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By Barbee Davis, MA, PHR, PMP The project managers in my organization tend to work in an isolated fashion. How can I get them to regularly break out of their cubicles and share information?
Answer: B. Start in an informal way and let the communication become more formal over time. The importance of communication with your project team cannot be understated. But most project managers also need peer mentors with whom they can share insights and ask for help with chronic problems. Unfortunately, the kind of open, free, non-competitive collaboration of your dreams isn’t something that can be mandated by a project sponsor, department manager, or even forced by you as a colleague.
Fortunately, there are steps you can take to initiate the valuable exchange of ideas and the support you crave. Start with the one person you can control: you. Decide on a topic about which you would like to get input from other project managers. Seek out one person who seems open and ask them to meet with you at a break to sit down and help you with [fill in your topic]. If the conversation was helpful, thank your co-worker and offer to return the favor. The next time ask two people—your original confidant and a second colleague. State the problem you’d like to discuss and ask if they have anything that you could help them with in return. If appropriate, you could move the conversations to a café or other offsite location at lunch or after work, adding colleagues one at a time. You are training a support group. As the group expands, you might want to give participants a chance to suggest the topics for the next meeting, or send around an article with some new ideas that might be appropriate in your organization. Keep the conversations focused on how you can solve problems or evaluate outside ideas that may have merit in your workplace, rather than letting the discussions become complaint sessions. One way to turn a complaint into a positive is to ask questions like, “Why do you think that happened?” “What do you see as a way to avoid that in the future?” “Is this a process issue or is it a personnel issue?” As the group begins to increase beyond two or three people, begin to informally write down the ideas that you hear. Start to casually summarize: “So Bob had the idea that by all of us purchasing materials together we’d get a discount, and Sue thought that moving the status report day from Friday afternoon to Tuesday would allow us to include the progress reports from other units.” Mention that you’d be happy to send the information to anyone who would like it. Begin to say, “What should we talk about next time?” Note the ideas and send them out by e-mail before your next gathering. If these conversations prove valuable, suggest that you meet at a regular time, such as weekly or monthly. Whether you continue to remain an informal group or you organize the discussions within working hours in a more formal way, you have forged trusting relationships with other project managers in your organization who can be called on individually, or as a group, when you need advice and support.
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Quick Quiz
The topic of this article was suggested by Timothy Peck, PMP, from Baltimore, MD, USA, who has worked in project management for 15 years.
Barbee Davis, MA, PHR, PMP, is a reviewer for the global PMI Registered Education Provider Review Team. She owns Davis Consulting and is a published author, speaker, writer of training materials and an innovator in presentation skill workshops for corporate trainers. She holds a Black Belt in MS Project and teaches at the university level. Her new book, “97 Things Every Project Manager Should Know,” includes practical tips from experienced project managers around the world. Ms. Davis is available for speaking engagements and encourages your | Home BACK TO TOP
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