Debunking Bunk

We all make mistakes, but we don’t always learn from them.

by Neal Whitten, PMP, Contributing Editor

There is much more to learn within the project management profession than meets the eye of the casual practitioner/observer. Many of the lessons are not obvious but become clearer once we have been exposed to them. Over the years, I’ve learned--sometimes painfully--that the following beliefs are false:

• If you don’t lead project members, they will lead themselves. Most project members require someone to direct them in creating plans, tracking progress and mitigating problems. People and teams typically do not function as effectively as possible when left to their own devices. Strong leadership is a prerequisite for consistent success.
• Run the project by agreement. Consensus management often reduces the personal level of accountability across a team. Members hide behind the facade of the team. The best decisions are often sacrificed for decisions that everyone can live with. Running a team on consensus is akin to running a motor on idle--it can work but optimal effectiveness will remain out of reach. Instead, manage through the concept of benevolent dictatorship, actively soliciting information and opinions from team members and others. Project managers must listen, demonstrate the leadership, courage and boldness to personally make the right decision, and then stand accountable for that decision. All project members are benevolent dictators for their domains of responsibility.
• If you treat others with respect and dignity, they will respond in kind. Most people will, but there are a few rotten folks out there who defy civil norms. The sooner you recognize this to be true, the quicker you will be able to deal with these vermin.
• You can trust the planning and reporting of your project members. Never trust anyone on a project. Require proof with data or exhibits to support a claim. How many times do you have to hear that someone is 90 percent finished before you realize that they’re only 50 percent complete? Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me!
• Manage your day by the plethora of interruptions that come your way. Instead, manage your day by focusing on your top three priorities. It is the top three that define the truly important and urgent problems and where your time most effectively can be invested. Your contributions, your success, your career are defined by how well you manage your top priorities daily.
• Committed dates are fixed. Commitments should be viewed as sacred ground. However, if a person believes that a commitment cannot ever be revised--and the promise is in jeopardy--then the tendency is to deny or ignore that there's trouble and, thus, avoiding corrective action. Better to admit a problem, create a fix and be marginally late, than to ignore the problem and suffer far greater damage.
• The grass is greener elsewhere. If you believe that management is the root cause of most problems, then you may look for greener pastures to graze. You will likely find the grass not to be as green as you thought because the problems are most likely related to you. If you are not willing to dig in and be a project management leader, you will bring the same problems to your new organization or company.
• Project culture is the responsibility of management. The project will be planned, tracked, communicated and nurtured according to the best practices that the project manager employs. No one is in a better position to shape the culture than the project manager.

Neal Whitten, PMP, president of The Neal Whitten Group (www.nealwhittengroup.com), is a speaker, trainer, consultant, mentor, and author in project management and employee development. His books include The EnterPrize Organization: Organizing Software Projects for Accountability and Success and Managing Software Development Projects: Formula for Success.

Note: This article has been modified slightly from the original published version to correct editing snafus.

This material is reprinted from PM Network magazine (December 2001) with permission of the Project Management Institute Headquarters, Four Campus Boulevard, Newtown Square, PA 19073-2399 USA. Phone: (610) 356-4600. Fax: (610) 356-4647. Project Management Institute (PMI) is the world's leading project management association with over 80,000 members worldwide. For further information, contact PMI Headquarters at (610) 356-4600 or visit the web site at www.pmi.org. "PMI" and "PM Network" are trademarks of the Project Management Institute, Inc. © 2001 Project Management Institute, Inc. All rights reserved.

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