Imagine this situation. You are at work and your boss calls you to entrust you with the organization of a very important event with potential investors; as well! You are responsible for a project that has accidentally come into your hands and therefore requires your attention along with your other daily tasks and even if it seems fair or not you are the project manager.
In a more formal framework, the situation described at the beginning turns out to be much more common than you might think, which is why it is necessary for the professional to have the knowledge and ability to use the tools that have been created to help them achieve objectives; in a nutshell you must be a competent manager; But together with his aptitude, he must take into account an attitude that reflects his leadership capacity and that affirms and confirms him in the position he exercises. Thanks to the recognition by the team with which he works.
To start, you need to understand that project management stems from the need for companies to coordinate actions and resources to achieve positive results; For this reason, several tasks have been identified that are the responsibility of the Project Manager.
- The planning and definition of the activities to be carried out. The implementation of those activities. The control and supervision of the activities in general.
Project manager
It is anyone who takes overall responsibility for coordinating a project, regardless of size, to ensure that the desired end result occurs on time and on budget.
In addition to the aforementioned tasks, the project manager will be subjected to a series of increasingly complex tests, which will require high malleability and adaptability in order to fully fulfill his / her functions. These tests mainly consist of sudden changes in the role you play or in the variety of roles you will have to play at the same time. These roles are:
- Information Papers: Correspond to those tasks in which you will be the communication channel between: team members, between the project and general management, between project management and the team, etc. Interpersonal roles: Here you will be tested on your ability to maintain confidence and unity in your assigned team, as well as your intelligence to resolve disagreements or better to avoid them, since you will have to interact with people from different backgrounds and different backgrounds. Decision Papers: Perhaps the most important when it comes to showing results, since it will require a great deal of skill and dexterity to control the project and make the necessary decisions, for this you will also have to know the information very well and seriously consider the scope and consequences of those decisions.
To summarize, you must be aware that: guiding, facilitating, negotiating, and coordinating are the concepts that you must apply when working as a project manager.
To finish we will mention the six traits of the good Project Manager:
- Enthusiasm for the project. It is the main thing if you want your team to follow you, creating a mystique and transmitting it with your attitude can benefit everyone, starting with you. Ability to adapt to change efficiently, that is, you must understand that in any project, however small it may be, there are almost always surprises and you must assume them in the best way. Tolerant attitude towards ambiguity that can be represented in the lack of a clear authority for his position and the need of interaction with other instances inside and outside the company for the project to be successful. Ability for team building and negotiation, inside and outside the team. Focus priority on customer satisfaction, who is ultimately who will benefit from the project. Take into account the business priorities, that is, you must understand that the company is the one who implements the project and needs positive commercial results.
As you can see, it is not easy to be a Project Manager, but do not despair and do your best, train yourself and become a leader, you will see that you can achieve it if you set your mind to it, do not wait for it to be imposed
