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What does it take to manage a project?  You’d think by now the answer should be well established, but it’s still a gray area for many.  Even though it is integrated into most professional work environments, project management is still surrounded by a lot of misconceptions and myths. There are so many opinions out there as to what project management is about (or not about) and some are more common than others.  On a previous project I was working on, the customer saw no value in having a project manager.  He felt that project managers just got in the way of his team’s ability to complete tasks and created more problems than solutions. Basically (and I’m summarizing here), project managers create more hurdles making it almost impossible to reach the finish line. Ouch. This is not something I was expecting to hear as soon as I joined the project, but made me realize that there are many people who don’t see the true value in project management.  It was my goal to prove his myth wrong and by the end of the project, he was singing a new tune.  How many other myths have I heard and actually experienced as a project manager? Plenty.  Below are a few myths I’ve come across and hopefully I can shed some clarity on these myths surrounding project management.

Myth 1 - Project managers are just experts in producing documentation for the project.

Project plans, resource schedules, status reports, meeting minutes, budgeting spreadsheets… it’s easy for a project manager to find themselves constantly requesting status updates and populating templates.  All of these definitely help move a project through the project lifecycle and are extremely important. However, this is not the extent of a project manager’s role nor should it be.  In fact, the skill of a great project manager is most often demonstrated without a keyboard.  Most of a project manager’s time is spent on communication.  Whether it’s via phone or face to face, it’s essential for a project’s success.   A project team is usually a diverse group of individuals; which can be challenging at times and this is where a project manager can provide value.

There’s a laundry list of what a project manager should be utilized for, but sadly most don’t take advantage of a project manager’s full potential.  Ask yourself the following:

• Who helps enforce productivity of the team?
• Who helps in motivating team members?
• Who encourages open communication within the team?
• Who must be able to communicate effectively with the customer?
• Who assists with overcoming unforeseen obstacles?

Project management consists of all of the above.  A project manager must have an active and influential role within the project outside of documentation.  How? Here are some helpful tips for a project manager to get more involved with tasks other than documentation.

• Involve team members in project planning from start to finish.  This sets clear expectations with the team and encourages communication early on.
• Be proactive when it comes to assisting the team rather than waiting for them to reach out for assistance (ex: An issue comes up and no one is taking the initiative to get the key players involved to discuss the issue and find a way to mitigate it.  Set up a meeting to bring everyone on the same page and identify next steps)
• Be sure to celebrate milestones or recognize team members.  This helps motivate team members and enforce productivity throughout the project.

Myth 2 – There is no need to add contingency time in schedules or budgets.

There is one thing we know for sure and it’s that we can't predict the future.  There is no crystal ball that will shed light on what is going to happen.  However, with project management there is something that can help teams prep for the unforeseen bumps along the road and that’s contingency.  Even when teams do a thorough job of risk assessment and estimating, the schedule and budget must have a pool of contingency to use when things don’t go as planned.

Contingency should be included to protect the final deadline date and any critical activities/milestones. The team then manages against the schedule and uses the contingency pool when it' is needed. This is the best way to ensure projects will be done on time and within budget.  Without contingency, it forces the team to sacrifice quality of the product being delivered because of the time constraints in the schedule. This becomes extremely risky and is not likely to end up with a good outcome.  Contingency reduces risk, which is a value add for any project.

Myth 3:  Transparency is not the best policy.

This is a tricky one and I’m sure will always remain a gray area for most.  I’ve been in situations where leadership and the customer are most frustrated because they are constantly hearing that projects are on track until the last minute or by the time they hear of an issue, the project is too far down a path for a course correction.  I also noticed that everyone wants some type of solution to this problem. In my opinion, the solution is transparency. What can transparency do for a project?

• Increases performance and collaboration  – All team members should have visibility into the project and the items other members are working on.  If one member of the team is working hard and making progress, it can challenge other team members to do the same.
• Eliminates negative surprises before it’s too late – Project managers don’t like surprises and the customer likes them even less. Transparency ensures that the team isn’t hiding the negatives in an attempt to showcase the positives.
• Builds trust between the team and the client - Transparency leads to trust and trust leads to partnership.  Without partnership, the probably of success diminishes and leads to higher risk for the project.

This is why I feel it’s extremely important for a project manager to share as much information related to project status as frequently as possible. This also means the rest of the project team needs to be transparent with the project manager and in most cases, this doesn’t happen.  A project manager can’t provide information to stakeholders, leadership or the customer unless the rest of the teams keep them in the loop constantly. It’s better to over communicate than not communicate at all.

Have I convinced you that these myths are not facts?  I hope so. Individuals have many beliefs about project management, but no matter what the viewpoint is, everyone has a common goal and that’s for a project to be successful.   Project management is the key to success when processes and project managers are utilized properly.  Project management is the glue that can hold a project and team together. 

Here at Function1, we take project management seriously and ensure it's value add for our projects and customers.  We have built a foundation for project management methodologies throughout the organization, from inception to successful completion, which enables the team to deliver projects on time, within budget and scope while exceeding customer expectations.  We are constantly reviewing and standardizing the Function1 project management processes and methods used for all projects across the company to ensure consistency through each step of the project lifecycle.