Pathway to Professional Project Managers
Project Manager is obliged to be responsible in planning, managing, monitoring & controlling, administration and remediation of various problems in projects, including the accountability towards all work results incurred from the operation of project. But, the differences between project manager and professional project manager are different by 3 elements, namely:
1. Difference in knowledge used in managing projects;
2. Difference in skills required in managing projects;
3. Difference in attitude in managing projects.
The causes, which had made the project manager unable to be successful towards the target derived from various elements, such as the project manager lacks of knowledge and skills which are necessary for managing projects due to development in individual line of career as a technical expert, no involvement since the beginning in the project, insufficient understanding in context of organization and projects or to manage the projects at a higher anticipation, but with resource limitation for example. These causes are frequently found in current working situation. The more changes of work in organization into Project Based, the more project failures we found. Up to present, various organizations had started to pay attention in the development of knowledge and skills, which are necessary for professional project manager with an expectation to reduce damages of organization derived from the causes of projects’ failure.
One of the important elements in reduction of projects’ failure and the adding of confidence towards the organization for a better efficiency in management, namely an establishment of Professional Project Manager with the following trend in brief:
1. Development of knowledge necessary for a Professional Project Manager
The arrangement for training of knowledge in the area of project management for project managers within the company is an easy operational issue and it is the first step in the operation regardless of arrangement for Project Manager to be under trained at training center outside or arrangement of training by invitation of skilful experts to make a narration at company. By the required knowledge may be divided into 10 knowledge areas, which are necessary for project management, such as scope management, cost management, time management, quality management, human resources management, communication management, risk management, procurement management and project integration management.
2. Development of skills, which are necessary for applying project management tools & techniques for real-life work
Various organizations stop its project management development just to provide knowledge training to project managers with the understanding that the training is sufficient for establishment of good skills in project management, but at many times, which the project manager is negligent to introduce the learned knowledge and tools & techniques to apply for use with actual projects, causing a lack of skills in project management. Even the knowledge is gained, but the establishment of skills is more important to be improved which could be done by practicing repeatedly, review and customizing to make it appropriated to the context of organization and projects to enable the actual skill development.
3. Development of communication skills and soft skills
The project management is deemed as one of the important obligation of the executive or potential executive. So, the skills in working with other persons must be excellent by these skills in the management of dispute, working motivation, leadership and negotiation, etc. Such skills are unable to solely develop the theoretical aspects; it must be based on practice, repeat, learning from mistake and continual training to achieve with an efficient benefit.
4. Creation of good attitude in working
The project management directly related with various experts, various methods of thinking and various anticipations. Thus, the project management is based on good attitude positively in working, such as acceptance of difference in persons; positively look at world, looking at problems and obstacle at an opportune aspect, adjustment to go along with changes, establishment of friendship and goal, etc.
5. Training, practicing, learning and continual development
The excellent knowledge, skills and attitude are excellent at an actual status only. Due to the strong and rapid change of world, project managers are required to acquire knowledge and skills for self at all time to obtain continual development to place under the changes incurred.
All of 5 trends above have been attentive to elements regarding individual development mainly at the Project Manager by the reason of the successful project derived from the important component, namely the efficiency of Project Manager. But, the other important component resulted to the successful projects is the level on capacity of organization in project management or organizational project management maturity levels, which will be mentioned in next article.
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