Project Management discussion question

One conflict between project stakeholders is role conflicts. This is who does what within the project team and in any external support groups. A solution to this problem would be to clarify and state exactly what is each person is responsible for doing in their respective job.

Another conflict would be the lack of senior management support. This happens when management doesn't help get the right environment for the project team or does not give timely feedback on their performance and activities during the life of the project. This can be resolved by having managers be on top of all of the activities that are going on during the duration of the project. Constant communication would also help this situation.

An example of role conflicts would be having an organization clearly define each team member's job duties and responsibilities. This would avoid any conflict that might arise.

An example of lack of senior management support is in a sporting goods store where employees are not guided in the right direction as to how merchandise should be displayed properly in the store. This could lead to products being put in incorrect locations and cause sales to decline. Better organization in the store helps the store benefit from customers who can find what they are looking for easily.

If the option to use outside resources are not available, you may then need to extend your schedule out over a longer period of time to due to limited resource availability.

What questions would you ask the functional manager to determine where conflicts may arise? When should these questions be asked?

Not all project managers are professional project managers. The assigned project manager may come from one of the technical fields. Their expertise, leadership, and soft skills have proven their value to managing an entire project rather than focusing on completing only one portion of the project. Project managers must keep a high level view of the entire project to be successful. If a project manager spends too much time trying to micro-manage one part of the project that deals in their field, the overall project will lose its oversight, leading to unseen issues that turn into increased expenditures, schedule slippages, and possibly quality concerns. Your quote discussed the importance of managing time and delegating authority to team members. In order to manage the project, that individual cannot get too involved in their expertise.

 How will a long-term project affect that project manager's ability to remain current in their field? What are some strategies to ensure the project manager maintains their level of expertise in their field?