Project Managers' Competencies

Dillion and Taylor (2015) opined that it is accepted that people play a key role in the management of projects and that having properly trained practitioners is crucial. Vukomanović, Young, and Huynink (2016) suggested that the term "competency" had a wide range of meanings in the literature when the concept was introduced in the 1980s. Competency is defined as the "knowledge, skills and behaviours (experience) a person needs to fulfil his or her role" Huemann (cited in Huemann, Turner, & Keegan, p. 121). There are two specific approaches to competency development: the competency model (attribute-based) and the competency standards (performance-based) (Crawford, 2012). She argued that the competency model focuses on the behaviours of the individual and their performance capabilities. However, the disadvantage of the competency model (attribute-based) is that

behavioural competencies are specific to the individual and are therefore difficult to implement uniformly in organisations.

The competency standards (performance model) can be applied uniformly as it provides a baseline for acceptable performance that can be implemented widely. The International Project Management Association published its Individual Competence Baseline book in 2016 with the aims of providing a global standard of competencies for practitioners that may be working on projects, programmes or portfolios (Vukomanović et al., 2016). The Individual Competence Baseline is intended for practitioners to be able to use their competencies to complement technical or 'hard' project management skills.

2.6.2.1 Developing Competencies from Experience

Practitioners must have the necessary skills to deal with technical matters where they are important to the project (Gale, 2005). It is suggested that providing project management services for construction projects requires an understanding of fundamental technical issues. Adham (1992) found from his research of 110 construction project managers in the UK that the best means of increasing knowledge and skills was from practical work experience. Alias et al. (2012) obtained 31 detailed questionnaires from construction project managers in Malaysia and their research, revealed that experience was a key criterion to being recognised as expert project managers.

Edum-Fotwe and McCaffer (2000) researched the development of project managers' competencies in the construction industry and cautioned that over-reliance on developing competencies from experience was inadvisable as it was context-specific and neglected the ability to have a more strategic view required for project management. Their research was based on a survey of 170 practitioners but is silent on the contribution that the BoKs could make to developing project managers' competencies. The following areas of knowledge are required for developing construction project managers: integration, time, costs, procurement, quality, communications, risk and human resources (Edum-Fotwe & McCaffer, 2000, p. 113). In contrast, (Adham, 1992, p. 283) found that the top five highest rated skills by the construction managers were: leadership, planning and scheduling, delegation, chairing meetings and negotiations. The RICS, APM and the PMI provide a competency framework that sets out guidance to assess practitioners' competencies.

Crawford (2005) challenged the assumption that practitioners using project management practice standards i.e. the PMI's BoK and the Australian National Competency Standards for Project Management performed better in the workplace than those that did not. Her research concluded that senior managers did not perceive that there was any increased performance as a result of adhering to PPMPS. She observed that this may be partly due to a professional territorial battle between general and project management, e.g. general managers did not want project managers to encroach on their area of management within the business.

It is suggested that the concept of the "iron triangle" (Atkinson, 1999) is still prevalent among practitioners i.e. their definition of 'project success' focuses on time, cost and project scope at the expense of other factors that may contribute to project success, e.g. stakeholder engagement. Papke-Shields, Besie, and Quan (2010) undertook a survey of 142 respondents as to how they used the project management practices contained in the PMI's BoK. Their results indicated that the project management practices that were most used include those related to cost, scope and time, while HR and procurement practices were used to a lesser degree. They concluded that use of project management practices did increase project success on the basis that the practices were regarded as critical success factors. This assumes a rationalist and technical approach to project management that if procedures are followed then projects will be delivered on time but does not seem to contemplate matters outside the scope of project management procedures that could jeopardise a project. Pollack (2017) argued that the traditional model of project management is not wrong but that in reality this model is rarely used in practice.

Milosevic and Patanakul (2005) also noted that in the computer and software industries, having standardised project management procedures may have contributed to project success as employees spent less time setting up their own procedures. They cautioned that their research did not demonstrate that standardised project management practices led to guaranteed project success and focused on organisational project management rather than individual project management. They noted that organisations tended to use standard procedures up to a point (described as the "inflection point") and then deviate from there. It is suggested that the inflection point appears to be key to safeguarding professional autonomy, because practitioners, PSFs and clients are not bound to use procedures irrespective of the context.

2.6.2.2 The Boomerang Mind-set

The International Labour Organisation commented on the changing nature of work and production. They confirmed that the role of the stereotypical full time employed person was under threat with half of the waged global workforce not working for one single employer (International Labour Organization, 2013). The growth of temporary working is not confined to unskilled labour, some project managers choose to work on a consultancy basis. There are some advantages for employers in engaging practitioners on a temporary basis, e.g. having flexibility in the use of these resources as and when demands rises or falls.

Crawford, French, Lloyd-Walker, and Helm (2017) argued that there was a gap in the existing literature in relation to the development of competencies for temporary workers. Their research was pan-sector and included 30 interviews with 28 organisations across Australia, Europe and North America. Organisations should treat contingent workers as part of their businesses, offer support and training opportunities, and encourage them to feel valued and part of a team were three key findings of their research (Crawford et al., 2017). Therefore, if the contingent worker has developed a good relationship with the organisation, he or she will be prepared to come back to the organisation, hence the term "boomerang mind-set". It is suggested the concept of boomerang mind-set is a relatively new one but is unlikely to be adopted by the construction industry in the short term, given its reputation for adversarial relationships with suppliers and a focus on low profit margins. However, it is suggested that the boomerang mind-set concept is worthy of consideration by PSFs and clients as these contingent workers may bring innovative ideas that could be useful for enhancing the competencies of permanent employees.

2.6.2.3 Practical Wisdom

Interest in project management stems from our modern society "characterised by standardisation, large-scale operations and bureaucracy" argued Cicmil et al. (2009, p. 80). The assessment of competencies is open to challenge and it could be argued that it aims for a minimum standard. "Competency based assessment, in its present form threatens to become the new Fordism of the education system" (Field, 1993, p. 48). This is interpreted as a reference to the provision of mass production with minimal attention to quality and a relatively inexpensive way of assessing competency in education standards. It is suggested that while minimum standards may be seen as an equitable way of gaining membership of the

PPMAs, this may unintentionally encourage some practitioners, especially Early-career Professionals, to feel that this is sufficient knowledge to be competent for complex projects. Bredillet et al. (2015, p. 264) considered what makes a good project manager and suggested the "Aristotelian" approach, i.e. they act "rightly" or do "good" action in context. They opined that their perspective was based on Aristotle's work that a project manager should have practical wisdom (phronesis) and be aware of ethical judgement (praxis). They highlighted the tensions between the deontological (the means) and the consequentialist (the end) approaches in practice standards and concluded that another theory of standards should include a focus on practitioners sharing examples of good practice, and the development of critical and reflective practice. It is suggested that the RICS's "Lessons Learned" Guidance Note is an example of shared experience within a specific context. See Appendix E (Analysis of the RICS Project Management Professional Group's Guidance Notes).