MODULO 1

1.1 What is project management?

Project:

 A unique endeavor, and usually includes a set of unique deliverables

 A temporary pursuit; it has a defined beginning and end
 A project is a series of tasks that need to be completed to reach a desired
outcome.
Project management: the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to meet
the project requirements and achieve the desired outcome. Project management is
valuable to businesses because it helps ensure that a project delivers the expected
outcomes both on time and within budget.
Poor project management can lead to trillions of wasted dollars every year for
organizations around the world. More specifically, poor project management can lead to
48% of projects missing delivery dates, 43% missing budget targets, and 31% failing to
meet an organization's goals.
1.2 What does a project manager do?
Project managers usually follow a process that involves

 planning and organizing,

 managing tasks,
 budgeting,
 controlling costs and other factors.

Well, a project manager's responsibilities can vary, depending on the project, the
industry, and the company they're working in.
A project manager's daily responsibilities always include some version of the following,
planning and organizing.
Once the project is underway, the project manager helps manage tasks for the team
members and communicates key milestones to the larger team or customers. This helps
keep team members, and customers updated on how the project is progressing. The
third piece is budgeting and controlling costs and other factors. Managing the budget
and controlling costs is a common responsibility that project managers have to
understand to keep the project on track and within budget.
1.3 Transferable project management skills
Project management skills, like planning and organizing, managing tasks, budgeting,
and controlling costs, and more.
1.4 X: Path to becoming a project manager
Program management to me was a natural calling.
Resolve conflict or to work on an idea and collaborate on projects on the side together.
Those skills that you use in your everyday life to keep your task together can apply to
program and project management very easily.
1.5 From certificate to career success
The industries with the most growth are manufacturing and construction, information
services and publishing, management and professional services, finance and insurance,
utilities, and oil and gas.
Across all industries, we noticed that new technology is introduced, which leads to
processes changing and a need to manage those processes. So all kinds of companies
need people like you who can tackle a variety of projects from start to finish, to help
them navigate these changes
The beauty of project management is that you don't need to be an expert on a focused
technical topic— you just need to be able to manage projects.
An internship is a short-term way to get hands-on experience in an industry.
Working for companies on a contract means you'll work with them on a project-by-
project basis, but you won't be a full-time employee.
1.6 Explore project management roles
Project management job categories and common roles:

 Junior Project Manager: Performs all aspects of being a project manager

alongside a more experienced professional.
 Project Administrator: Assists the rest of the project team with administrative
tasks.
 Project/Program Assistant: Supports team members working on a project and
offers administrative support. May perform research or create training documents
along with other jobs as assigned by program leaders.
 Project/Program Coordinator: Participates in hands-on project work and
administrative tasks. Works under a project manager to make sure projects are
completed on time and within budget.
 Project Support Specialist: Works alongside a project manager and team
members to oversee assigned projects. May also be responsible for training and
developing employees to perform designated tasks.
 Traditional project management roles

Once you have gained some experience in introductory-level positions, you can explore
traditional project management roles, such as:

 Project Manager: Responsible for the initiating, planning, executing, monitoring, and
closing of a project. Includes industry-specific titles like IT project manager, construction
project manager, or engineering project manager, which utilize skills that are
transferable among industries.
 Project Analyst: Moves a project along by sharing information, providing support
through data analysis, and contributing to strategy and performance.
 Project Leader/Director: Drives core decision-making and sets the direction for the
project. Usually knowledgeable about the product or deliverable.
 Project Controller: Primarily responsible for project planning. You are likely to see this
job title in industries like engineering and construction.
 Technical Project Manager: Conducts project planning and management for identified
goals within a company. Ensures that projects are completed to the requirements within
a defined time frame and budget.
 Project Management Office (PMO) Analyst: Manages the progress of complex
projects to ensure timely execution and completion.

Program and portfolio management roles

They shepherd projects from start to finish and serve as a guide for their team. Project
managers must apply the right tools, techniques, and processes to complete the project
successfully, on time, and within budget.
A program is a collection of projects. Program managers are responsible for managing
many projects.
A portfolio is a collection of projects and programs across an entire organization.
Portfolio managers are responsible for portfolios of projects or programs for one client.
 Program managers: Manage a group of projects that are related or similar to one
another and handle the coordination of these projects. They facilitate effective
communication between individual project managers and provide support where
necessary. They also help create and manage long-term goals for their organization.
 Portfolio managers: Responsible for managing a group of related programs within the
same organization. They coordinate various programs in order to ensure they are on
track and that the organization is meeting its strategic initiatives. Portfolio managers look
at all projects and programs within the organization and prioritize work as necessary.
 Operational management roles

In operational management roles, you will get the opportunity to experience several
different departments and how they interact and operate. Operational management roles
allow you to work alongside peers and management from various business segments,
giving you an appreciation for what each segment does on a daily basis. Key elements
of project management include making sure a project is on budget and on schedule.
Some operational management positions include:

 Operations Analyst: Manages and coordinates research, investigates workflows,

creates business procedures, and recommends changes to improve the project and
company.
 Operations Manager: Oversees strategic decision-making and rolls out plans of action
based on financial, schedule, and resource reporting.
 Chief Operating Officer: Responsible for overseeing the day-to-day administrative and
operational functions of a business.

Agile roles

We will discuss the Agile project management approach in depth later, but here are a
couple of the positions you may see that are related to that approach:

 Scrum Master: Coordinates and guides the Scrum team. Knowledgeable in Agile
framework and Scrum and is able to teach others about the Scrum values and
principles. May also be listed as a Technical Program Manager or Technical Project
Manager.
 Product Owner: Drives the direction of product development and progress.

1.7 Finding the perfect role

Required skills like organizational management, strong planning and communication

skills, budget preparation and monitoring.

Job's responsibilities seem like tasks you've covered in this course, like creating monthly
status reports, helping to implement new and necessary technologies, tracking work
plans and performance metrics, assisting other members of the operations team on
given projects, and ensuring timely responses to requests for information. These duties
are nearly a perfect match for your project management skills.

Networking is when you meet other people in a professional setting with the goal of
learning, sharing knowledge, and creating new business connections. This plays a big
role in job hunting, so it is a great tool to start learning and perfecting.
 1.8 Gilbert: Project management skills in my role

Skills such as: communicating to stakeholders, managing a budget, managing a project

timeline in many different projects. So some of these skills are being able to talk to and
have difficult conversations, being able to manage a budget, managing resources, and
managing your time.
I think people like to connect with folks that are intuitive, that are curious and are just
eager to learn. And so if you can leverage those two pieces, I think that you're going to
have success in whatever you do.

1.9 Using buzzwords in your job search (pdf)

Buzzwords—words or phrases that are popular for a period of time or in a particular
industry.

Common project management buzzwords

Including buzzwords and skills in your job search can help you find jobs that are ideal for
you and your skill set. Once you have found a position you want to apply for, listing
buzzwords and skills that are relevant to the position can also help recruiters and hiring
managers identify you as a qualified and knowledgeable candidate.

Some common project management-related buzzwords and skills you could include on
your resume are:

 Analytical  Managing client  Project initialization

 Assertive expectations  Project planning
 Assessing outcomes  Managing conflicts  Project reporting
 Assessing progress  Managing relationships  Quality control
 Attention to detail with stakeholders  Risk assessment
 Conflict resolution  Managing vendors  Risk management
 Collaborative  Meeting deadlines  Solution development
 Coordination  Monitoring  Strategic planning
 Communication  Multitasking  Strong interpersonal
 Development  Planning skills
 Evaluation  Prioritizing  Strong verbal
 Executing plans  Problem-solving communication
 Financial analysis  Process development  Strong written
 Impact assessment  Process improvement communication
 Leadership engagement  Project coordination
 Managing meetings  Project implementation
1.10 Wrap-up

Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to

meet the project requirements and achieve the desired outcome. Then we learned that
project management is alive in nearly every industry and company.
We also learned what a project is: A unique endeavor and temporary pursuit, carefully
planned out to achieve a particular goal. Hopefully by now, you're familiar with the idea
that every project has a defined time frame, cost, scope, and dedicated resources.
MODULO 2
2.1 Introduction: Becoming an effective project manager
2.2 The value of a project manager
Project managers shepherd projects from start to finish and serve as guides for their
team, using their impeccable organizational and interpersonal skills every step of the
way. project managers usually follow a process that involves planning and organizing,
managing tasks, budgeting, and controlling costs so that the project can be completed
within the approved timeframe.
Project managers add value to their teams and organizations in key ways that include
prioritization, delegation, and effective communication. Project managers add value to
their teams and organizations through effective prioritization of tasks required to
complete a project.
Stakeholders are people who are interested in and affected by the project's completion
and success, like the leader of an organization. When you effectively prioritize important
tasks, you set up your team and yourself for a better project outcome.
Project managers use delegation to add value to their teams and organizations by
matching tasks to individuals who can best complete the work. Delegating to the person
with the right skills to complete the work and ordering the task appropriately, you're
applying knowledge of your team's strengths to the planning of your project.
Project managers deliver value through effective communication, both with their team
and with key stakeholders. This refers to being transparent, which means being up front
with plans and ideas and making information readily available. Project managers keep in
regular contact with their team about the progress of the work and help identify areas
where a teammate may need support. Project managers keep in regular contact with
people outside of the team, like company leaders who are invested in the project
outcomes.
2.3 JuAnne: Path to becoming a project manager
Through that process, I became a project manager. I started to manage the timelines,
manage the tasks, understand all the pieces, and who needed to be involved.
 I think if you build a relationship, focus on the relationship, and really understand what
their style, where they're coming from, what their concerns are, it will help your working
relationship much better. You can communicate with them in the style that's necessary.
You can work with them in the style that's more receptive to them and that would just
make the project better all around.
2.4 How project managers impact organizations
You have learned that project managers can prioritize, delegate, and effectively
communicate to deliver value to their projects. This reading will focus on the main ways
that project managers can add value to projects and impact organizations, which
include:

 Focusing on the customer

 Building a great team
 Fostering relationships and communication
 Managing the project
 Breaking down barriers

- Focusing on the customer

In project management, the word “customer” refers to a person or an organization that

defines the requirements of the project and sets important guidelines, such as budget
and deadlines. In projects, customers can be internal or external. Internal customers are
stakeholders within your organization, such as management, project team members,
resource managers, and other organizational departments. External customers are
customers outside of your organization, such as clients, contractors, suppliers, and
consumers.

To meet the customer’s standards, you have to make sure you clearly understand their
expectations. The customer is at the center of a successful project. Project managers
can add a lot of value to the project by building relationships with customers and taking
the time to make sure the customer is heard and satisfied with the result.

