Dacheva from Businessmap. "Prioritize your tasks. I personally like using signifiers like stars or underlining for high-priority tasks."

   I use the following legend for my tasks:

   • A (in a circle): Action
   • D (in a circle): means Decision, to be transferred to the Decision log
   • Star: Important
   • Two stars: Must be done today!

   I know other people use a different approach, such as using an empty circle for scheduled meetings, exclamation marks for important tasks or a question mark for something that needs a bit more investigation.

   Find a set of icons that works for you and that gives you a structure you can carry forward on every page.

   The daily log isn’t a daily schedule in the same way that your calendar is (although if you wanted to use it that way, you could). Instead, it’s more of a prompt for the actions you need to take and important information.

   Capture and reflect

   Two further elements then combine to make the whole bullet journal system work.

   • Rapid Logging – a process of adding short notes to your Daily Log allowing you to capture all that stuff whizzing around in your head on paper.
   • Daily Reflections (which Ryder suggests you do morning and evening). Take stock of what’s ahead each day and reassess tasks and deadlines accordingly.

   It’s an effective productivity system to help keep you focused on the next important task while not losing sight of the bigger picture.

   

   How do you use a bullet journal in project management?

   "I use a two-bullet journal system to stay organized," says high performance coach Paul Ippolito. "My day-to-day journal captures everything from time blocking, ideas, thoughts, and to-do lists, indexed at the back by topic and page number. Once a week, I review, cull and update the items in this journal, updating larger issues onto their own pages and transferring significant project items to the separate project-based journal."

   Paul also reviews the major project journal once a week and picks 1-2 things he wants to focus on for the week ahead. "This method, refined over years, works well for me," he says. "The key I think is experimenting with various systems until you find what works."

   You can probably already start to see how the bullet journal works well for project managers. We have to stay organized and have an effective way to track actions and not lose anything – the whole system might be analog but it lends itself to work projects and the work schedule that comes with leading a project.

   Use other pages in your journal for meeting notes or a brain dump following a conversation with colleagues. Create a list of contact information for key stakeholders Then reference those in the index.

   But beyond these basic components and your personal preferences for extra info is where the bullet journal comes into its own.

   Collections

   Collections are groups of individual tasks and notes that are joined by a common theme. So, a particular project or topic can be pulled together in one place rather than scattered throughout your journal. This makes it super easy to see everything related to the project in one go.

   Collections can span as many pages as needed and are all referenced in your Index.

   For example, I have a collection centered around the professional development training I want to do as part of my personal goals.

   Migration

   Migration is the way that the bullet journal system gives you the headspace to think more clearly.

   Migrating tasks means you simply move them to a more relevant place. This might be to your next page of Daily Logs, your next Monthly Log, the Future Log, or to a Collection. Or even out of the bullet log when the time comes for your project management process to take over.

   "I find the best way to leverage the simplicity of a bullet journal and integrate it into a more structured project management platform," says Elisa Montanari, from Wrike. "So, I might quickly jot ideas, tasks, and quick reflections down during the day, then transfer high-level project tasks or deadlines from the platform into daily and weekly spreads."

   What about those tasks that keep getting bounced? Once you’ve moved an unresolved task along for several days in a row, you’ll start to work out whether it’s as important, whether it’s blocked by something else, or if it simply isn’t needed anymore.

   Don’t think of migration as extra work. Yes, you have to move tasks around and that time might be better spent doing them. Instead, look at migration as a way to help you to weed out the tasks that are causing distraction from what you actually need to be doing.

   

   Bullet journals in practice

   Many project managers already use bullet journals effectively. 

   A survey carried out by Bullet Journal in 2016, asked 205 project managers specifically about how effective they found bullet journaling for their work.

   And 77% stated that it made managing tasks easier or significantly easier as a project manager.

   They recognized that “Project managers need an entirely higher level of organization than most.”

   (That’s the truth!)

   The results of the survey concluded that the bullet journal can “significantly improve task management for professionals whose jobs depend on it.” So, it must be doing something right!

   Go online with a digital bullet journal

   "What also works for me is combining both digital and traditional methods to keep track of my projects," says Bilyana. "You can’t copy and paste links in a physical notebook, right? That’s why I use both: one for more sporadic note-taking throughout the day, and the other online, where I can organize resources in a database."

