Time for some more useful project management information by our expert Ivanna
aka Vania ;) Having learnt about retrospective and sprint estimation and seen how Agile
technology is used by giants such as Apple and Philips, Intel and Nokia, we are now
moving on to unveiling some project management myths.
Project management is a big thing nowadays. Not everyone is able to even begin describing what it’s all about and what the manager’s daily routine looks like. That’s why there are a lot of myths and misunderstandings about it. Here’s a few of the most popular ones.
1. Myth 1 - Remote collaboration is not productive.
Managers work with remote teams quite often. According to the statistics, the productivity of remote employees is 13% higher than those who work in the office.
2. Myth 2 - You need to have a certificate to manage projects.
Believe it or not, but in IBM only 56% of managers have certificates, and even without them they are real professionals. In ⅔ of cases a PMI is seen as a huge advantage when entering employment, but it’s not a necessity.
Above all else a manager has to combine an administrator and leader’s traits, be ambitious, and consult the interests of both sides — the client and the developer. They have to be able to find the right words, analyze information and foresee how things will turn out depending on different conditions. In short, they have to be a strategist.
All of these things can be acquired with experience, eventually, and they are valued much more highly than a certificate.
3. Myth 3 - Project management is just paper work.
According to the results of the Wrike project management software research, project manager spends 90% of their time on communication, which is every project’s ticket to success.
4. Myth 4 - Frequent meetings are needed to keep everyone informed.
47% of workers think that meetings are a huge waste of time. There are 2 sides to this coin. On the one hand, it sometimes takes a lot of time that could be spent on solving some important problem. On the other hand, it’s really effective and useful, as by communicating through meetings a team can decide some issues. Meetings help people to wrap their heads around their role in the project and the roles of others.
5. Myth 5 - The project’s failure is the end of the world
Indeed, the word “failure” is too strong. More often than not, a little failure means a big success in the future. It’s a great lesson that will help a team to avoid the mistakes that had led to the project’s fiasco in the first place. That’s why the “retrospective” exists. With the help of a retrospective you can analyze all of the wrong decisions and find the ways of avoiding them.
Those myths were created by people who don’t know what project management is all about. So don’t worry too much about them and do what you think will work best ;) We wish you successful and interesting projects!