Hybrid project leaders, hybrid PM methodologies, hybrid teams. Here’s how you can help drive the future in project management.
Today, only one in four projects has a 50% chance of delivering results within the timeframe. This reduces the business value delivered and increases the risk of running out of budget to meet the extended timeline. These are risks that businesses will not take. What can you do to increase your chances of a successful project?
Project managers (PMs), who break down the corporate silos that we know, are the future of project management success. The most successful PMs will have a hybrid approach and mindset. And by “hybrid,” we are referencing the PM’s ability to take on multiple roles, deliver comprehensive business value, and lead cross-functional/diverse teams.
This article will share the top trends based upon our Project Management User Survey results from 422 PMs*. It will also explain what you can do now as a PM to help drive the future in project management.
Current fact: Project failure rates are too high
We know there are always areas for improvement. However, any business leader will tell you that the failure rate in this portfolio is too high. A portfolio with a 50% chance of meeting even one of the basic project metrics (budget deadline, scope) will not inspire confidence in leadership.
How can you increase your success rate? This is what we’ve done. Here are more details:
Current fact: Agile isn’t the end-all and be-all of what we think it to be
Over the past decade, agile project management has been the hottest thing in the business. However, only 17% of PMs use agile project management exclusively, while 51% use integrated project management (IPM).
This surprised me as I know from personal experience that senior management is not eager to approve projects without knowing what they are getting (i.e. waterfall projects). A proposal for an agile project with product requirements, timeline and budget details that are unclear at the beginning will likely be rejected by senior executives.
While agile is great for software development teams in the execution phase, you as the PM need to be able incorporate more traditional methods for the initiation, planning and closing phases. This allows leadership to get the information they need to support the project and gives the execution team the freedom to work as they wish.
PMs must be flexible and proficient in a variety of project management techniques to manage diverse teams and meet expectations from business leaders with different risk tolerances.
Current fact: Project team structures can be described as hybrid.
Cross-functional teams are stronger because they can tap into and leverage hidden talent of people who don’t need it for non-project work. An accountant might be a great quality assurance (QA), tester for new software releases. You are a PM and have the unique ability to tap into these talents to drive project success.
Cross-functional teams can also leverage untapped skills of new team members. They can then share their best practices with the project team, allowing them to decide whether or not to incorporate these into their own processes.
Cross-functional teams can be problematic because each member may bring with them a different work style and process. These problems can be alleviated by you, the PM, setting clear project team rules and defining a clear decision making pro
