How to Build a Positive Relationship with Your Project Sponsor
One of the most important relationships a project manager can build is the one with the project sponsor
and it is one that project managers often find challenging to build and maintain.
 A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide)—Fourth Edition states that a project sponsor: “…champions the project. This includes serving as spokesperson to higher levels of management to gather support throughout the organization and promote the benefits that the project will bring... [and] serves as an escalation path.”
According to PMI's 2010 Government Program Management Study, 81
percent of program managers at U.S. government agencies said that strong support
from at least one executive-level sponsor had a high impact on project success.
We asked project professionals through Community Post and PMI's
Facebook page on ways they foster a positive relationship with their project sponsors. Here is what they said.
Establish Trust
The best way to foster a positive relationship is to establish trust. To achieve trust, you should: communicate openly and honestly, be flexible with change, demonstrate different viable approaches or options to problem resolution and respect commitments and promises.
~Eda Francescangeli, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, a project manager for a defense company that services international military programs.
Gain trust through delivering what you promise. If that mission is impossible, I will try my best to show my sponsors the obstacles.
~Hee Ling Sia, ISTQB, PMP, Singapore, a senior manager with a company that
provides eGoverment solutions.
Understand Your Sponsor’s Motivations, Expectations and Constraints
In order to establish trust, it is helpful to know why a sponsor does what he or she does, and what sponsors might be unable to do.
When first meeting a sponsor, take an approach similar to a job interview. The project manager should ask the sponsor: “Tell me about you, your vision and goals for the project. How will you measure success for the project? How would you like to communicate? And then, do it, and don’t surprise them.”
~Catherine M. Goodrich, MBA, PMP, Nashville,
Tennessee, USA, a senior project manager in the healthcare/IT shared
services industry.
There are six things you might consider doing with your project sponsor or boss to understand his or her motivations. They are:
- Figure out what’s important to them and drives their success
- Talk to them in their language about what’s important to them
- Focus on helping them be successful
- Connect your project objectives to their objectives
- Stay constantly connected to them and keep them up to date
- Deliver bad news in person and have a solution to addressing problems
~Jeff Singleton, contributed on PMI’s Facebook page.
Paraphrase, promote and represent sponsors’ expectations, which may not be in written project documents. It is also important to acknowledge their time constraints for participation. Sponsors need to know their roles in the project as well. Ensure your sponsors are gently reminded of their accountability under the project and of the team’s expectation of support from them.
~Henry Hattenrath, Seaford, New York, USA, a senior project manager in the transportation industry.
Keep the Sponsor Updated (Stay Transparent)
In order to support you and your team, a sponsor needs the latest information.
Tell your sponsor what the team is working on for the next two weeks. Ask if you are missing anything. You might send them short and crisp summary emails throughout the week, showing highlights and upcoming risks, if sponsors are okay with this level of communication.
~Danelle Peddell, PMP, London, Ontario, Canada, a
senior project manager with an insurance company.
Understand that Sponsors Are Different
Each business sponsor is different; what works to build a relationship with one sponsor, does not necessarily work with another. You have to understand each sponsor’s personality and tailor your communication style accordingly.
~Michael T. Lubragge, PMP, Trevose, Pennsylvania, USA, is the director of PMO, Trevose
Center.
Your sponsor works with your team to successfully deliver the project. When you have a good relationship with your sponsor and take care of his or her needs, chances are your needs will be taken care of as well.
New e-Learning Course Focuses on Project Manager — Sponsor Relationship
PMI will introduce a new self-paced e-Learning course in January called Influencing Your Project Sponsor. This course will help you learn how to translate “project speak” into concepts that executives will understand. Gain insight on how to nurture relationships with these decision makers—their participation and influence can impact your project’s success.
Pre-order this course by 31 December and receive a 25 percent discount. To order, send your name, email address, PMI member ID (if applicable) and course name to professional.development@pmi.org.
Related Reading
Two recent PM Network® articles discussed the relationship between project managers and sponsors and project managers and senior executives. PM Network magazine is an important benefit for PMI members!
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