- Asking the customer questions

Let’s discuss how you can focus on the customer in a project. First, sit with the customer
and ask what problem they are trying to solve. You might ask if they have a specific
vision of the final outcome they would like delivered. Sometimes, customers will lean on
project managers to find the solution to their problem. It’s your job to ask questions like:
 What is the problem you would like us to help solve? Example response: The
customer wants help developing a new process that would allow their company to
be more efficient.
  How is the problem impacting your organization? Example response: The
customer states that they are losing clients because of their current inefficient
processes since clients are sometimes receiving their orders late.
 What prompted you to ask for help now? Example response: The customer says
that they may lose department funding if they do not improve efficiency.
 What is your hope for the outcome of this project? Example response: The
customer states that their ultimate goal is to increase the speed at which they fill
orders without sacrificing quality.
Taking the time to dig a little deeper into the “why” behind the project can help a project
manager better support and understand the customer. The more you understand the
customer’s goals, the more likely you will be able to produce what the customer is
seeking.
- Building a great team
The team is a project’s biggest asset. A successful project manager knows that and
takes the time to understand each person’s motivations, strengths, and weaknesses.
Project managers add value to the project by identifying the right team for the project
and enabling the team to be successful and make decisions.
When you work to build a great team, you have to consider the skills needed for the
project, as well as the resources available. Understanding the customer’s requirements
helps shape the skills needed for your team.
As project manager, you should bring on people with the right skills and ensure the team
knows that each individual is valued, trusted, and appreciated. You can demonstrate
how you feel about the team’s value by allowing them to have input and ask questions,
and by addressing their needs as soon as possible.
- Fostering relationships and communication
Maintaining customer satisfaction and building a great team are two ways that you, as a
project manager, can add value to a project. Both of these skills are built on the
foundation of relationships and communication. The project managers who add the most
value are the ones who take the time to build relationships, communicate, and treat
others with consideration and respect.
Project managers can set the tone for a project and build relationships within their teams
and with stakeholders. Taking the time to check in daily with your team, see how they’re
doing, and ask if there is anything they need help with can go a long way towards
making them feel valued and heard.
- Managing the project
A successful project manager sees the impacts of each process within the project and
communicates those impacts to the team. This ensures that everyone working on the
project understands their task goal as well as the big picture goal for the finished
product.
Managing a project can be busy, but if you take the time to build relationships and
maintain open lines of communication, you will increase the chances of the project’s
success as well as the customer’s and your team members’ satisfaction.

- Breaking down barriers

A project manager adds value to a project when they break down barriers, allow their
team to innovate new ways to do things, and empower them to share ideas. As a project
manager, you have to model ingenuity and collaboration, and encourage your team to
do the same.
How can you break down barriers on a project? You can provide support for your team
as they try new approaches to find solutions, and you can advocate for additional
resources for your team. If your team is having a hard time getting an answer from
another organization, you can reach out to the organization yourself in order to keep the
team on track and on schedule.
- Key takeaway
You have now learned some of the ways that project managers can add value to
projects and impact organizations. By focusing on the customer, building a great project
team, fostering relationships and communication, managing the project, and breaking
down barriers, you can overcome obstacles and find solutions to succeed.
2.5 Key project manager roles and responsibilities
Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to
meet the project requirements and achieve the desired outcome.
Project managers usually follow a process that involves planning and organizing,
managing tasks, budgeting, and controlling costs, and other factors, so that the project
can be completed within the approved budget and timeframe.
Planning and organizing is making use of productivity tools and creating processes.
During the planning and execution of a project, you might need to use certain tools and
develop processes to improve information sharing across the team; you may also need
to create plans, timelines, schedules, and other forms of documentation to track project
Budgeting and controlling costs, and other factors. As the project is underway, changes
to the plan and budget are bound to come up. Believe me. This will require you to
monitor and manage the budget, track issues and risks as they arise, and manage
quality by mitigating those issues and risks. One way to do this is by removing
unforeseen barriers that come up. Now, by barriers, we mean things that can get in the
way of project progress.
A project task is an activity that needs to be accomplished within a set period of time by
you, your team, or your stakeholders
2.6 Identify: Project opportunities and tasks
2.7 Responsibilities that utilize interpersonal skills
What are the core job responsibilities of project managers? Let’s recap what we learned
in the previous video.
The project manager is responsible for planning, organizing, managing tasks, budgeting,
controlling costs, and other factors to help keep the project within budget and on time.
What does that mean? Basically, as the project manager, you will be responsible for
tracking the day-to-day details of the project, but you will also have an opportunity to
step back and see the bigger picture of the overall project.
Depending on the project and organization, you may also have responsibilities that
utilize your interpersonal skills. Interpersonal skills are the behaviors you use to interact
with others, such as communication, active listening, and leadership.
Let's review these responsibilities.

- Teaching and mentoring

As a project manager, you can serve as a mentor to your team. When you take the time
to fully explain the expectations, you eliminate rework, confusion, and frustration.
Mentoring and teaching others the lessons that you, as a project manager, have learned
allows your team to make better choices and build on your experience. Mentoring also
involves supporting each individual on your team in meeting expectations and helping
them to exceed their own sense of personal potential.
- Building relationships
Relationships are everything! Getting to know your team members lets them know that
you care about them as people, not just as employees. Taking the time to build
relationships with your customers, clients, vendors, and other stakeholders is equally
important. Dedicate time to check in with people. Pay attention to the insights they offer
you about their work style since their actions can inform how to most effectively interact
with them. Ask about their lives beyond the project, and then follow up on those
discussions later on to show your interest. When you foster these relationships, you are
all more invested in the success of your project.

- Controlling change
The American novelist Louis L’Amour wrote, “The only thing that never changes is that
everything changes.” This applies to projects as well. Projects change as you continue
to understand the expectations and the needs of your stakeholders. As a project
manager, you need to remain flexible and adjust to the stakeholders’ needs. However, it
is also important to protect your team from constant change and rework. A good way to
do this is by documenting the initial expectations of the project and clearly identifying the
changes being requested. It is also helpful to understand the budget and schedule
impact of the changes and make sure that the stakeholders understand those impacts.
As the project manager, you are responsible for protecting your team.
- Empowering your team
We all enjoy being heard and appreciated in our careers. Giving your team the ability to
work directly with the stakeholders and their teams lets them know that you trust and
believe in their skills! One of the best things about empowering your team is getting
fresh ideas and passionate employees willing to help find solutions to problems. Another
way you can empower your team is by delegating responsibilities to them, allowing them
to make some decisions for the project, and using their input in the planning and
execution of the project. Effective mentoring often leads to more empowered teams.
- Communicating status and concerns
As a project manager, communication is everything. With effective communication, you
can work together with your team to find solutions to challenges. The project manager
sets the tone for the project. Maintaining an open door policy and building trust within
your team and among stakeholders—all while staying positive—will help the success of
the project.
- Key takeaway
You have learned that project managers may be responsible for teaching and mentoring
project team members, building relationships with the team and various stakeholders,
controlling change and the impact to the project, empowering team members to make
decisions, and communicating status and potential concerns. These interpersonal
responsibilities can be just as important to the success of your projects as your more
concrete responsibilities, like scheduling and budgeting.
As you continue through this course, you will learn more about how these project
manager responsibilities are embedded into the different phases of a project.

2.8 A project manager’s role within a team

A project manager is not often the direct manager of the people working on a project
team. Each person will be an expert on their portion of the project, but no one will be an
expert on every aspect of the project, and honestly, neither will you.
As the project manager, you won't be an expert in every project role, and that's okay. As
we said, your job isn't to be the expert on everything. Instead you're responsible for
guiding your team and making sure that they have the support that they need in order to
complete the project.
Hold all team members accountable for their assigned tasks. Managing tasks will help
you hold your team members accountable by giving them ownership over specific
pieces of the project.
Ensure that issues and risks are tracked and visible, and be able to establish escalation
paths. Now by escalation paths, I mean that you should know how you will communicate
risks to the right people at the right time
Understand and help teammates adopt the right workflows and project management
styles. As the project manager, you'll likely have the best idea of which style is best for
the work. It's your job to ensure that the team adheres to that style and the other
systems in place.
Collaborate with other teams at the organization to meet the requirements based on
project, scope, schedule, and budget. In other words, a project may affect not only your
team, but other teams at an organization, as well as, say, the marketing or the finance
team. So you'll need to work with those teams to ensure that everyone is happy with the
project outcomes.
They're responsible for guiding those people and ensuring they have the support they
need to complete the project.
2.9 Working with cross-functional teams
As a project manager, you will likely work with cross-functional teams. A cross-functional
team includes team members who have different backgrounds, types of expertise, and
job functions. Even though these team members have different skill sets, occupy
different roles, and may even work in different departments, they are all working towards
a common goal: the successful completion of your project.
Sometimes the members of a cross-functional team are referred to as “T-shaped
professionals.” They are skilled in how to collaborate and innovate with those in different
job functions and across different departments, but they also contribute their own
specific areas of expertise. Each member of a cross-functional team has their own
unique perspective and experience, bringing different ideas and strategies to the project.

- Clarify goals
When working with cross-functional teams, it is important to ensure that each member of
the team understands their role, how they support each other, and the common goals of
the project. It is vital to set clear goals for the team and make sure that the team
understands those goals. Be direct and concise, avoiding extraneous details and
explanations. When communicating task or project goals, make sure you define key
items, such as budget, deadlines, quality requirements, or important resources. Ensure
your team members understand task and project goals by encouraging them to ask
questions and clarify information. It will be up to you to continuously check in with your
team to make sure they’re all moving towards their goals, staying on track, and
completing quality work. Cross-functional teams may work in different departments, be
in different physical locations, and have different leadership, but all team members work
together with the project manager to support the current project. Your project may be
competing against other priorities, so communicating clearly and often with your team—
and vice versa—helps you identify any potential issues or concerns before they arise.
- Get team members with the right skills
Making sure you have team members with the correct skill sets for each of the project
functions is critical. If you are building an airplane and you’ve got five engineers but no
mechanics, you are missing a key element of your cross-functional team. As the project
manager, you must help ensure that your team has the right people with the right skill
sets needed for the project to succeed. Later in this program, we will discuss some tools
you can use to help you identify the skill sets needed to accomplish your project tasks.
- Measure progress
Showing your team how much they have accomplished helps keep them motivated.
Take the time to measure and communicate the project’s progress across the cross-
functional team. This helps everyone see the full picture and recognize their impact on
the project. You can measure progress in many ways, including meeting key milestones,
completing project tasks, and meeting project goals on time and within budget.
Regularly communicate with your team members to check on their progress. Ask them if
they anticipate being finished on time. If not, ask how you can help them succeed. Keep
track of the team’s progress throughout the project by documenting when tasks and
goals are completed, and let your team members know if the project is on track or not.
Make sure you communicate successes, delays, or issues, to the team so they know
how the project is progressing. Keeping everyone informed is essential to the project’s
success.
- Recognize efforts
Sometimes, when you work with cross-functional teams, there are certain skills that get
recognized more than others. A mechanic could get accolades for coming up with the
solution to a problem within the project, while the finance member who sourced the
funding might be forgotten. As a project manager, it is your job to make sure that each
member of your cross-functional team recognizes the value of their efforts each step of
the way. You have learned the importance of building relationships with stakeholders,
and building relationships with your cross-functional team members is just as important.
Learning what makes your team members feel supported, giving and taking feedback,
and being mindful of each individual's background, personal identifiers, and work style
can help mediate some of the differences among team members.

