Andy Jordan
President of Roffensian Consulting
Andy Jordan is President of Roffensian Consulting S.A., a Roatan, Honduras based management consulting firm with a strong emphasis on organizational transformation, portfolio management and PMOs. Andy is an in-demand keynote speaker and author who delivers thought provoking content in an engaging and entertaining style, and is also an instructor in project management related disciplines including PMO and portfolio management courses on LinkedIn Learning.
When I first started managing projects, my approach to work was very structured. This was before Agile, as we know it today, was proposed, so all work was based on executing a detailed plan. But more than that, team members were expecting precise instructions regarding the tasks they were expected to perform, the start and finish dates, and so on. The idea that team members, individually or collectively, could change the plan or approach based on their skills and experience was unheard of.
If things hadn’t changed, project managers wouldn’t be needed today. They would have been replaced by more effective and efficient software at task and plan management. But fortunately, things have changed, and they’ve changed quite a lot.
Today, project management is much more about people leadership than task execution. Whether work is being delivered using Agile, plan-driven, or hybrid methods, there is recognition that the best way to achieve success is to empower the people doing the work to identify the best solutions and then deliver those solutions in the way that works best for them.
How to succeed in team leadership today
For project managers, this isn’t just about shifting from task management skills to team leadership skills; it’s also a fundamental change in what those leadership skills need to be. It’s no longer enough for a PM to be good at communication and able to adapt their style to the personality and approach of each team member. Now, they must display leadership qualities capable of creating an environment where team members want to collaborate.
When I was taught basic leadership skills in a project context, the focus was on each individual, with an overlay of how those people needed to come together as a team. The focus must be on the team first, with the leadership of individuals supporting discipline. A project manager is. First and foremost, I am the team leader of a project, not just in running that team but also in building, developing, and strengthening it.
With teams now being empowered to work in ways that they see fit and with the expectation that they will seek out more effective and efficient solutions or ways to implement those solutions, project managers have significant responsibilities. This also requires team members to demonstrate leadership skills to operate more autonomously, using the project manager for validation, not permission. But which behaviors demonstrate leadership skills on a team or for a project manager?
Leadership in teams, leadership of teams
The easiest way to summarize the shift in leadership needs is to describe it as a shift from communication to collaboration. In the past, the focus was on ensuring messages were sent and validating that those messages were understood. That might include task assignments, problem-solving approaches, progress updates, and so on. Essentially, stakeholders made decisions, or information was requested, and then communication occurred.
Now, the focus is on working together to make decisions, decide on approaches, etc. Communication is still essential, but it’s not about providing understanding; it’s about engaging, empowering, and motivating teams and colleagues to give their best as part of an integrated effort to deliver the optimal product or service to the organization.
For project managers, that requires more of a servant leadership approach—supporting the team as members work through challenges and decide on approaches. They are the enablers of decision-making on the team, not always the direct decision-makers. It’s also about ensuring the team has the confidence and competence to become empowered and autonomous.
Competence is about ensuring the team has information about the project, context for how it supports the business, and the skills to make and implement decisions about the work. The foundation is provided by training and development; the nuances come from experience.
Confidence is about the environment in which the team operates. It is much more focused on the project manager’s leadership skills, who must create an environment of trust among everyone. Confidence spans everything, from the belief that the organization will support team decisions to the belief that disagreements can occur within the team without damaging relationships.
The bottom line
Projects today succeed or fail primarily because of the leadership within and around them: organizational, project management, and collegiality. Team leadership development must focus on enabling strong relationships and a healthy environment for everyone.
This allows collaboration to develop the best possible solution, supported by individual and collective competence and confidence. Today’s successful projects are a case study in effective leadership on empowered, autonomous teams. They are also unrecognizable compared to the projects I started managing. And that’s a very good thing.
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