   If you're not a paper person, look into online tools and apps that will help you organize your thoughts digitally.

   

   Why is bullet journaling so good for project managers?

   A journal for project management might seem like overkill. I mean, you probably already have a notebook. But isn't that filled with chronological notes, whether you use OneNote to keep your digital records straight or a paper notebook?

   A bullet journal helps you layout your ideas in a different way, as well as track ideas for future projects, and reflect on the challenges and lessons learned along the way.

   So how is the bullet journal system different from all those other methods you’ve tried before? And why should you give it a go as a project manager?

   It’s fast

   "For me, time blocking is essential for managing tasks that keeps me disciplined, but not obsessive or too regimented," says Paul. "I prioritize the 1-2 most important items to do early in the day, while remaining flexible with non-essential tasks and unscheduled things."

   The last thing you need is another time-consuming job to add to the list. And this is part of the beauty of bullet journals. They’re fast, and you can block the time to use them, and to do the work.

   Rapid Logging means it’s simple to add a new task or deadline or to just get down on paper those random thoughts that pop up while you’re in the middle of something else.

   Adding it to the right place means no more wondering where you wrote it down or getting distracted by an email or notification as you pick up your phone to open your app.

   It’s mindful

   We’re all after better ways to do things that not only impact the work we do but our own wellbeing too. And writing by hand is proven to increase neural activity in the brain that is similar to meditation.

   The process of writing things down helps to declutter your mind. Allowing time for your brain to think more clearly about what you’re working on.

   It’s not just for work

   It’s fair to say that whatever is going on at home will impact work and vice versa, and the mental load is something we can’t ignore.

   So, although it’s up to you whether you combine your work and personal to-do lists and plans in your bullet journal, it can be incredibly useful to do so to be able to focus on the right thing at the right time.

   "It's easy to overlook the importance of breaks," says Karolina. "On a separate page, chalk out leisure activities or personal growth tasks that can be accomplished during breaks to effectively use your downtime."

   Some people choose to have a separate bullet journal for their personal life, as a good way of keeping things straight. Personally, I think work and life are entwined and I want my calendar view to include everything I’m doing on any given day.

   It’s flexible

   The key to making a bullet journal work for you is to make it your own. The whole method is designed to work in a way that suits you, so you can stay on top of things.

   "My best advice is to try different layouts and spreads until you find what works for you," recommends Elisa. "It’s okay if things get ugly or messy—bullet journals aren’t about minimalist perfection but utilizing the flexible nature of the setup to adapt to you. Don’t try too many things simultaneously to avoid getting overwhelmed and giving up."

   So, if you want to get creative then go for it. If you’d rather it be your own ink smudged, scribbled masterpiece then it doesn’t matter. Do what feels right for you.

   How should you get started with a bullet journal?

   Step 1: Get a notebook and pen

   As simple as it sounds, the first step is to get yourself a new notepad and pen. Don’t just use something you’ve already got, start afresh. Something that’s easy to carry around and access every day, no matter where you are.

   A daily planner is probably not the best choice as you’ll find the pages are pre-printed with a structure that you might not find conducive to bullet journaling. However, you can buy ‘original bullet journal method’ notebooks if you want one that has already done some of the organizing for you.

   Otherwise, just buy a blank notebook and make it your own.

   If you're going down the digital journal route, have a look at some of the tools available and choose one to start with.

   Step 2: Practice the basics

   Start small but start properly. Start with the basics of Index, Future Log, Monthly Log, and Daily Log. Watch this intro video to get started.

   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fm15cmYU0IM

   Break things down into small tasks. Start from where you are and with a clear intention of what you want to achieve. And don’t worry about messing up!

   Step 3: Make the time every day

   Dedicate the time. Bullet journaling shouldn’t take more than 15 minutes a day. But if you’re already thinking you’ve not got the time then try checking your journal instead of your inbox first thing every morning for a week.

   A weekly review will help you migrate tasks and build bullet journaling into the way you do time management.

   Next week, do the same!

   Make it a habit every day and you’ll soon start to see results.

   Your next steps

   Get yourself a notebook. I love Moleskin, but also these Stationery Island books.

