Project leader
Article#: 00061
Date: 2021-06-15
Author: Radim
Every role in the team is important for the successfull completition of the project.
And the project leader plays the key role.
A capable project leader can use the maximal potential of the team to successfully manage the project.
On the contrary, without good leadership, a team of the best experts can accomplish a variety of cool things, but the result probably won't be what you want.
In a project without a dedicated project leader, the left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing. Then it happens that some things are done twice and some things are completely missing.
Project leader has to
- negotiate with stakeholders.
- be interested in the client's requirements.
- understand what and why the goal is.
- identify with the goal and believe in success and also inspire the team.
- communicate with the team.
- listen to the team's ideas and comments and take them into account in the project.
- plan a strategy for how to reach the goals.
- be able to assess the feasibility of the solutions.
- assign and coordinate work tasks in an appropriate order.
- know what is going on in the project.
- react to new impulses and changes.
- be able to help and make decisions.
- be interested in the work of the team.
- review and test the completed work (he has to play with the application / system).
- concentrate on the efficient work of the team to achieve a usability and comprehensibility of the result.
- inform people.
- have time for all of this.
© Radim-Automation, 2020–2025. All rights reserved.
Sharing of this article is permitted with proper attribution (link to the original page).
Related previous articles:
- Why do automation projects fail?
- Collect all the requirements and sort them!
- Write and accept only readable code!
- Who knows it?
- Appoint a representative!
- Are the people planned for this task really available?
- Set your goals for today, tommorow, this week ...
- Prepare a good project plan and keep it up to date!
- Is the way really the goal?
- Do you really want to start with this?
- Store email messages in the project folder!
- I can see what you can not see
- More than just start and stop
- Safety first!
- Do the right things and do them right!
- Define test scenarios and test cases continuously!
- Don't make it worse!
- Write a project diary!
- Keep the answers to the question "Why"
- Everything is difficult until it becomes easy
- Introduce the terminology and standardize it!
- Realize every good idea ASAP!
- Get and stay in the flow!
- Industrial evolution - Listen to your customers and follow new trends!
- Stay alert!
- Have an expert on hand!
- What does the customer need?
- Don't disappoint your customer!
- Ask questions!
- Assign tasks efficiently!
- Request bottom-up input!
- Communication skills are extremely important
- Don't replace employees in the middle of the project!
- Develop a sense of responsibility!
- Recruit and retain the best employees!
- Get the things done with a small, motivated team!
- Focus on target!
- Multitasking is harmful
- Avoid overly optimistic estimates!
- 9 women can't make a baby in a month
- Sharpen your axe before you start felling!
- Understand - Agree - Be Identified - Believe
- Don't hide any problem!
- Check the result!
- Keep it simple!
- Don't leave a work package half-finished!
- Success is not a matter of coincidence
- Choose the right tool!
- Good communication is important
- Development is evolution
- Follow the vision!
- Don't neglect and don't skip any step!
- Transparency and reliability
- From an idea to a consistent system
Related next articles:
- Learn from your journey!
- Think critically!
- A good concept = Complete set of suitable solutions
- Knowledge gained from a completed project is priceless
- Choice of programming language
- Visual modeling
- My boss was a hero
- Keep the documentation up to date throughout the project
- Graphic designer
- Dedicated employees
- High Performance HMI
- An irreplaceable employee
- HMI - Have a consistent style
- Hidden dangers during commissioning
- The false illusion of rapid progress
- HMI layout and correct display size
- HMI - colors in the visualization
- What makes an HMI intuitive?
Comment#: 00001
Date: 2021-06-16
User: Radim
"If you want to pull your team up to a higher level of engineering, you need a leader, not an enforcer.
The goal isnt't to brainwash everyone you work with, but to negotiate commonly acceptable standards with your peers."
- Jeff Atwood. Hyperink (2012). Effective Programming: More Than Writing Code.
Comment#: 00002
Date: 2021-06-16
User: Radim
"The most effective kind of technical leadership is leading by example.
The best way to earn credibility and respect is through hard work and real results.
So, if you want to motivate people, either directly or by creating a helping environment, you must first convince them that you care about them and the only sure way to convince them is by actually caring."
- Jeff Atwood. Hyperink (2012). Effective Programming: More Than Writing Code.
Comment#: 00003
Date: 2021-07-01
User: Radim
A good symphony needs a good orchestra and a good conductor. A successful project needs a good team and a good project leader, right?
Comment#: 00004
Date: 2022-06-25
User: Radim
"The key is the project leader. This is the one person who has to make the project succeed by marshaling resources, motivating team personnel, negotiating with stakeholders, cheerleading the development process, and constantly keeping an eye on the ultimate prize: the successfully completed project."
- Jeffrey K. Pinto, Om P. Kharbanda. Business Horizons (1996). How to fail in project management (without really trying) (Page 52).
Comment#: 00005
Date: 2022-07-04
User: Radim
"Problems are invevitable. However, successful project managers are those who are best able to adapt to the new situation with flexibility, look for opportunities, and bring their projects back up to speed rapidly."
- Jeffrey K. Pinto, Om P. Kharbanda. Business Horizons (1996). How to fail in project management (without really trying) (Page 48).
Comment#: 00006
Date: 2022-07-12
User: Radim
The project leader's purpose is to ensure that a project is carried out properly, on time and within budget.
Comment#: 00007
Date: 2022-10-30
User: Radim
"Process automation projects are difficult to manage. The inherent complexity, evolving scope, schedule constraints, and human interaction all contribute unique challenges. Utilizing a project manager and a team with experience managing these characteristics and the ability to maintain proper execution discipline are critical to achieving success."
