Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Human Resource Management

In this post we will clarify the high level roles and responsibilities of the project stakeholders.  Please note that it would easily be possible to write a whole book on this topic. A good starting point for more detailed information is here

Project Sponsor
  • accepts the product of the project
  • might set milestones, deliverables and due dates
Senior Management (anyone above the project manager)
  • determines priorities (conflict of scope, cost and time)
  • protects the project
Project Manager
  • must have the necessary authority to accomplish the work
  • leads and directs the project planning work
  • is responsible for the project but not necessarily for the project resources
Project Team
  • Identifies assumptions, constraints, dependencies and risks
  • creates the work breakdown structure including cost + effort estimates
The Responsiblities in a project should be captured in a RACI chart. This requires considerable work upfront but will payoff with less confusion later in the project.
According to PMI the Project Manager has different powers that he/she can use to get the project team to perform. The options that will help the most are
  1. Expert knowledge of the Project Manager
  2. Strong support of the project manager and/or project by management
The level of authority for the Project Manager may vary depending on the form of organization ( and determines which conflict resolution techniques the Project Manager can use.
In general it is advisable to strive for a consensus solution. It will take time and it will be challenging and stressful but produce the best long term outcome for the project. To be effective as a project manager also means to be personally effective. A very good start into this topic is Stephen R. Covey's "7 habits of highly effective people"

There are multiple motivation theories that the project manager should also be familiar with to determine what is most important for the project stakeholders at a given point in time. Good people skills are key to be successful in this area.
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