Who is the Project Manager?
The Project Manager, also referred to as a PM for short, is an individual who works in the field of project management. Project Managers are often the heads of company or organizational projects, and they are responsible for the execution, planning, and the closing of a given project, especially those projects which are connected to computer networking, architecture, or the development of software.
While these are the fields in which project managers are typically employed in, it is by no means an exhaustive list. Most industries today which are highly technical or digital involve project managers. To understand the role of the project manager, it is first necessary to understand project management.
Despite the differences that may exist between companies and organizations today, they all have one shared goal, and this is to reach their goals. For some organizations, this goal may simply be profitability and global expansion, while for other organizations, this goal may include reaching some other non-monetary goal.
Regardless, reaching these goals will often require companies and organizations to develop projects and endeavors. Each project will be designed to reach a certain goal, and a team will be used for the purpose of achieving the stated project goal. The project manager is the person who heads this team.
While the project manager has a lot of power and authority due to this position, it also comes with a great deal of responsibility. If the project should fail for any given reason, it is very likely that the project manager will be the individual who will be responsible for the failure, and will have to explain this failure to their superiors.
Some of the typical things that PMs will be responsible for include establishing clear and reachable goals, as well as constructing requirements for the project, and taking the time to manage the time, costs, and obstacles that the project will have.
Additional PM Responsibilities
In most cases, the PM will be someone who represents a client, and these clients are often referred to as being stakeholders. The PM must fully understand the needs of the client, and must be capable of implementing these needs. This will largely be dependent on the organizations who they represent.
Being able to adapt to the numerous processes which are internal is very important, and the PM must be able to form a strong connection with the people who have been nominated as the representatives. This is important, as it ensures that the issues of quality, time, and cost are all taken into proper consideration.
It can be argued that project management is the primary domain of the project manager. While the PM doesn’t work directly in the processes that bring about the end result, they are just as crucial to the process since they must maintain project progress and productivity among all the members of the team.
In essence, the primary goal of the project manager is to ensure that the chances of project failure are dramatically reduced. Project managers are responsible for projects designed to produce a number of different services, and some of them include computers, vehicles, electronic devices, or financial products.
It is also important to consider the tools which are used for the purpose of project management. Some of the tools include the WBS, or work breakdown structure, along with earned value management. Being able to understand these many different tools will give project managers an edge, and will allow them to dramatically increase the success of their projects. But these are only a few of the things that PMs must understand in order to succeed. They most also understand things such as PMBOK and Application Area Knowledge. Overall, those who perform best as PMs tend to be individuals who have either leadership or high management capabilities.
Project Manager Risks
The biggest risk that any project manager will face is uncertainty. A good project manager is an individual who will take the time to alleviate their risk as much as possible, and the best way to do this is to make sure the communication lines with their team members are open at all times. Team members must be able to state their opinions and concerns openly without fear.