DISCUSSION RESPONSE

WK 4 – QUESTION

1) Discuss leadership styles/approaches as they relate to a project manager (PM). Select one of the qualities/skills mentioned in section 3.4.4.2 of the PMBOK Guide (6th ed.) and explain in detail why this quality/skill is important to becoming a successful PM. Cite the PMBOK Guide including the page (if you are using a printed copy) or paragraph number (if you are referring to an electronic source of the PMBOK) and one additional Week 4 reading in your response. What leadership style is advocated in agile projects, and why? Would this leadership style be effective for traditional projects as well (those that are guided by the PMBOK Guide framework)? Why or why not?

2)  Wiley, et al.  (2016) explain that “Matching the appropriate leadership style and approach to the complexity profile of the project is a critical element of project success.” Select one of the leadership styles described in section 3.4.5.1 of the PMBOK Guide (6th ed.) and explain when this leadership style would be effective, and why. Provide support for your response; always include the page or paragraph number when citing the PMBOK Guide.

PLEASE RESPOND TO MY CLASSMATE DISCUSSION ANSWER BELOW:

CLASSMATE DISCUSSION RESPONSE 1

1.There are different qualities and skills of a leader. One of the skills that I believe that are important to becoming a successful project manager is focusing on important things. I believe in projects there will need to have a understand first what the purpose of the project is and then come up with a plan of how it should get done and putting priorities of the project to make sure things are complete. In doing this, the project manager must understand the different tasks and how each are important to the project completion. There are also constraints and one must understand why these constraints can delay the overall project. The project manager in “remaining flexible on tactical priorities”. This will give some ways of planning methodically which components of the project are more important than others (PMBOK, 2017, p.61). One of the best ways to lead focusing on these important things is Theory Z. In using this theory, there is “collective decision making as much as possible”(Hayes, 2007, p.479). In using a way for everyone to come together, more creative and innovative ways of prioritizing work will allow everyone to work more closer together. In doing this, it will perhaps create a more effective and/or efficient solutions in how to manage and prioritize the project better.

2. The transformational leader would be the leader who aligns the followers to be behind them. The transformational leader “inspire and motivate followers to exceed performance expectations by shaping followers’ beliefs and attitudes” (Price & Weiss, 2013, p. 266). This leadership is effective in any kind of group or project. Every leader likes to have followers who will listen to them in any kind of way. Every leader aspires their followers to achieve higher goals than what is set initially. This is because the leader communication a common vision that the group’s goals to abide by, motivate group members to embrace their vision, work with group members to improve the goals of the team and recognize or evaluate the group members individually for the success and find ways to work better more effectively.  These leaders really are charismatic and more compassionate and willing to work with all sorts of personalities. These types of leader remind me of the Boy Scout days when I was a youth. In those days, I was a senior patrol leader which allowed the boys in the troop to follow my lead as a boy. The most effective troop was run by the boys instead of the adult making the decisions. The boys provided me some great insight for the success because the boys felt more empowered by doing what they want to do.

References

A guide to the project management body of knowledge (PMBOK® guide)–sixth edition. (2017). Project Management Institute.

Management/Leadership Styles. (2007). In Encyclopedia of Business and Finance (2nd ed., Vol. 2, pp. 477-480). Gale.

Price, M. S., & Weiss, M. R. (2013). Relationships among coach leadership, peer leadership, and adolescent athletes’ psychosocial and team outcomes: A test of transformational leadership theory. Journal of Applied Sport Psychology, 25(2), 265-279.

CLASSMATE DISCUSSION RESPONSE 2:

1. Management and leadership styles differ a bit and many business leaders do not understand the difference between the functions/roles and may misinterpret how to carry out their duties to meet organizational goals (p.478). There are several theories that explain how managers and/or leaders practice. Contingency theory focuses on what managers do in practice, it suggests that how a manager operates and makes decisions depends upon a set of circumstances (p.479). This implies that a manager is not self driven something needs to occur in order for the individual to act. Theory X and Y center around how people work for others (p.479). Theory Z being the most ideal theory focuses on best practices for employee and organization al development.

Being collaborative is an essential part of the project management role. Most of the project managers time will be spent with the project team members. Teamwork is a critical factor for project success and developing effective project teams is one of the primary responsibilities of the project manager (PMBOK, p. 337). This trait also increases productivity within the project team which speaks volumes for the duration of the project and how it plays out. Leadership in project management is situational. One leadership style does not fit every occasion (Irwin, 2007).

 

Within agile projects the partnering approach is advocated. This is the preferred method because the partnering relationship is one in which each party commits to work in an atmosphere of understanding, cooperation, and trust to contribute skills and knowledge relevant to the organization's business strategy. (Farley, 2005). I think that this approach may not be effective in a traditional project as well because it encourages ongoing involvement from sponsors/customers, interactive input, and less formal planning. Compared to the traditional approach that follows the project life cycle, and limits sponsor/customer involvement once requirements and critical components of the effort have been established. The traditional project requires a clearly defined approach from the initiation of the project.

 

2.  I believe the charismatic leadership approach is most effective when leading a high demand project that requires that project team to commitment long hours and to be hands on for duration of the effort. High demand efforts can cause resources to reach a point of burnout from being stretched to thin, they may disengage or slowly remove themselves from the effort. This requires a project manager that is a visionary. They see the bigger picture and use that to influence the team, by giving them insight to their perspectives. This leadership style inspires others to begin making progress towards their goals (Miller,2018). This builds momentum and encourages team members to align with the project manager and get back on track.

 

 

 References

Farley, J. (2005). Leadership in agile projects — what makes for success? Paper presented at PMI® Global Congress 2005—Asia Pacific, Singapore. Newtown Square, PA: Project Management Institute.

Haynes, T. (2007). Management/Leadership Styles. In B. S. Kaliski (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Business and Finance (2nd ed., Vol. 2, pp. 477-482). Macmillan Reference USA.  https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX1552100206/GVRL?u=umd_umuc&sid=GVRL&xid=d8ac5c6e . 

Irwin, B. (2007). Politics, leadership, and the art of relating to your project team. Paper presented at PMI® Global Congress 2007—North America, Atlanta, GA. Newtown Square, PA: Project Management Institute.

Miller, K. (2018). Charismatic Leadership Style Advantages, Disadvantages and Characteristics. Retrieved from  https://futureofworking.com/charismatic-leadership-style-advantages-disadvantages-and-characteristics .