Common Myths about Project Management

There are just about as many ideas about what project management is all about as there are projects. If you are about to embark on a program of project management training, you should be aware of some of the common myths about project management so you can dispel them from the outset. Managing expectations is as big a part of project management training as it is of project management itself. So, here are my top 12 myths from the annals of project management mythology.

1. Project management training will immediately result in all our projects coming in on time and within budget. This is the number one training myth. Viewing any training program as a silver bullet is bound to end up with some disappointed participants and managers, so manage expectations carefully. When you do your training needs assessment with your internal customers, try to identify areas where your organization should see some immediate improvements. Make sure your expectations and your means of measuring results are realistic and verifiable. If your program is successful, you will eventually see improvements in project delivery and cost containment, but the process will take time—and plenty of fine-tuning by the project management teams as they gather and apply lessons learned.

2. If you know how to use project management software, you know all you need to know about project management. Project management software is a valuable tool for project managers, but project management is no more merely about software than home construction is merely about hammers. The training we’ll be discussing does not require the use of project management software. I always insist on teaching project management concepts before running any kind of training on such software as Microsoft Project.

3. Only people who will actually be working as project leaders need to learn project management. The more we can train rank-and-file team members, project stakeholders, and subject matter experts called in to assist teams in understanding their assignments, the more successful we’ll be in ensuring success by keeping the right individuals involved and informed. Keeping project management knowledge as the exclusive domain of team leaders and project managers can be an unfortunate mistake!

4. Project management is mainly people management. (“I’m good with people, so I don’t need to take project management training.”) Those who have a natural talent for motivating and leading teams possess important skills that are required to be a first-rate project manager. However, failure to understand how to apply the tools and techniques of project management can doom a project—even ones under the direction of a charismatic project leader.

5. A one-day or half-day project management course can’t really teach anyone much about project management. A project management neophyte can learn much in even a few hours of project management training, but you will need to carefully manage expectations and identify areas in which a little knowledge might be a dangerous thing. We’ll address some of these areas as we introduce our training plans. For the most part, however, short introductory training can be very effective in raising awareness of project management within your organization and setting the stage for further development.

6. We need to develop training to cover all levels of project management within our organization. Let’s get real! You may later decide to expand a bit, perhaps developing a workshop that follows your organization’s project management methodology or one that addresses an upcoming mega-project that is about to launch. If you have project office staff, you may provide even more advanced work in cooperation with them. Only the very largest organizations would decide to provide the higher levels of training that are available through a university, the Project Management Institute, or other organizations specializing in project management education. For now, consider starting small and building on your initial successes.

7. Unless one is planning to go all the way and get certified as a Project Management Professional (PMP), studying project management is a waste of time. Your organization may be seeking to have a number of PMPs on board. They certainly can be the catalysts for company-wide project management initiatives, and they will always maintain important roles as leaders and mentors for projects and teams in your organization. At the same time, I believe that in order to develop a true “project-oriented” organization, you will want as many staff as possible to have basic and intermediate project management skills.

8. People who are involved in project management already will naturally be motivated to attend project management training. Au contraire, I fear. Project managers may not necessarily feel they “know it all already,” but many may feel they know enough to be bored or feel out of place in an introductory workshop. You’ll want to have a plan for using the skills they bring to the table. Obtaining their assistance in the training can help you, and give them a stronger motivation for attending.

9. Unless I include elaborate, expensive simulations in my training, students will not get a real “feel” for how project management works. The simulations we’ll include here will be simple and inexpensive—and often just as effective as the ones costing tens of thousands of dollars. Simulations are necessary for the most effective learning, but you don’t need to be George Lucas to produce them.

10. It is not possible to teach project management effectively online. As a matter of fact, project management turns out to be an excellent topic for online learning. Project management learning requires hands-on experience, a dialogue with other learners, and ready access to course materials and other instructional resources. Online learning can provide all of these without having to set up elaborate synchronous Web meeting schedules.

11. Since projects are unique by definition, it makes no sense to try to use common processes within the organization. Too many organizations use this as an excuse not to standardize methods and procedures for managing projects. Your long-term organizational goal ought to be a common language spoken about projects and common forms and methods to administer most of them. We don’t want to create a dogmatic “this is the only way” approach, but a flexible framework for defining and delivering projects and products.

12. In planning project management training, we don’t need to involve the project office or other owners of project management processes within the organization. After all, this is just basic training. If you have these resources available in your organization, by all means contact them early in your course development planning. They will undoubtedly have resources available that can assist you. But even more important will be their guidance and support in helping you make your training a part of the existing project management support structure. When possible, substitute real examples of forms and templates from the Project Office. Taking advantage of their assistance can give your courses a great deal more substance and credibility, as well as prevent you from “reinventing the wheel” when the time comes to expand your training program.

Article added at: 11.13.2006 by Sally Jordan