Until Success Do We Part: How to Decide If a Project Management Role is For You

By Mauro Piloni 

If you work as a project manager (or were recently offered a role), you were probably pulled aside by management and informed that a long-term initiative was in the works. This project requires the most important ingredient – the right leader – and that front runner is you.

What comes to mind when hearing this? You probably feel proud. You are one of the few, if not the only one, called upon for this role. You will have access to needed resources – your wants and needs will be fulfilled. All of them: power, money and career. What a drug.

After a couple of days of contemplating the offer, you accept, the announcement goes live, and you are ready for a bright future. The end, right?

Reality, however, differs greatly. It’s not that your supervisor knowingly misrepresented the role. The problem is that even those in top leadership positions maintain limited influence on the “company world” around them. Everything can and will change, yet the expectations for your performance will remain – unless you leave the company. Considering that the average project lifespan runs two years, imagine the number of changes that can happen in the organization and market during that time.

Understand that when you accept the offer to lead a project, you accept it unconditionally. Deciding to direct a long-term project is somewhat like getting married. The moment arrives when someone asks if you will stay “in good and in bad.” Your choice doesn't usually depend on what might occur in the future. You speak those vows because you love (and believe in) your partner. Certainly you could become poor or rich, but that doesn’t alter the decision made at the ceremony.

The Four Steps in Deciding

While assessing the project management opportunity, one must understand how the environment may change during the life of the assignment, and anticipate and mitigate potential problems. Here are some important steps to take before diving in.

1. Understand the “why me.” Why did you receive this offer? Are you really the most suitable person for the role? Three possibilities exist:

• You’re developing quickly in your current role, but no advancement opportunities exist. In essence, the project is a parking spot, a way to exercise your skills while awaiting other internal move options.
• You’re viewed as a roadblock for another person who the organization wants to place in your current position. Moving you would free up an internal “domino,” and in that case, you are just entering the “exit” room.
• You might very well be the strongest candidate for the role. If so, then accepting this offer can greatly advance your career. 

2. Investigate the project’s origins. Ask some questions and find out if the initiative comes from the entire organization or just your direct supervisor. The cross-functional dimension of a project-leadership role implies that you will report to a number of leaders. If the assignment came from the broad population of leaders then you know you would have support.

• If the plan was generated solely by your direct supervisor, then keep in mind that if your boss ever loses credibility, encounters other priorities, or leaves the company, the idea about needing you in this role will drop.
• How do you assess this? Talk to your supervisor about meeting one-on-one with the other leaders and key stakeholders to discuss their expectations for the project. If you sense resistance from your manager, it may be a red flag indicating the project probably lacks approval and backing from the larger organization. This could leave you vulnerable. 

3. Research the organizational climate and the potential changes. In the duration of the project leader role things in the external world and in your organization will change dramatically. The only constant is that you cannot give up in the middle of the journey. Therefore, you must clarify the scope of the project and its intended outcome. Also, spend time learning about the business environment that generated the need for this project. You might interpret the overall situation differently than those choosing you, and realize that the idea presented may not be what the organization needs. If this happens, you could develop and suggest a different proposal before committing to the role.

4. Verify the availability of resources. So often I hear from other project managers that their organizations promised all the needed resources. But then they discover that their organization’s operational approach is completely disconnected from its financial means. Make sure the project appears in the organization’s spending plan (for the number of years required to complete). If you don't see it listed (or if that data is not available to you) then take note that a considerable amount of energy could be spent on obtaining approval for continued funding. Certainly occasional budgetary adjustments will be needed, but the majority of a project manager’s time should be focused execution, not proving value.

Make the Call, Then Find the Focus

Unconditional acceptance of the project in the context of its current (and future) climate is key to the decision process. So, check where you sit right now before agreeing to start the journey. Because once you begin, you cannot leave that path. If you can ensure that your position is solid and the project has a strong infrastructure of broad support and funding, then organizational changes will not lead to derailment.

If you do accept the offer, you will have just one goal: to bring this project to a positive conclusion. Focus your actions there, and with some strategy everything else will flow around you. Your life, then, is the project. You can fully dedicate your mind, your body, and your heart with no room to worry about other matters. With this level of concentration, you are more likely to overcome unforeseen circumstances and experience a successful end.

If you are ready to move forward, read my next blog where I discuss the next steps of this journey.
____________________________

Mauro Piloni is the Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of EXEVER S.r.l.

 

The Myth of the Flawless Outsider

Why is it that so many companies exhibit a strong preference for recruiting external hires to fill key leadership roles? Are these rational, data-based decisions, or are some decision-makers falling prey to hidden biases that could prevent them from placing the right person in the role? If so, then at what cost?

Much has been written about the challenge and complexity facing today's leaders. Emerging technologies, aggressive competition, rapid change and escalation of consumer expectations all combine to make leadership a riskier proposition than ever before. The pressure on leaders to drive results can be extreme, and it is magnified when those leaders are stepping into new roles.

