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| Your Project Management Future |
These characteristics, which are shaping the world in which we live, but also driving the business and project management landscape of today, are the following:
Diversity
Ambiguity
Complexity
Rapidly-Changing
Interdependence
(what I call DACRI effect - no not Daiquiri the drink, but this will help you remember!)
Being conscious of these traits will help you to better position yourself in this rapidly changing PM profession - and catch the tide to surf towards success! And one tip that I can't stress enough is to stay ambitious and dream big, while also keeping in mind that you will never be perfectly prepared for each opportunity that comes your way - to quote Martin Luther:
Being conscious of these traits will help you to better position yourself in this rapidly changing PM profession - and catch the tide to surf towards success! And one tip that I can't stress enough is to stay ambitious and dream big, while also keeping in mind that you will never be perfectly prepared for each opportunity that comes your way - to quote Martin Luther:
"For truth and duty it is ever the fitting time; who waits until circumstances completely favor his undertaking, will never accomplish anything." What has catalyzed my professional journey has been striking the balance between what I call the "art of project management" (soft skills, leadership and emotional intelligence), the sciences (PM methodologies, certifications and techniques), but above all practical PM experiences (professional, volunteer work, student experiences and building bridges between generations).
The below tips have guided my early-career success, but I hope that they can also serve as a practical guide for older Project Managers to understand how to work together with the next generation of aspiring project managers to "pass the torch" in this great profession!Let me know if you AGREE or NOT (I look forward to your feedback) and in the next few publications we will be exploring each topic individually to get into concrete examples, experiences and best practices to help "jump start" your PM career!
Get out of your Comfort Zone and be a Volunteer Project Manager: Why should you get involved in volunteer organizations and take up the challenge to become a volunteer project manager?
The reason is that although volunteer work does not pay a salary, it is rewarding, creates impact and strengthens your leadership compass! Volunteering has been the platform for me to practice project management skills, escape my comfort zone and take the lead on many complex projects (even allowing me to win the IPMA Young PM of the Year Award for one of them)
Get certified and know the science of Project Management: Many young professionals hesitate about becoming certified, and with all of the PM organizations that exist, one can get very quickly confused on what is out there. As Francis Bacon said "knowledge is power" - and I am a strong supporter of becoming certified, but this can sometimes be the chicken-and-the-egg scenario.
That is, which is more important: PM experience or a certification? Which certificate/training should you do first? Which methodology will give you the most advantage in your career? I will try to answers these questions in the next publication.
Practice Soft Skills and Develop Emotional Intelligence: Today being a Project Manager is not only about controlling, monitoring and executing a project – but rather a PM must lead, inspire and motivate a team. According to PMI, leadership is the most important skill to ensure that complex projects are navigated successfully.
Where can you learn or practice these skills? How do you develop your EQ and leadership abilities? The IPMA places a strong focus on behaviour competences in their ICB, which is a good theoretical start, but putting these skills in practice will be the challenging part, which we explore later on.
Embrace Change because the Millennial Mindset is all about Change. Millennials are international, collaborative and virtual. And as Heraclitus said “The Only Thing That Is Constant Is Change”. Change is the very definition of a project - and millennials are all about change and so they are a perfect fit for project management career paths (a match made in heaven).
Technology has become a game changer - use it to your advantage: As open source software, smartphones and the cloud become more easily available for all, the rate of technological advancement is rapidly increasing. The PM technological landscape is being driven by young people who have become the masters of this technological wave, have embraced it's potential and will keep driving it further.
This situation will not be so easy for the older generation who are used to their own working style. Thus to spark cooperation and avoid generational conflict, we must understand that for the first time in history, five generations are working side by side, a true multi-generational workplace, tangled in a complex nets of technological innovation.
Find a Mentor and Build Bridges between Generations: You won’t know all of the answers, but you must have the humility to learn from those who have made mistakes. Finding a mentor or becoming someone’s PM mentor is one of the most rewarding experiences. Mentors have a great potential to create a healthy environment for succession planning and career inspiration for younger PMs who are typically looking to find their professional path and assessing their opportunities for professional development.
The Author : Kamil Mroz
My experience in people management has enabled me to discover my passion for the leadership of intercultural, diverse and technical teams composed of both direct reports and cross-functional matrix project teams. I have been awarded global distinctions from both the largest PM organizations, IPMA and PMI for advanced project management expertise, strong team work, communication & leadership.
I owe my servant leadership approach to the time I have dedicated to social and volunteer-causes where I focused on several high-impact philanthropic projects in Europe. I am also proud to have also been the first ever student to be awarded the Young Alumni of the Year by the Faculty of Engineering from the University of Ottawa and I also Chair of the ISPE BeNeLux Steerco on Project Management.
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