My day job entails helping companies implement new project management software. Of all the companies I have worked with, including a number of household names, I would estimate that less than 5% of the managers I work with have any formal project management training. Most managers have project management training by experience in the trenches. Unfortunately, most never leave the trenches and get a better view and experience of project management. It is my experience that while there are many project managers, there are few excellent ones.
About ten years ago, I decided I wanted to learn to be a real photographer. I was tired of the point and shoot experience where more luck than skill was involved in the success of the picture. However, I quickly learned that becoming a serious photographer was quite the expensive undertaking. Besides the expense of upgrading to a professional camera, I was lacking training on how to actually use the machine. Not to mention, the cost of additional equipment ranging from lenses to tripods, and bags to filters. Lastly, the cost of film and development was high. These all became a large barrier to becoming the photographer I wanted to be. Being a college student at the time, I could not really afford to learn photography at a satisfactory pace.
However, over the past few years, new technology has largely reduced the barrier to entry and photography is now a hobby for the masses. In fact, my ability to take endless pictures without film and development costs along with the new built-in tools of my newest camera provides me the ability to progress rapidly. In many ways I can also make up for my mistakes using software and other photography tricks. I am no longer in the gloomy trenches of poor photography, but find encouragement and joy in my success.
I have observed that project management as a whole has paralleled somewhat the changes we have witnessed in photography. Project management also has been a skill for the few, with the barrier to entry being quite high. However, people have still been required to manage projects. Now, similar to photography, we are seeing a boom in technology that is leveling the playing field and giving opportunities for the average manager to be an excellent manager. From new software that is principle based and collaborative to online blogs, courses, books, and other excellent resources, project management is more accessible than ever.
The key to this change from mediocrity to excellence is not simply technology, however. No technology is by itself enough to make a manager excellent. Like photography, the barrier to entry is lowered, but the effort to take advantage of it still requires an investment.
Point and shoot project management just isn’t sufficient. Project managers need to learn the basic principles and best practices for project management. Many, if not most, of these principles are methodology-independent and can be learned for free or low cost through online resources, books, or even courses. The project management tools now available do not require a degree in project management or a PMP. They do, however, require a basic understanding of project management.
Most managers have grown up learning point and shoot project management. Trial and error project management is far too expensive, but it continues to be the most dominant. Organizations and individuals need to put forth the investment to learn. The lower barrier to entry should encourage us all to take project management to the masses!
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{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi Adam,
Your comment that “the barriers to enter project management are high” left me dumbfounded!! Project management is known as the “accidental profession”. Which means that in many companies, the “next person through the door” is appointed the project manager.
The skill sets to manage projects are very much the same as require to manage your life…… If you graduated from college, wasn’t that a project? How about finding a mate? And having and raising kids is surely a PROGRAM, isn’t it? I would argue that project management is a LIFE SKILL, that all of us need to master to some degree, and like golf, some of it we have mastered well enough that we are able to earn a handsome living doing it professionally, while others will remain “duffers” no matter how much training and certifications they may earn.
Lastly, having been a life-long project manager, holding an undergrad degree in Construction Project Management (Civil Engineering) and both a Masters and PhD in Project/Program Management I do not agree that the “tools” alone will make you a better project manager.
As my old trade school teacher used to say, he would not allow us first year carpentry students to use power tools until we had mastered the hand tools. His argument was that until and unless we mastered the use of hand tools, all we would do is cut up more wood incorrectly.
The moral of this story? “A fool with a tool is still a fool- only a more dangerously productive one”.
Enjoy, Adam!!!
BR,
Dr. PDG, heading to bed in Jakarta
Hi Adam,
Your comment that “the barriers to enter project management are high” left me dumbfounded!! Project management is known as the “accidental profession”. Which means that in many companies, the “next person through the door” is appointed the project manager.
The skill sets to manage projects are very much the same as require to manage your life…… If you graduated from college, wasn’t that a project? How about finding a mate? And having and raising kids is surely a PROGRAM, isn’t it? I would argue that project management is a LIFE SKILL, that all of us need to master to some degree, and like golf, some of it we have mastered well enough that we are able to earn a handsome living doing it professionally, while others will remain “duffers” no matter how much training and certifications they may earn.
Lastly, having been a life-long project manager, holding an undergrad degree in Construction Project Management (Civil Engineering) and both a Masters and PhD in Project/Program Management I do not agree that the “tools” alone will make you a better project manager.
As my old trade school teacher used to say, he would not allow us first year carpentry students to use power tools until we had mastered the hand tools. His argument was that until and unless we mastered the use of hand tools, all we would do is cut up more wood incorrectly.
The moral of this story? “A fool with a tool is still a fool- only a more dangerously productive one”.
Enjoy, Adam!!!
BR,
Dr. PDG, heading to bed in Jakarta
Great post Adam! I enjoyed the photography parallel. A good extension of it would be the case where the unskilled try to pick up the camera and accessories with all the bells and whistles. They will usually be a horrible photographer unless there’s natural talent involved. The same goes for someone with the hottest tools on the market who hasn’t learned fundamental concepts of PM.
Dr. Paul, thank you for your perspective. I agree that fundamentals come first, tools afterwards.
Of course I disagree on another point.
It’s like you are saying that a camper who puts out a fire with a bucket of water is exactly the same as a trained firefighter. Yes, they both put out a fire. Do you mean to say that the training, processes, and tools of the firefighter add no value?
If my project is on fire, I’ll pass on the pseudo-PM with a bucket if there is a well trained and equipped PM around. At the same time, I don’t want a PM with all the tools and no knowledge of the fundamentals. That’s not really a PM at all.
Great post Adam! I enjoyed the photography parallel. A good extension of it would be the case where the unskilled try to pick up the camera and accessories with all the bells and whistles. They will usually be a horrible photographer unless there’s natural talent involved. The same goes for someone with the hottest tools on the market who hasn’t learned fundamental concepts of PM.
Dr. Paul, thank you for your perspective. I agree that fundamentals come first, tools afterwards.
Of course I disagree on another point.
It’s like you are saying that a camper who puts out a fire with a bucket of water is exactly the same as a trained firefighter. Yes, they both put out a fire. Do you mean to say that the training, processes, and tools of the firefighter add no value?
If my project is on fire, I’ll pass on the pseudo-PM with a bucket if there is a well trained and equipped PM around. At the same time, I don’t want a PM with all the tools and no knowledge of the fundamentals. That’s not really a PM at all.
I’m beginning that project management just comes down to organization skills and attention to detail. I agree that we all need to understand the basic methodology, but I’m working a project right now that is extremely time consuming on my end because our vendor isn’t organized and doesn’t seem to pay attention to detail.
To go along with the photography analogy, these point and shoot PMs don’t care about lighting or perspective one bit…
I’m beginning that project management just comes down to organization skills and attention to detail. I agree that we all need to understand the basic methodology, but I’m working a project right now that is extremely time consuming on my end because our vendor isn’t organized and doesn’t seem to pay attention to detail.
To go along with the photography analogy, these point and shoot PMs don’t care about lighting or perspective one bit…
Although organizational skills and attention to detail are important, project management doesn’t “come down to” any one thing. If it did, I think building relationships would be at the top of the list.
Although organizational skills and attention to detail are important, project management doesn’t “come down to” any one thing. If it did, I think building relationships would be at the top of the list.