Susanne Madsen - Developing Project Leaders
  • Home
  • Services
    • Workshops
    • Speaking
    • Coaching
    • Stress management
    • Testimonials
  • Bio
  • Books
  • Blog
  • Resources
  • Videos
  • Contact
  • Library

Become a Proactive Project Manager

3/8/2011

15 Comments

 
Proactive project managers are people who focus their efforts and attention on the long-term as opposed to being reactive in the present moment. They believe that their actions matter and that they can positively influence a situation by doing something about it. 

One of the best ways in which you can be proactive as a project manager is to work with your team and stakeholders to actively identify, analyze and mitigate project risks before they turn into issues. You can also make a concerted effort to build strong and lasting relationships with your stakeholders so that you are able to draw on their knowledge and support the day you need it. When you keep your stakeholders abreast of developments and have an excellent rapport with them, they are very unlikely to ever turn against you. They respect you and they know that you are actively working to improve all aspects of the project on their behalf. 

Another way to be proactive is to carry out project reviews and to liaise with your team members on a one-to-one basis. Ask for feedback and investigate if there is anything at all you can do to optimize the way the team works. In addition, be proactive and explore if your QA activities are as good as they can be. Poor product quality is one of the biggest reasons for project failure.

Reactive is the opposite of proactive. Reactive people often hold a belief that they have no control over a situation. This could relate to the behavior of an unreasonable stakeholder or the issues that arise during a project. They surrender and wait until a potential problem has become a burning issue before they take action. 

One of the reasons why some project managers give in and become reactive, is that their workload is so big that they feel they have no option but to fire fight in the present moment. But in reality we always have an option even if it is not an easy one. If you feel overloaded and overworked, look at how you can delegate more, how you can get better at saying ‘no’ to new requests and how you can optimizing the way you manage your time. 
 
To become more proactive, make it a habit to regularly engage in the following;  

- Spend time on your own and with team members identifying anything which could go wrong on the project. Thoroughly analyze the risks and identify an owner and mitigating actions. Do this as often as possible.

- Ask team members as often as you can what is preventing them from moving forward or what could make them work more effectively.

- Build strong relationships with all key players on the project. See things from their point of view, understand their interests and address their issues and concerns.

- Carry out project reviews and encourage a culture of learning and contribution. Discuss how past issues can be avoided and take action to make improvements.

- Demonstrate and prototype the solution to the customer and end users as often as possible. Ask for feedback and verify that what you are building matches their requirements and expectations.

- Identify and review your project controls on a regular basis. Assess if they are working as expected and keeping cost, quality and time under control.

- Actively manage your stakeholders’ expectations through face-to-face meetings and regular project reporting. Make them appreciate which risks, issues and constraints you are facing. Make sure there are no negative surprises. 
 
- Organize knowledge sharing and fun team building activities to improve morale and motivation. 

- Assess your own working practices and determine how you can optimize the way you spend your time. Could you for instance start delegating more?


If you liked this post, you may also like:
My Story - Working Smarter; Not Harder! 
Be a Project Champion
Delegate Effectively and Thoughtfully
Risk management is how adults manage projects 

15 Comments

    Categories

    All
    Agile
    Authenticity
    Building Relationships
    Coaching
    Delegation
    Estimation
    Feedback
    Handling Conflict
    Innovation
    Iron Triangle
    Limiting Factor
    My Story
    Perception Of Failure
    Podcasts
    Positive Attitude
    Proactive Project Management
    Progress Reporting
    Project Costs
    Project Failure
    Project Initiation
    Project Leadership
    Project Management Mistakes
    Recruitment
    Requirements
    Resistance To Change
    Risk Management
    Self Esteem
    Stakeholder Management
    Stress Management
    Team Motivation
    Time Management
    Trust
    Vision And Mission

    Picture

    Susanne Madsen

    Susanne is a project leadership coach and the author of The Power of Project Leadership and The Project Management Coaching Workbook. She has over 20 years experience in leading large change programmes for global companies. Read more..

    Picture

    Register for FREE to get access to the RESOURCES page

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Archives

    October 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011

    View my profile on LinkedIn

    RSS Feed

Developing Project Leaders