10 Project Management Trends in 2009

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Rudolf Melik, the CEO and founder of Tenrox and the author of The Rise of the Project Workforce: Managing People and Projects in a Flat World, wrote in his blog what he deemed to be the 10 potential project management trends in 2009.

I have listed below these trends and provided some of my thoughts as well.

10. The increasing correlation between project management and operational excellence

This is true. Senior executives are now highly visible in all aspects of project management to ensure that activities stay in synch with business strategies and ensure ROI.

9. The CFO and the project manager friendship

8. The rise of the Project Workforce

7. Dispersed customers, projects and teams kill politics

This I am skeptical. I reckon that this trend points to bad politics but there is no need to "throw the baby with the bathwater" so to speak. There is still a need for good politics most especially if you are dealing with global teams. For example, due to the distance, the project manager needs to ensure that the right resources are assigned to the team, costs are diligently tracked and the right stakeholders support and promote the project. All these will be difficult to achieve if the project manager is not an adept "politician."

6. Finding the right talent gets a lot easier

I agree. Due to advances in communication and collaboration technologies, we can now tap great talents available in any country. The whole world is now the resource pool! The project manager is no longer constrained by the limits of the resources available in his/her locale.

5. Emphasis shifts from project management to workforce management

4. Uncertainty is the new normal

I think a better word for uncertainty is ambiguity. With this in mind, two critical skills come in mind that will play a huge role for the success of members of the workforce. These are adaptability and sense of urgency. Adaptability to ensure that we flow with and not against change. Sense of urgency to quickly implement an activity or solution to immediately test its veracity.

3. The rapidly increasing service web

2. Enterprise software technology cross-pollination gains momentum

1. Leadership matters

In the light of all the recent management scandals and fiascos, having the right leader has become the cornerstone of the success of a project (micro) or the organization (macro).

Click the links below to view the articles.

Ten Predictions for Project Management Trends in 2009 Part 1

Ten Predictions for Project Management Trends in 2009 Part 2

Ten Predictions for Project Management Trends in 2009 Part 3