Sink or Swim: Political Savvy Helps Project Managers Stay Afloat

 

Flounder, shark or dolphin--what's your style? When it comes to managing the politics of projects, most of us could be characterized as one of these creatures.

Flounders stay low, bury themselves in the sand and hope to blend in with the surroundings. They avoid politics at all costs--even at the cost of their own careers.

Sharks move swiftly throughout the deep waters of the organization, looking for easy, defenseless prey to devour. Sharks thrive on politics, but they use their skills only to advance themselves and destroy others.

Dolphins may jump through hoops, but they do it with a smile. Dolphins are superior communicators, they can lead and cooperate and when they stick together, they can fend off shark attacks. Dolphins understand how to use politics for the common good.

In my 30-year career in information technology and organization effectiveness, most of the project managers I've known have been flounders. They are hard working and committed, but ultimately much less effective than they could be. Research shows that projects slip or fail not because of technology issues, but because of people issues. And where there are people there are politics--that's the reality of the human side of technology. You just can't get around it. Yet so many project managers who are technically competent resist becoming politically competent.

The objections are classic.

·  If we …

Please log in or sign up below to read the rest of the article.