The chief skills of a Project Manager are leadership, management, organisation, team-building and communication.
Leadership
In order to be successful, a project manager must have both leadership and management skills. Leadership involves communicating the objectives and vision of the project to team members and stakeholders; displaying courage and confidence; inspiring the team; taking charge and leading with energy and by example; and promoting creativity, coordination and teamwork in order to reach the project’s goals. Management involves administration: the disciplined, methodical application of project management processes in planning and controlling a project.
Organisation and team-building
Organisational planning and human resource management are key skills for a project manager, since assembling a project team and providing the environments in which they will coordinate their activities are often project management responsibilities. A project manager usually negotiates with other levels of management which people will participate on a project. The team of people who will participate must have the skills to perform the work in addition to sufficient time and appropriate tools and materials. Once a team is assembled, the project manager will assign project roles, responsibilities and reporting relationships. Depending on project length, the project manager may also plan team development, training or team-building activities in order to achieve effective project performance.
Communication
A key skill for a project manager is the ability to communicate well. Project coordination is key to project success in that stakeholders have a need to understand project activities and outcomes from their point of view, and often provide input to project decisions as well. Depending on the nature of the industry, project managers may have to coordinate teams and stakeholders who speak different languages or are located at great distances. Communications planning includes identifying appropriate communication methods for various stakeholders, which could include face to face meetings, telephone or video conferences, e-mail, instant messaging and formal or informal reporting. Project managers also identify which meetings should take place at various levels of the project, including management and technical meetings. The methods of communication for coordination of project activities, and the reporting requirements of stakeholders are also planned. While a project is in progress the project manager is responsible for distributing information and reporting on progress and performance, in addition to the coordination of project team members and resources.
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Paul Ford
Paul Ford is a Project Manager for Digital Marketing agencies in London. This website covers his interests in project management and communication.