Running Head: PROJECT LEADERSHIP 1

Project Leadership and What I Have Learned So Far.

Harley A. Bode

Arizona State University

OGL 321 Module #2

March 21, 2021

Project Leadership and What I Have Learned So Far.

Last week we went over the fundamentals of project management and the role project

management plays in organizations. In module two, we looked at decision-making concerning

exploring our goals, milestones/parameters, and interactive behaviors. All to create and maintain

a great roadmap to success. To continue our discussion about decisions and their results, we can

enhance our simulation experience from this week with additional information and advice from

project management experts. By studying these readings and learning how an efficient project

team runs, I hope to look at what I have learned, solidify the teachings from this lesson, and use

these essays as a reference for future projects in my professional career.

The resources I looked at enhanced my understanding and knowledge of project

management. In the first reading, Good Decision Making: The Key to Project Success, I

benefited from their guide on the decision-making process. I benefited from visual learning, and

the graph they published enhanced my understanding of the causes and effects of decision-

making. When using a planned decision process, your decisions can be guided in the (hopefully)

right direction, as well as influencing events that occur in managing projects. I understand that

decision-making is a vital part of project management. Even the slightest mistake in one

important decision can bring a project to its knees.

There are many risks associated with project management. Because of this risk, project

managers must be able to guide the team and the stakeholders through decision-making and also

be able to explain why and to what benefit the decision that was made can impact the project and

the team (2009, pp. 14-17). In another reading by Nuala Turner, I learned more about

transparency and how it is vital to ensuring trust in your team. As we all know, trust needs to be
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earned. However, it is different from those things that should be freely given. When working on

a project, your client/sponsor will most likely need to learn or fully understand the technical

aspects of your job. They will then rely on you to be straightforward and confident with your

abilities. The advice in the article resonated with me and opened my eyes to the importance of

creating that trust and how to do it. There are a few things you can do to ensure the trust of your

client: educate them on what you do and explain the complexities of each step, communicate to

them about issues that come up (make sure you have all the information first), and always

present solutions to problems that arise (don’t leave them alone in the project solving

department, they have to report to someone too).

All in all, there must be transparency in your relationship with your team and your clients

(2020). Finally, one of the last takeaways I found that enhanced my knowledge of project

management is to embrace adaptability and resilience (Harrin, 2021). It is important to be

adaptable and resilient, and it is essential to support that mindset with our team members and

projects so that they can be the same. For example, the importance of a work/life balance is more

than just something we talk about in meetings. Try to support that mindset and apply it to your

life to help others do the same. This alone creates a more relaxed environment in the workplace.

I agree with the assertions mentioned above and the ones in the articles. The little I know

and have experienced with project management and the simulations we started this week have

led me to believe that what was stated in these references is a fact. I firmly believe that making

decisions should only be done with careful thought and consideration. It is a process and should

not be taken lightly; it can have significant effects! As far as trust goes, a lot goes into that.

Transparency is the best way to make a meaningful relationship with your team and sponsors.

Communication and trust are essential parts of project management or any relationship; it is
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crucial to understand why. Finally, resilience and adaptability are a way to ensure you are ready

for when a decision is made and turns out to be wrong. How do you deal with that? It is

important to know how to manage your stress and how to continue after something goes awry.

Communication is so important in projects, and communicating with your vendors is a

huge factor in a project's success. If you are outsourcing, your vendors must also know your

timelines and budget, or they can cause your project to come to a screeching halt. During the

simulation, I found that outsourcing was fantastic for keeping costs down but would create

problems. I liked using extensive outsourcing but had to make sure there were 3 or 4 prototypes

to keep down mistakes. The connection that can be drawn between this example and the readings

we did are: that decisions are complex and require much thought, I trusted the outsourcing

vendors to help get this project completed, and by outsourcing, I was able to take some of the

stress off of my team and hopefully help them with their resiliency. All tasks are affected by

time, cost, the size of the group, and the skill of everyone involved. Productivity was affected the

most when I wasn’t paying attention after every week and the skill/size of the team. This is why

decisions are so important to pay attention to.

As I have stated previously, I only have a little experience with project management.

Recently, I have taken on a role in my workplace as an events coordinator/moral chief. This

means that I am responsible for planning events for 400+ people. This has been my only

experience with project management. I know that decision-making is complex, and knowing the

right thing to do is tough. I have learned the hard way that decisions should not be made lightly

and that some take a lot of careful planning and deliberation. The lesson I have been learning

lately is resiliency. Currently, I am the lead planner on three significant events. The stress, time

management, and burnout are very real. I value the time I spend with my family and am starting
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to learn the importance of self-care and balance. There are many things I am learning as a project

manager, but nothing definite at the moment. Still, these things I am facing right now will help

me tremendously in the future when I am managing things way more significantly/more

important than what I am doing now.

Last week we went over the fundamentals of project management and the role project

management plays in organizations. In module two, we looked at decision-making regarding

exploring our goals, milestones/parameters, and interactive behaviors. All to create and maintain

a great roadmap to success. I continued our discussion about decisions and their results of them.

We were allowed to enhance our simulation experience this week with additional information

and advice from project management experts. By studying these readings and learning how an

efficient project team runs, I hope to look at what I have learned, solidify the teachings from this

lesson, and use these papers as a reference for future projects. I look forward to continuing the

development of skills for successful project management.

References

Harrin, Elizabeth. (2021, February 23). The 12 Principles of Project Management. Girls Guide to

Project Management. https://www.girlsguidetopm.com/the-12-principles-of-

project-management/

Powell, Robert Col. Buede, Dennis. (2009). Project Managers Guide to Making Successful

Decisions. Management Concepts, Inc.

Turner, Nuala. (2020, April 6). 10 Digital Project Management Best Practices For Project

Success. Digital Project Management.

https://thedigitalprojectmanager.com/digital-project-management-best-practices/