- Key takeaway
Being able to communicate clearly with team members, clarify the goals of the project,
get team members with the right skills, measure team progress, and recognize team
members’ efforts is an important part of your role as the project manager, and is key to
your project’s success.
2.10 Elita: A day in the life of a project manager
A great project manager is some funky combination of EMT, ninja, and jazz musician.
An EMT who can show up on a scene that's full of chaos, figure out what needs to
happen now, triage all of the things on site, and then develop a plan of action while also
participating in that action. A ninja, because you have to be stealth about how you go
about influencing other people. Overt action or pushing people too hard isn't necessarily
received well. A jazz musician, particularly a jazz drummer, who keeps a steady beat as
a lot of things are happening around you. On a team, you're going to be surrounded by a
bunch of talented people.
The more organized you are in your actions, the more organized your team is in their
thinking and their actions.
I think it's important to make a decision to get yourself unstuck, to follow through on that
action, learn some things and decide to take a new action once you've learned
something.
2.11 The core skills of a project manager
Skills a project manager can bring to their role, there are four specific skill sets that we
think can help a project manager be successful. Those are enabling decision-making,
communicating and escalating, flexibility, and strong organizational skills.
Enabling decision-making. The ability to enable decision-making on the team, or
gathering decisions from the appropriate leader, is crucial to keep projects on task and
achieve their goals. Lots of the day-to-day decisions within a project will likely fall to you
and your teammates to discuss and agree on.
Communicating and escalating. As a project manager, you'll use your communication
skills in just about everything you do. This might look like documenting plans, sending
emails about the status of the project, or holding a meeting to escalate risks or issues to
stakeholders.
Flexibility. As a project manager, knowing how to be flexible when changes are needed
is key. Plans definitively will change, even with careful upfront planning.
Strong organizational skills. As you learned earlier, the role of a project manager
requires using a lot of different processes to keep the project on track. Having strong
organizational skills means having the ability to organize these processes and the core
elements of a project to ensure nothing gets lost or overlooked, which trust me, can and
does happen. To prevent this, you might decide to track daily tasks in a spreadsheet or
send frequent status updates or reminders.
To recap, decision-making, communicating and escalating, flexibility, and strong
organizational skills are four core skill sets that are essential to successful project
management. You can continue to build on these skills by becoming familiar with
industry knowledge that applies to most project management roles.
2.12 Key competencies: Flexibility and handling ambiguity
Enabling decision-making
You can help team members feel empowered from the start of your project by making
the decision-making process collaborative. For example, state the goals of specific
deliverables and elicit input from your team on how to achieve those goals. You may
have an idea of how you would like certain tasks to be accomplished, but your team
members may have more creative or efficient approaches. Empowering your team to
express their opinions and make their own decisions allows you to focus on the
overarching management tasks and prioritize them in order of importance. Additionally,
when you allow team members to have a voice in decisions, it helps foster an
environment of responsibility, accountability, and team closeness.
Communicating and escalating
Project management requires clearly communicating project goals and expectations,
team member roles and responsibilities, and constructive feedback. Knowing how to
effectively communicate and when to escalate issues to management is key to keeping
you, your team, and your organization on the path to success. When escalation is
required, try to approach management with both the problem and the potential solution
or suggestions. This will show that you’re taking initiative as a project manager.

Strong organizational skills

If you demonstrate that it is important for you, as a leader, to stay organized through
efficient tracking and communications, your team will follow suit. One way to do this is by
utilizing the abundance of organizational tools available, such as:
 Planning and scheduling software (templates, workflows, calendars)
 Collaboration tools (email, collaboration software, dashboards)
 Documentation (files, plans, spreadsheets)
 Quality assurance tools (evaluations, productivity trackers, reports)
You may need to experiment with different organizational approaches to determine what
works best for you and your team.
Flexibility
All project managers need the ability to adapt and overcome changes and challenges.
Let’s further explore why flexibility is such a critical project management skill and
discuss how it can help prepare your team for change, mitigate risks, and handle
ambiguity.
Flexible planning
Change is inevitable, and the more flexible you are as a project manager, the more
successful you will be throughout your career. These flexible planning strategies can
help you manage your project during times of unpredictability:
 Assess external constraints. When planning your project, take external events
into account, such as national holidays and team member vacations and sick
leave. Leaving extra time in the schedule for these inevitable events up front can
help minimize the impact to your project.
 Plan for risks and challenges. If you consider the risks that may occur, you may
be able to find solutions for them in advance. For example, what if someone on
your team gets sick or decides to quit? Are you able to replace them within the
company? If not, can you hire an independent contractor? Come up with a list of
people who may be able to join your team if one of your team members becomes
 unavailable. You can also assess risks by looking at historical data. Review your
past projects and examine the challenges you faced. Then evaluate if similar
challenges could occur in this project and prepare accordingly. We will discuss
risk management at length later in this program.
 Calculate “float” in your schedule. Float, or slack, refers to the amount of time
you can wait to begin a task before it impacts the project schedule and threatens
the project outcome. Identifying float in your schedule can help with resource
management, scheduling, and keeping your project on track. You will learn more
about calculating float in a later course, when we discuss creating a critical path
for your project tasks.
Handling ambiguity
Ambiguity can be a big challenge in managing projects. Project managers often face
ambiguity in goals, requirements, schedules, vision, or other areas related to the project.
Your team will look to you to lead during times of ambiguity and change, and flexibility is
especially important during these instances. Here are some different ways to help your
team deal with ambiguity:
 Keep calm. In uncertain times, handling ambiguity with grace and poise will help
inspire the members of your team to do the same.
 Express empathy. As a project manager, it is important to try to understand what
your team is thinking and feeling, especially during times of ambiguity. Let your
team members know that you care about the challenges they are facing and are
there to support them.
 Communicate what you know clearly. Define the aspects of the project that are
confirmed and will not change. This helps your team get a better sense of what to
expect, regardless of any aspects of the project that are still unknown or
changing.
 Make decisions and stick to them. Try not to second-guess your decisions in
front of your team since this can lead to greater uncertainty. If you need to
change course, clearly explain why you have chosen to do so to your team.
 Trust the expertise of your team. Increase clarity by having everyone on your
team discuss what they already know or believe to be true about components of
your project, such as what is involved in specific tasks or resources needed,
based on their areas of expertise. Then, discuss what you still don’t know and
brainstorm ways to gather more information.
Key takeaway
As a project manager, having the flexibility and ability to handle ambiguity in a rapidly-
changing business setting gives you an advantage. Mastering these competencies,
along with enabling decision-making, effective communication skills, and strong
organizational skills, will allow you to innovate and grow as a project manager and
leader.
2.13 Rachel: My journey to becoming a project manager
Skills that I polished while being a bartender informed my everyday work. My job was to
help people through that experience, the aesthetic experience of meeting with each
other, making decisions, and coming to conclusions together.
You have to understand their unique needs. Program Management isn't just about the
process and the artifacts that you create, it's about how you relate to people.
2.14 Common myths about project managers
Myth: You have to be an expert in the field and have a lot of technical knowledge about
the project.
Reality: There are benefits to the project manager not having a lot of technical
knowledge about a project. Rather than getting caught up in the technical details when
communicating with management and stakeholders, the project manager can look at all
of the different pieces that the cross-functional team is working on and assess how they
each contribute to the success of the project. As a project manager, you bring on the
right team members—with their differing areas of expertise—and trust them to be able to
focus on the technical aspects of the project. Your job is to handle the communication,
documentation, and organization necessary to get the project successfully to the finish
line.
Scenario: Jamar just landed his first project management job with a construction
company. He’s been tasked with managing the construction of a new elementary school
in his city. He isn’t expected to know how to do all of the technical skills, like
engineering, construction, plumbing, and electrical; he hires the right people for the job.
He communicates the needs, timelines, and expectations of the project to his team
members and stakeholders and helps break down any barriers to completing the project
on time. Jamar helps the engineers and construction workers communicate with one
another to ensure that they are all on the same page regarding the requirements. He
makes sure that the materials are in place as needed for the plumbers and electricians.
The bottom line: Project managers hire the experts and help put all the pieces of the
project together. Project managers don’t need to be experts in every field.
Myth: Only people with a lot of experience within an organization can manage projects
successfully.
Reality: It is a common misconception that anyone who has significant experience and
success in an organization can manage projects there. In order to successfully manage
projects in any organization, you must acquire the necessary skills, knowledge, tools,
and techniques and be able to apply them. You don’t necessarily need to have worked
in previous roles at that organization. In taking this certification, you are learning and
practicing how to be an effective project manager before taking on a position.
Scenario: Sofia is a supervisor at a large customer service call center. She has been
recognized by leadership as a top performer. To reward her, management has offered
her the role of project manager for the implementation of a new call center software
program. It will be her job to oversee the installation, training, and implementation of the
new process. Sofia tries to manage the project, but she has no idea how to create a
project plan, manage the various members of her team, identify risks, or handle any of
the other major project management tasks. She lets her manager know that she does
not have the appropriate training to manage the project but that she would like to build
those skills. Sofia’s manager enrolls her in a project management training course so that
she will have the necessary skills to manage projects in the future.
The bottom line: To be a successful project manager at any organization—regardless of
whether you have worked there previously—it is essential to master the skills, tools, and
techniques of project management.
Myth: You have to know every single detail about the project at all times.
Reality: Details matter in project execution, but as a project manager, you must also
focus on the big picture and strategy for the project. What is the end goal? Do you and
your team have a clear direction? If the whole team understands their objectives and
has what they need to be successful in their tasks, they can work on the individual
details and provide you space to supervise the overall project goals. Open lines of
communication will help ensure that your team members share any possible risks to the
budget or schedule with you.
Scenario: Yui is a project manager working for a clothing company. The company is
developing a new line of winter sleepwear that is set to launch in late October. Yui
meets with the key stakeholders to determine their goals and timeline for the project.
She recruits employees from the merchandising, exports, marketing, materials,
production, and quality control departments to be a part of the project team. Yui meets
with her team at the start of the project to clarify the objectives for the product line and
checks in with them regularly to remove any barriers and find out where they need
additional support. When a team member from the materials department informs Yui
that the fabric they were planning on using for a particular style of pajamas has
increased in price, Yui works with the team member to find a new supplier so that the
overall project budget is not impacted.
The bottom line: Your role as a project manager is to communicate with your
stakeholders, clarify objectives, and set expectations. Trust your team to handle the
details of each project task and communicate with you when there’s an issue. Through
your direct communication and strategic approach to problem-solving, you can provide
solutions and help remove barriers for your team. This is where you add value!
We have just busted three project management myths! Recognizing these truths will
help you be more confident and successful as you pursue your project manager career.
2.15 Leadership and team dynamics
Influencing without authority, which refers to a project manager's ability to guide
teammates to complete their assigned work without acting as their direct managers.
Skills include communication, negotiation, conflict mediation, and understanding
motivations.
- Communication can include checking in with teammates to understand how they're
progressing on a task and providing clear feedback on the quality of a teammate's work.
- Negotiation might include working with a teammate to compromise on a new deadline
when they tell you that they won't be able to complete their work on time. Now, trust me,
I know this can be frustrating, but you'll need to use your negotiation skills often with
your teammates and stakeholders to balance their needs and what is best for the
project.
- Conflict mediation. As we mentioned, project plans can change and issues will arise.
This can sometimes lead to tension and conflict within the team. Conflict mediation is a
great skill to practice and develop to ensure the project does not suffer as a result.
- Understanding motivations. This means getting to know your teammates and figuring
out what pushes them to do their best work. Understanding motivations might also
include learning how your teammates prefer to receive feedback, and how they like to
receive recognition for doing a great job.
Influencing without authority is one of the most critical and one of the most challenging
aspects of project management. As you've just learned, you'll need to leverage your
interpersonal skills in order to do it effectively.
2.16 Ellen: Traits of a successful project manager
I think a successful project manager is somebody who really knows how to pull together
a group of people.
Building a project management team is having a really diverse set of folks with different
backgrounds, different experiences. We're a global company, so we're really trying to
make sure we are a global team as well.
How do I continue to grow as a project manager? My answer is, work on different
projects, work on as many projects as you can, but don't be afraid to try different areas,
different domains, work with different people. With every project you work on, you're
going to really learn something.
MODULO 3
3.1 Introduction: The project management life cycle and methodologies
3.2 Exploring the phases of the project life cycle
You need to think about things like your available resources, the people you'll be
working with, the election date, and the location. You need to be aware of lots of details
to successfully complete your project. Because so many different things can impact a
project, it's important to understand its basic structure.
The main phases of a project are initiate the project, make a plan, execute and complete
tasks, and finally, close the project.
- Initiate the project. This is the launchpad for the entire process of your
project. In this phase, you'll define project goals and deliverables, identify
the budget and resources you'll need, the people involved in your project,
and any other details that can impact the successful completion of your
project. You'll document all this information in one place to showcase the
project's value, and hopefully get approval to move forward with it. Once
the project is approved, it's time to get rolling.
- Make a plan for how you will meet the goals of your project. There are all
kinds of ways to plan your project, and we'll get into some different
methods and techniques later on. Right now, the important thing to know is
that for every single project, creating a plan of how you're going to meet
your goals is absolutely 100 percent essential.
- Execute and complete those tasks. It's important to point out that your
project team has the job of completing the project tasks. As a project
manager, your role's a little different. While you might be in charge of
completing certain tasks in the project, your primary tasks as the project
manager are to monitor progress and keep your team motivated. You also
remove any obstacles that might come up so that the tasks are executed
well and on time.
- Closing the project is also a chance to evaluate how the project went. You
can make note of what worked and what didn't so you can plan better for
next time. Even if the project was a massive success, it's helpful to take
time to reflect. Closing the project is also a great way to connect with
anyone outside your team who may have had interest in the project's goal.
You can let everyone know what was completed and what you
accomplished. Some projects like the campaign example will have a firm
end date.
I once project managed the creation of a dashboard that would be used by various
stakeholders in my organization. This dashboard would show pertinent information to
each stakeholder, depending on the team that they were a part of in our broader
organization. I project managed the beginning, from writing up the vision for the project
to the end where we delivered the dashboard.
The project life-cycle. The exact name for each phase might change depending on the
type of project or organization you work for. The general idea stays the same. Following
the project processes, you will learn in this course will set you up for project
management success.
3.3 Case study: The significance of each project phase
- The consequences of rushing through a project phase
It’s Friday night when Jason, a project manager at a company that specializes in virtual
reality software, receives an urgent call from his manager, Mateo. Mateo tells Jason that
he needs a cost and timeline for a virtual reality training program for Flight Simulators,
Inc., a company that does aircraft maintenance, by the end of the weekend.
Jason spends the weekend working through a proposal for Flight Simulators, Inc. He
quickly throws together a proposal estimating that it will cost $200,000 and take six
weeks to develop the course. This is the standard cost and time frame for developing
training on his company’s platform. He sends the proposal over to Flight Simulators, Inc.
so that he can meet their deadline.
When Jason walks into the office on Monday morning, Mateo tells him that he got
reprimanded for not following the company’s process for building out a proposal and
including the engineers in the process. The engineers take a look at the information
presented by Flight Simulators, Inc. and realize that the company’s software won’t work
with their platform. It will take six months to develop their platform to meet the needs of
the organization’s software and another six months to test the software and platform
integration. The cost to develop and test this software will be over a million dollars.
This project has failed before it even started. There’s no way to complete the request
from Flight Simulators, Inc. without impacting the budget, quality, and timeline.
-What should have happened
When his manager calls, Jason tells him that while he understands that Mateo wants to
make the customer happy by getting them a proposal promptly, he would like to take a
little more time to get the proposal right. Jason tells Mateo that he will draft up an email
to Flight Simulators, Inc. and request additional time to develop an accurate and
reasonable proposal. Mateo is hesitant but agrees.
On Monday morning, Jason sees that Flight Simulators, Inc. has responded to his
request. They appreciate the fact that he communicated his concerns about the quick
turnaround on the proposal request. They say they will give him a week to work with his
team to provide an estimate for the project.
Now Jason has the time to get all of the key players involved in estimating the effort it
will take to complete the project, including the cost, schedule, and resources.
Let’s apply the project life cycle to this project.

