Project Management in Real Life

The Project Manager

Having project management certifications and taking classes will help you prepare for the adventure that you will go on when you accept a Project Manager position. Now for reality. Do think you can serve PMBOK (Project Management Body of Knowledge) or Agile Project Management on a platter to your team to deliver a project on schedule. Well wake up or go back to sleep and keep on dreaming. PMBOK is a must to know but know how to make it work to your advantage.

Being a good PM means that you should be staying on top of trends in the profession. Read blogs from project managers that have real life experience walking the walk to help you gain knowledge that might be helpful for future projects someday. Approaches and techniques are a hit and miss. Just keep on trying to you hit pay dirt. You will. Being a good PM means that you have genuine desire to take on a role to have people trust in you to follow your roadmap to achievement. 

Chicks Assembled 

The Team

Every team you come across in your PM role will be different. You need to get into their heads to understand where they are coming from. You want to bring out their best and not go to battle with them. Not an easy task but who said being a PM is a cakewalk. Groom your team one day at a time. You must gain the trust in your team to be successful or it will be a bumpy ride following your roadmap to success. Everyone on the team plays an important role no matter how small it is.

Getting Your Chicks Assembled

The ultimate reward is when the team is on the same page. You might not have ducks to get in a row. You might have chicks to corral. The main objective is that everyone knows their role on the team.

The April Sunset Said Rain Rain Go Away

It's April and the sun was able to deliver a spectacular fireball sunset with the clouds out of the way. The south shore of Oahu is the place to be spring time to view beautiful postcard sunsets.

The view from the beach near the Hilton Hawaiian Village

A True Friend

A true friend is a person that stands up for you when another person that is a fake friend puts you down behind your back. It's amazing how people love to talk behind your back. It's even more amazing when they don't believe your true friend coming to your defense. That's just a pure insult. I have one less friend that really was just an acquaintance. No time in my life for people like that.
                           

The Orchestra Conductor of Projects

The Symphony Orchestra Conductor interprets a composer's score to set the tempo for the Orchestra. The conductor stands most of the time on a raised podium with a baton, but also uses hand gestures and body language to convey the emotions of the musical score to the orchestra.

Will an orchestra function without a conductor?  Yes, the show will go on with some inconsistent interpretations of the score. Will there be a good review of that Symphony? Highly unlikely unless they get lucky.

Being a Conductor is an art. Just because you can play beautiful music does not mean you can conduct. The Symphony Orchestra needs a Conductor to be successful on their delivery of music.

The Project Manager is that point person that guides a team to complete tasks on time. The tasks can be completed independently of each other or they need to be completed in a defined order of dependencies to accomplish a deliverable. All the tasks make up a project with a defined scope to deliver results.

Being a Project Manager requires the ability to have a vision on how you will deliver a project on schedule by guiding your team members to stay focused on their part in the project. Every team member plays an important role no matter how small they think their part is. No room for slackers or weak links that will comprise the teams rhythm.  

Will a team function without a project manager? Yes, it's done all the time. Will the project be on time within a budget? I don't recommend taking chances without a project manager because you might be lucky to have some good team members that can guide the team to successful delivery of a project. That might not be the case all the time.

Being a Project Manager is an art too. The delivery of projects on schedule within a budget is like a Symphony Orchestra Conductor that delivers a beautiful Symphony with a standing ovation at the end. That's why the Project Manager is the Symphony Orchestra Conductor of Projects. They deliver results. No standing ovation, only pure satisfaction for the team delivering a successful project.

The March Hawaii Sunset at the Harbor

March rolled in fast and put on a show with some beautiful sunsets on the coastline of Oahu's south shore. Always take a time out if you get a chance to view a sunset. It's a few minutes of nature putting on a show for you. 

Ala Wai Boat Harbor
Oahu