CHAPTER 2Project Leadership: People Before Process
INTRODUCTION
Who will contribute the extra effort that pushes the team to a key milestone?
Who will take a risk on you because you are trustworthy and keep your promises?
Who will listen carefully to a different perspective and change their mind as a result?
Who will delay the project by failing to make a key decision?
Who will compromise on their requirements to meet the needs of another stakeholder?
These are the people on every project. The people who do the work, make decisions, contribute or withhold authority, ignore you or engage with you. But these people will not collaborate to deliver a project without the leadership of a project manager.
This chapter focuses on the primary job of a project manager: leading all the people who affect the project. Subsequent chapters in this book cover the science of project management, the tools and concepts that form the project management discipline. We emphasize leadership here, early in the book, so that each additional concept can be seen in the context of how it strengthens a project manager's ability to lead.
The need for leadership is not unique to projects, but there are some leadership challenges that are unique to the project environment. This chapter introduces two specific leadership challenges and provides guidance on how a project manager can choose to become a stronger leader. The themes of leadership introduced in this chapter will be carried on throughout this book. ...
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