Teams and the Project Economy

The PMI describes the Project Economy as “one in which people have the skills and capabilities they need to turn ideas into reality. It is where organizations deliver value to stakeholders through successful completion of projects, delivery of products, and alignment to value streams.”

It’s quite simple, the best strategies in the world cannot be realised without multi-disciplinary teams to deliver the vision. Projects no longer sit alongside or even detached from operations, they are driving the change required for the organisation to change, adapt and thrive.

What does this “paradigm shift” as PMI refers to the Project Economy mean for project teams? The traditional Project Manager was one who was fixed and regimented in almost all aspects of how they delivered a pre-defined business requirement. The evolution of the Project Economy, fueled by seemingly relentless advancements in technology and a keener focus on the environment, has seen a change in the profile of the successful Project Manager. To support the Project Economy, they will be agile and creative with more time to truly listen to the customer – even when goal posts shift.  According to PMI’s “Pulse of the Profession 2020” project professionals recognise the most essential skills as:

• Collaborative Leadership
• Empathy for the Voice of the Customer
• Risk Management
• Innovative Mindset
• Methodology or Framework Governance

While these skills would have made the list ten years ago, the ranking would have been quite different with the “toolbox” of a methodology being top of the list. This change in the skillset required to deliver projects successfully has the potential to open up the role of Project Manager to staff who don’t traditionally sit within your Project Management team. They may not have the knowledge of the “toolbox” but that can be taught and learned.

PMI’s Pulse of the Profession 2020 found that 42 percent of projects were characterised as “high complexity”, where high complexity projects have an average of 24 team members whereas “low complexity” projects averaged 8. So how are organisations, living in the Project Economy, to cope with the increasing demand for project resources? Part of the answer lies in tearing down the walls in your organisation – everyone needs to participate in projects. Increased collaboration across multi-disciplinary, agile teams will help you to scale up and down depending on your project portfolio. Rigid structures won’t cut it in the Project Economy. If you want to survive you need to get Project Ready.

If you would like to chat about how you can get your organisation project ready, contact Ronan.