One project manager responsibility is to deal with the unknown and the unexpected. There are many instances where a device may fail a verification test or trials are not proceeding as planned. The team may become ill or on family leave at any given moment. They may receive a budget cut or have a client change their expectations. A project manager must handle all of these situations, big or small, as effectively as possible no matter how much they are blindsided.
One of the challenges faced by the project mangers is virtual team. Project managers are required to manage the team which is spread out across the world. Team members may not be just the company employees they could include clients, vendors and stakeholders. Some of the challenges faced are different time zone, language barrier. Strategies that would help the project manager to handle this challenge is by scheduling regular meetings which is on the same day and the same time this will create a routine to the team members. Secondly, there should be a video calls like skype or a regular call than over chatting and emails since emails could be misunderstood. Thirdly, the other challenge is not using project management software. If the team is not using any software tool, then there is a chance that the team comes up with unnecessary work and data. This software would send alerts and reminders for deadlines and would give overview about what is to be done and needed. So, using software would result in saving up lot of time and efforts and would keep all the information and resources at the same place. Fourthly, other challenge is the team members do not work as expected and thus do not deliver as needed. To avoid this problem the project manger should define the results that are expected. Setting standards will reduce the time needed to achieve the desired results.
The first problem that came to mind is communication. A PM has to communicate effectively to their team, investors and clients (to name a few). They should set up a reliable communication system for each group and update them periodically. A PM needs to be mindful of overcommunication, however. Overcommunication can cause people to become annoyed, and not actually read emails (etc) that are being sent.
Some problems I feel that project manager can face is the team they choose, time is another problem and communication which everyone mentioned. The team can be a problem because there could be team members that aren't putting anything on the table which the project manager has advised them to do. Project manager should look in to the people before choosing and if they already choose the member the two option I would give is, replacing them or giving them one more chance if the members doesn't seem want to change, I would change them. There could lazy members but their could also be members that are quite and they don't ask for help. This is a communication problem because they don't ask for help and the project should fix it by checking in with everyone frequently so there wouldn't be communication problem. This is something that can be fixed easily. Time isn't easy because it is usually hard to follow a schedule, there could be resource delays, test that take longer, etc. The only thing project managers can do is give an extra hand, come up or tell other members to come up with a back up plan, or try to multitask to get things faster.
Project managers hold an important role in encouraging group communication, overseeing any disputes, and setting a feasible timeline for each project. The manager needs to be able to clearly state his/her expectations for the project and team, while allowing members to contribute their thoughts/opinions on them. This can be accomplished by holding weekly meetings to address any concerns and share updates on the project. Disagreements aren't always detrimental since not every idea is without fault, and pointing out the shortcomings and risks of a member's proposal is important. However, the manager should encourage the team to handle these differences in opinions in a respectful manner and understand that compromises are a part of working in a team. Setting the timeline can be difficult since every member has their own schedule outside of the workplace, but the team manager can discuss it with the whole team ahead of time and agree on a reasonable one. The manager will also need to keep any pitfalls in mind, including holidays, prior commitments, and other projects the team may be working on.
One of the challenge that the project manager can face is enabling leadership in other. Team members are more calm and focused when they are in charge of their own work and not under the constantly evaluative eye of a boss. Enabling leadership only happens when team members clearly understand expectations, have the skills, knowledge and ability to meet those expectations, know when they need to call on the project manager to remove roadblocks, provide resources, and serve as liaison to other departments and customers. Project manager should spent time on knowing team members personally . He should set a example how the collaborative relations look like. Every team member have different set of skills and experience project manager should provide appropriate area of work and opportunity for their growth. By creating a culture that respects and empowers people and managing people through a transparent and fair process helps a lot in enabling leadership in team members
@ manolo, I am curious as to what you mean by "overcommunication". I agree with you that being pestered by someone constantly can become quite a nuisance, however, I would only say that this would extend to coworkers or subordinates. In regards to a project manager, or any other higher up, there cannot be enough communication. Usually, a higher ranking member of a team is far too busy to waste their time sending out unimportant emails, or messages. If a PM is sending out an email regarding a project then the email is definitely worth reading no matter how many are sent. For instance, what if you were working on a very challenging project that was liable to run into many issues. In this case, your PM would need to be communicating with the team consistently to make sure that everyone is up to date otherwise major issues could arise; such as, a team member could be working of an old DDP when there is a new one in place. Therefore, I would be interested to read what you have to say by what "over communication" of a PM means to you. Do you believe that a PM's emails, and messages are not important in regards to a project, even if multiple emails are sent? Because to me it seems that if a PM is trying to communicate with a team member, or the entire team, it is in regards to a necessary aspect of the project, and is therefore extremely necessary.
I quite agree with the point made about communication being a big challenge that PM's have to face. If the team you are working with is one that is global, the language barrier becomes a huge obstacle to overcome. Sometimes the way the PM may communicate a point or the importance of something may not come across completely to those on the other end of the barrier. I've had experience with this where a great deal of my team was overseas. The manager we had was becoming frustrated that the overseas division was not carrying out things that he had constantly repeated to them as important to the same degree of priority he had communicated. After some conversation with them, it was found that the way he had told them the priority of the activities had actually confused them, causing them not to do what he had wanted. Since many things were "important" they had taken something critical to be as "important" as everything else.