   Then simply get started! You can spend too long wondering how and in practice I found it was easier to get started and tweak my system as I went along.

   The bullet journal method offers a unique, flexible solution that combines essential project management components into a cohesive, customizable system. By integrating the Index, Future Log, Monthly Log, and Daily Log, bullet journaling helps streamline your workflow and improve your productivity.

   The beauty of the bullet journal lies in its simplicity and adaptability. Whether you choose to stick with paper or go digital, the bullet journal method allows you to capture and organize your thoughts effectively, making it easier to manage both professional and personal tasks. It encourages mindfulness and prioritization, ensuring that you stay focused on what truly matters.

   ---

   This article first appeared on Rebel's Guide to Project Management and can be read here: How to use a bullet journal for project management

4. 11 Project management skills employers expect you to have

   

   Let's say that we’re almost at the end of the quarter and you’re thinking what a great year it’s been so far at work. Your thoughts turn to what you should be doing for your professional development in the months ahead… and there’s a lot of choice.

   I don’t have the time (or the requirement) to take a certification course, but I’m always prepared to develop the project management competencies I need to succeed. If you feel the same, what should you be focusing on?

   In this article we'll talk about the top competencies for project managers and how you can develop your skills.

   

   The core competencies you need as a project manager today

   The project management skills you should be looking to develop are definitely ‘soft’ or interpersonal skills(also called power skills) in their widest form.

   Soft skills include a huge range of topics from communication to leadership, stakeholder engagement and teamwork.

   Plus, there are technical skills we have to consider -- employers definitely look for those too. We do need to be able to do the hard work of leading projects as well as the collaboration side of it!

   If you consider competency frameworks from the Association for Project Management (APM), or the guidance from the Project Management Institute (PMI), there are many more core skills listed.

   In my 20+ years of experience doing the job and mentoring people who do the job, the ones I cover below are those that are most likely to ‘move the needle’ in your career, so that’s what we are focusing on in this article.

   Let’s look at each of those in turn.

   1. Communication

   Effective communication is top of my list because it’s core to what we are trying to do as project managers: effect change.

   One in five projects is unsuccessful due to ineffective communication, according to research by PMI (The Essential Role of Communications, 2013).

   A project manager’s primary responsibility is to complete the project’s objectives with the resources provided within the agreed budget and schedule.

   A communication plan is typically developed to successfully achieve that. That plan outlines the type and frequency of project communication, and any actions expected from various team members and stakeholders as information is distributed.

   Sahil Sandhu’s research at the Harrisburg University concludes the same:

   Effective communication came out top in the empirical research study into the order of importance that project managers ascribe to various competencies.

   An effective project manager also communicates in a variety of ways including:

   • Written e.g. newsletters, reports
   • Verbal e.g. presentations
   • Nonverbal (although you won’t necessarily be conscious of this all the time!)
   • Video (recorded or live)

   and more. You will likely spend 60% of your time (or more) on communication – yes, it’s that important. Effective communication can be the deciding factor between whether a project succeeds or fails in the eyes of the stakeholder.

   

   2. Leadership

   A project manager typically lacks formal authority over the resources on a project. In other words, the project team doesn’t report to you directly. They all have line managers of their own, and that can create some tension between their ‘home’ team and the project team in terms of responsibility and where their focus lies.

   Regardless, the ability to inspire a team to action is a hallmark trait of a great project manager. They can take a diverse group of individuals, form a high performing team, and get them dedicated to achieving a common goal.

   Developing leadership skills should be a priority, even though you probably don’t have hierarchical responsibility over the team. You don’t need to be top of the tree to be a good leader.

   3. Self-awareness

   We all have limits. A successful project manager will recognize their own limits and shortcomings. They don’t need to “do” all of the things, but they should know their strengths and those of others.

   This lets them assign tasks to the best person for the job to achieve best outcomes. This also means they recognize where they may need to develop professionally and take proactive action to improve their own performance.

   Self-awareness is one of the social competencies that help you operate effectively within the socio-political constraints of your organization.

   4. Confidence

   Project managers often find themselves in situations where they don’t have all of the information to make a decision or provide answers.

