I like to consider myself a professional Programme Manager amongst my talents. I have 17 years on and off managing large and successful programmes so there is a track record of success. The National Rail Enquiry Service and the Modernisation of Customer Services at Bristol City Council to name just two.
In recent months with the Interim market flat and very competitive to the effect that interim managers are being driven out of the market I have decided to look at permanent Programme roles. For me this is an easy transition as the role of the Programme Director/Manager (PD) is often like being an interim with a changing environment with the opportunity to deliver a programme of projects and then move onto the next programme.
In viewing the “obligatory” job descriptions over recent months, prepared I suspect from a database of “best practice” job descriptions I smiled when reading them because most of them frankly missed the key 5 skills and experiences that a PD really needs.
So next time you write a job description for a Programme Manager/Director think carefully about what you write and somehow encompass these top 5 skills and experiences. I know I have the scares to prove it!
- Corporate Political awareness - This is not big P in politics unless you are working within Central or Local government but the politics of the Corporate World whether it be public or private sector. The internal politics of change often leads to power struggles, nervousness and protective behaviour around the transformation that the programme needs to change - not a job for a “Rookie” fresh out of an MSP course. This is often confused with “Stakeholder” Management - it is nothing of the sort but hard graft where the PD has to be about his/her wits to survive.
- Haynes Manual to Programmes “I’m Spartacus” - Classic, and in my opinion outdated MSP training suggests that “escalation” of problems to the Programme Board is the only way to fix “off scope” decisions - well a good Programme Manager develops a wide scope in the first place and rarely escalates - as a SRO the last thing you need is an escalation report - recruit a fixer into these roles and someone who can do it themselves and report back when done! We need people who are able to stand up and say that is my responsibility and “I’m Spartacus”
3. Operational experience - Do you want a Programme delivered or an audit trail of how great programme paperwork but no delivery of projects and benefits released. If they do not understand operational delivery they are often unable to be any use to you or the organisation waving their MSP paperwork about. 4. A sense of humour - People buy off people, Programmes are often about a cultural change and new vision - if you have people smiling then that is half the job - it is unlikely that a dogmatic approach to delivering a Programme will lead to sustainable delivery of the benefits. As Dwight D Eisenhower said “A sense of humor is part of the art of leadership, of getting along with people, of getting things done”5. Usain Bolt A winner - No one remembers who came second to Usain Bolt at the last 100m Olympics Final - so why would you recruit someone who has rarely delivered anything tangible, sustainable but knows their governance inside out. Of course governance and a “pragmatic” view to Programme Management is important but in essence it is all about “outcomes” and delivering benefits - Programme Management is not a place for the shy and reserved but the Usain Bolts of this World who like to win and deliver. For those who did not Google it it was Richard Thompson of Trinidad & Tobago who came second - see told you you would not remember who came second.
So when recruiting your next Programme Manager/Director tear up your people specification and add these five “must haves ” to your list!