It's very hard to understand how others in other cultures will understand what you say, but I would say taking small steps and asking for confirmation in comprehension are small things a PM could do to mitigate this.
One particular challenge that project managers face is time management. As the leader of the entire team who is responsible for the entire project, time management can be something that is particularly difficult because there is a lot of work that must be done in a finite amount of time. Another reason why time management can be difficult is because there is no strict formula or full-proof method to make efficient use of your time. There are different ways of managing time so it's up to the project leader to decide what methods will work well in the project. Some ways to manage your time would be to make a strict schedule where you list when you will perform each task and how much time you are willing to allocate for each of them. You can make your own calendar and daily planners to make sure that all of your time is used and that there are no gaps in your work. Time Management is something that cannot be learned overnight. Rather, it will take practice in developing habits that will improve your efficiency. The project manager needs to find ways to make time for everything that he/she needs to do. If the project manager cannot budget his/her time, then this can affect the entire team as they rely on the leader for guidance throughout the entire process.
The first major challenge that project managers and team members might face is not knowing what exactly to expect from the project. If the goals and objectives are not clearly defined, the project is doomed to fail. When no one is aware of the what’s, whys and whens of the project, what will follow is a lot of confusion and chaos. Starting a project without clear objectives, a specific direction and a prepared plan; it’s like going on a road trip with no idea where you’re going and how to get there. You will waste gas, time and effort. Likewise, your business suffers when there is no clarity and forethought before starting a project. This is why; it’s recommended to hold a kickoff meeting and use planning software to define clear goals. Know how to plan better projects here. The second reason why most projects fail or what most project managers and project members struggle is with the unrealistic expectations clients and stakeholders have from them. Most project timelines do eventually slip due to the unrealistic ‘initial deadlines’.
As we live in a world, where competition is getting aggressive and targets are set either unrealistic or unachievable rather than driven by calculated business requirements. From then, what begins is a desperate attempt where the team tries to fit the requirements in the already drawn boundaries.
Solution: Project managers can take care of the project deadlines and other related issues with impeccable planning, alternative analysis and communication of the real-time progress to project participants and other key decision makers.
Due to the PMI website, these are some of the challenges that project managers could face:
1) Ensuring Project Success
2) Preventing Project Failures
3) Enhancing Project Competencies
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I would elaborate on the first point from my point of view. Although ensuring the project success doesn't depend on PM only and depends on the group members, PM would have to handle all the issues related to the project at the end of the day as he/she would be the one who is responsible about the project outcomes and any failure. This includes issues in communicating with the team. An effective communication plan during any project is essential, and failing in communicating could lead to project failure. This can be caused by the personal difference between people. For example, some people would prefer to communicate via email, others would prefer phone calls, and so on. This needs an extra effort by the PM to ensure that his instructions and project deliverables are successfully given to the segment. Collaboration between the team and the PM is the key to handle such issues and overcoming these difficulties to ensure that the project is going smoothly.
Within my company, project managers go through numerous challenges. Some of the main challenges are communication, managing styles and organization. Communication is usually the main problem a project manager runs into. A project manager usually has to communicate across multiple teams, other managers and sometimes even different companies for specific projects. If the managers don't follow up after assigning tasks to the individual elements, miscommunication will happen and the project will most likely fail. Another major issue is that the manager has to use different management styles with different teams. For example, for some teams, it is necessary to micromanage to ensure that work gets done. Other teams might need a different management style. It is up to the manager's discretion to be able to tell the difference. Keeping track/organization is also an issue managers encounter. They always have to make sure they write down every detail about a project and about the teams working on it, to ensure its success.
Like said in another forum post, a large challenge that all project managers face is communication. It sounds simple, but all projects, especially larger ones rely on so many people to complete their responsibilities on time because someone else is depending on it to continue their progress. Therefore, everyone on all levels of the team is required to be in communication with each other and with the PM. Additionally, the PM is the person largely responsible for the planning of the project timeline, budget, and team members themselves. As talked about in other forums, the planning of the timeline, is a very important and difficult task that can make or break the progress of the overall project. For thee most part, the success or failure of a project lies on the shoulders of the PM, and his/her ability to select the proper team, plan a timeline, and maintain communication between the entire team.
A challenge I often notice PM's have to face is being able to follow along with the details each team member shares during meetings. Each team member spends a lot of their time and resources to provide their deliverables. During daily meetings, each member needs to explain the status of their duties and address any issue they face. Understandably, it would be very difficult for anyone not directly involved in the duties of any one member's work to keep up with the specifics of their processes. Not only should the PM be able to keep up and understand, but he or she needs to understand it to an amount that allows them to foresee potential risks and anticipate the needs that may come forth. This is why I believe a good PM needs to be very familiar with every function of the project. Between operations, manufacturing, IT, quality, integration, etc.
Overcommunication, to me, mirrors micromanaging. Being consistently on top of someone to the point of pestering them.