   They must believe in themselves, be willing to take risks, and rely on their expert judgement. Having confidence is key, not only to ensure good outcomes, but to give others the general assurance that a project is under control.

   Tip

   You can be more confident in your outcomes if you work together (more on that later). For example, one of the top project scheduling mistakes I see is not co-creating the plan. When you bring the wisdom of the crowd to your work, you get a better result and something you can be confident delivering.

   5. Resilience

   A project manager is a high visibility role. Most will experience success and the occasional setback very publicly, more so if you are in a public sector role.

   The ability to take everything in stride is of great importance because a team will often take their cues from you as their project lead. Having the ability to remain calm and bounce back after a challenge goes a long way and inspires confidence in their ability.

   6. Teamwork

   By default, a project manager works with teams of people - it is practically unavoidable. That’s why the best project managers are willing to share the successes but also accept responsibility for setbacks on a project. They are also willing to work with others and help the team when needed to accomplish a goal.

   Lack of collaboration is one of the top roadblocks for projects so think about how you can create a culture where working together is the norm.

   Tip

   Think about the team structure you have set up. Is it conducive to collaborative working? If not, how could you improve it?

   

   7. Business acumen

   Business acumen is the ability to make good decisions and to use your professional judgementwisely.

   In essence, this involves a thorough understanding of the business environment and financial context of your project, how it impacts the large picture, and proactively taking appropriate action(s).

   For example, releasing some contingency reserves when project risk has been significantly reduced and it does not make sense to continue tying up funds. Juggling financial constraints can help the organization and show that you understand the importance of good budget management.

   If you feel this is an area where you'd like to do more, get your company's annual report to read or investigate industry trends.

   Read next: Business acumen for project managers

   8. Influencing and negotiating

   While we may work in a variety of environments, most of the time we do not have 100% control over the budget and resources allocated to the project.

   In most cases, other departments ‘own’ the key resources that advise, support, and get the work done. As such, sometimes we need to use our influence to support project success.

   This may mean negotiating for people’s time and availability or resetting priorities with internal or external customers, dealing with scope creep and so on. The ability to influence and negotiate with project stakeholders and decision makers is key.

   It’s really important to consider project management ethics in negotiation and influencing to make sure you keep everything above board.

   9. Networking

   In addition to influence and negotiation skills, networking plays a big role in projects. This is where you can really use your emotional intelligence.

   This includes knowing the right people who can help with a specific problem. This could also mean establishing positive working relationships with others so if you need their help (or vice versa) reaching an agreement is faster and easier.

   Building your networking skills is important because your network can provide additional support for your project. If you can find the right person quickly, you can often get a better solution or resolve a problem before it becomes a real issue.

   10. Stakeholder engagement

   Project managers rely on stakeholders to support their projects, make decisions, take action, or provide additional resources.

   Part of that is delivering on the project plan and keeping your stakeholders aware of any challenges and specific ways that they can help. Having positive workplace relationships with engaged stakeholders who offer their support can sometimes make the difference between project success and failure.

   If you have to focus on just one core skill, make it stakeholder engagement.

   We are seeing more projects being affected by community action and involvement, it really is possible for a project to get stopped because the wrong people were engaged (or overlooked). After all, problems don’t stop projects, people do.

   We’ve already seen ‘stakeholder management’ evolve in the project management language to ‘stakeholder engagement’ and a new chapter appear in A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide). I think the area will grow in importance over the coming 10 years.

   

   11. Technical competencies

   There are also a wide range of technical skills you can build as a project manager, so when you are considering what development areas to focus on, it’s worth bearing these in mind as well:

   • Project risk management
   • Quality management
   • Selecting the right tools for the job and for tracking project performance
   • Human resources management – the processes of recruiting and onboarding people into the team
   • Procurement and vendor management
   • Financial management and budgeting
   • Planning and scheduling.

   I would also include tailoring of project management methodologies, which is a cross-cutting skill.

   You can probably think of other ‘hard skills’ that would be relevant as well, there are plenty!

   Don't bother learning new project management tools

   If you want to improve your technical project management skills, I would not bother to learn a new software tool.

   There are so many, and the likelihood of your new company using something that you've learned how to use in your spare time is quite low.

