Most projects are complex in some way – especially high tech projects. Not all project managers get to choose their projects or even get to personally choose their team members once they land as leadership on a project. I know I usually don’t. I get to request a warm body with a skill set, but rarely have I been given the luxury of choosing actual names. That may be the case for senior management as well – the gate keepers of projects and resources who are selecting project managers and team members for projects based on need, skill set, availability and specific requests.
What is everyone looking for? I know when I’ve been in this position a couple of times and been allowed input as well, here are a few of the criteria I’ve looked for…
Knows the proposed technology and material. Learning curves can be the downfall of a project. So can rework. And poorly defined requirements. All these things can happen if you have business analyst who is not up to the challenge of the technical material at hand and the chosen technical solution for the project. That’s why it is imperative on a technical engagement that is long, complex, visible, or all of the above, to have a business analyst assigned who is technically up to the challenge and not just “ready to learn” or “fake it till he makes it.” That could be disastrous to the schedule, budget, project manager and team…and to the customer...
What is everyone looking for? I know when I’ve been in this position a couple of times and been allowed input as well, here are a few of the criteria I’ve looked for…
Knows the proposed technology and material. Learning curves can be the downfall of a project. So can rework. And poorly defined requirements. All these things can happen if you have business analyst who is not up to the challenge of the technical material at hand and the chosen technical solution for the project. That’s why it is imperative on a technical engagement that is long, complex, visible, or all of the above, to have a business analyst assigned who is technically up to the challenge and not just “ready to learn” or “fake it till he makes it.” That could be disastrous to the schedule, budget, project manager and team…and to the customer...
