Leader vs Manager -- As Project Manager are you a Leader or a Manager? What are your leadership qualities?

Project Leader vs Manager the choice is yours.

As Project Managers, are we prepared to be Leaders? You decide on Leader vs Manager. Our role as PM continues to become more and more complex. On the management side, we all know to focus on the tasks, processes, resources, milestones, schedule, and performance. As a result, we all tend to place our emphasis on management and lose our focus on a critical project management skill Leadership. Since there are too many definitions of Leadership, lets look at a few differences to address Leader vs Manager:

Leaders: Focus on the strategic; set direction; align resources; and empower and inspire. Managers: Focus on the tactics; plan and budget; organize and obtain resources; exert control over situations; and solve problems.

How do our organizations address Leader vs Manager question? In most organizations (does this sound like yours), Management is responsible for producing and maintaining predictability and order within the functional areas. On the other hand, Leadership is responsible for producing change. So managers focus on predictability and order, while leaders focus on being catalysts for change. In fact, Leadership is inextricably connected with change. There are numerous books, white papers and articles on the various leadership theories, models, and characteristics. I am only focusing on the role of the Project Manager, in addressing Leader vs Manager - your Leadership responsibilities as a professional Project Manager. Feeling a bit overwhelmed at the though of being a Leader too? Try to pattern yourself after some of the great leaders (i.e., Washington, Lincoln, Churchill, Welch, Gates, Gandhi and many more). Learn and repeat some of their leadership qualities and leadership traits:

Set big, bold goals. Challenge your project team to achieve something they havent done before. Get team members that are better than you are. Successful leaders know they are building a team to achieve a goal, not to build their ego.

Set the example for the Team. As a Leader vs Manager, you will set the context for them to achieve; you will establish the work ethic; and your attitude will determine the attitude for the entire team. Give all the credit to the Team. Recognizing the teams success will build their confidence to continue to achieve their goals. LISTEN, LISTEN, LISTEN. The greatest leaders listen to the people around them so (as the saying goes) listen more than you speak.

The PMBOK Guide defines Leadership as: establishing direction, aligning people, motivating and inspiring people to overcome political, bureaucratic, and resource barriers. and again as Developing a vision and strategy, and motivating people to achieve that vision and strategy.

On subsequent pages, I will go into more details on the various subjects related to Leadership and Project Management.

There are several areas of project management which demand strong leadership skills project portfolio management (PPM), global project management, program management, and project management office (PMO) leadership. Even though Ive chosen to focus on these four areas, always remember that Leadership is an integral part of all project management. When you step up to the challenges of managing a project you are also agreeing to a leadership position. Your work on the day-to-day activities and responsibilities of these areas constantly address the Leader vs Manager question.

Project Portfolio Management Leadership is required in a Project Portfolio Management approach to effectively enable the organization to evaluate, select, initiate and manage projects. The PPM approach brings a discipline to the collection of projects or programs in order to facilitate more effective project management to meet specific strategic business objectives. Typically, smaller companies do not use a PPM approach. Some larger companies chose not to use a PPM approach, usually a financial decision. Implementing a PPM approach in a larger

company, often requires the selection and implementation of a PPM application. As briefly described on the Tools & Resources page, larger PM applications such as Primavera and Clarity also enable a PPM approach. There are several other software applications from smaller vendors, such as OpenAirs Integrated PPM Suite, Pacific Edge Softwares Portfolio Edge, Casewises ITA Accelerator , and Innotas PPM software as a service (SaaS) solution. As on the Tools & Resources page, I have similar recommendations regarding a PPM application as I did when recommending a Project Management software application.