   Focus on making sure you're a power user of Microsoft Teams or the Google suite, or building your technical competencies generally. Investigate AI in project management, or subscribe to some YouTube channels instead.

   How to spot competency gaps

   So how do you know which of the core competencies for project managers you should be focusing on?

   Or how do you best advise and influence your team on what skills they should be developing?

   Project performance is the main warning sign that there is a competency gap.

   When something is taking too long or feels hard on a project, that’s a clue that more skills are needed.

   However, it’s not always easy to define what a skilled project manager’s performance should be when it comes to project results. And that’s why competency gaps sometimes go unnoticed.

   What to look for

   As a line manager or a Project Office manager, or someone who leads project managers, here is what to look for. These clues will help you spot competency gaps so you can develop a plan to address them.

   • Projects that skip between green and red
   • Projects with a lot of ‘surprises’
   • Projects with a long list of potential risks and issues that don’t seem to be managed
   • Complaints from customers (that can be very telling!)

   The challenge of identifying project management competency gaps

   It’s not often possible to benchmark the performance of project managers against each other because the projects they are working on differ so widely.

   And if a project is stopped prematurely or cancelled you can’t immediately assume it was to do with the project manager’s poor performance: more and more we need to be reviewing and closing down projects that are not meeting their business case goals.

   It’s no one’s fault a lot of the time, it’s just the way that the business has evolved around the project.

   But I think you’ll know within yourself if your project isn’t going right and it’s because you don’t have the skills to manage it.

   Watch for this

   Knowing you have a competency gap is not the same as Imposter Syndrome! Imposter Syndrome is where you do have the skills really but you’re unable to recognize that they are there. This affects your confidence and leads you to spend far too much time worrying about what other people think of your performance. At its worst, it can undermine your career and hold you back from achieving the success you deserve.

   Read next: Learn more about Imposter Syndrome here

   How to develop your skills (and those of your team)

   Understanding what you need to work on to improve your skills is the first step in working out how to develop them.

   As a manager, peer reviews, project audits and quality reviews can be ways to identify project performance issues that might be an outlier due to competency (or lack of competency!)

   Then you can follow up with conversations: you may find that the individual in question is perfectly aware that they don’t have the required skills but no one has offered to help them do anything about it in the past.

   Training is the obvious answer, but I don’t think this alone can really improve core competencies for project managers.

   So much of ‘competency’ is tied up in long-term behavioral shift, understanding workplace culture and lived experience. This is hard to get in a two-day training session or an online course.

   Supporting team members with project management mentoring and coaches is a more practical way to effect long term change and to really grow the skills of your project management team with any depth.

   And that goes for you as well: if you know you need to work on a particular skill or competency element, think about whether you would be well served in a classroom setting or whether there’s a better way to develop the skills you need such as finding a mentor (or being a mentor).

   Read next: 7 steps to a project management capability assessment

   Next steps for developing competencies

   While these skills may seem like a lot to manage, they are not something that you develop – or have to develop – overnight. While skills gaps may exist, they can be addressed methodically.

   It’s OK to have a longer-term plan to address competency gaps and develop your own skills over time. Getting them and improving them partly depends on lived experience, project successes, and the occasional failure.

   Although we talk about the 11 top competencies for project managers above, one of the most important and increasingly visible is stakeholder engagement. Doing this well can mean the difference between a successful project and one that gets shut down, so starting there can be a good step in the right direction.

   Talking of steps…

   Below you will find your action steps for taking this further.

   Action steps

   • Choose 2-3 skills to focus on at the moment. This helps avoid overwhelm and gives the opportunity for focused development before leveling up other skills.
   • Ask colleagues to comment on your communication skills. What could you be doing better?
   • Are you satisfied with the level of stakeholder engagement you are getting? If not, what are you going to do differently?
   • Check out the competency models from your professional organization and see how you measure up.

   Ready to take it further? If your work is tricky, learn about the 5 skills you need to manage complex projects.

   This article first appeared on Rebel's Guide to Project Management and can be read here: 11 Project management skills employers expect you to have

5. 10 Career-limiting mistakes to avoid

   

   I write a lot about how to be better at your job, how to excel at interview, how to improve your skills and so on, and I interview a lot of experts who talk about those kinds of things.