Filling these roles can present a daunting challenge, as circumstances demand breadth of leadership capabilities, depth of technical skills, and the wisdom required for successful navigation of an entirely new landscape. As companies explore the pool of candidates for these crucial roles, they often make the mistake of overlooking the internal talent they have cultivated.

We call this oversight "the myth of the flawless outsider," and it has several components:

• There is a natural tendency to cast a tough role with a heroic figure – someone who can be placed on a pedestal by the organization.
• This focus on the need for significant talent and thought leadership can make us overlook the strengths of those already familiar to us and concentrate on their relative weaknesses.
• We tend to devalue available information and fail to dig deeper in the interview process. Why do so many companies perform pre-hire assessments, only to disregard (or significantly under weigh) the data gained? A number of Hiring Managers have told us how much they have come to regret ignoring pre-hire assessment reports as those hires eventually stumble in their roles.
• All other things being equal, a lack of familiarity with candidates means their resumes tend to look "rosier" than the facts known to us about existing colleagues. We are very familiar with the career ups and downs (and personal idiosyncrasies) of our colleagues – information that we may not gain about external candidates until well after their start date. We call this the “ bright shiny penny” syndrome.

How do we create a more balanced approach, so that we don't overlook the talent right under our noses?

1. First, develop a rigorous, feedback-rich talent-management process that truly prepares your internal leaders for big roles.
2. Next, use a multivariate/multi-faceted approach to selection, with rigorous and structured interviewing and assessment for all candidates – whether external or internal to the company.
3. Strive to select humans over superheroes. Remember that brilliant interview skills do not equal leadership effectiveness (and may conceal flaws and lack of experience that will ultimately lead to their failure).
4. Do something that most companies don't: use pre-hire assessments and interview data to get New Leaders on the right developmental paths as they enter their roles. (Instead of waiting until their development needs become obvious to all).
5. Finally, work to establish realistic expectations for New Leaders so they don't fall into the heroism trap ("I'm here to change the culture," for example). Humans, not heroes, deliver sustainable results. And they don't have as far to fall as those perched atop inappropriate pedestals.

If, as do many humans, we prefer the new and shiny over the old and reliable, we need to follow the steps above to avoid falling into the trap set by the myth of the flawless outsider. It may be less exciting, but it will be better for our organizations (and us) in the long run.

Culture Makes or Breaks New Leaders

Many in the business community agree that a leader’s success (or even survival) in a role depends on their ability to work within the operational culture. And for those transitioning into new roles, culture lies at the root of many onboarding paradoxes. New Leaders are often hired to make changes, fix broken things, “take us to the next level,” have early impact, yet they must act within the context of the organizational culture to accomplish those imperatives. In addition, the New Leader must navigate not only the maze of corporate norms, but also the subculture in their own operation.

Seek  First to Understand ...

While actively learning about their operations, New Leaders are likely to notice that the number of definitions of the culture roughly equals the number of people in the organization. Some ways people commonly describe the culture of an organization include:

• “The way we do things around here.”
• “Lessons learned that are important to pass on to the next generation of employees.”
• “What we do when noone is looking.”

Without a common understanding, the New Leader may encounter barriers to gaining knowledge about the culture. This part of the onboarding process comes with a number of challenging questions:

• How is the culture described by the organization?
• Is it the same for top leaders as it is for others deeper in the organization?
• In the selection process did the New Leader hear the “whole truth" about the culture, or just the depiction of how the organization hopes to function someday?
• What about the discrepancies between how the inhabitants broadly describe the culture versus how the subcultures really function?

Addressing these questions can help the New Leader learn about, and demonstrate respect for, the existing culture (which has added importance for those hired as change agents).

Navigating the Culture -- It's OK to Ask for Directions 

To navigate the corporate culture, New Leaders must figure out not only “the way we do things around here” but also “the way we don’t do things around here.” While they were hired to lead their operations, the organization will directly and indirectly signal to the New Leader what they can and shouldn’t do to drive success. Those who take the time to observe, ask questions about the best ways to operate, and then follow that advice, are ultimately more successful.

New Leaders also have diagnostic tools available to give them an early view into the performance climate of their own operations – the culture that will make or break their results.

Culture Informs Planning and Action

In order to adequately grasp the culture, New Leaders must take a step back during their first months on the job and focus on learning rather than attempting to drive near-term performance. Some mistakenly assume that “because people downstream report to me, they will follow my direction and short-cycle their own.” These Leaders then move forward in a manner that runs counter to their operation’s culture and performance climate. Their outcomes can range from a simple lack of communication, to heightened frustration and complete failure.

New Leaders can truly “get” the culture if they work with their Hiring Managers to construct deliverables that:

• Facilitate learning about the corporate and operational culture.
• Demonstrate that they have incorporated that knowledge.
• Start moving the New Leader’s operation toward desired goals and performance levels.
• Working with (and within) the organizational culture that existed before New Leaders came on board will help smooth their transitions, balance the paradoxical nature of onboarding, and deliver results.

Working with (and within) the organizational culture that existed before New Leaders came on board will help smooth their transitions, balance the paradoxical nature of onboarding, and deliver results.