Nehemiah showed great planning and organizational skill during his project of rebuilding
of Jerusalem. His leadership embraced fundamental project management principles such as
setting goals, allocating resources, and managing risk.
Prior to starting the reconstruction efforts, Nehemiah first sought the support of King
Artaxerxes (Nehemiah 2:1-8, NIV). During this discussion, he clearly defined his goal of
rebuilding the city of Jerusalem, as well as the gates and walls. By defining the scope of the
project, Nehemiah communicated to King Artaxerxes that the goal for his project was
reconstruction. By going to the king, Nehemiah developed his scope with a significant stake
holder (Larsen et al., 2024). Modern day project management conceptualizes that leaders must
secure buy-in from key decision makers before starting a project (Project Management Institute,
2021). By doing this he also was able to lock in safe passage to Jerusalem as well as the
resources required.
Nehemiah expertly split his resources effectively across different parts of the project. He
continuously had different group of people working on different parts of the gate and the
adjoining section of walls (Nehemiah 3, NIV). By utilizing multiple groups, he effectively
managed people to assign areas that were close to their homes. His method of assigning sections
based on distance from their home has similarities in which project managers assign workers
based on qualifications or experience (Larsen et al., 2024). His way of assigning work increased
efficiency and optimized the resource allocation across the project. A study by Müller
indicates that effective resource management not only optimizes productivity but
also improves team morale (Müller et al., 2018). Nehemiah’s understanding of
resource management and allocation allowed him to effectively manage the skill
sets of his workers while improving efficiency and maintaining morale of his team.
Their project was not without hardship from external factors. Sanballat and
Tobiah opposed the rebuilding of Jerusalem’s walls and provided Nehemiah with
potential risks. Attempting to demoralize Nehemiah’s workforce, the Jews were
mocked and discouraged to have them doubt their ability to finish the wall.
Additionally, they conspired with other enemies to attack Jerusalem to stop the
work (Nehemiah 4, NIV). Nehemiah was able to mitigate this risk by splitting his
resources in half. Mitigating risk can be seen by either reducing the likelihood that
an event occurs and/or reducing the impact (Larsen et al., 2024). Nehemiah’s
solution to reducing the likelihood of an attack occurring was by having one half of
the workers continue to work on the walls while the other half would be stationed
as armed guards to protect the workers. “Risk management is an essential
component of project success, as it prepares teams to address uncertainties
through contingency planning, thereby reducing potential delays (Hillson & Simon,
2020).” Nehemiah took a proactive approach and successfully adjusted his
resource allocation to prevent these delays and manage the uncertainties.
While all these examples can and should be used in modern business
practices, setting clear objectives and gaining stakeholder support is distinctly
relevant to modern business practices. When launching a new product or
developing a new project, a leader should first secure executive approval by clearly
outlining the project scope. Without the approval of the stakeholders, the
necessary funding and support wouldn’t be available. Just as Nehemiah proposed a
plan to King Artaxerxes, project managers today should develop proposals to
justify their project. Well structured proposals and clear objectives significantly
increase the likelihood of successful project completion (Turner, 2016).
References:
Hillson, D., & Simon, P. (2020). Practical project risk management: The ATOM
methodology. Berrett-Koehler Publishers.
Larson, E. W., Gray, C. F., & Sirisomboonsuk, P. (2024). Project Management: A socio-
technical approach. McGraw Hill.
Müller, R., Geraldi, J., & Turner, J. R. (2018). Project governance and resource
management: The impact on project success. International Journal of Project Management,
36(4), 567-579.
Project Management Institute. (2021). A guide to the project management body of
knowledge (PMBOK guide) (7th ed.). PMI.
Turner, J. R. (2016). Gower handbook of project management (5th ed.). Routledge.
Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Nehemiah).
Tyndale House Publishers.
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