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CHAPTER FOUR
Leadership and the Project Manager
To Accompany
PROJECT MANAGEMENT:
Achieving Competitive Advantage
By
Jeffrey K. Pinto
CHAPTER FOUR
Project Profile: New Product Development at PING Golf, Inc.
INTRODUCTION
4.1 DUTIES OF PROJECT MANAGERS
Acquiring Project Resources
Team Building and Motivation
Having a Vision and Fighting Fires
Communicating
Project Research in Brief: Leadership and Emotional Intelligence
4.2 TRAITS OF EFFECTIVE PROJECT LEADERS
Conclusions about Project Leaders
Project Profile: John Parker and A.G. Edwards
Time Orientation and Project Management
4.3 PROJECT CHAMPIONS
Project Champions Who are They?
The Functions of a Champion
Does Championing Behavior Matter?
Guidelines for the Use of Champions
Project Research in Brief: Lessons for an Accidental Profession
4.4 THE NEW PROJECT LEADERSHIP
4.5 PROJECT MANAGEMENT PROFESSIONALISM
Summary
Key Terms
Discussion Questions
Future Time Perspective Scale
Case Study 4.1 In Search of Effective Project Managers
Case Study 4.2 Finding the Emotional Intelligence to be a Real Leader
Case Study 4.3 Problems with John
Internet Exercises
PMP Certification Sample Questions
Bibliography
TRANSPARENCIES
Managers
Focus on plans and budgets;
Leaders
Establishes direction; creates
goals.
Organizes and staffs; creates
target; communicates
plans; delegates
develops procedures to
monitoring systems.
Controls and solves
projects vision.
Motivates and inspires;
action.
Produces a degree of
initiative.
Produces change; challenges
Execution
Outcomes
quo.
Efficiency of operations
Short-term, avoiding risks,
Effectiveness of outcomes
Long-term; taking risks,
8.
1. The chapter stressed the idea that project management is a leader intensive
undertaking. Discuss in what sense this statement is true.
Managing a project requires a high-level of coordination, communication, motivation and
goal-sharing. Project managers are the central entity within the project team and are the
contact point for internal (other managers within the company) and external partners
(contractors, joint venture partners, etc.). Given their vital role in the project, their ability
to lead and motivate others is directly tied to the success of the project. Without a good
leader, team members can become confused, conflicting goals may arise and ultimately,
projects can end up off-course or behind schedule.
5. Consider the studies on trait theories in leadership. Of the characteristics that emerge
as critical to effective leadership, which seem most critical to project managers? Why?
Five important traits for project managers are good communication skills, honesty,
adaptability, interpersonal skills and influential. Communication is vital to project
management. Project leaders are the contact point for everyone within and outside of the
project team. Being able to communicate issues regarding the vision/goal and project
progress are key. Honesty is important as people are unlikely to follow or believe in
someone whom they do not trust. By nature projects incur a high level of risk and thus a
great number of changes are likely during the life of a project. A manager who can adapt
quickly increases a projects chance of success. Project managers have to work through
others to achieve the goals of the project. This requires a level of interpersonal skill to
build and maintain relationships that facilitate goal accomplishment. Lastly, one major
role of project managers is to influence. They need to be influential in order to get others
onboard and to spread enthusiasm for the project.
6. At the back of the chapter is a Future Time Orientation scale. After completing it,
determine whether you have a future time perspective, present time perspective, or past
time perspective. What are the implications for the types of tasks you enjoy performing?
How will your preferences lead to strengths and weaknesses in managing projects?
This question gives students a chance to personalize the nature of project leadership by
responding to a specific scale used to measure time orientation. As one element is
effective leadership, time orientation identifies the types of activities and assignments
certain individuals are likely to perform better than other tasks that may require a
different time orientation perspective.
7. Why are project champions said to be better equipped to handle the non-traditional
aspects of leadership?
Champions are often personally committed to a project. They are able to identify with
the project in ways that traditional managers do not. Being that champions usually head
their own pet projects, they are more inclined to develop the projects vision or become
cheerleaders. Additionally, because they are personally tied to the project they often
work harder to overcome challenges and to defend the project to the rest of the
organization.
8. Consider the discussion of new project leadership. If you were asked to formulate a
principle that could be applied to project leadership, what would it be? Justify your
answer.
The answer to this question requires students with project experience, or those who are
grasping some of the challenges of managing projects, to formulate a principle that
identifies a unique aspect of project leadership. The answer given is not as important as
having the student justify their reasoning behind the principle. It offers a good method
for determining if students comprehend the nature of the project leadership
challenge.CASE STUDIES
Case Study 4.1 In Search of Effective Project Managers
This case involves Pureswing Golf, and illustrates the problems when organizations
attempt to locate competent project managers without any systematic plan for identifying
and training good potential candidates. They are discovering that the voluntary
approach, whereby new project managers are solicited seemingly at random from
around the company, simply does not work. Many of these individuals likely do not have
the skills or a reasonable understanding of what it takes to effectively manage projects.
Questions:
1) Imagine you are a Human Resource professional at Pureswing who has been
assigned to develop a program for recruiting new project managers. Design a job
description for the position.
Based on the skills identified in this chapter, it would be possible to develop a job
description that highlights several of the key features that strong project leaders possess.
The job description must discuss the ability to manage a team, to possess strong time
management and organizational skills, to have a sufficient technical background that the
individual can understand the core technologies, the ability to work to deadlines,
knowledge of cost accounting and finance, and so forth. The instructor can tease out this
list for some time, adding additional descriptive skills needed to handle the job. The goal
is to highlight the fact that effective project managers must possess a solid, well-rounded
set of capabilities that enable them to almost function as mini-CEOs within their
organizations.
10
remain above the fray, but require the ability to shift their focus constantly from the forest
to the trees and back again.
11
12
This is a good question to get discussion started because it allows the instructor to create
a chart with pros on one side of the ledger and cons on the other. The case cites five
different options that management has identified, so there is a good starting point.
Students can be asked to offer both positive and negative comments on the situation and
Johns behavior as a first step toward a more complete analysis of what the problems are
and how best to deal with them. Next, students can be asked if there are alternative
options that top management has not considered and if so, the benefits and drawbacks of
each of these options.
2) Consider each of the above options. If you were to select it, develop an argument
to defend your position.
As above, the options developed in the case each have positive and negative elements
associated with them. For example, someone might suggest that the key to resolving
Johns lack of motivation is to encourage him to finish his degree so that he can be
promoted more regularly; however, others could note that he has tried that over the past
years and never stuck with it. The goal is to get students thinking critically, having them
avoid making knee-jerk responses based on a cursory reading of the case, and consider
the ramifications of the choices they come up with.
3) What specific leadership behaviors, mentioned in this chapter, are most relevant
to addressing and resolving the problems with John?
Several leadership behaviors come to mind, most centered around the need for good
interpersonal skills, an understanding of motivation (especially equity and expectancy
theories), the leader needs personal credibility, the ability to think of creative solutions
(outside the box options), and mostly the leader must have the personal integrity to be
honest and straightforward with John to demonstrate an understanding of Johns
behavior, a willingness to consider why it is occurring, and the honesty to show him that
if it continues, it will necessitate consequences.