I have been thinking some more about the changes to the PMP exam by PMI that I wrote about last week. I’m particularly interested in the dramatic increase in focus on the wider business environment when it comes to running projects.
Every project manager will have been in the position where they realise that changes in the external environment are going to cause a significant risk, or create a significant opportunity, in the project they are running. Now, traditionally, this should have been something that the project sponsor / executive should have noticed anyway, as that sort of awareness is part of their role. But everyone is busy, so it is not unusual for the project manager, embedded in the project more completely, to notice this as well.
In the past, I would have recommended that the project manager should have raised this discreetly with the sponsor, and allowed them to raise a risk log entry, or bring it up at a board meeting. With this sort of awareness now being expected of the project manager, is this still the right way to go?
Frankly, life will be much simpler if the project manager can just go ahead and flag the potential risk or opportunity themselves, and get the conversation around it going that bit sooner. Some sponsors / executives may feel that you are treading on their toes, but the PMI is suggesting you’re not.
I think this is another reflection of the changing nature of project management, and the roles that carry it out. In this interpretation, the project manager is much more than a delivery professional, but is also significantly strategic, with an eye to the much wider environment they are operating in.
Personally, I think this is a good thing – why would we want to hobble ourselves, and narrow our focus, when we could be looking towards the horizon? But it does require organisations to change and evolve. Unfortunately, given how far back too many organisations are on project management maturity, I’m not sure how quickly they will change and accept a broader role for project managers.
Trevor Roberts is a programme and project management consultant and the founder of Dull Industries – a consultancy focused on project turnaround, AI implementation, and digital strategy.