-Initiating the project

This is the phase Jason rushed through in the first scenario. Ideally, in this phase, Jason
discusses project goals with Flight Simulators, Inc. to gain a clear understanding of what
they are asking for. Once Jason has defined the project goals, he can gather the
stakeholders and project team members to define what needs to be done to successfully
create this training for Flight Simulators, Inc. Jason identifies the skill sets required, the
timeline, and the cost to develop the training. He identifies and documents the value that
this project creates for the company. He presents all of the information he has put
together to his company’s leadership team, who approves Jason’s proposal. Jason then
submits the proposal to Flight Simulators, Inc., and they accept it.
-Making a plan
Now that Jason has the green light to work on the project, he makes a project plan to
get from start to finish. Having a plan in place ensures that all team members and
stakeholders are prepared to complete their tasks. Jason outlines the important
deadlines and tasks for the project to be successful. He creates a schedule to account
for all resources, materials, and tasks needed to complete the project.
-Executing and completing tasks
During this project phase, Jason’s project team puts his plan in motion by executing the
work. Jason monitors his team as they complete project tasks. His role as the project
manager is not to complete the individual tasks but to help break down any barriers that
would slow or stop the team from completing their tasks. It is also Jason’s responsibility
to communicate schedule and quality expectations. Jason uses his communication skills
to keep Flight Simulators, Inc. up to date on the project status and gather feedback from
them. This keeps the project on schedule and within budget.
-Closing the project
Jason’s team has successfully completed the training, and he delivers it to Flight
Simulators, Inc. They are very pleased with how it turned out! Jason is now ready to
close this project and move on to the next one. Before he closes this chapter, Jason and
his team discuss and document the lessons learned from the project. What worked well,
and what could work better next time? Jason also puts together a small lunch gathering
for his team to celebrate and recognize their hard work.
-Key takeaway
It may seem like a lot of work to go through an entire project life cycle, but the long-term
impact it will have on your project is huge! It is your job as the project manager to make
sure that your leadership truly understands the risk of not properly preparing for a
project. Making assumptions that are incorrect can put your company at risk. Instead,
taking the time to carefully initiate, plan, execute, and close your project leads to project
success and good working relationships with customers.
3.4 Phases in action: Initiating and planning
The project life cycle phases are initiate the project, make a plan, execute and complete
tasks, and close out the project.
1. During initiation, you'll organize all of the information you have available to you
about your project. This way, when you're ready to continue on, you'll be
prepared for the next phase when you can create your plan:
 Defining project goals makes the details of your project clear so that you and your
team can successfully complete the project.
 Need to find out what resources are available. Resources can include people,
equipment, software programs, vendors, physical space or locations, and more.
 Get them approved by a decision maker or group of decision makers at your
company so that you can move ahead with your project plans.
2. Make a plan. In this phase, you'll create:
 Create a budget and
 Set the project schedule.
 You'll establish the project team
 Determine each person's roles and responsibilities.
 Planning for risk and change
An experienced project manager knows that plans always change. This ability to adapt
is all about thinking and planning ahead. Scheduling delays, budget changes,
technology and software requirements, legal issues, quality control, and access to
resources are just some of the more common types of risks and changes that a project
manager needs to consider. So, it's important to keep in mind that planning is key to
reducing those risks.
Once you have a plan, you'll communicate all of this information to your team. That way,
each member will know which tasks they'll own and what to do if they have questions or
if they run into problems. You'll also communicate your plan with others who have an
interest in the project success, so that they are aware of your plans and your progress
as the project continues to move forward.
3.5 Phases in action: Executing and closing
- Executing
1. Your primary job as the project manager is to manage the progress of the project as a
whole. This means you'll oversee your team's efforts and make sure everyone
understands what's expected of them, what tasks need to be done, and how and when
to complete those tasks. It's also your job to help remove any obstacles and to alert the
right people if it looks like there might be a delay to the project.
2. Communicate with your team, and anyone else involved in your project through
meetings, written communications like memos, emails or internal chat tools, and other
working documents like task reports. Quick pro tip, if in doubt, err on the side of
overcommunication.
3. Make adjustments to the schedule, budget, and allocation of resources, clearly
communicating updates all along the way.
- Closing
1. Check to make sure all tasks have been completed, including any work that was
added along the way. Be sure any outstanding invoices have been paid, resources are
returned and accounted for, and project documentation has been submitted.
2. Get confirmation that the final outcome of your project is acceptable to the people
you're delivering it to. It is crucial to your project's success that the person who asked
you to manage the project is satisfied with the end result.
3. Take some time to reflect on what went well and maybe what didn't go so well. This
reflection is usually called a retrospective, and it's a chance to note best practices and
learn how to manage your project more effectively next time, even if everything went
great.
4. Share the final results of your project with your stakeholders. Remember,
stakeholders are people who are interested in and affected by the project's completion
and success. Depending on the type of project, stakeholders could include a department
or organization's management team, clients or customers of your product or service,
users of your new tool or process, or even the community at large if you're planning a
community town hall meeting.
5. Take some time to celebrate the effort your team invested in the project. Celebrations
help people feel good about the work they've done, and think of the work as uplifting and
rewarding because it truly is. Some ideas for small celebrations are a company or team-
wide email, thanking the team and acknowledging individual efforts. Now for big
projects, you may even consider a company party to celebrate the team and the project
success.
6. Formally move on from the project so that you can pursue new projects in the future.
Your guidance, your communication, and your team-building can make the difference in
a happy, high-performing, and successful team.
3.6 Summary of the project phases
The project life cycle is the path for your project from start to finish. Each project phase
builds toward the subsequent phase and helps to create a structure for the project. To
recap, the main phases of the project life cycle are: initiating the project, making a plan,
executing and completing tasks, and closing the project.
In this reading, we will summarize each phase of the project life cycle.