   Today I want to talk about the opposite: what you should avoid doing at work. I've seen project managers and other colleagues crash and burn. It's not nice to watch, and I hope it doesn't happen to you.

   Fortunately, there are some easy things you can do to avoid common mistakes and stay on the right path.

   Here are 10 career-limiting mistakes to avoid at work.

   

   1. Not being truthful

   Here's an example.

   I was contacted by a sales person. This happens often in my job. I told him honestly that I didn't see any possibility of using his software at work, but that I was revising Social Media for Project Managers for a second edition (now published as Collaboration Tools for Project Managers) and that there would potentially be some scope in learning more about their product for that. He seemed keen and we set up a meeting.

   Then I heard that he was contacting my colleagues. Not just one or two but lots of them. Lots of senior managers. Telling them that he had a meeting with me and that as his software would be used by my company in the future that he should meet them to explain about it.

   There is a reason that project management has a code of ethics.

   This was embarrassing for me. I had no problem with him telling people we were meeting, which was the truth, but the "you'll be using my application soon" part was a complete lie.

   And I told him so. I also cancelled our meeting. I could write my book without his case study (and I did).

   Career-limiting because: People find out if you lie. People find out if you exaggerate the truth. It will always bite you in the bum. So don't do it.

   This is one of the reasons people don't get promoted. Don't be that person.

   Read next:My review of Who Gets Promoted, Who Doesn't and Why by Donald Asher. It's a game-changing book!

   2. Not doing good handovers

   A good handover at the end of a piece of work is important for ongoing relationships and harmony in the office. Plus it's good practice.

   Make sure that your project is handed over at closure to the people who will be using the product long term, along with all the associated documents, lessons learned, training material and so on.

   Check they know how to contact you in case they need to (assuming you are still staying in the business). However, you should also make it clear that this is not your project anymore and they are responsible, otherwise they'll lean on you for a long time. Been there, done that!

   If you need to handover work to your manager, then make sure you're doing that quickly and with all the relevant details. It's not difficult, it's just a bit time-consuming to gather all the information from your documentation and what's in your head.

   Learn how to write a good handover email to a client, because it's different to writing notes or handing over in person to a colleague.

   Career-limiting because: No one wants to work with the project manager who emails the operational team a closure document and is never seen again.

   Read next: The Ultimate Guide to Project Closure

   3. Not talking about problems

   Surprises are bad. They are worse than not talking about problems because no one, especially not senior managers, like surprises. If you don't talk about problems then you risk hitting your manager with bad news. Project sponsors don't like bad news either.

   Don't run a watermelon project.

   A watermelon project is one that is green on the outside but red when you cut it open to examine it more closely. Talk honestly about what is going wrong.

   Report your project as Red or Amber when your project isn't Green, because that's the honest status it is. Let people know what you are doing about it, and what your path to return to Green is and how long it will take to get there.

   Career-limiting because:People will feel as if you don't have a handle on what's going on, or that you are not truthful. Or both.

   

   4. Not taking decisions

   Good initiatives die through stagnation. Often we need decisions to be made and no one else will step up and do it. When no one around you will make the decision and you think it is safe to do so, make the decision yourself.

   Be empowered until someone tells you that you are not. You probably have more authority than you think, and you can certainly take more authority than you have.

   You're managing a piece of work, so step up and do it otherwise you are not showing demonstrable leadership. You are not being accountable. The buck stops with you. End of.

   [Find out why there is no such thing as a bad decision.]

   Career-limiting because:Managers want to work with project teams who get work done. Decisions make that happen, and show that you are acting in a leadership role.

   Get a free decision log template to help you record your work.

   5. Not treating your colleagues as customers

   Colleagues are not an annoyance. They want a report in a different format? They want a meeting on a Friday afternoon when you'd rather be packing up to start the weekend early? It's inconvenient, but they are your customer. Treat them accordingly.

   By all means negotiate the time of that meeting and try to get the best outcome for yourself as well.

   Career-limiting because:Other people pay your wages. Make the link.

   

   6. Not saying no

   You can treat someone like a customer and still manage to say no to them from time to time. Don't feel that you have to meet every stupid whim (project stakeholders and your colleagues are not above doing idiotic things sometimes).

