There are many, many instances where discussions are oriented towards the differences between leadership and management. Rather than concentrating once again on the differences, we would much rather like to focus on how to blend the two together – in a Project Management realm so that we understand how to practically apply the two for a successful result. Having said that, it is also important to understand what we believe are the definitions of each; and in particular how they relate to the world and work of Project Management.
Right about now, many are going to be reading the opening paragraph and thinking – why do we need another article, book, lecture, comment (fill in your own words here)? There are thousands out there today. On amazon.com, when you do a search on leadership you get 2,060 ‘hits’. Just scanning the top 20 you get John Maxwell (who is listed a number of times – twice for the same book!); Rudy Giuliani and John Wooden. One from the political arena; one from the sports world and one from Business/Education. I categorize John Maxwell in the Business/Education because that seems to primarily be his business. His work is ‘sound’, and admired by many (I’ve taken courses based upon his writings and have certainly read his 21 Laws book). However, most all of these writings don’t address what I and others in our field really need to know.
How do I blend together both Leadership and Management Successfully?
Since it is called the ‘Project Management Discipline’, we naturally assume that the primary trait that you must have is good solid ‘management skills’. After all, when you review the PMBOK, you won’t find a Chapter or a topic listed for leadership until you get to the appendix. However, the term leadership is found in many places within the PMBOK, as a requirement to be a good Project Manager. Truth be told, all Project Managers must have both the ability and skills to manage, along with a certain amount of leadership. It is how you blend these two areas and skill sets together, that will ultimately determine whether you are a good, better than average or great Project Manager. Simply getting the ‘project’ completed successfully is not the goal. Getting the project completed; accepted by the customer for use (whatever the situation may be – including schedule, cost and quality) along with not leaving a trail of bodies along the path is a far better goal and measurement stick to use. If you get to the end, and your team is not with you, you only have partial success.
Wikipedia defines management as ‘getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives’. They go on to say that it comprises planning, organizing, staffing, leading or directing a group of people or entities to accomplish a goal. Most all of that I would agree with, but I’ll have to think about the ‘entities’ part. For most of us – management (as it relates to Project Management) is bringing together people in a team environment to successfully deliver a product or service to an end user or customer. Further, I believe that you can also break this down into two distinct categories. Tactical and Strategic Project Management. More on that later.
Doing the same type of search on Wikipedia for the term leadership, does not result in a firm and clear definition – but rather different views and explanations on what Leadership is. Interestingly, Wikipedia lists that the information contained within the search results needs cleanup, copy-editing and general improvement to meet their own standards. Herein lies the rub. For many, Leadership is that set of ‘soft skills’ that someone poses that enables them to overcome obstacles and roadblocks while ‘leading’ others. How many times have you heard someone say – ‘I don’t know what leadership is, but I know it when I see it!’. From a Project Management perspective, there will be many times when you need good solid leadership skills, for you may not have the authority (ie: ‘The Hammer’) to accomplish tasks by directive or mandate. You will need to ‘influence others’ in a positive fashion so that they willingly will take on and accomplish tasks that might otherwise not accomplished.
Using an example from the Civil War, I will offer up one of the single most inspiring leadership examples that I know, admire and try to draw from. During the battle of Gettysburg, which many believe was the turning point for the North, both armies readied themselves for a tremendous battle. The North was lead by General George Gordon Meade and the South was led by the brilliant tactician and leaders – General Robert E. Lee. But this story is not about either – but rather a little known (at the time) Colonel Joshua Chamberlain and the 20th Maine. During the battle for Little Round Top, the 20th Maine was faced with the task of defending a strategic position against the Alabama 15th who had come over the top of Big Round Top, and were poised to overrun and take Chamberlain’s position. During the ensuing battle, the Alabama 15th outflanked Chamberlain’s men and were coming up the hill with men falling on all sides. While facing seemingly insurmountable odds; men near exhaustion and running out of ammunition – Col. Chamberlain did what to this day still stands as one of the single most successful acts of leadership that we can learn from. He gathered his Officers together, explained his plan and led an attack (rather than continuing to defend) that overwhelmed the Alabama 15th and won the battle.He blended together his leaderships skills (instilling confidence in both his officers and men) and his management skills (the tactical aspects of his charge at Little Round Top) to achieve the goals and objectives. Being simply a great tactician would not have been enough.
While we will very seldom (in the business world) face these types of challenges and obstacles, it sometimes seems that way. We have all been faced with situations (or will be) that at the time seem to be as dire or as difficult. There are times when we must be able to blend together both the tactical aspects of Managing a project with the Leadership skills necessary to set a direction or overcome an obstacle. I will end this article, with advice that I have experienced, admired and used myself in those types of situations.
The Greater the Chaos, the more a leader must show calm and confidence.
Next week: Finding and Developing Project Management Leadership Skills