The project life cycle

Initiate the project
In this phase, ask questions to help set the foundation for the project, such as:
 Who are the stakeholders?
 What are the client’s or customer’s goals?
 What is the purpose and mission of the project?
 What are the measurable objectives for the team?
 What is the project trying to improve?
 When does this project need to be completed?
 What skills and resources will the project require?
 What will the project cost? What are the benefits?
Make a plan
In this phase, make a plan to get your project from start to finish.
 Create a detailed project plan. What are the major milestones? What tasks or
deliverables make up each milestone?
  Build out the schedule so you can properly manage the resources, budget,
materials, and timeline. Here, you will create an itemized budget.
Execute the project
In this phase, put all of your hard work from the first two phases into action.
 Monitor your project team as they complete project tasks.
 Break down any barriers that would slow or stop the team from completing tasks.
 Help keep the team aware of schedule and deliverable expectations.
 Address weaknesses in your process or examine places where your team may
need additional training to meet the project’s goals.
 Adapt to changes in the project as they arise.
Close the project
In this phase, close out the project.
 Identify that your team has completed all of the requested outcomes.
 Release your team so they can support other projects within the company.
 Take time with your team to celebrate your successes!
 Pass off all remaining deliverables and get stakeholder approval.
 Document the lessons you and your team learned during the project.
 Reflect on ways to improve in the future.
Key takeaway
Each phase of the project life cycle has its own significance and reason for existing. By
following the project life cycle, you’re ensuring that you are:
 Capturing the expectations of your customer
 Setting your project up for success with a plan
 Executing project tasks and addressing any issues that arise
 Closing out your project to capture any lessons learned
As you continue through this course, we will walk through each project phase in more
detail
3.7 Introduction to project management methodologies
A project management methodology is a set of guiding principles and processes for
owning a project through its life cycle. Project management methodologies help guide
project managers throughout a project with steps to take, tasks to complete, and
principles for managing the project overall.
Two different types linear and iterative:

 Linear means the previous phase or task has to be completed before the next
can start. Using this type of linear project management approach, completing
each step in order and sticking to the agreed upon specific results and being able
to deliver just what the client ordered.
 Iterative, more flexible approach where some of the phases in tasks will overlap
or happen at the same time that other tasks are being worked on. Because of the
iterative approach, plans remain flexible and you're able to make adjustments as
you go along. Each of these projects, benefits from a different approach to how
tasks will be carried out, in order to best meet the project's goals.
Linear projects don't require many changes during development and have a clear
sequential process. If you stick to the plan, it's likely you'll finish your tasks within the
time schedule and all other criteria. Iterative projects allow for more flexibility and
anticipate changes.
What is a project management methodology? A set of guiding principles and processes
for owning a project through its life cycle, a project management methodology is a set of
guiding principles and processes for owning a project through its life cycle. The method
can be linear (with one task completed before the next can begin) or iterative (with some
tasks happening at the same time).
3.8 Overview of Waterfall and Agile
Two of the most popular project management methodologies are Waterfall and Agile:
-Waterfall as a methodology was created in the 70s, and refers to the sequential
ordering of phases. Waterfall has a linear approach; Common, though, is that they follow
an ordered set of steps that are directly linked to clearly defined expectations,
resources, and goals that are not likely to change.
The phases of a Waterfall project life cycle follow the same standard project life cycle
flow that you learned about earlier. Initiating, planning, executing, which includes
managing and completing tasks, and closing.
When would you want to use a Waterfall approach to project management? Well, when
the phases of the project are clearly defined or when there are tasks to complete before
another can begin, or when changes to the project are very expensive to implement
once it's started.
Approach will help you identify the right people and tasks, plan accordingly to avoid any
hiccups along the way, create room for documenting your plans and progress, and
enable you to hit that goal.
 When would a project manager want to use the Waterfall approach? When the phases
of the project are clearly defined, When there are tasks to complete before another can
begin, When project changes are expensive to implement once it's started; Waterfall has
a linear approach. It follows an ordered set of steps that are linked to clearly defined
expectations, resources, and goals that are not likely to change. This is a helpful
approach when project changes are expensive to implement once it's started.
The Waterfall method has some risk management practices to help avoid and deal with
project changes. Luckily, there are other methodologies that are entirely built for change
and flexibility.
-Agile means being able to move quickly and easily. It also refers to flexibility, which
means being willing and able to change and adapt. Projects that use an Agile approach
often have many tasks being worked on at the same time, or in various stages of
completion which makes it an iterative approach.
Agile project phases overlap and tasks are completed in iterations, which in Scrum, are
called sprints. Scrum is a form of Agile that you'll learn more about in the course focused
entirely on Agile, and by sprint, we do not mean running a race as fast as possible.
It's concerned with building an effective, collaborative team that seeks regular feedback
from the client so that they can deliver the best value as quickly as possible and adjust
as changes emerge.
Projects that are best suited for an Agile approach are those where the client has an
idea of what they want but doesn't have a concrete picture in mind, or they have a set of
qualities they'd like to see in the end result, but aren't as concerned with exactly what it
looks like. Another indicator that a project may benefit from Agile is the level of high
uncertainty and risk involved with the project.
Having a basic understanding of Waterfall and Agile will help you figure out an effective
way to organize and plan out your project.
3.9 Comparing Waterfall and Agile approaches
Let's compare specific aspects of Waterfall (also commonly called traditional) and Agile
approaches.
Waterfall and Agile are implemented in many different ways on many different projects,
and some projects may use aspects of each. The chart below briefly describes and
compares Waterfall and Agile approaches.
Waterfall Agile
Scrum Master acts primarily as a
Project manager serves as an active facilitator, removing any barriers the
Project
leader by prioritizing and assigning team faces. Team shares more
manager's role
tasks to team members. responsibility in managing their own
work.
Project deliverables and plans are Planning happens in shorter
Scope
well-established and documented in iterations and focuses on delivering
 the early stages of initiating and value quickly. Subsequent
planning. Changes go through a iterations are adjusted in response
formal change request process. to feedback or unforeseen issues.
Time is organized into phases
Follows a mostly linear path through called Sprints. Each Sprint has a
Schedule the initiating, planning, executing, and defined duration, with a set list of
closing phases of the project. deliverables planned at the start of
the Sprint.
Costs are kept under control by careful
estimation up front and close Costs and schedule could change
Cost
monitoring throughout the life cycle of with each iteration.
the project.
Team solicits ongoing stakeholder
Project manager makes plans and
input and user feedback by testing
Quality clearly defines criteria to measure
products in the field and regularly
quality at the beginning of the project.
implementing improvements.
Communication Project manager continually Team is customer-focused, with
communicates progress toward consistent communication between
milestones and other key indicators to users and the project team.
stakeholders, ensuring that the project
is on track to meet the customer’s
expectations.
Stakeholders Project manager continually manages Team frequently provides
and monitors stakeholder engagement deliverables to stakeholders
to ensure the project is on track. throughout the project. Progress
toward milestones is dependent
upon stakeholder feedback.

3.10 Introduction to Lean and Six Sigma

Lean Six Sigma is one more you can add. It's a combination of two parent
methodologies, Lean and Six Sigma. The uses for Lean Six Sigma are common in
projects that have goals to save money, improve quality, and move through processes
quickly. It also focuses on team collaboration which promotes a positive work
environment. There are five phases in the Lean Six Sigma approach. They are Define,
Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control, commonly known as DMAIC.
1. Define the project goal and what it will take to meet it. This first phase is
very similar to the initiation phase of traditional project management.
You're going to need to define the project goal and talk to stakeholders
about expectations for the project.
2. Measure how the current process is performing. In order to improve
processes, DMAIC focuses on data. Here you want to map out the current
process and locate exactly where the problems are and what kind of effect
the problems have on the process.
3. Analyze. Here, you'll begin to identify gaps and issues.
 4. Improve. Oftentimes, project managers may want to leap straight to this
phase but really projects in process improvements should only be made
after a careful analysis. This is the point where you present your findings
and get ready to start making improvements.
5. Control. You've gotten the process and project to a good place, and now
it's time to implement it and keep it there. Controlling is all about learning
from the work you did up front to put new processes and documentation in
place and continue to monitor so the company doesn't revert back to the
old, inefficient way of doing things.
Defining tells you what to measure, measuring tells you what to analyze, analyzing tells
you what to improve, and improving tells you what to control.
In which DMAIC step do project managers begin to identify gaps and issues? Analyze,
In DMAIC, the analyze step is when project managers learn what to improve by
identifying gaps and issues.
Lean Six Sigma and the DMAIC approach are ideal when the project goal includes
improving the current process to fix complex or high risk problems like improving sales,
conversions, or eliminating a bottleneck, which is when things get backed up during a
process.
Following the DMAIC process prevents the likelihood of skipping important steps and
increases the chances of a successful project. As a way for your team to discover best
practices that your client can use going forward, it uses data and focuses on the
customer or end-user to solve problems in a way that builds on previous learning so that
you can discover effective permanent solutions for difficult problems.
3.11 Lean and Six Sigma methodologies
- Lean
Lean methodology is often referred to as Lean Manufacturing because it originated in
the manufacturing world. The main principle in Lean methodology is the removal of
waste within an operation. By optimizing process steps and eliminating waste, only
value is added at each phase of production.
Today, the Lean Manufacturing methodology recognizes eight types of waste within an
operation: defects, excess processing, overproduction, waiting, inventory, transportation,
motion, and non-utilized talent. In the manufacturing industry, these types of waste are
often attributed to issues such as:
 Lack of proper documentation
 Lack of process standards
 Not understanding the customers’ needs
 Lack of effective communication
 Lack of process control
  Inefficient process design
 Failures of management
These same issues create waste in project management.
Implement Lean project management when you want to use limited resources, reduce
waste, and streamline processes to gain maximum benefits.
You can achieve this by using the pillars of the Lean 5S quality tool. The term 5S refers
to the five pillars that are required for good housekeeping: sort, set in order, shine,
standardize, and sustain. Implementing the 5S method means cleaning up and
organizing the workplace to achieve the smallest amount of wasted time and material.
The 5S method includes these five steps:
1. Sort: Remove all items not needed for current production operations and leave
only the bare essentials.
2. Set in order: Arrange needed items so that they are easy to use. Label items so
that anyone can find them or put them away.
3. Shine: Keep everything in the correct place. Clean your workspace every day.
4. Standardize: Perform the process in the same way every time.
5. Sustain: Make a habit of maintaining correct procedures and instill this discipline
in your team.
Within the Lean methodology, 5S helps you boost performance.
The final concept of Lean uses a Kanban scheduling system to manage production. The
Kanban scheduling system, or Kanban board, is a visualization tool that enables you to
optimize the flow of your team’s work. It gives the team a visual display to identify what
needs to be done and when. The Kanban board uses cards that are moved from left to
right to show progress and help your team coordinate the work.
Kanban boards and 5S are core methods of the Lean methodology. They can help you
successfully manage your project. Now let’s analyze the Six Sigma method and learn
when is the best time to use it.
Six Sigma is a methodology used to reduce variations by ensuring that quality
processes are followed every time. The term “Six Sigma” originates from statistics and
generally means that items or processes should have 99.9996% quality.
The seven key principles of Six Sigma are:
1. Always focus on the customer.
2. Identify and understand how the work gets done. Understand how work really
happens.
3. Make your processes flow smoothly.
4. Reduce waste and concentrate on value.
5. Stop defects by removing variation.
6. Involve and collaborate with your team.
7. Approach improvement activity in a systematic way.
Use this methodology to find aspects of the product or process that are measurable like
time, cost, or quantity. Then inspect that measurable item and reject any products that
do not meet the Six Sigma standard. Any process that created unacceptable products
has to be improved upon.
Lean Six Sigma
After both Lean and Six Sigma were put into practice, it was discovered that the two
methodologies could be combined to increase benefits. The tools used in Lean, such as
Kanban boards and 5S, build quality in processes from the beginning. Products
developed using Lean methods are then inspected or tested using Six Sigma standards.
The products that do not meet these standards are rejected.
The largest difference between these methodologies is that Lean streamlines processes
while Six Sigma reduces variation in products by building in quality from the beginning
and inspecting products to ensure quality standards are met. You may find that one of
these two methods—or using them both together—can improve the efficiency of your
projects.
3.12 Common project management approaches and how to select one
Popular project management approaches
Below is a brief recap of some of the project management approaches you’ve been
introduced to so far:
-Waterfall is a traditional methodology in which tasks and phases are completed in a
linear, sequential manner, and each stage of the project must be completed before the
next begins. The project manager is responsible for prioritizing and assigning tasks to
team members. In Waterfall, the criteria used to measure quality is clearly defined at the
beginning of the project.
-Agile involves short phases of collaborative, iterative work with frequent testing and
regularly-implemented improvements. Some phases and tasks happen at the same time
as others. In Agile projects, teams share responsibility for managing their own work.
Scrum and Kanban are examples of Agile frameworks, which are specific development
approaches based on the Agile philosophy.
-Scrum is an Agile framework that focuses on developing, delivering, and sustaining
complex projects and products through collaboration, accountability, and an iterative
process. Work is completed by small, cross-functional teams led by a Scrum Master and
is divided into short Sprints with a set list of deliverables.
-Kanban is a tool used in both Agile and Lean approaches that provides visual feedback
about the status of the work in progress through the use of Kanban boards or charts.
With Kanban, project managers use sticky notes or note cards on a physical or digital
Kanban board to represent the team’s tasks with categories like “To do,” “In progress,”
and “Done.”
-Lean uses the 5S quality tool to eliminate eight areas of waste, save money, improve
quality, and streamline processes. Lean’s principles state that you can do more with less
by addressing dysfunctions that create waste. Lean implements a Kanban scheduling
system to manage production.
-Six Sigma involves reducing variations by ensuring that quality processes are followed
every time. The Six Sigma method follows a process-improvement approach called
DMAIC, which stands for define, measure, analyze, improve, and control.
-Lean Six Sigma is a combination of Lean and Six Sigma approaches. It is often used
in projects that aim to save money, improve quality, and move through processes
quickly. Lean Six Sigma is also ideal for solving complex or high-risk problems. The 5S
organization framework, the DMAIC process, and the use of Kanban boards are all
components of this approach.
Despite their differences, all of these project management methodologies require
communication and collaboration among various teams and aim to deliver projects on
time and within budget.
Selecting a project management approach
With so many methodologies available, there are many options that would work well for
your project. Since projects and the organizations in which you will execute them vary
greatly, the approach you choose to implement for each project will vary. At Google, we
often use a hybrid of approaches and frameworks to efficiently meet the project goal! All
approaches can be combined with others, depending on the needs of your project.
3.13 Wrap up
Your goal in choosing a methodology is to maximize the use of resources and time. The
method, or combination of methods, will help you reach your goal in the most efficient
and effective way. This might feel like choice overload right here, but hang in there. With
time and practice, you will become more comfortable with the benefits and limits of
different methodologies, and you'll be able to approach your project assignments with
confidence.
MODULO 4
4.1 Introduction: Organizational structure and
4.2 Overview of Classic and Matrix structures
What is organizational structure? Organizational structure refers to the way a company
or organization is arranged or structured. This structure also tells you how job tasks are
divided and coordinated and how all the different members of the organization relate to
one another. In other words, organizational structure gives you a sense of who reports
to who.
Organization's structure is most commonly mapped out using a reporting chart or "org
chart," which is short for "organizational chart." Reporting charts show the relationship
between people and groups within the organization, and details who each person or
group reports to.
There are a few different types of organizational structures, but in this course focus in
two: Classic and Matrix
The Classic grouping includes what are usually called "functional" or "top-down"
structures. The Classic grouping follows a typical chain of command where the Chief
Executive Officer, also known as CEO, and other executives are at the top, followed by
directors or managers, then their direct reports and so on. Each of these directors or
managers typically oversee teams within their function of the organization, like
marketing, sales, or human resources.
Matrix structure as a grid where you still have people above you, but you also have
people in adjacent departments who expect to hear updates on your work progress.
These people may not be your direct bosses, but you are responsible for communicating
with them, since they may inform changes to your work.
To recap, the Classic structure follows a traditional, top-down system of reporting, and
the Matrix structure has direct higher-ups to report to and stakeholders from other
departments or programs.
During an interview, you can ask about the type of organizational structure the company
uses and where your role will fit in.
4.3 A project manager's role within different organizational structures
Classic organizational structures
The Classic organizational structure is a top-down hierarchy system, where a Chief
Executive Officer (CEO) has direct authority over several department managers. The
department manager has direct authority over several other sections of employees. This
system requires communication both up and down the ladder. In a Classic structure,
authority comes from the top and filters to the bottom. Frequent reporting of project
status updates may be required to pass up through management levels to keep higher
leaders informed.
Classic organizations are also referred to as functional organizations because the
organization is divided into departments based on function. Each department is led by a
functional manager, and employees are grouped according to the functions of their role.
For example, the main function of Friendly Skies Airlines, an airline company, is to fly
airplanes. There are typically departments logically arranged to fulfill other important
company functions, such as Marketing, Human Resources, and Strategy. Employees
usually have a specialty within the organization and may not work within other areas
during normal everyday operations.

