By Robert Youker
Revised February  2006
Originally published on www.pmforum.org in May 2006

The thesis of this article is that there is overwhelming evidence that the PMI and other certification systems and project management bodies of knowledge do not measure the most important factors for success in managing projects.  To prove this point I will summarize research by Professor Owen Gadeken of Defense Systems Management College at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, Professor John Kotter of the Harvard Business School and a recent book by Justin Menkes.   

Owen Gadeken has conducted more than five research studies over the last dozen years to identify what are the most important competencies for a project manager to have success.  All of the studies utilized the critical incident method of research and follow-up surveys where outstanding PMs are interviewed to identify what they do that makes them so effective. (for details on the approach and results see: Gadeken , Owen, What the Defense Systems Management College Has Learned From Ten Years of ProjectLeadership Research, (Proceedings of PMI Research Conference 2000, p 274 – 256). The research resulted in defining the following eight behaviors of the best project managers:

• Are strongly committed to a clear mission

• Have a long term and big picture perspective

• Are both systematic and innovative thinkers

• Find and empower the best people for their teams

• Are selective in their involvement in project issues

• Focus on external stakeholders      

• Thrive on relationships and influence

• Proactively gather information and insist on results

Note: Italicized competencies differentiate top performers.”

Read the complete paper English

Robert Youker Global Advisor Robert Youker is an independent trainer and consultant in Project Management with more than 40 years of experience in the field. Mr. Youker is a graduate of Colgate University and the Harvard Business School, and has studied for a doctorate in behavioral science at George Washington University. His project management experience includes new product development at Xerox Corporation and project management consulting for many companies as President of Planalog Management Systems from 1968 to 1975. He is retired from the World Bank where he developed and presented Project Management courses in Washington DC as well as in China, Pakistan, The Philippines, Turkey, Iraq and in various African countries.  Most recently he was the author of the Instructor’s Resource Kit on The Implementation of Development Projects on CD ROM, released by the World Bank in 2006.  Currently Bob teaches PM courses for the International Law Institute in Georgetown, Washington, DC.