   You'll be faced with scope changes that they don't want to pay for, unreasonable requests for extra work or impossibly-speedy work and more. Say no. Be polite but don't be a doormat.

   Career-limiting because:You'll be seen as a walkover and someone who is not truly in control of the work. And because if you are in a consultancy or service business and customers keep asking for work that you agree to without being paid for it, you'll go out of business.

   7. Not doing lessons learned

   Most post-implementation reviews end up with a list of lessons captured. Lessons captured are not the same as lessons learned. I concede that they are better than nothing.

   Not doing the exercise to find out what lessons the team learned when a piece of work is done means you are unable to learn from your mistakes. You will not revise and standardize your processes. You'll never get any better at your job, and your company will never improve its organizational knowledge.

   Grab a free agenda template for lessons learned sessions and book your meeting now.

   Career-limiting because:You'll never improve your performance, and you'll never be able to demonstrate that you can improve your performance.

   8. Not working with a sponsor

   This one isn't your fault. Let's say you start working on a project and then the sponsor leaves. They are not replaced. Or the project falls way down the list of priorities and although you have a sponsor named in your Project Charter or in your other project documents, they don't actually contribute anything.

   Not working in partnership with a sponsor is definitely career-limiting.

   Career-limiting because:You'll have no one to champion your successes and support you. You'll have no one who can put you forward for new opportunities based on your performance at work.

   9. Not staying up to date with training

   What I do now as a project manager isn't the same as what I did ten years ago. It just isn't -- my personal skills have developed as has my technical ability to do my job.

   Partly that's down to the fact I'm older and have more experience, but partly it's to do with taking an active interest in getting better. I've taken training courses, read books and generally looked out for my own professional development.

   You should too.

   Here are some of my favorite training options right now:

   • If you're hoping to do the PMP exam then try Brain Sensei. It's a video training course based on the concept that work is like dealing with feuding factions in ancient Japan, and very well put together.
   • It's impossible not to like the training material put out by Cornelius Fichtner; I've listened to his online learning materials for years. The PDU Podcast is aimed at people who are collecting professional development units for their PMI credentials but it's also full of useful material for project managers and their teams looking to keep their skills up-to-date. Get it here.

   Career-limiting because: You'll be unable to prove you are continually learning, which is often a criteria for showing your managers that you are serious about your career. You'll limit your chances of hitting any continuous professional development requirements for your professional body.

   [lasso ref="pdu-podcast" id="22301" link_id="267843"]

   10. Not listening to your experts

   Every team has experts. They contribute to your plans. They do most of the work. As a manager, your role is to make it easy for them to do their jobs.

   The problems come when you used to do their job, and you still want to. Managers meddle. They override decisions made by the people actually doing the work. They make up their own estimates based on how long they think things will take.

   Mostly managers get it wrong because life has moved on since they were in the 'hands on' job. They aren't always up-to-date with the latest processes and practices. Don't make the mistake of thinking you know better than they do.

   Career-limiting because: They know better than you. Honestly!

   Ignore them and you'll make mistakes that could cost you the success of your project. And you know that you're mainly judged by the success of your last project, don't you?

   Bonus: Get my book, Engaging Stakeholders on Projects: How to Harness People Power, to explore how to communicate faster, work virtually with people across the globe, and get better business results.

   Your next steps

   Avoiding these career-limiting mistakes can enhance your professional trajectory, and get you on the radar for the right reasons.

   If you take nothing else from this article, remember that honesty and transparency are crucial, as deceptive practices inevitably backfire. Proper handovers, open communication about problems, and decisive action can show that you're reliable and have the right mindset for leadership.

   Treating colleagues as customers fosters a collaborative work environment, while the ability to say no and set boundaries shows control and professionalism.

   Continuous learning and leveraging the expertise of your team helps you remain relevant and competent in your field, surrounded by colleagues who boost your performance. Finally, a strong relationship with a sponsor can propel your career (and your project) forward, providing support and advocacy.

   By steering clear of these pitfalls, you pave the way for success and growth in your career. Your actions today shape your opportunities tomorrow. Keep learning, stay truthful, and lead with confidence. You can do it!

   This article first appeared on Rebel's Guide to Project Management and can be read here: 10 Career-limiting mistakes to avoid