Project Manager as Strategic Leader

PMI South Florida Chapter

Making a Difference, Transforming, Leading, Adding
Value
1-May-2009

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Agenda

Objective

Define Leadership

Moving from manager to leader

How to Implement Strategy

Questions to ask yourself

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Agenda

Objective

Define Leadership

Moving from manager to leader

How to Implement Strategy

Questions to ask yourself

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Objectives

Discuss multiple leadership skills

Build on current skills to become strategic leaders

Adding to the success of your organization

Learn from each other

Have Fun!!!

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Agenda

Objective

Define Leadership

Moving from manager to leader

How to Implement Strategy

Questions to ask yourself

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Defining Leadership

Open Discussion
– How would you define Leadership
– What is leadership?
– How can you tell the difference between a Manager and a Leader
– Give an example of a “Good” Manager
– Give an example of a “Good” Leader

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Defining Leadership

Transactional Leadership
– Leaders exchange promises of reward and benefits to subordinates for
the subordinates’ fulfillment of agreements with the leader (Holander,
1986)

Transformational Leadership
– The process of “being” a leader, helping people transform themselves
from followers into leaders (Downton, 1973 and Burns, 1978)

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 Defining Leadership – Additional Thoughts

Individuals who think for themselves, communicate their
thoughts and feelings to others, and help others understand
and act on their own beliefs; they influence others in an ethical
and socially responsible way (van Linden and Fertman, 1998)

Leadership is a quality a person may have. One can categorize

the exercise of leadership as either actual or potential
(Wikipedia):
– actual - giving guidance or direction, like a teacher being a leader to a
student, as in the phrase "the emperor has provided satisfactory
leadership".
– potential - the capacity or ability to lead, as in the phrase "she could have
exercised effective leadership"; or in the concept "born to lead".

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 Leader Versus Manager

The Manager administers; the Leader innovates

The Manager is a copy; the Leader is an original

The Manager maintains; the Leader develops

The Manager accepts reality; the Leader investigates reality

The

The Manager relies on control; the Leader inspires trust

The Manager has a short-range view; the Leader has a

long-range perspective

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 Leader Versus Manager

The Manager asks how and when; the Leader asks what
and why

The Manager has her/his eye always on the bottom line; the
Leader has her/his eye on the horizon

The Manager imitates; the Leader originates

The Manager accepts the status quo; the Leader challenges
the status quo

The Manager is the classic good soldier; the Leader is her
or his own person

The Manager does things right; the Leader does the right
things

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Agenda

Objective

Define Leadership

Moving from manager to leader

How to Implement Strategy

Questions to ask yourself

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Moving from Manager to Leader
Develop a Learning Organization*
– Personal mastery
– Shared vision
– Mental Models
– Team Learning

* Adopted from “The Fifth Discipline Fieldbook”

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Personal Mastery

Learning to expand personal capacity to create results we
desires

Creating an organizational environment which encourages

others to develop themselves toward the goals they choose

Increasing our own capability, but improving the capabilities

of others

No one can increase someone else’s personal mastery

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Personal Mastery

Teaches us not to shrink back from seeing the world as it is,
even if it uncomfortable

Look closely and clearly at current reality

– One of the most difficult tasks of personal mastery
– What is going on right now?
– Why is my reality so difficult?

Practicing personal mastery is like holding a conversation

within ourselves
Involves learning to keep both a personal vision and a clear picture of
current reality

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Shared Vision

Building a sense of commitment in a group

Developing shared images of the future

Developing collective principles and guiding practices by

which the group hopes to get there

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Shared Vision

A vehicle for building shared meaning

Every organization/group has a destiny

– Clues can be discovered in founders’ aspiration

Not all vision are equal

Shared meaning is a collective sense of what is important

and why
– Does your organization/group have a “Vision”, “Values”,
“Purpose/Mission” and “Goals”

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Mental Models

Reflecting upon, continually clarifying, and improving our
internal pictures of the world

Seeing how these images shape our actions and decisions

Two types of skills central to this work

– Reflection - Slowing down our thinking processes to become more aware of
how we form our mental models
– Inquiry - Holding conversations where we openly share views and develop
knowledge about each other’s assumptions

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Team Learning

Transforming collective thinking skills

Develop intelligence and ability greater than the sum of

individual members’ talents

Is Not “Team Building”

Shouldn’t be taken on lightly

Focus on organizations chief concerns and issues

Openness breads openness

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 Defining your Learning Organization
If I had a learning organization/group:
– What would it bring me…
– What stands in our way…
– I’ll know we’re making progress if…

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Agenda

Objective

Define Leadership

Moving from manager to leader

How to Implement Strategy

Questions to ask yourself

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How to Implement Strategy

Individuals need to establish alliances and agreements with
others and/or companies (groups)
– To establish these alliances, individuals need to invest in themselves,
to work across all environments
- Hone skills, such as:
- People management
- Tact
- Negotiation skills
- Presentations
- Diplomacy

– The purpose of these alliances is synergy (i.e., the sum is greater than
the parts)
– Think of it as a ‘System’

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How to Implement Strategy

Structures need to be retooled to accommodate changes to
strategies that are already established
– Get smart and read! Companies restructure all the time. Read why.

Companies must use all available resources (human and

otherwise) to execute any and all projects that have been
identified as being strategic
– However, doing too many projects at once can lead to failure
– It’s better to implement a few successful projects at a time instead of
lots of projects

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Where Leadership Should Happen

The core mission of leadership is to craft organizational
(group) strategy, the core mission of management is to
implement and execute organizational strategy

Strategy is crafted to:

– Shape the organizations (group) course of action
– Coordinate an organizational-wide game plan

It is important for the ‘Strategic Leader’ (individual) to

ensure that all activities/projects serve the organizational
(group) strategy

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Agree on These Objectives

All proposed investment plans must align with the
organization’s mission and goals

There must be organizational commitment to delivery of

measurable business objectives and benefits that are
appropriate and realistic to the company

Leadership, key managers, stakeholders, and employees

must understand the responsibilities for delivery of services
and projects

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Agenda

Objective

Define Leadership

Moving from manager to leader

How to Implement Strategy

Questions to ask yourself

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Question to ask yourself

Where do I go from here?

Where do I focus my time and energy?

How do others see me?

What needs are not being met in my personal life… professional life?

What are the things I should be doing to add more value to my

organization?

Am I aware of the needs/wants of team members (the people) around

me?

What in my leadership elicits top performance from my team… what

stifles them?

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 Nathaniel J. Quintana, PMP
Director of Chaos, Harvest PM
Email DoCQ@HarvestPM.com
www.HarvestPM.com

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