Bringing Together Team Members of Different Generations
In the project management workforce, we are starting to see a focus on helping senior people in the workplace connect with and manage the newest generation in the workforce: Millennials. This new generation is now moving from entry-level to management positions within an evolving environment and culture. With marked differences in multiple areas, both generations need to learn how to adapt to each other. We see that differences between senior team members and millennials are arising in areas of communication, work ethic, perspective, company culture, and adoption of technology.
In fact, Forbes magazine spoke of this exact thing earlier this year. There is no question about it, Millennials are leading in ways different from their older generational counterparts. The Project Management Podcast recently featured an interview with Justin Fraser, which was recorded at the impressive Project Management Institute (PMI)® Global Conference 2017 in Chicago, Illinois. Mr. Fraser dives into this emerging relationship dynamic, in which Millennial project managers lead senior team members and discusses various project management approaches being used to lead team members to successful projects.
The Importance of an Actively Involved Sponsor
We’ve all been talking about the Project Management Institute’s 2018 Pulse of the Profession findings. This video interview put out by European CEO specifically addresses about the importance of having a good sponsor. PMI’s findings showed that the number one success factor in any project is having an actively engaged sponsor. Mark Langley says that sponsors need to play an active role, not only at the start, but throughout the lifecycle of a project. They must communicate across the organization and up in the organization to other executives why the project is going to create critical value, and what that value is.
Mr. Langley suggests a way to support sponsors and gain more sponsor support (of course, it is a two way street!) is through celebrating successes. He says, “I think it’s important that throughout the project there’s successes. And sometimes when we’re looking for project excellence, the best way to identify it is to point to a concrete example that they see in the organization right then…that builds the morale and the relationship with the team and the executive sponsors.”
Digital Transformation Summit to be held October 2-3, 2018
As reported on their website, Enterprise Mobility Exchange is bringing together IT and Digital Transformation professionals and industry thought leaders in a live, free, and 2-day ONLINE summit to explore the opportunities and challenges businesses are facing on their digital transformation journeys.
Some of the key themes to be covered are:
- Practical Steps to Digital Success: Building a Digital Transformation Road-Map
- Leveraging AI and Machine Learning as Drivers of Growth and Revenue
- Using IoT and Hybrid-Cloud for a Data-Driven Enterprise
- Cybersecurity in the Age of Digital Transformation
Learn more or register by clicking here.
