PMO Leadership: Project Managers vs. Developers - Earning Respect

In some IT organizations, there is a subtle rift between project managers and developers. In other IT organizations, the rift is not so subtle. Typically, developers complain about the project managers. A common complaint of the developer's is that project managers are not technically competent enough to have an accurate insight into the project and into the real technical challenges for development. Following this complaint is another complaint that project managers are continually asking developers about the status of their work in terms of a percentage of completion for the development tasks they are assigned which they, the developer, may not know and which is only used by the project manager to create a status report. And, the last complaint is usually along the lines that the project manager is always calling a status meeting or sitting in on a someone else's meeting. While there is no doubt that project managers must ask developers about the status of their tasks in order to understand the progress of the project and regularly hold and attend meetings to communicate with the project team and others, these actions alone do not earn the respect of the developers. Then, what will?

For most developers, project reporting and meetings are bothersome and if that is all the project manager brings to the table (or is perceived to bring to the table), then the developers will not have a high degree of respect for the project manager. In reality, project management brings far more to the table than that and it is up to the project manager to exhibit their competencies. So many areas come to mind, such as:

• Understanding and framing the scope of the project in terms that all involved can relate to
• Developing a comprehensive work breakdown structure relative to the phases, activities, and tasks of the project
• Identifying the critical path and key constraints for the project
• Tracking key priorities and recognizing early warning signs
• Planning for risks and mitigating them when incurred
• Identification, tracking, and resolution of project issues that impact development

When project managers display their competence, show an interest in the high level technical development details, and proactively manage the roadblocks faced by development, developers are quick to take notice. And, rather than a noticeable rift between project managers and developers, there is an atmosphere of mutual respect and a gut feeling and appreciation by the developers of all that could go wrong if that project management guy or gal wasn't there.