Flexibility and the ability to be self-directed are key skills in today’s environment. Organizations are reorganizing and downsizing, requiring individuals to multi-task, contribute to multiple projects, and assume many responsibilities, often in very different roles. Depending on the organizational structure, individuals may need vastly different skills for their various tasks.
The roles of the project manager and project team members differ. Yet the same person may, at times, be the project manager of one team and a member of a different team. Or, a project manager may suddenly find her project has been cancelled, positions are being eliminated, and job retention means taking a job as a member of another team. That requires changing hats very quickly, and the results can be detrimental if you wear the wrong hat to the wrong meeting.
Two hats required
In this article, we’ll provide guidelines for doing a graceful balancing act between the roles of project manager and team member, using Michelle as our example. We’ll see how she balances between her roles as project manager and team member. First, we’ll look at the responsibilities of each position. Next, we’ll see how Michelle handles her project manager role and interacts with the team members during a team meeting. Then, we’ll watch her behavior at a product meeting in which she’s a team member. We’ll identify where she had problems changing her hat and the problems that ensue. Finally, we’ll discuss how Michelle could behave differently to promote a far more positive outcome.
Understand Michelle’s responsibilities
Michelle is a mid-level manager at a mid-sized company that develops software products for the optics industry. She acts as project manager for all training or documentation projects required to support the software her company develops. Additionally, she must participate as a member on the product team for each new software product.
As project manager for her teams, Michelle is responsible for communicating new projects and assigning resources. She’s in charge of approving the media used for the projects, monitoring those projects, removing any barriers to success, and reviewing the quality of the projects. Additionally, she’s responsible for maintaining a program of skill development for her teams and guiding her members toward professional growth.
Michelle’s role on the product teams is very closely tied to her teams’ functions. However, she isn’t the manager of these teams, but simply a team member representing a functional area. She’s responsible for understanding the new product, its development timeframe, and the requirements for her functional area. Working with other cross-functional team members, she develops an overall training and documentation plan for the product. She’s responsible for working with the engineering representative to identify the subject matter experts who will work with her team. She provides engineering with an estimate of when and how long subject matter experts are needed. She coordinates schedules with the development team to secure access to products for her trainers and writers.
Participate differently in meetings
Due to different personality styles, project managers may vary in how they approach their roles during team meetings. Yet, regardless of the stylistic differences, team members expect their project managers to lead and demonstrate their control. They expect other team members to defer to this control.
Do’s for project managers
Here are some do’s for the project manager during meetings:
- Do manage the agenda. The agenda may include introducing the new product the team will be working on and describing the team’s involvement with the new product. The agenda will include administration items, such as scheduled shutdowns, changes in office procedures, and more.
- Do convey information from management and from the teams on which you’re a member.
- Do assign resources to your projects. Consider the competencies, interests, and availability of team members when assigning resources to the project.
- Do keep the meeting focused on business. It’s up to the project manager to rein in those who stray from the topic at hand and to get input from those who may be reluctant to participate.
Michelle, the project manager in our example, conducts weekly meetings with her teams. When one team member comes in late and asks Michelle what was already covered, she tells him to see her after the meeting so she can bring him up to speed.
Dont's for project team members
Just as team members expect certain behaviors from the project manager conducting a meeting, they have expectations for other team members. These include the following:
- Don’t take charge of the meeting.
- Don’t usurp the role of the project manager. Some team members may like to be in control and may be capable leaders, yet respectful team members allow the designated leader to lead. But team members can take a participatory role.
- Don’t treat team members as subordinates.
Let’s look in on Michelle at a product team meeting. Here, she announces she’d like to discuss some items from the last meeting. The project manager asks her what those items are so he can cover them at the end of the meeting. Rather than simply stating the items as asked, Michelle digresses and questions the development representative about system availability. The project manager finally directs the team back to the agenda by scheduling a follow-up meeting with Michelle and the development representative.
When the engineering representative walks in late and asks what he missed, Michelle tells him to meet with the project manager after the meeting. Later in the meeting, the project manager requests that representatives adjust their plans to accommodate new product features. Michelle suggests including the other team members when sending the revised plans, so everyone can review them before the next meeting. As the project manager reaches the end of the agenda, Michelle reminds everyone to review the revised plans before the next meeting.
Select the right hat
Clearly, Michelle had a difficult time transitioning from her project manager role to her team member role. As a project manager, she was in charge, running her meeting and setting the rules and agenda. Switching to her team member role, Michelle continued to take charge. She clearly wore the wrong hat to that meeting.
First, she begins the meeting, which isn’t her meeting, by saying what she wants to discuss. Then, she pulls the development representative into a specific discussion that’s outside the scope of the agenda. This would probably make the project manager either angry or frustrated and cause him to lose focus, get defensive, or otherwise abandon control of the situation. It could also make other team members uncomfortable.
When the engineering representative arrives late, it’s Michelle who tells him to catch up later with the project manager. When the project manager isn’t leading the meeting, other team members can become annoyed, less focused, or uncomfortable. Michelle steps into the project manager’s role one more time when she reminds team members to send their plans to the project manager before the next meeting.
Get used to the team member role
Michelle appears to have a good grasp of her role as project manager. She acknowledges her team members’ needs, asks for their input, takes control of her meetings, and follows her agenda. She’s polite, yet in control.
How could she have better handled her role as a team member? She could have waited for the meeting to begin and asked to add her items to the agenda. This would have allowed the project manager to establish his position as team leader and keep control of the agenda.
It wasn’t Michelle’s place to decide how to handle the engineer’s late arrival. She could have let the project manager handle it. If the project manager chose to delay the rest of the team by reviewing the earlier part of the meeting for the engineer, Michelle could have chatted with the project manager after the meeting or sent him an email suggesting how she’s handled those sorts of things successfully. Much of her behavior went beyond the scope of her team member role and clearly detracted from the project manager’s authority. Michelle has a hard time taking off her project manager hat. Here are some tips that might help a project manager make the transition to team member:
- When you’re put in the position of filling both roles, write up a role definition, much as you would when you’re starting a project and identifying the necessary roles and responsibilities. This will help reinforce the differences in the roles.
- Recognize which role is more natural for you and be aware of your tendency to take on that role. You may ask team members to keep an eye on you and let you know if you overstep your role. The fact that you’ve recognized the possibility and asked for help will gain you respect, even if you do slip now and then.
- Listen and watch the people around you. If team members bristle, roll their eyes each time you speak, interrupt you, or ignore you, evaluate your behavior.
Successful balancing benefits everyone
The transition from project manager to team member can be a tricky one for some people. Don’t feel you need to completely bury your experience in one role or the other. A team member with project manager experience can help tremendously. Giving the project manager an occasional second opinion or a bit of advice on how to handle a problematic situation is often welcome support. Conveying to the team the challenges the project manager faces can help the entire team work more cohesively.
Related Courses
• Project 2000, 2002, 2003 & 2007
• 4009 Setting Up Projects for Success Using Microsoft Office Project 2003
• Project Management for Professionals
• Project Management Fundamentals
