If you thought project management could be challenging, try doing it in the consulting environment. For the consultant project manager it’s a case of having four entities to whom you are responsible: the project, the stakeholders, consulting company management and client management. But which of these entities are similar and which ones differ between the consulting environment and the in-house non-contracting environment?  

The project itself as a beholding entity? Is a project a living entity? Yes, as a  project evolves it takes on a life of its own that must be bent into shape by the project manager. All project managers experience this in whatever environment they find themselves. For this entity there are few differences between the consulting and in-house project management environment. Likewise, all project managers experience the second entity, the stakeholders. A stakeholder’s primary concern is whether the project will meet their goals and expectations. They have less concern over who is managing the project. “Just deliver what I need, now!”

This brings us to the third and fourth entities which involve management. All project managers are accountable to some management chain. The chain for an in-house developed project is significantly different, and not nearly as difficult to manage, as in the consulting environment. The managers are generally sympathetic and anxious to help the project manager, because they are more aware of the project challenges and details. The stakeholders work for the same company and hence there is no formal contract with dollars involved.  Yes, some mature organizations have internal agreements and budget accountability between business areas and the department driving the project, but contracts with real dollars? No. There is a difference between budget dollars and comptroller checks. Contrast this to the consulting environment, where the management reporting chain breaks into two distinctly separate and challenging entities: client management and consulting company management.  

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About the Author: Ronald Look Contributing Author Ronald Look, PMP, has 20 years of experience as a project manager in the IT sector. He has 9 years experience managing in-house projects for a national insurance company, first as a team lead and then as a group manager. He has spent the last 10.5 years managing projects as a Senior Consultant for an international IT consulting firm, specializing in IT application outsourcing and project development. He has project management experience from the perspective of both a buyer and supplier of IT services.  Ron lives in Schaumburg, Illinois, USA and can be contacted at ronlook@comcast.net.

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