The Skills Needed in the Era of Digital Disruption
The skills needed in the era of digital disruption are often posed as a crisis for project management professionals. The truth is, it’s the opportunity to focus on soft skills that spell success in this new future.
According to Gartner, by 2030, 80% of what we commonly think of as the work of project management will be eliminated.
Artificial intelligence (AI) will take on more traditional PM functions, think of tasks such as data collection, tracking and reporting. It’s safe to say that we are now well within the age of digital disruption and the project manager is not immune.
How do project management professionals adapt to this altering future?
Removing repetition and manual tasks
The good news is, the biggest technological impact will occur around repetitive or manual tasks. Think of things like data collection and management, risk management, budgeting, and scheduling – the “technical skills”.
Where the change is likely to take longer to impact is on the softer, more human skills.
Powering up in these kinds of skills, and leveraging the extra productivity that comes from automating those laborious technical skills, puts you in pole position to benefit from this ongoing wave of disruption.
The top reasons 70% of projects fail is a lack of executive support and emotional maturity. We look at poor user involvement, no optimisation and not having enough skilled staff.
Successful project managers know when a project starts to go off the rails and they also know how to get things back on track.
Their ability to communicate, influence and lead are what makes the difference.
A Little Self-Awareness goes a long way
Emotional intelligence
- Is the key to improving and cultivating behavioural skills. It requires self-awareness and the capacity to be aware of, control, and express one’s emotions. The ability to handle interpersonal relationships judiciously and empathetically is critical.
- The more you exercise your emotional intelligence the better you will be able to develop crucial soft skills such as these.
Communication
- Good communicators are aware of the types of language that is used. They assess both verbal and nonverbal they use as a project manager and of their stakeholders. By observing the communication patterns and learning styles of their stakeholders’ good communicators will adjust their own language patterns, cues and teaching styles to better match the preferences of their audience.
Leadership
- By checking your own ego and modelling “servant leadership” – where you actively submit to the greater goal of the project and put it front and centre. You have a better chance of setting a positive tone and behavioural guide for the team.
Motivation
- A project manager who pays attention to what motivates their team, how best to utilise their strengths and weaknesses and the rewards they value is more likely to out-do expectations.
- In a competitive market, keeping people satisfied and motivated is important in retaining them. This isn’t just so projects can be completed uninterrupted, but because we all want to work in supportive, positive environments.
Technology is changing the way we all work.
The kind of projects we do, and how we manage and motivate our stakeholders.
What’s not changing?
- We know the skills needed in the era of digital disruption are not digital.
- Take the opportunity that new technology provides to minimise the time you need to spend doing the “technical skill” stuff.
- Use that extra time to work on evolving and refining your behavioural skills.
- Like any muscle – we have to work on them to get the most out of them, it’s the soft skills that will most help in getting the job done successfully and positively.
- All of this will go a long way to set you up as a project management leader in the new digital age.
More importantly, we think it will make for a much more pleasant day at work.
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Attraction and retention “How to attract and retain talent, in the scope of major infrastructure projects” for Australian Local Government Infrastructure Yearbook 2021 https://algiy.partica.online/algiy/algiy-2021/flipbook/122/ Major Projects Conference 2022 https://www.nswconference.com.au/speakers.html Webinar Webinar briefing – sample of what we have delivered in the past (targeted at Graduates) in partnership with AIPM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Au7tNN0_tbU Are employers spending sufficient time supporting staff and building a resilient culture? What’s an acceptable staff turnover – none, 6%, 15%? https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6833872083806769152/ The Future of PMOs - PMO Vision 2030 ProNEXUS were of the PMO Vision 2030 - The Future of PMOs Workshop. The workshop was to discuss the impact and effectiveness of a PMO/EPMO function as part of the Association of International Project Management Officers (AIPMO). Feedback/what to expect from us: Extremely relevant. Massive importance trying to retain & employ Loved the presenter’s style and outlook The conversation style flowed very well Presented really well. The casual approach made for easy and open Conversation. Very relevant topic Engaging speaker, supported by presentation that was shared post meeting Good interaction, more of a conversation than a typical presentation. Nik was excellent. Great perspective and good tips There was some robust discussion particular around different views. Challenging member views was very good The casual approach made for easy and open Conversation. Good speaker, very interactive The feedback was very positive and averaged the following ratings out of 10 for your presentation: Relevance of Topic: 9.2 Guest Speaker: 9.5
The role of a Project Sponsor is to work closely with the Organisation to provide governance and leadership. What makes a good Project Sponsor? An effective Project Sponsor is able to articulate and demonstrate the strategic value of a project at the Board, Organisational, and Project level. They understand the importance of developing and refining the business case and ensuring this aligns with the business strategy. The Project Sponsor typically has a depth of experience within the organisation and is a well-respected individual. The most successful Project Sponsors have a consistent track record in leadership and they are effective communicators. They have demonstrated their capability to influence all facets of the business. What does a Project Sponsor do? A Project Sponsor is part of the initial planning phase of a project. They work in collaboration with key stakeholders to determine what the key outcomes should be. They will:- Determine the availability of resources (financial and human capital) Approve project scope and changes Formulate an ongoing communication plan Work on refining the implementation strategy from project status to business as usual Approve (sign off) each phase of a project Provide support to the project and help resolve conflict or potential conflict Put in place the necessary project controls Help to mitigate risks and remove obstacles that may deter progress Be resilient and emotionally intelligent Ensure adherence to Governance standards Agree to “what success looks like” It is this macro view that adds a certain level of credibility and legitimacy. The Project Sponsor should be the key decision-maker. They are ultimately responsible for delivering the project and adding value to the organisation. The success of the project isn’t about ticking the various boxes along the way, ensuring. What does an Executive Sponsor do? While the Project Sponsor is appointed by the organisation the Executive Sponsor is appointed by the Board. The link between organisation and its project governance practices. The Executive Sponsor is usually a Senior Executive. They will have an intimate understanding of their strategy, financial position, organisational culture, and market dynamics. As such they carry a level of authority and influence beyond just being a project advocate. How much influence does an Executive Sponsor have? The Executive Sponsor will have the necessary influence to determine how a project is progressing, they are focussed on delivering beyond just quality and outcome, they want to ensure the investment yields a return from a strategic, financial, cultural, and market position. Should the Project not deliver against some or all of the pre-determined criteria the Executive Sponsor would be well within their scope to question the organisation’s investment. They can either defend or challenge the Project’s progress. Regardless of whichever position they take, they are (as a Board appointed representative) accountable to the Board. With any strategic role, all parties must take the time and make time to ensure the Project and its stakeholders (including the Board) and engaging on a regular basis. Contact Us Sources Crawford, L. & Cooke-Davies, T. (2005). Project governance: the pivotal role of the executive sponsor. Paper presented at PMI® Global Congress 2005—North America, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Newtown Square, PA: Project Management Institute. International Journal of Project Management Time and budget: the twin imperatives of a project sponsor Volume 15, Issue 3, June 1997, Pages 181-186 JNevan Wright Auckland Institute of Technology, Auckland, New Zealand
It’s a competitive market, control what you can?
If you want Control and influence in a competitive job market, it requires preparation, persistence, and above all it a positive attitude. It’s not as hard as it may seem. There are many things that you can do to put yourself in the best possible place to succeed when looking for a new position.
We have broken down what you can control and influence in a competitive job market into just a few areas:-
