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50 Years of Success
Established in 1974

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What Personal Qualities Does a Project Manager Need?

 

I think it’s fair to say that not everyone is cut out to be a project manager. There are a certain set of qualities that you’ll need to already have, or learn very quickly, if you want to be successful in the position. Read on to find out what they are.

Be able to solve problems creatively

A large part of project management is problem solving, which means you need to think creatively. Project managers are in the business of making things happen at a certain time. And, not unsurprisingly, problems crop up along the way. Your job is to find a way around the problems, which may involve you ‘thinking out of the box’.

Be organised

This is a vital part of project managing. The team will look to you for direction to make sure things go to plan. If you are not a naturally organised person, you will have to learn how to be very quickly. If you cannot keep track of the project it will soon descend into chaos.

Stay calm under pressure

Those pesky problems that arise can be stressful. If you tend to panic under pressure, then you really should think about another occupation. Of course, if you really want to be a project manager, you could think about learning coping techniques. As the project manager, the team will be looking to you for solutions, if you want to inspire confidence in your team you need to show that you have the situation under control and are calm about it. If you panic, it’ll ripple down through the team members and have a negative impact.

Be a team builder

The teams you’ll be working with as a project manager are often temporary – put together for just one project. This means that you’ll have to meld the individuals together into a functioning unit that’s capable of communicating effectively. Plus, you’ll have to build and maintain team spirit.

Show integrity

When you decide to take on a project, you should show everyone involved that you are committed to its successful completion. This involves creating a harmonious team and behaving in an ethical manner. This means being honest about problems or issues that arise, being careful to adhere to budgets and aiming to finish within the specified time frames.

Be able to delegate

No matter how efficient you think you are, you simply cannot do everything yourself! And there will almost certainly be tasks that require detailed technical knowledge that you won’t have. That’s where your team come in. They’ll be people who know things you don’t so you should rely on them to help you. Trust is a big issue here – you have to be confident enough in your team to know that they’ll do what they are supposed to do.

Be able to communicate well

This ties in with the above point. Being able to project manage, including delegating effectively, requires effective communication. If you want your team to carry out a complex task, you have to be able to tell them what you want them to do in a clear and concise manner. However, it does not end there. You also need to able to listen to others as well. The team you’ll be working with will be varied and you’ll need to actively listen to updates and issues they may have as the project progresses.

Be assertive

When you are in charge of a project, you need to be able to tell people what it is you want them to do – this requires assertiveness. You may be working with people who consider themselves to be superior or more experienced than you are. When this happens you’ll have to be assertive and make sure that everyone involved in the project knows that you are in control.

Be persistent

When things go wrong and it feels like fate is against you, you’ll need the persistence to see the project through to the end, even if you feel like tearing your hair out and running as far away as possible. This applies to giving people direction too. It may be necessary for you to tell people on more than one occasion what it is you need them to do, so you need to feel comfortable doing it.

So, what do you think? Do you have all those qualities? If you want to know more about project management, why not request a prospectus?

Dahlia Ewers“I would recommend the Business English course to anyone who wants to improve their English, learn more about the business world or to widen their management techniques"

Dahlia Ewers, USA

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European Association for Distance Learning Institute of Training and Occupational Learning

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