Managing a project in a Classic organization

Friendly Skies Airlines has a Classic organizational structure, as indicated by its
reporting or “org” chart.
Matrix organizational structures
The Matrix structure differs from the Classic structure in that the employees have two or
more managers. In Matrix structures, you still have people above you, but you also have
people in adjacent departments with whom you will need to communicate on your work
progress. Functional areas tend to cross paths more frequently, and depending on the
nature of the work, the responsible manager for each area has the most authority.
As a project manager in a Matrix organization, a team will essentially have at least two
chains of command, or managers. You can think of the project manager as being a
temporary manager while assigned to the team. The functional manager is consistent
regardless of the project a project manager is supporting. The visual below illustrates
what the Friendly Skies Airlines would look like if it had a Matrix organizational structure.
Key takeaway
In both Classic and Matrix organizations, project managers must clearly define roles and
responsibilities in order to work effectively. However, within most Matrix organizations,
some project managers or department leads may have the same level of authority as
the functional managers and operate more directly.
Now you know how to identify Classic and Matrix organizational structures, how project
managers fit into them, and how an organization’s structure may affect projects. You are
well on your way to becoming a great project manager in any organizational structure!
4.4 How organizational structure impacts project management
An organization's structure provides the framework for accountability and
communication. As the project manager, it's vital that you understand who you're
reporting to on each project, and just as importantly, who the members of your team
report to. Knowing the organizational structure also tells you how and where to get the
resources you'll need so you can get the project done efficiently.
Authority has to do with your ability to make decisions for the project that impact the
organization. Managing a project is a lot easier when you know how to access the
people, equipment, and budget that you need.
In a Classic structure, you may depend on the managers in your organization to approve
resources. Matrix structure. The main difference with a Matrix structure is that
employees often have two or more managers or leaders they'll need to work with and
update. Your team members will have their functional manager and you, the project
manager. If members are working on multiple projects, they may have even more
managers. This can affect your authority as a project manager, as you will need to
cooperate with more than one leader in the organization. Matrix structures emphasize a
strong project focus from the team and the organization.
4.5 The role of a Project Management Office
What is a PMO?
A Project Management Office, or PMO, is a group within an organization that defines,
sets, and helps maintain project management standards and processes throughout that
organization. It often acts as a coordinated center for all of the organization’s projects,
helping them run more smoothly and efficiently.
An organization’s project managers may operate within the PMO itself or within other
departments
What are the functions of a PMO?
PMOs offer guidance and support to their organization’s project managers. They share
best practices, project statuses, and direction for all of the organization’s projects while
often taking on strategic projects themselves. The main functions of a PMO include:
-Strategic planning and governance
This is the most important function of a PMO. This involves defining project criteria,
selecting projects according to the organization’s business goals, and then providing a
business case for those projects to management.
-Best practices
PMOs help implement best practices and processes within their organization. They also
share lessons learned from previous successful projects. They help ensure consistency
among their organization’s projects by providing guidance about processes, tools, and
metrics.
-Common project culture
PMOs help set common project culture practices by training employees about optimal
approaches and best practices. This helps keep project management practices
consistent and efficient across the entire organization.
-Resource management
PMOs are often responsible for managing and allocating resources—such as people
and equipment—across projects throughout the organization based on budget, priorities,
schedules, and more. They also help define the roles and responsibilities needed on any
given project. PMOs provide training, mentoring, and coaching to all employees, but
project managers in particular.
-Creation of project documentation, archives, and tools
PMOs invest in and provide templates, tools, and software to help manage projects.
They also play an important role in maintaining their organization’s project history. Once
a project closes, they archive all of the documents created during the project for future
reference and to capture lessons learned.
Key takeaway
To recap, the key purposes of a PMO include: strategic planning and governance,
implementing project management best practices, establishing common project culture,
resource management, and creating project documentation, archives, and tools. PMOs
support their organizations in managing large numbers of projects and help keep all
employees working in the same direction towards the organization’s goals.
4.6 Lan: Working in a Project Management Office
Project management office is a team of project managers. We are a group that
coordinates all of the different parts of a project together, including folks who work on
our product, engineers, and many business functions. We help bring all of those ideas to
life.
One of the most critical things that project managers get to do is they get to have a bird's
eye view of everything that's happening in a project.
One of the biggest benefits I see in working in a PMO is that you get to share a lot of
best practices with each other.
4.7 Introduction to organizational culture
An organization's culture provides context and acts as a guide for what their people
value, how they operate on a daily basis, how they relate to one another, and how they
can be expected to perform.
There are many ways to define organizational culture. Some definitions emphasize
teamwork and innovation, while others focus on attention to detail and achievement.
Entire thesis papers, workshops, and conferences are dedicated to defining and
analyzing organizational culture.
Organizational culture is in part the values employees share, as well as the
organization's values, mission, history, and so on. In other words, organizational culture
can be thought of as the company's personality.
If the company values innovation and revenue growth, it might encourage a shorter
timeline to get the product out faster, and taking some risks to try out new ideas.
As a project manager, when you understand the different types of values, and what to
prioritize, you'll have an idea of how you can better prepare for conversations within the
organization. Ideally, you'll want to have a good sense of an organization's culture
before you start the first phase of your project.
To help you gain a better sense of an organization's culture, consider the following
questions:

 How do people prefer to communicate?

