Air of Authority: Project Managers Can Still Manage Without Authority

  PM Network  

Project managers know the deal: Keep projects on track by any means necessary. The trouble is, most project managers have to do so without any direct authority over budgets, schedules and team members.

That can turn project managers into mere scorekeepers. Rather than focusing on leading a project from initiation to brilliant conclusion, some project managers wind up documenting all the ways projects veer off course, from tardy deliverables to products that don’t meet specifications.

It’s no way to run a project—or a team. And given that the org chart isn’t likely to miraculously upgrade project managers anytime soon, they must find ways to lead without official authority.

Salesmanship, negotiation and, yes, even a dash of good, old-fashioned charisma should take their rightful place beside budgeting, scheduling and resource management in the professional toolkit.

Project managers often depend too heavily on technical competence when they attempt to influence stakeholders and motivate their teams, says Joe Reed, PhD, president of organizational consultancy J.R. Training Inc., Lansdale, Pennsylvania, USA.

To team members, that attitude translates to: “Do what I say because I know what I’m talking about.” Not surprisingly, most of the time such an approach doesn’t go over well in a business world rife with …

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