We Need a Project Manager! Now!
Many of you might be able to relate to this statement. Or someone, maybe you, could have even shouted this comment in frustration. Am I right?
If you can relate to this statement, I would encourage you to take a step back and ask why you need a Project Manager. What are you struggling with in your organization? How can a Project Manager address the challenges that you and your team are faced with?
Based on my experience, I have observed organizations that really struggle with their projects. I have identified several reasons for this:
The trend in organizations is to absorb all their projects internally. Which, usually, means that the organization feels they can effectively lead, manage, and deliver the project without hiring a dedicated Project Manager.
Many organizations, that once had dedicated project management teams, have downsized or eliminated the team entirely. (See Bullet #1 above!)
The individuals being assigned to project teams also have “day jobs.” This means that they have operational/daily responsibilities in addition to the project responsibilities. Which could result in the project taking a backseat to the overall operations of the organization. (See Bullet #1 above!)
These observations can lead to chaos, miscommunication, and confusion as to roles and responsibilities. These issues could result in elevated project costs associated with delays, rework, scope creep, quality issues, or even a cancellation of the project due to poor progress or results.
Tip: If the project is really important to the organization, hire a Project Manager!
If you are wondering how to go about hiring a Project Manager, here are some ideas for you.
Hire internally – although this idea may not have crossed your mind, stay with me…
If you are looking for someone to help lead, organize, and manage people, tasks, and projects…you should seriously consider hiring an internal candidate.
Based on the talent profiles of the people on your team(s) is there anyone who indicated that they would be interested in project management?
Have a discussion with anyone who may have indicated that they are interested in pursuing project management and ask some questions about why they are interested:
I noticed that you mentioned project management in your talent profile, what is it about project management that interests you?
Are you working on a project now? What is your role on the project? What is working well with the project that you could possibly incorporate into other projects?
Would you be interested in participating in some formal training on project management and possibly certification?
What are your expectations if you were to become a Project Manager for our team?
Advantages to hiring someone internally can include:
Understanding of the organization. This can be an incredible asset.
Knowing the various teams, people, and processes.
Being able to identify terms, phrases, acronyms, and systems.
Existing knowledge of applications and how/when to use those applications to effectively manage time, tasks, people, and progress.
Knowledge of the products, content, and services available in the organization.
Experience and lessons learned from previous work on other organizational projects.
Awareness of the challenges that may exist and how to address those challenges.
Onboarding an internal hire into the role of Project Manager:
Glossary – acronyms and terms that may be used in the project work.
Organizational Project List – will help identify any cross-business unit work or dependencies.
Organization chart – to help identify the key stakeholders throughout the organization.
Roles and responsibilities with respect to the projects and programs.
Project Charters – for additional details on the individual project(s).
Calendar – list of the meetings that are already on the schedule that they will need to plan on attending.
Hire externally – you can hire a consulting Project Manager that will help you with a specific project or two, or you can have a direct hire of a Project Manager who will become part of your staff.
There are also advantages to hiring externally. For instance:
Project management experience.
Experiences and lessons learned from other organizations, possibly in your industry.
Certification(s) – expertise in a particular framework.
A different perspective – getting an outsiders view and potentially new ideas.
Resilience in the role.
Strong skills – communication, risk management, change management, stakeholder management, team management.
If you do choose to hire externally, onboarding will be critical to the success of the individual. I would like to suggest the following ideas for onboarding a Project Manager who will be helping with your projects. Some of these ideas are the same for an internal hire:
Glossary – acronyms and terms that may be used in the project work.
Organizational Project List – will help identify any cross-business unit work or dependencies.
Organization chart – to help identify the key stakeholders throughout the organization.
Roles and responsibilities with respect to the projects and programs.
Project Charters – for additional details on the individual project(s).
Calendar – list of the meetings that are already on the schedule that they will need to plan on attending.
List of tools, systems, and applications used at the organization – links to user guides, training videos etc.
An Onboarding Buddy – if possible. Someone who can check in with the new PM on a regular basis, demo the tools and systems, be the overall “go to” person for help.
As an added note, if you decide to hire someone to lead and manage your projects (either internally or externally) please be very clear with the expectations that you have for the role. I have witnessed organizations that tend to throw the “unowned” tasks and responsibilities over the wall to the Project Manager. This can be a common practice, although it’s probably unintentional. This can happen because there are so many projects underway and the projects, typically, have nowhere to “live” in the organization. So, a decision is made to pass it on to the PM.
Please be aware of this situation and check in with the Project Manager regularly to make sure that they are not experiencing this an influx of unowned tasks.
I may be biased but I believe that having a Project Manager for your organization is the right move. Not only will this person be responsible for managing tasks and people to deliver on the projects, but they can be a key resource in developing standards and practices for your organization which will elevate the level of success with not only your projects but your strategic goals as well.
Let project management work for you!