Abstract
This paper describes a quantitative research approach for identifying key project managers’ competences for different types of projects. By identifying the perceived most valuable project manager competences, as having the most potential for increased contribution to project management (PM) performance, practitioners and organizations can select their priorities when developing their PM practices. The 46 competences (technical, behavioural and contextual) provided by IPMA (International Project Management Association) were surveyed through an online questionnaire. Three dimensions to distinguish project types were used: application area, innovation and complexity. Completed questionnaires were received from 96 project managers from Portugal. The results showed that 13 key competences (20%) were common to the majority of the projects. Most of these are behavioural competences, such as: ethics, reliability, engagement, openness, and leadership. It was also observed a clear correlation between technical competences and project complexity.
Keywords
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsPreview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Andersen, E.S., Vaagaasar, A.L.: Project Management Improvement Efforts-Creating Project Management Value By Uniqueness or Mainstream Thinking? Project Management Journal 40(1) (2009)
Balachandra, R., Friar, J.H.: Factors for success in R&D projects and new product innovation: A contextual framework. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management 44(3), 276–287 (1997)
Cooke-Davies, T.J.: Towards Improved Project Management Practice: Uncovering the Evidence for effective practices through empirical research. Leeds Metropolitan University. Thesis for Doctor Philosophy (2001)
Crawford, L., Hobbs, B., Turner, R.: Project Categorization Systems. Four Campus Boulevard Newton Square. Project Management Institute, Inc., Pennsylvania (2005)
Dvir, D., Lipovetsky, S., Shennar, A.J., Tishler, A.: In search of project classification: A non-universal approach to project success factors. Research Policy 27, 915–935 (1998)
Dvir, D., Sadeh, A., Malach-Pines, A.: Projects and Project Managers: The Relationship Between Project Managers’ Personality, Project Types, and Project Success. Project Management Journal 37(5), 36–48 (2006)
IPMA. IPMA Competence Baseline - Versão 3.0 (2006)
Jha, K.N., Iyer, K.C.: Commitment, coordination, competence and the iron triangle. International Journal of Project Management 25(5), 527–540 (2007)
Madter, N., Bower, D.A., Aritua, B.: Projects and personalities: A framework for individualising project management career development in the construction industry. International Journal of Project Management 30(3), 273–281 (2012)
Mengel, T.: Outcome-based project management education for emerging leaders - A case study of teaching and learning project management. International Journal of Project Management 26, 275–285 (2008)
Müller, R., Turner, J.: Matching the project manager’s leadership style to project type. International Journal of Project Management 25, 21–32 (2007a)
Müller, R., Turner, J.: The Influence of Project Managers on Project Success Criteria and Project Success by Type of Project. European Management Journal 25 (2007b)
Müller, R., Turner, R.: Attitudes and leadership competences for project success. Baltic Journal of Management 5(3), 307–329 (2010a)
Müller, R., Turner, R.: Leadership competency profiles of successful project managers. International Journal of Project Management 28(5), 437–448 (2010b)
Munns, A.K., Bjeirmi, B.F.: The role of project management in achieving project success. International Journal of Project Management 14(2), 81–87 (1996)
Ojiako, U., Ashleigh, M., Chipulu, M., Maguire, S.: Learning and teaching challenges in project management. International Journal of Project Management 29(3) (2011)
Papke-Shields, K.E., Beise, C., Quan, J.: Do project managers practice what they preach, and does it matter to project success? International Journal of Project Management 28(7), 650–662 (2010)
PMI. Project Management Competency Development (PMCD) Framework, 2nd edn. Project Management Institute, Inc., Newtown Square (2007)
PMI. A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, 4th edn. Project Management Institute, Inc., Newtown Square (2012)
Shennar, A.J.: One size does not fit all projects: exploring classical contingency domains. Management Science 47(3), 394–414 (2001)
Shennar, A.J., Bonen, Z.: A new taxonomy os systems: Toward an adaptive systems engineering framework. IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics 27(2), 137–145 (1997)
Shi, Q.: Rethinking the implementation of project management: A Value Adding Path Map approach. International Journal of Project Management 29(3) (2011)
Thomas, J., Mengel, T.: Preparing project managers to deal with complexity - Advanced project management education. International Journal of Project Management 26, 304–315 (2008)
Thomas, J., Mullaly, M.: Researching the value of project management. Project Management Institute, Inc., Newtown Square (2008)
Tishler, A., Dvir, D., Shennar, A., Lipovetsky, S.: Identifying critical factors of defense development projects: A multivariate analysis. Technological Forecasting and Social Change 51, 151–171 (1996)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2014 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this paper
Cite this paper
Dias, M., Tereso, A., Braga, A.C., Fernandes, A.G. (2014). The Key Project Managers’ Competences for Different Types of Projects. In: Rocha, Á., Correia, A., Tan, F., Stroetmann, K. (eds) New Perspectives in Information Systems and Technologies, Volume 1. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 275. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-05951-8_34
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-05951-8_34
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-05950-1
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-05951-8
eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)