Should Project Managers Behave Like Prima Donnas Article

Should Project Managers Behave Like Prima Donnas - Article Example The balancing act is about taking the different stakeholder requirements together and then ensuring that everything falls together for the common purpose of meeting the project deliverables. This then is the bottom-line guideline for project managers. The practice of management for the express purpose of delivering customer delight and stakeholder value. This paper looks at the components of project management and the way in which the project manager has to ensure that conflicting and competing demands on his or her time and bandwidth are managed to ensure optimal success for the project. I answer the question of whether the project manager must be a Prima Donna by referring to the situational and contextual aspects of project management. The contention of this author is that project managers and the art of project management is highly contextual and situation dependant that theory can only point the way and it is up to the individual to make the decisions and tread the path accordingly. Real world scenarios often have a way of surprising the most experienced project manager and hence theory can only help to a point in making decisions that affect real people. Thus, one way of looking at the question is that project managers have to combine the science of project management with the art of people and process management to achieve optimal results. Project Management combines statistics and people skills in equal measure and it is incumbent upon the project manager to plan their strategies accordingly. According to the PMBOK 3rd edition, A project is defined as a â€Å"temporary endeavor with a beginning and an end and it must be used to create a unique product, service or result†. Further, it is progressively elaborated. What this definition of a project means is that projects are those activities that cannot go on indefinitely.