IE 426: Project Management

The Project Manager

Chapter 03

Ramzi Alahmadi, Ph.D.

Industrial Engineering Department
 The Project Manager (PM)
• The project manager can be chosen and installed as soon
as the project is selected for funding.
• The project manager can be chosen later.
oThis makes things difficult
• Senior management briefs the project manager.
• Project manager begins with a budget and schedule.
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 Functional Management
• Department heads are usually functional specialists.
• They have the required technical skills to evaluate all members of their
organization.

Functional managers:
• Decide who performs each task
• Decide how the task is performed
• Exercise a great deal of control over every aspect of the work that gets
performed within their area.

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 Project Management
• Project managers are usually generalists.
• It would be very unusual for a project manager to have all the technical skills that are
used on their projects.

Project managers:
• Rarely decide who performs each task
• Lack the technical skills to evaluate much of the work performed on a particular
project
• Exercise very little control over most aspects of the work that gets performed on
the project

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 Functional Manager Vs Project Manager
Comparison
Functional Manager Project Manager
Aspect
Focus Specific function (e.g., marketing, finance) Whole project (scope, cost, time, quality)
Skills Needed Technical expertise, analytical skills Negotiation, leadership, coordination
Decision Decides who performs tasks & how they are Rarely decides who, focuses on what and
Authority done when
Limited control, must rely on influence &
Control High control over resources
communication
Responsibility
Narrow – limited to their department Broad – responsible for overall project success
Scope
Approach Analytic approach (detail-oriented) Systems approach (big picture)

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 Three Major Questions facing Project
Managers

• What needs to be done?

• When must it be done?
• How are the resources required to do the job to be
obtained?

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 Project Manager Responsibilities

• The parent company

• The project and the client
• The project team

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 The Parent Company

• Proper usage of resources

• Timely and accurate reports

• Keep project sponsor informed

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 The Project and the Client

• Preserve the integrity of the project

o This may be difficult with all sides wanting changes
(conflicting demands)
• Keep the client informed of major changes

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 The Project Team
• Very few people will work for the project manager: the
“team” will disband at the end of the project
• The project manager must look out for everyone’s future
(e.g., recommend them for future assignments, give fair
credit, write recommendation letters)
o This is in the best interest of the project, otherwise as the
project winds down, people may lose motivation and
might shift their attention to securing their own future
instead of finishing the current project.
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 Special Demands on Project Manager
• Acquiring adequate resources (If you are a PM and only get 70% of the resources
you requested, what would you do first?)
• Acquiring and motivating personnel (How can you keep borrowed team members
motivated if you cannot give them raises?)
• Dealing with obstacles - scope creep, last-minute changes, conflicts (Which is
harder to manage: changes from the client or conflicts inside the team? Why?)
• Making project goal trade-offs (If your project is late, would you prefer to reduce
scope or increase cost?)
• Breadth of communication - PMs spend most of their time communicating across
levels. (Why do you think communication is more important for a PM than technical
expertise?)
• Negotiation with managers, clients, and team members. (What skills make a PM a
good negotiator?)
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 The Project Manager Sample Career Path
• Trainee:
oa six-month position to learn about project management
• Cost Analysis/Schedule Engineer:
oa 6–18 month team position reporting to a project manager
• Site Manager:
oa 6–12 month position responsible for a large site and reporting to a program
manager
• Small Project Manager:
osole responsibility for a $1M to $3M project
• Project Manager:
oresponsible for $3M to $25M projects
• Program Manager:
oresponsible for multiyear projects and programs over $25M
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 Project Team: Tuckman’s ladder

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 Handling Obstacles
Early Stage Late Stage Scope Creep
• Last-minute schedule changes
• Lack of resources (people, • Uncontrolled growth in
• Technical failures or defects
budget, tools) requirements
discovered late
• Ambiguous requirements & • Adds cost, delays schedule,
• Client requests for scope
unclear goals and lowers quality
changes
• Conflicts with functional • Requires firm change
• Team morale drops as project
managers over assignments management
winds down
PM’s Must:
•Act as fire preventer (anticipate, plan, monitor risks)
•Be ready as fire fighter (quick problem solver under pressure)

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 Attributes of Effective Project Managers
1) Credibility (Technical & Administrative)
2) Sensitivity (Political, Interpersonal, and Technical)
3) Leadership, ethics, and management style
o (A research Conducted by PMI identified six skills for a project manager to
become a leader: 29% - communication, 26% - people, 16% - strategic, 12% -
requirements gathering, 12% - leadership, 5% - time management)
o Emotional Intelligence (EQ): ability to effectively deal with emotions to
achieve positive outcomes. EQ is achieved through four core skills: Self-
Awareness, Self-Management, Social Awareness, Relationship Management.
4) Ability to handle stress
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 Next Class…

▪ Chapter 2: Project Selection

▪ Term Project Assigned

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