STAFFING YOUR PROJECT MANAGEMENT TEAM (Part 7) – Acquiring the Project Manager

Industry, Domain and/or Technical Experience

This McLaughlin and McLaughlin’s Project Professional post is the seventh in a series of discussions regarding current challenges with the staffing aspects of your project management team.   This post (like Parts 4, 5 and 6) addresses acquiring the human resources (people) or staffing.  In this case, we focus on the project manager.  The Subject Series can be viewed here.

This, the third post on acquiring the project manager, will address the relevance and/or importance of such considerations as industry, domain and/or technical experience in a professional project manager.

So, what are the skill-sets that are needed in the year 2012 (and beyond) environment?  Let us drill down into or unpack the subject a little. [Read more…]

STAFFING YOUR PROJECT MANAGEMENT TEAM (Part 6) – Acquiring the Project Manager

Selection Considerations

This McLaughlin and McLaughlin Project Professionals post is the sixth in a series of discussions regarding current challenges with the staffing aspects of your project management team.   This post (like Parts 4 and 5) addresses acquiring the human resources (people) or staffing.  In this case, we focus on acquisition of the project manager.  This acquisition of project manager resource will be the subject of several posts over the next several weeks.  The Subject Series can be viewed here.

This, the second post on acquiring the project manager, will address the selection criteria that are important in a professional project manager.  Before looking at sources for a project manager candidate, one needs to settle on the key characteristics (personal and other) that are needed in the specific project and the project execution strategy for your project. [Read more…]

STAFFING YOUR PROJECT MANAGEMENT TEAM (Part 4) – Acquiring People from the Market

This McLaughlin & McLaughlins Project Professionals post is the fourth in a series of discussions regarding current challenges with the staffing aspects of your project management team.  The focus is on the managerial aspects of human resource planning and acquisition.  This post (like Part 3, our last post) addresses acquiring the human resources (people) or staffing.  While the planning may be the most important activity or action in the process, the challenge ultimately is obtaining the people to implement your intended execution strategy.

There are many acquisition strategies.  These acquisition strategies differ for various market conditions, organizational situations, project needs and other project variables.  Markets that are very active/hot [oil and gas, mining, natural resources, etc.] present unique challenges.  Skill-sets that are in high demand [project controls, planning, scheduling, technical, etc.] present further unique challenges.  The project Human Resource Plan must address these unique challenges.  Further, the project plan and schedule must allow the time to complete the acquisition process as well as the requisite training/indoctrination.  Finally, the project budget must realistically provide for the cost of these resources (often expensive non-employee persons) as well as the acquisition costs (e.g. recruiters).  If this planning is not in place, do not launch into project execution.

Please Remember Teams of people [not machines and not software] build projects. Consequently, if you cannot acquire the requisite staffing, you are not prepared to execute the project [at least as planned].

Please Remember This is a team, not a group of individuals.  Have you noticed that so many sports teams with superstars rarely win championships?  Further, have you noticed that championship teams have few, if any, superstars?  It is the project team, not the individual that must be staffed and developed.  As they say, there is no “I” in team. [Read more…]

STAFFING YOUR PROJECT MANAGEMENT TEAM (Part 3) – Acquiring People

This post is the third in McLaughlin & McLaughlins Project Professionals series of discussions regarding current challenges being encountered in today’s efforts/environment associated with the human resource aspects of your project management team.  More specifically, we have titled the series STAFFING YOUR PROJECT MANAGEMENT TEAM, and we intend to focus heavily on the managerial aspects of human resource planning and acquisition.  This post focuses on acquiring the human resources (people) or staffing.  While the planning may be the most important activity or action in the process, the challenge ultimately is obtaining the people to implement your intended execution strategy.  There are many acquisition strategies.  These acquisition strategies differ for various market conditions, organizational situations, project needs and other project variables.

Please RememberTeams of people [not machines and not software] build projects.  Consequently, if you cannot acquire the requisite staffing, you are not prepared to execute the project [at least as planned].

Please Remember –This is a team, not a group of individuals.  Have you noticed that so many sports teams with superstars rarely win championships?  Further, have you noticed that championship teams have few, if any, superstars?  It is the project team, not the individual that must be staffed and developed.

In order to present this topic in a logical manner and with an industry-recognized lexicon, we are using the PMI Project Management Processes for a Project as presented in A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide).

Sources that are used in this post are:

STAFFING YOUR PROJECT MANAGEMENT TEAM (Part 2) – Planning

This post is the second in McLaughlin & McLaughlins Project Professionals Blog series of discussions regarding current challenges being encountered in today’s efforts/environment associated with the human resource aspects of your project management team.  More specifically, we have titled the series STAFFING YOUR PROJECT MANAGEMENT TEAM, and we intend to focus heavily on the managerial aspects of human resource planning and acquisition.  This post focuses on planning the human resources or staffing.  In many respects, the planning is the most important activity or action in the process.  Proper and timely planning including documenting the plan will provide the roadmap for the path to success.  It will also tend to reveal problems and challenges before they become a problem.

In order to present this topic in a logical manner and with an industry-recognized lexicon, we are using the PMI Project Management Processes for a Project as presented in A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide).

Sources that are used in this post are:

Please Remember People [not machines and not software] build projects. [Read more…]

STAFFING YOUR PROJECT MANAGEMENT TEAM (Part 1) – Introduction

McLaughlin and McLaughlins Project Professional’s post is the first in a series of discussions regarding current challenges being encountered in today’s efforts/environment associated with the human resource aspects of your project management team.  More specifically, we have titled the series STAFFING YOUR PROJECT MANAGEMENT TEAM, and we intend to focus heavily on the managerial aspects of human resource planning and acquisition.  This post is the introduction which frames out or structures the developing discussion.

Authoritative information and guidance regarding project management comes from many sources.  A few that may be obvious include:

In order to frame and organize this topic, we are using the PMI Project Management Processes for a Project as presented in A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) .

Sources that are used in this post are: