Week 2 Project

Page 1 of 1 MGT3035 Fundamentals of Project Management

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Characteristics of a Project Manager A few broad patterns seem pretty conclusive for the new, young, mid- to low-level project manager. First, relatively new managers at low levels of management still seem to rely on technical skill. When someone gets promoted to management level, it’s probably because the person was good at what he or she did at a nonmanagerial position. People, especially new people, look to the new manager as the “go-to person” for resolving their day-to-day technical impasses. The lesson? The new project manager should be a teacher and coach. The proper slogan might be “Don’t dominate; but don’t delegate either—demonstrate.” Technical skills still have immense value in project management, but that’s only the beginning. Second, with the job comes what is called legitimate authority. This is a really interesting concept. Legitimate authority is the right to tell someone what to do. Where does this right come from? It comes with the position and is one of the cornerstones of the theory of bureaucracy. Weber observed that a new basis of organized power was needed to make the industrialized society work—the invented and ultimately artificial power in the office, which an individual holds.