The Successful Project Manager: A Balance of Hard & Soft Skills

Brandeis University Graduate Professional Studies THE SUCCESSFUL PROJECT MANAGER A Balance Cf HARD SOFT Skills TOP 10 Reasons Why Projects Fail Lack of sufficient charter Lack of leadership Lack of mutual accountability Lack of planning Unsure of what requires team effort Lack of management support Lack of resources Inability to deal with conflict Lack of focus on creativity Lack of communication and excellence Soft Skills needed to be a Top Notch Project Manager “A typical project manager spends approximately 85% of their time communicating!" Influential Articulate http://projectmgmt.brandeis.edu/downkoads/BRU_MSMPP_ WP_Febzo12 Bakancing Project_Management.pdf Organized Pragmatic Insightful Empathetic Leadership and the use of soft skills are attributes at the top of the list for high performing project managers Hard Skills of a Successful Project Manager VARIANCE CRITICAL EVALUATION PATH ANALYSIS BUDGETS PROJECT MANAGING METRICS PLANNING PROJECT RISK MANAGEMENT ISSUES MANAGING TIMELINES HARD SKILLS + SOFT SKILLS = PROJECT SUCCESS Hard Skills are tangible Soft Skills are intangible Interpersonal skills Technical skills Nouns: Verbs: schedules, budgets, variances risk reports managing expectations, influencing, negotiating, decision making “Many people feel ore comfortable in mor one of these areas or the other." - http://projectmgmt.brandeis.edu/downloads/BRU_MSMPP. WP Febzo1z Balancing Project_Management.pdf The Challenge Of Improving 93% Soft Skills of HR Managers surveyed said technical skills are easier to teach than soft skills * Survey conducted by HR.com Why is this? Hard skills are easy to define, observe, measure, and teach. Soft skills are less tangible, harder to quantify and measure, Technical Skills + People Skills = Successful Project Manager and are more difficult to teach. Tips for Improving Soft Skills as a Project Manager Make the commitment to learn and improve Surround yourself with those who have the skills you want to gain and observe them Visualize yourself doing what they do Put yourself in situations where you can practice, even in small ways Practice with intention Evaluate your progress periodically and make adjustments as needed Using hard skills to improve soft skills: Create a communications chart or matrix to outline, prioritize and categorize a project manager's soft & communication skills Balancing Soft & Hard Skills in Brandeis University's Master of Science in Project and Project Management HARD SKILLS SOFT SKILLS Professional Communications Advanced Scheduling and Control Organizational Leadership and Decision Making Risk Management in Projects and Programs Negotiating and Conflict Resolution Program Management: Theory and Practice Challenges in Project Management Procurement and Contract Management Foundations of Virtual Management across Cultures & Geographies Project Management in Biotech and Life Sciences Management of Virtual and Global Teams Foundations of Project Management Agile Project Management REFERENCE TOP 10 REASONS WHY PROJECTS FAIL http://www.projectmanagement.com/articles/270873/When-Teams-Fall SOFT SKILLS NEEDED TO BE A TOP-NOTCH MANAGER http://www.projectmanagement.com/blog/Extraordinary-Leader/4270/ FACTS http://www.projectmanagement.com/blog/Extraordinary-Leader/4270/ I http://projectmgmt.brandeis.edu/downloads/BRU_MSMPP_WP_Feb2012_Balancing_Project_Management.pdf THE CHALLENGE OF IMPROVING SOFT SKILLS http://www.bettersoftskills.com/research.htm 1 http://www.skills2lead.com/Skills2Lead_Ezine-soft-skills-hard-skills.html TIPS FOR IMPROVING SOFT SKILLS http://pm-lead.com/2012/06/05/leaders-how-improve-soft-skills/ BRANDEIS PROJECT MANAGEMENT PROGRAM http://projectmgmt.brandeis.edu/program-overview/course-descriptions/ CREDITS: Teamwork, Parker Martin from The Noun Project; Easel, Okan Benn, from The Noun Project; Weight, from The Noun Project Brandeis University http://projectmgmt.brandeis.edu/ Graduate Professional Studies