 How are decisions made, majority vote or top down approvals?
 What kinds of rituals are in place when someone new comes to the office?
 How are projects typically run?
 What kinds of practices, behaviors, and values are reflected by the people in the
organization?
Navigating culture: ask questions, make observations and understand your impact.
A change agent is someone who helps the organization transform by focusing on
improving organizational effectiveness and development.
It's important to recognize the limits or boundaries of changes to implement and
understand what would be the most beneficial for the project and the company overall.
As you can see, organizational culture has a strong influence over how decisions are
made about the project. The way an organization is structured usually influences the
type of culture that exists. So it's important to consider both structure and culture when
planning and carrying out your project.
4.8 Learning about an organization’s culture
Consider this quote from Peter Drucker, an expert on management: "Culture eats
strategy for breakfast." Drucker is implying that the culture of a company always
influences its success, regardless of how effective the company’s business model may
be. Organizational culture is critical to the health of a company, the people who work
there, and the customers it serves.
-The importance of organizational culture
 Identity: An organization’s culture defines its identity. Its identity essentially
describes the way the company conducts business, both internally and
externally. A company’s values and organizational culture go hand-in-hand; its
values are part of its identity. You can almost think of an organization’s culture as
its personality. That is why it is important to learn your company’s (or target
company’s) mission and value statements. The mission and value statements will
 help you understand why the company exists and will give you insight into what
the company believes in and how it will behave.
 People: Strong, positive organizational culture helps retain a company’s best
employees. People who feel valued, engaged, and challenged are more likely to
give their best and want to drive for success. An organization’s culture can help
keep talented employees at a company, and it can attract great people too! On
the other hand, a toxic culture can have the opposite effect. It is important to find
an organization with a culture that fits your personality. One way to find out more
about an organization's culture is to talk to the people who work there. You can
also take note of the current employees’ attire, expressions, and overall behavior.
 Processes: Organizational culture can have direct impacts on a company's
processes, and ultimately, its productivity. The organization’s culture is instilled
throughout the company—from its employees to how its employees do their job.
For example, a company that values feedback and employee involvement might
have that reflected in their processes by including many opportunities for
employees to comment. By allowing employees to feel their voices are heard, this
company is adhering to its culture.
-Understanding an organization’s culture
As a project manager, it is important to understand your company’s culture, especially
because it could affect the projects you work on. Some aspects of an organization’s
culture that are directly related to how you will manage projects are communication,
decision-making, rituals, previous management styles, and values. To learn more about
a company’s culture and how it applies to you as a project manager, you can:
-Ask questions
You can learn about an organization's culture by asking questions of management and
peers. It can be helpful to ask these questions in the interview phase to better
understand the company’s culture before accepting a position. You might want to ask
questions about:
-Atmosphere
 What is the company’s dress code?
 How do people typically share credit at this company?
 Is risk-taking encouraged, and what happens when people fail?
 How do managers support and motivate their team?
 How do people in this role interact with customers and users?
 When and how do team members give feedback to one another?
  What are some workplace traditions?
 What are some of the ways the company celebrates success?
-Policies
 What are the policies around sick days and vacation?
 Does the company allow for employee flexibility (e.g., working from home, flexible
working hours)?
 What policies are in place that support employees sharing their identity in the
workplace?
-Processes
 What is the company’s onboarding process?
 How do employees measure the impact of their work?
-Values
 What are the company’s mission and value statements?
 How might the person in this role contribute to the organization’s mission?
 How does the organization support professional development and career growth?
-Listen to people’s stories
Listening to what current employees have to say and how they portray the company will
give you great insight.
 What were employees' experiences with similar projects in the past?
 What can they tell you about key stakeholders and customers?
-Take note of company rituals
Rituals can be powerful drivers of culture. They engage people and help instill a sense
of shared purpose and experience.
 How are birthdays and holidays celebrated?
 Do employees generally eat lunch at the same time and in the same place?
 Watch employee interactions: Observing how employees interact can help you
tailor your interaction style to the company norm.
 Are employee interactions more formal or informal in nature?
 Are ideas solicited from employees in different roles?
-Understand your impact
As a project manager, you become a change agent. Remember: a change agent is a
person from inside an organization who helps the organization transform by focusing on
improving organizational effectiveness and development. When you begin a new role, sit
down with management to better understand what is expected of you and how you can
make the most of the opportunity.
-Sharpen your communication skills
Interpersonal communication skills are a major part of project management. How a
company communicates is directly tied to its organizational culture. You will most likely
have interactions with various departments and management levels while executing
projects. To communicate effectively, you will need to understand how to navigate the
different channels in your company. Ask questions about communication practices when
you start a new role such as: Is it customary to sign emails from the team rather than
from you individually? Should presentations include team members or be solely
presented by the project manager? This can help you make sure you are adhering to
expectations.
Approaching projects differently from how similar projects were managed in the past
may be met with some resistance. Although some projects may call for you to break the
status quo, when you show an appreciation of your organization’s culture, you may help
your team members accept any improvements you are implementing.
Key takeaway
Organizational culture is important because it has a direct impact on you as a project
manager, and learning how to navigate organizational culture gives you a great
advantage when you are executing projects. Being able to navigate departmental
interactions, communicate effectively, and plan your project in line with the
organization’s culture will help set you up for success in your project management
career path.
4.9 Amar: Project management in life and in the organization
On a day-to-day basis, I work on bringing order into chaos.
4.10 Case study: Balancing company culture and strategic goals
The Family Java culture
The Family Java coffeehouse has over 2,000 stores worldwide. The Family Java’s
culture is closely linked to their strategy and capabilities—this is what they feel sets
them apart from other coffee shops. The company has invested in a relationship-driven,
employees-first approach. Their culture establishes that the employees are what makes
the company unique. This helps foster a warm, comfortable, and calm environment for
both employees and customers. Because The Family Java’s organizational culture has
cultivated employees who genuinely care about the company and their jobs, those
employees create the same environment for their customers to enjoy.
The Family Java’s mission and values speak to this approach directly:
Mission

 To provide a welcoming environment where our employees become our family

and our guests become our friends
Values

 To create a place where everyone is welcome

 To always give our best and hold ourselves accountable for the results
 To treat others with respect and kindness

The Family Java has worked hard to be able to create the structure to put their mission
and values into practice daily. They practice these values, all while achieving new levels
in sales and growth. For example, The Family Java believes in expressing their
employees-first value by spending more on employee healthcare than on coffee beans!
Each employee is crucial to the success of the company and their ability to fulfill their
mission and adhere to their values. In turn, the company makes their employees feel
valued by offering substantial training, education scholarships, assistance with daycare,
and growth within the company.
The Family Java is able to capitalize on the critical link between culture and strategic
goals to achieve optimal performance. When evaluating their organizational culture, the
company focuses on their positive attributes and adapts to what works and has proven
to be beneficial. By taking the time to perfect what the company does well, The Family
Java has created a culture that drives out negativity, empowers employees to be their
best selves, and aligns with their strategic goals.
A project manager’s relationship to organizational culture
Learning the company’s values
Avi was excited to begin his role as a project manager at The Family Java. He had
asked questions about the organization’s culture during his job interview and was told
about the company’s people-first approach. Avi’s previous company prioritized
profitability over teamwork and mentorship. While his previous company was very
successful, it was difficult for Avi to engage meaningfully in his work because the culture
was so focused on financial results rather than on their employees’ job satisfaction. Avi
felt like The Family Java’s approach better aligned with his own values.
Clarifying the company’s expectations
Avi’s manager at The Family Java said that his role would involve a substantial
emphasis on team building and keeping morale high. When he began, Avi asked his
manager to clarify the time investment expected by the company in order to accomplish
team- and morale-building goals. He also asked for suggestions and guidance based on
what had been done at the company in the past. If Avi had made incorrect assumptions
about the company’s culture and tried to manage projects with his previous company’s
culture in mind, he might have emphasized speed over collaboration and
communication. Avi now knew that he would need to carefully balance expectations
related to The Family Java’s culture with the project workload in order to meet project
timelines and achieve the desired outcome.
Applying organizational culture to a project
Before beginning his first project, Avi planned a team lunch to get to know everyone at
The Family Java. Then, he scheduled one-on-one meetings with each of his team
members to learn more about their working style and professional goals. He also asked
how he could help support and remove any barriers for them. One of Avi’s team
members, Miguel, said that he needed to start his workday early because he picked his
children up from school at 3:00. After hearing this, Avi avoided scheduling team
meetings in the late afternoon. Another team member, Elisa, told Avi that she preferred
face-to-face or phone conversations to email since she felt like she communicated better
verbally. When Avi needed to discuss something with Elisa, he made sure that he talked
with her in person as much as possible. Avi continued to check in with all of his team
members regularly as the project progressed. He also scheduled weekly “Coffee Chats”
with his team, since he had learned that this was company tradition. Avi’s efforts to align
his project management style to The Family Java’s organizational culture were noticed
by executives and stakeholders, and he was given a lot of support in getting the
resources he needed.
Key takeaway
The culture of each organization you encounter will be different and can change over
time. Like Avi, it is worth your time as a project manager to learn about your company's
culture because it directly relates to your projects’ success.
4.11 Introduction to change management
In project management, the process of delivering your completed project and getting
people to adopt it is called change management. When you understand change
management and your role in the process, it can ensure a smooth roll out of changes
and easier adoption. Adoption is often the first step to your project having the desired
impact once it goes live.
New project manager, you may not be responsible for planning all of the required
change management for your project. But regardless, you can help the success of the
project by understanding your role in the process and how your organization may react
to that change. It's important to recognize that it's the people in an organization who are
directly impacted by any changes in the workplace. Implementing a new project can
mean changes to processes, budgets, schedules, and employee roles and
responsibilities.
Change management in project management is centered around three core concepts
and best practices.
1. Creating a sense of ownership and urgency around the project. Ownership
means getting others to feel they are empowered to take responsibility for
the successful completion of their tasks. Urgency means getting them to
understand that the project is important and to identify what actions need
to be taken to move the project along.
2. Figure out the right combination of skills and personalities when selecting
the people who will work on your team. Find people whose knowledge and
skills complement one another. If your team is selected for you, see if
you're able to choose who gets assigned which tasks. If that's not possible,
then it's extra important for you to find ways to connect with your team.
This will get them excited about the project so then they can be advocates
for change when it's needed. One effective way of motivating your team is
to communicate clearly your vision and approach for the project.
3. Effective communication. And I can't stress this enough: communication is
key. Having effective communication with your team means being
transparent and up front with your plans and ideas and making information
available. Make sure your team, along with the rest of the organization, is
kept up-to-date on your progress. This will allow everyone to feel like
they're included and part of the project. Once your project is complete, you
may experience some resistance or a few roadblocks. Remember, change
doesn't happen overnight, so don't give up on it yet. If you do get some
push-back, you can move the process along by helping folks adjust,
rewarding their efforts, and reminding them of the overall value the project
is providing long-term.
4.12 A project manager’s role in change management
The change management process for your project. To review, change management is
the process of delivering your completed project and getting other people in the
organization to adopt it.
Your project’s success depends on the adoption and acceptance of your project—
whether that entails the launch of a new external tool or a process that will change
operations at a production facility. In both cases, the greatest impact of the change will
be on the people who use and interact with the product or process that is changing.
-Integrating project management and change management
Change management is a major undertaking and a project in and of itself. When it
comes to change management, you may not always be responsible for leading and
planning the entire end-to-end process. There will be times when your manager, a team
member, or another senior leader might be responsible for taking on that transition and
successfully implementing the changes. However, although you may not be the one
directly leading the change, there are still ways in which you can support and participate
in the successful adoption of your project.
As a project manager, you can think of change management as necessary for the
successful outcome of your project. Both change management and project management
aim to increase the likelihood of project success. They also incorporate tools and
processes to accomplish that goal. The most effective way to achieve a project goal is to
integrate project management and change management, and it is your responsibility as
a project manager to do so.
When you are thinking about change management as it relates to your project, begin by
asking yourself the following questions:
 How will the organization react to change?
 Which influencers can affect change?
 What are the best means of communication?
 What change management practices will lead to the successful implementation of
my project?
The answers to these questions will help you prepare for a variety of possible scenarios
and allow you to craft solutions to effectively support the adoption of your project.
Let’s look at some best practices for approaching change management on your projects:
Be proactive. Proactive and inclusive change management planning can help keep any
potentially impacted stakeholders aware of the upcoming changes.
 Incorporate change management into your project management steps. For
example, you can schedule time during team meetings or create a feedback
document to ensure that your team members know there is a place to voice their
suggestions and concerns.
 You can also plan steps towards the end of your project to introduce the
deliverable to stakeholders in the form of demonstrations, question and answer
forums, or marketing videos. You can factor all of these decisions into your plan
so that any potential changes are less likely to impact your timeline. If these steps
have not been built into your plan, you can escalate and stress the importance of
a change management plan to your stakeholders.
Communicate about upcoming changes. Communication should occur regularly
among impacted stakeholders, the change management team, and the project team.
Check in and communicate throughout the project about how the changes will provide a
better experience for end users of the project deliverables. In this way, you support the
process by providing everyone with the information they need to feel prepared to adjust
to changes once the project is ready to launch.
Follow a consistent process. Following a clear change management process helps
maintain consistency each time there is a change. The change management process
should be established and documented early on in your project to guide how the project
will handle change. Your organization may also have an overarching change
management plan that can be adopted for your project. This may include when the
promotion of the change should happen, when training should occur, when the launch or
release will occur, and corresponding steps for each phase of the process.
Practice empathy. Changes are inevitable, but we are often resistant to them. By being
empathetic to the challenges and anxiety change can bring, you can support the
process in subtle ways.
Use tools. Incorporating tools to assist in the adoption of a change can be very helpful.
Here are a few examples you can use on your next project:
 Feedback mechanisms, such as surveys, can capture input from stakeholders.
 Flowcharts can visualize the project's development process.
 Culture mapping can illustrate the company's culture and how the company's
values, norms, and employees behavior may be affected by the change.
As the project manager, you are responsible for successfully delivering projects. As you
hone the skill set you acquire throughout this program, you will find that change
management is essential to your projects’ success.
4.13 Participating in change management
As the project manager, you need to participate in the change management process by
communicating the project needs through the appropriate channels.
There may be other cost adjustments and process changes that need to happen across
the organization to ensure a successful system name change. In this instance, you may
need to have multiple meetings with others to help them understand what is changing,
and why.
What does change management look like in this scenario? Well, you might meet with
representatives from marketing and technology to explain the overall budget impact for
all the necessary changes. With the formal culture, you might write a document that
describes all budget, timeline, and training impacted by the name change.
Then, when the CEO needs to communicate the name change to the entire
organization, she may have someone on her team write up a formal memo that
describes why the name change needs to happen and share out the memo to her staff
and their teams.
But understanding this framework can help you navigate how to effectively participate in
and support change management. This understanding can allow you to ask yourself
questions that will inform change management, such as:

