What exactly makes a good project manager?
People have been working together on projects of all kinds for thousands of years. And while the ways we approach projects today have changed significantly, people will always be at the core of transforming an idea into a finished product.
I’ve been working as a project manager on construction projects for about ten years now, from large scale projects carried out over many years, to smaller projects which are no less difficult but can be finished in a few months. In that time I’ve noticed there are some principles, philosophies and lessons which continue to present themselves and which I’ve found helpful as I move from one project to the next.
These are just a few principles and lessons which I hope are helpful, not just for young project managers or people thinking about becoming one, but for anyone who works on projects of any kind i.e. just about everyone.
1. Every Project is a New Mountain to Climb.
Every project is unique, like a mountain that has never been climbed before, with multiple paths to the top. Some mountains are straightforward, with no obvious dangers on the surface, while others are monsters, with a summit that rises far into the clouds and land mines buried along every path all the way to the top.
Just as mountains change with time and the seasons — bringing new dangers like landslides, storms, ice or altitude — all projects contain risks and can change very quickly too. But the further you climb or progress on a project, the more these challenges repeat themselves and the more experience and confidence you gain in overcoming them.
People climb mountains because it’s a challenge they want to see they are capable of completing, we choose to build projects for the same reasons — because they are challenging, because we want to see what we are capable of, and ultimately because the feeling at the end is worth it.
Each new project brings a range of different individuals with different skills together. Project managers, engineers, builders, designers, governments, financers, clients and many other characters all play some role along the way.
These people each have their own skills, like the knowledge of specific materials or elements, or the conditions that exist below the surface, or the quantities of materials and time that are required to build the project as it was designed.
They each know how to tell the future in their own unique way, and they each know how to open or close doors. The more you understand these individuals strengths, the easier the project can become as they begin to contribute their own unique pieces of the puzzle.
3. Put the Biggest Issue on the Table First
Projects are exercises in change. Change requires friction, and friction creates conflict. Project managers need to deal with information and make decisions that keep the project moving. This requires excellent communication skills and the management of conflict.
Before conflict arises it’s always a good principle to put the biggest and most difficult problem on the table first so that it can be untangled and not carried any further forward. Everything becomes easier after potential issues are addressed and untangled early in the project.
Communication can be a double-edged sword for project managers though, it can be used to improve conditions considerably, or make them worse. Words are used to build trust and trust can disappear in a moment if they aren’t founded on truth. So build carefully.
4. Proactively Manage the Weeds (Risk)
The project manager’s role is to clear the path of risk in the creation of the project. Even the slightest observation has a seed of potential that can grow into a weed, and it’s the weeds which stop the whole machine from working.
Questions, observations, ideas and thoughts, no matter where they come from are equally valuable pieces of information worth looking at and exploring to prevent new weeds from effecting the project.
Finding and removing weeds before they grow is a habit that requires daily observation and action from everyone involved in the project.
5. See it With Your Own Eyes
There is no substitute for being out in the field and using your eyes, ears, and voice to understand exactly what is happening, identifying where friction is occurring and resolving it quickly in person.
Probably the most important skill for any project manager is to be able to remove the insulation or distance that keeps them separated from a project and get as close to the issues on the ground as possible.
6. Prepare for False Peaks and Run Through The Finish Line.
In mountain climbing, a false peak or false summit happens when climbers see what looks like the top of a mountain — only to reach it and realise the true summit is much further up. It’s a feeling that can have a negative impact on the mindset of climbers who aren’t expecting it.
Large building projects can go on for a long time, and even smaller projects can push out longer than originally expected. One of the more important lessons I learnt on larger projects was to be aware of these false peaks.
Underestimating the work still to be done in finalising a project is a common way for people to lose momentum, enthusiasm and even burn out because they misjudge the true duration of the project and don’t have the reserve in place to finish strong.
Large projects are like ultra-marathons, your ability to make it to the end of a project depends on how well you look after your physical and mental reserves. So, like an ultra-marathon runner, keep an eye on the pace, plan where to stop, refuel, re-hydrate and protect the blisters that grow from the numerous friction points you are exposed to. That way, when the true finish line is in clear sight, you not only make it but can run through the finish line and onto the next race.
7. Expect The Unexpected
Lastly, it’s important to remember that all projects are predictions. An estimate of time, materials and resources, and how they will react with expected conditions and forces to deliver approximately what we think they will.
There is no way to predict exactly what will happen though, and if this year has taught us anything it’s that nothing is out of the question. The ‘best’ project managers manage the project assumptions through to their finishing point regardless of what happens around them, even as unexpected events change the course dramatically.
They do this by knowing unexpected things will always come up, keeping focussed, trusting the team around them and getting through to the finish. Then once everything is complete, they move onto the next project and start the journey all over again.
Originally published at https://rhysjack.com on December 10, 2020.