ALWAYS DO A COMPETITIVE SELECTION! Base your RFI or RFP on your internal guidelines (financial, IT, and operational) and short-list based on pre-determined, quantified selection criteria. Unless your organization has specific guidelines for selection of enterprise applications (e.g., must be a hosted solution, must run on Unix, must be an enterprise license, etc.) look at applications which fit the size of your organization. o Although smaller organizations (less than 10 projects per year) may chose to implement a PPM approach, the cost of an in-house PPM application may be prohibitive (upwards of $1,000/seat). You have two choices: 1) explore an SaaS/Subscription-based service (such as Innotas or OpenAir), or 2) implement PPM using tools such as MS-Excel, MS-Project, and your current accounting application. o Mid-sized organizations (with 10 to 100 or more projects each year) can benefit from the discipline of a PPM application. Initially, I recommend an SaaS or Managed Services approach. The closer you get to 100 projects per year, you may re-consider the approach and bring the PPM application in-house. o Larger organizations (over 100 projects per year) may have the flexibility of competitively selecting between an in-house and SaaS solution. Since a PPM application involves ROI metrics to select projects and financial metrics to measure performance, involve members of your finance team early in the selection process. Finance is one of your primary Stakeholders.

(I will discuss more about PPM applications on a subsequent page.) Because of the high visibility of projects in a PPM environment, your Leadership skills will be in more demand. PPM requires a balance in addressing Leader vs Manager, even though it may require more from your strategic Leader-side. If you are the PPM Leader, you will be interacting with your Senior Management Team on a regular basis. Your leadership qualities will need to extend across functional teams to Finance, HR, Operations, and into the Executive Offices. You will need a thorough understanding of your organizations business plan and objectives; financial metrics; resource utilization targets; cost accounting and time tracking; and revenue recognition practices in other words, a more strategic understanding than with typical project management.

Global Project Management

Global Project Management may refer to a single project, and although global in scope, it can carry the added challenges of:

Culture Geography Company Politics (not just between functional group, but also between geographically dispersed operational groups) Communications

As a Global Project Manager, your leadership traits and leadership qualities are critical in bridging cultural differences; facilitating communications across cultural divides and geographic distances; and managing the ever-present organizational politics. Typically, a Global Project Manager will work with and report through either a PPM organization or a Project Management Office (PMO). Properly organized and managed PMO and PPM teams are a resource to you and your project team.

As a Global Project Manager, you will be required to be a Leader in all respects. In addressing Leader vs Manager, you will find that your leadership qualities are required more often than your managerial skills.

Program Management PMIs PMBOK Guide defines Program Management as: The centralized, coordinated management of a group of projects to achieve the programs strategic objectives and benefits. As Program Manager, your organization expects you to have more of a big picture perspective of your program - again weighing-in more on the Leader side of "Leader vs Manager". The strategic objectives of your program will be aligned with the strategic objectives of your organization. Put another way, at the individual project level, the PM may have a 60-40 tactical and strategic perspective. While at the Program Management level this ratio would be reversed to a 60% strategic and 40% tactical perspective - specifically addressing the Leader vs Manager question. Most organizations view a career path from Project Manager to Program Manager (perhaps, eventually to PPM Director or VP of PMO). Of course, company environments are different

and this type of career path depends on the organizational structure of your company and executive managements view of formal project management.

From this Leader vs Manager page to the pages on Career and Certification for more information on PM career paths.

Project Management Office Leadership After several years of establishing PMO operations and running others previously established, I have found two keys to a successful PMO:

Providing consistent, regular communications to all team members and stakeholders; and Being a reliable resource to all project team members and coach/mentor to all PMs.

Fundamentally, the PMO provides the centralized coordination of the project management discipline, rigor, and control for the organization. In addressing the Leader vs Manager question, this is a leadership role. The PMO is the focus for project planning, resource utilization, training, project performance, monitoring, controls, reporting, and the liaison between business governance teams and project governance. The PMO can be the project management office, the program management office, or even simply the program office or the project office it depends on the organization. In fact, there are as many PMO varieties (ways different companies have implemented a PMO), as there are organizations.

Unlike a PPM approach (see above), there may be no relationship between the various projects and programs managed by the PMO. In some organizations, the PMO has delegated authority and is a key decision-maker on each project. In other organizations, the PMO is simply a monitoring and reporting vehicle to senior management on project progress and performance. I have observed and participated in successful implementations of a PMO in a PPM environment. Implemented together, the PMO provides structure and the PPM approach provides the strategic perspective and involvement of the senior business management team. I will discuss the successful implementations of PMOs and PPM in more detail on subsequent pages.