 How will the organization react to change?

 Which influencers can affect change?
 What are the best means of communication?
 What change management practices will lead to the successful implementation of
my project and so on?
The answers to these questions will help you prepare for a variety of possible scenarios,
and craft solutions to effectively support the adoption of your project.
4.14 Corporate and project governance
Governance in business is the management framework within which decisions are made
and accountability and responsibility are determined. In simple terms, governance is
understanding who is in charge. In this reading, we will discuss corporate governance
and project governance. It is important to learn how corporate and project governance
are related since you may have to speak about governance in an interview. Additionally,
you will need to understand how your project relates to the governance structure of the
organization.
Corporate governance
Each organization is governed by its own set of standards and practices that direct and
control its actions. Those standards and practices are called corporate governance, and
they will influence your projects. Corporate governance is the framework by which an
organization achieves its goals and objectives. Corporate governance is also a way to
balance the requirements of the various corporate entities, such as stakeholders,
management, and customers. Corporate governance affects every part of an
organization, including action plans, internal and external controls, and performance
measurements.
Governance and change management go hand-in-hand. Think back to the previous
videos on change management. To successfully implement change management, it is
essential that you understand the structure and culture of the organization. Effective
governance in change management provides clearly defined roles and responsibilities
during change. This enables the people within the organization to have a precise
understanding of who makes decisions and of the relationship between those managing
and participating in the change management process.
Another example of governance within an organization is the creation and use of
steering committees. Steering committees decide on the priorities of an organization and
manage the general course of its operations. The steering committee essentially acts as
an advisory board or council to help the project manager and the company make and
approve strategic decisions that affect both the company and the project.
Project governance
As a project manager, you will be responsible for project governance. Project
governance is the framework for how project decisions are made. Project governance
helps keep projects running smoothly, on time, and within budget. Project governance
involves all the key elements that make a project successful. It tells you what activities
an organization does and who is responsible for those activities. Project governance
covers policies, regulations, functions, processes, procedures, and responsibilities.
How project and corporate governance intersect
Project governance needs to be tailored to your organization's specific needs. These
needs will influence how you implement and monitor the governance framework on your
project. Project governance concerns those areas of corporate governance that are
specifically related to project activities. Effective project governance ensures that an
organization’s projects are aligned to the organization’s larger objectives, are delivered
efficiently, and are sustainable. This includes:
 Considering the long- and short-term interests of your organization
 Making thoughtful decisions about which projects to take on and avoiding projects
if you do not have sufficient resources
 Providing timely, relevant, and reliable information to the board of directors and
other major stakeholders
 Eliciting the input and buy-in of senior managers since they are the decision-
makers
 During the initiation phase, prioritizing clear, reachable, and sustainable goals in
order to reduce confusion and conflict
 During the planning phase, assigning ownership and accountability to an
experienced team to deliver, monitor, and control the process
 During the execution phase, learning from mistakes and adapting to new or
improved knowledge
Corporate governance can involve clearing many hurdles before making decisions.
These decisions can influence not only a single project, but the entire corporation.
At the same time, corporate governance can help support project governance, as it
provides oversight on compliance and mitigating risk and offers guidance and direction
for project managers. Good corporate governance can also help project managers
secure resources, get issues addressed, avoid delays in decision-making, get buy-in
from stakeholders, and achieve visibility for projects on the executive level.
Key takeaway
You should think about an organization’s culture and structure when you are
interviewing for a new role and as you begin a new role or project. You should consider
an organization’s governance processes and practices in the same way. This will help
you understand how decisions are made, who is responsible for what, and what are the
potential issues and areas of concern.
4.15 How to uncover job opportunities
Starting a new career means not only developing a new skill set but also learning how to
relate your previous experience and skills to the new role you’re pursuing. If you’re
ready to start your journey on a new career path, this reading will help you position
yourself for success in your job search. You’ll learn how to understand what your
potential employer is looking for and how to connect your background to their needs.
The strategies outlined below are designed to help you become a strong job candidate,
even if you don’t have directly relevant experience.
The first step is to fully understand the role you’re targeting.
Understand your target role
One of the primary challenges for anyone looking to launch a new career is how to stand
out against candidates who already have experience in the field. Overcoming this
challenge begins with developing a comprehensive understanding of the role you’re
targeting. You'll need to understand the role in the context of any company you’re
applying to, and more broadly as well. Having a holistic understanding of what it takes to
succeed in your target role will help you determine your suitability for the role, and
identify any steps you can take to improve your chances of getting hired.
To understand everything from minimum must-have requirements to skills that might
help you stand out from the crowd, you can begin by researching and analyzing job
descriptions across different organizations.
Below you’ll find our recommended strategy for how to approach this process effectively.
Analyze job listings
The first part of the process is to gather information from multiple job listings:
 Pull up ten job descriptions for your target role. To do this, you can use job
boards like Indeed, Glassdoor, and LinkedIn. Make sure the roles you select
come from different companies, share similar titles, and are roles you would
actually apply for. In each job description, you should be able to identify a section
listing requirements for the role.
  Combine all the job requirements. To do this, create a new Google document and
copy over all the required responsibilities from all ten job descriptions.
 Order requirements based on appearance frequency. Certain requirements will
likely appear in multiple descriptions. The more commonly they appear, the more
likely it is that they’re essential for the role. Put the most frequently appearing
requirements at the top of your list. For example, a requirement that appears in all
ten descriptions would go at the very top.
After completing these steps, you should have a clearer picture of which requirements
are most common and important for the role. You may also have questions:
 Why do requirements differ across job descriptions? One of the most common
reasons for this has to do with overly general job titles, or job titles that don’t
necessarily communicate the specific scope of a given role at a particular
company. For example, a program manager at one company might be focused
on customer management, while at another company, the emphasis might be on
project management. A Data Analyst might primarily use SQL at one company
and Python at another. Because of these differences, it’s important to look
beyond job titles. This is why we recommend the process outlined above—to help
ensure you’re targeting the exact roles that are right for you—and that you
understand the requirements for those exact roles.
 Why are some requirements higher on my list than I thought they would be, while
others I expected to see barely show up at all? If you’re surprised by your
results, you may need to spend more time learning what the role really entails, as
you may have some preconceptions about the role that require adjusting. You
might also need to do additional research to ensure you’re targeting the right
roles in your job search.
 How do I know if I’m really right for my target role? It’s perfectly normal to
experience self-doubt at this stage of the process. Remember, this is a new
career for you. You’re not expected to know everything about the role, and it’s
likely that your existing skills and experience won’t line up perfectly. The more
you learn about the role, the better you’ll understand what’s required for success,
and the more you’ll know about how to prepare yourself for that success.
Create your professional inventory
For this next step, you can temporarily set aside the master list of role requirements you
previously created. The focus here will be on your existing professional qualifications,
and any other skills or experience you possess that might be relevant to your target role
and of value to a potential employer.
To begin, assemble a comprehensive list of the following:
  Technical (hard) skills. These are skills relating to a specific task or situation such
as programming, technical writing, project management, and more.
 Non-technical (interpersonal) skills. These are the skills that enable people to
navigate their environment, work well with others, perform well, and achieve their
goals. They include skills like communication, leadership, team management, and
more.
 Personal qualities. These are positive attributes and personality traits such as
being honest, having a good sense of humor, and being dependable. You can
also include your professional interests on this list.
 Education. This includes any post-secondary education, certifications, or
independent classes completed online or offline.
Tip: You do not need to limit your professional inventory to skills and qualities developed
through professional experience. Consider any volunteer, extracurricular, or personal
experiences that might help a hiring manager understand your capabilities.
Once you’ve created your inventory of skills and experience, you’re ready to line these
up against your requirements list.
Match your profile to the job requirements
The concluding step in this process is to match your profile to the job requirements. The
goal here is to make it easy for any hiring manager to see why you’re a great fit for their
role. You’ll accomplish this by learning what to emphasize and focus on in your search,
on your resume, and during interviews.
To begin, go through your professional inventory of skills and experience, highlighting
each item in green, orange, or red, depending on its relevance to your target role.
Relevance is determined by whether a given skill appears on your role requirements list,
how high it appears on your list, and how directly it aligns with your list.
For example, let’s say you’re interested in a program manager role. If you’re skilled at
using project management software, and project management software skills are high
on your job requirements list, then highlight that item in green. If you have some
experience with tools that do not consistently show up on job descriptions but could still
be relevant, highlight these skills in orange.
 Green should be used for skills that are directly relevant to your target role. You
should look for roles that emphasize these skills. You should also highlight these
skills on your resume, and be prepared to discuss them in an interview.
 Orange should be used to identify those skills and experiences that are relevant
for the role but not necessarily in a direct way. These are generally your
transferable skills—skills that you bring with you from past experiences that can
 help you succeed in your new role. Plan to have to explain these to recruiters and
hiring managers, as their relevance may not be immediately evident.
 Red should be used for items that are not relevant for your job search. De-
prioritize these skills, and steer clear of highlighting them on your resume and
focusing on them during interviews.
Of these three categories, the orange items are where you’ll need to focus extra
attention. When it comes to transferable skills, you have to do the convincing, as you
can’t count on a recruiter or hiring manager making the connection. For example, no job
description for a project manager role calls for waitstaff experience. However, that
project manager job description will likely mention excellent communication skills—
which you would have developed during your hospitality career. When applying for the
project manager role, make sure your resume specifically mentions excellent
communication in addition to listing “waiter” or “waitress” as your previous occupation.
Once you’ve categorized your skills and experience based on how well they align with
the requirements for your target role, you’re ready to move your job search forward.