Project Management and the Philosophy of Control

Raghuraman is a project management professional currently working in the area of IT Solutions delivery. Leading a group of project managers, his project management experience spans multiple industries and includes Fortune 500 companies.

  Leadership  

When one talks about control, it’s possible to draw parallels between the project management function and being a “control freak.” I am curious at this point if good project managers imbibe some characteristics of a control freak.

If one looks at the PMI definition of project management, one of the project processes addresses the concept of control. Well, the control part of the process is quite different from the control I am talking about--something associated with a personality type. In my view, the general assumption that a project manager should have responsibility and control over his/her project is convincing enough to make the claim.

However, as a general observation, the words “control freak” have a negative connotation in a psychological context--while being a pre-requisite for a successful project outcome. Referring to the definition provided by Google, the term “control freak” is defined as “A person who feels an obsessive need to exercise control over themselves and others and to take command of any situation.”

There is the expectation that the project manager directs and guides the project to a successful outcome. The question is, what if you are not comfortable being a “control freak” in the context of project management, based on personality type? Why would you choose such a profession? …

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