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Let's face it. It's difficult to manage your managers. As a project manager,
you are often forced to cope with difficult and personally challenging
situations. The way you act, or handle yourself, could be critical to
the perceptions that stakeholders develop about your overall ability,
general management style, and future potential with the organization.
Before acting upon difficult situations, it may be worthwhile to consider
how to avoid them - or at least how to proactively reduce the likelihood
that they will occur. While some interactions with your stakeholders are
beyond your control, others can be affected by your actions and behavior.
Here are 10 "Principles of Action" that promise to have a positive influence
on the way that management stakeholders provide direction, input and feedback
to you. Consider these tips to be very practical, and therefore, applicable
to your daily work. As someone who has spent plenty of time in the trenches,
it pleases me to share this "insider info" with you.
The 10 Principles of Action
- Determine in advance from which managers you can (or should) expect
to receive direction.
Being identified as a management stakeholder does not automatically
grant one the privilege to determine the direction of the project. Affording
the wrong people the opportunity to influence the course of the project,
or not empowering the managers who should have that opportunity, are
two situations that could spell trouble for you. Determine as early
as possible who has the right to direct the course of your project.
- Try to empathize with each manager regarding the difficulties
particular to his or her position.
Gaining an understanding of a manager's "world" can be valuable
in developing a better working relationship with that individual. What
pressures are they under from their boss? What pressures are they under
from others at their level? And what are the constraints that they must
work under, particularly with respect to your project? The operative
word in this principle is "empathize."
- Familiarize yourself with each manager's personal preferences
and unique perspective.
Does the manager prefer formal, agenda-driven meetings or one-on-ones?
Is the manager a detail-oriented or "big-picture" type? Does he/she
need to see your supporting data, or will your summation suffice? Does
the manager prefer to listen or read? Are there particular things that
"set him or her off?" The answer to these, and similar questions, can
help you configure a communication style and an information-sharing
process aimed at yielding the most effective result.
- Learn each manager's "natural" interpersonal style; use it as
a barometer of their temperament.
Not all managers will spell out in detail how they view a given situation.
As with others with whom you interact, developing an ability to read
a manager through body language, nonverbal cues, and other means offers
an added line of communication and feedback. Understand that the manager's
natural style can serve as the baseline for gauging their position,
opinion, mood, or level of satisfaction at any point in time.
- Fully clarify mutual expectations with each manager up-front.
This is simply sound project management practice. The project manager
who passively assumes that he or she knows what a manager expects is
headed for trouble. Be sure that the expectations are unambiguous, and
that they function in both directions; it's not only acceptable, but
advisable to include what you would expect from the manager.
- Keep managers well-informed and do so proactively.
Determine what kind of information each manager feels they need, and
to what level of detail they need it. Communicate that information in
"real time" whenever there is urgency. Don't wait for the next regularly-scheduled
formal update to communicate critical information. Tailor your reporting
process and style to the key managers if it serves to significantly
aid the communication process.
- Don't be too eager to follow a manager's lead.
This is tricky business. A project manager who continually speaks his
or her mind may run the risk of being viewed as argumentative, arbitrary
or uncooperative. However, the project manager who always says "yes"
- or demonstrates overdependence upon a manager for direction - is almost
certain to eventually become viewed as being devoid of independent thought.
- Exhibit a general tone of confidence.
This is actually a kind of "self-check." If you have planned properly,
and you are successfully executing toward an achievable set of objectives
and targets, self-confidence should be a natural byproduct. And when
you display true confidence, you are less likely to fall victim to management
meddling, and your confidence will undoubtedly spread to your team.
However, avoid the temptation to pad data, shade the truth, or play
down legitimate concerns as a way to maintain an image of confidence.
- Avoid the very appearance of vacillation.
Decisive behavior without confidence (see #8 above), follow-through
and consistency has little value. Project managers whose opinion or
direction varies according to the last bit of advice they received will
lose the respect of their team, cause management to lose faith in their
ability, and serve as an invitation for micro-management.
- When direction is absent or vague, set your own.
Develop a detailed statement outlining your intentions, then seek management
buy-in and approval. If you need to take the project in a given direction,
assume you have the authority to do so, unless you are certain you don't.
Putting the Principles to the Test
In summary, project managers will often be judged by their ability to
handle difficult situations. Understanding and following the suggested
Principles of Action could prove to be an important aspect of your development
as a project manager. Let these real-world guidelines serve to make your
projects run more smoothly, and bolster your image as a rational, confident
and capable project manager.
Note: Be on the look out for the next installment of "Tips
for the Trade," where Gary R. Heerkens will discuss the 10 "Principles
of Reaction."
End of Article
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