- https://blog.isa.org/industrial-automation-projects-challenging-management
Comment#: 00010
Date: 2022-12-26
User: Radim
"All projects run into trouble at one time or another. The question is not whether problems will occur, but to what degree. When difficulties begin to impede progress, one of the tests of good project management is how quickly the project is brought back on course."
- Jeffrey K. Pinto, Om P. Kharbanda. Business Horizons (1996). How to fail in project management (without really trying) (Page 48).
Comment#: 00011
Date: 2022-12-26
User: Radim
"The true test of successful project managers lies in their flexibility and capacity to respond in clearheaded ways to problems once they occur."
- Jeffrey K. Pinto, Om P. Kharbanda. Business Horizons (1996). How to fail in project management (without really trying) (Page 48).
Comment#: 00012
Date: 2022-12-26
User: Radim
"A logical exercise in which project managers must engage is to continually ask a series of "What if?" questions. This forces the project manager and the team to search out likely problem areas actively rather than wait for trouble to find them.
An important side note: Research has demonstrated that the project managers who spend adequate up-front time developing a series of "What if?" scenarios and their responses to them are more successful than those who operate in a purely reactive manner, waiting until problems occur before weighing their various responses."
- Jeffrey K. Pinto, Om P. Kharbanda. Business Horizons (1996). How to fail in project management (without really trying) (Page 48).
Comment#: 00013
Date: 2023-03-08
User: Radim
Do you know what AI means? Yes, AI means Artificial Intelligence...
And do you know what AE means? Well, AE means Artificial Engagement. You can observe AE in organizations where the shared vision is not clear and where leadership is not concerned with driving the vision into reality. In the organization with AE everyone is somehow busy, but it doesn't help on the way to the realistic goal (to realizing the vision).
Comment#: 00014
Date: 2023-08-11
User: Radim
"How to eliminate fifty percent of your business worries.
Everyone who wishes to present a problem to me must first prepare and submit a memorandum answering these four questions:
1. What is the problem?
2. What is the cause of the problem?
3. What are all the possible solutions of the problem?
4. What solution do you suggest?
My associates rarely come to me now with their problems. Why? Because they've discovered that in order to answer those four questions, they have to get all the facts and think their problems through. And they've done that, they find in three-fourths of the the cases they don't have to consult me at all because the proper solution has popped out like a piece o fbread popping up from an electric toaster. Even in those cases where consultation is snecessary the discussion takes about one-third of the time formely required because it proceeds along an orderly, logical path to a reason conclusion."
- Dale Carnegie. Crescent News (1944). How to Stop Worrying and Start Living.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKzlc_N2yxw (01:07:50 - 01:09:53)
Comment#: 00015
Date: 2023-08-11
User: Radim
"Basic techniques in analysing worry:
Rule 1 - get the fact. Half the worry in the wold is caused by people trying to make decisions before they have sufficient knowledge on which to base a decision.
Rule 2 - after carefully weighing all the facts come to a decision.
Rule 3 - once a decision is carefully reached, act, get busy carrying out your decision and dismiss all enxiety about the outcome.
Rule 4 - when you or any of your associates are tempted to worry about a problem, write out and anser the following questions:
a) What is the problem?
b) What is the cause of the problem?
c) What are all possible solutions?
d) What is the best solution?"
- Dale Carnegie. Crescent News (1944). How to Stop Worrying and Start Living.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKzlc_N2yxw (01:12:50 - 01:13:50)
Comment#: 00016
Date: 2023-08-17
User: Radim
Why is there never enough time to do it right the first time, but always enough time to do it over?
"The saying "There's never enough time to do it right the first time, but always enough time to do it over" reflects a common observation about human behavior and project management. It suggests that people often rush through tasks or projects initially, hoping to save time and effort, but end up making mistakes or producing subpar results. As a result, they eventually need to invest more time and resources to fix those mistakes or redo the work properly.
There are several reasons why this phenomenon occurs:
1. Underestimation of Complexity: People might underestimate the complexity or difficulty of a task or project at the outset. This can lead to inadequate planning and allocation of resources, resulting in mistakes or oversights.
2. Pressure to Meet Deadlines: There is often pressure to complete tasks or projects quickly to meet deadlines. This can lead to shortcuts being taken or important steps being skipped in the interest of saving time.
3. Lack of Attention to Detail: When rushing through a task, individuals might not pay enough attention to details, leading to errors that require corrections later.
4. Overconfidence: Sometimes, people might overestimate their abilities or knowledge, leading them to believe they can complete a task quickly without proper preparation or diligence.
5. Incomplete Information: In some cases, tasks or projects might be started without having all the necessary information or requirements. This can lead to incorrect assumptions and decisions.
6. Limited Resources: Constraints on resources such as time, money, or manpower might force people to cut corners initially, with the intention of fixing things later when more resources are available.
7. Learning Curve: Sometimes, tasks involve new skills or technologies that individuals need to learn along the way. Initial attempts might be suboptimal as people are still acquiring the necessary expertise.
The saying serves as a reminder that investing the necessary time and effort upfront to do a task properly can save more time and resources in the long run. Proper planning, attention to detail, and thorough execution can help prevent mistakes and the need for redoing work.
However, it's worth noting that the saying is not universally true. In some cases, rushing through tasks might yield acceptable results, and redoing work might not be necessary. It all depends on the nature of the task, the level of expertise involved, and the specific circumstances."
- https://chat.openai.com (Why is there never enough time to do it right the first time, but always enough time to do it over?)
Comment#: 00018
Date: 2023-10-04
User: Radim
"Never discourage anyone who continually makes progress, no matter how slow."
- Plato
Comment#: 00020
Date: 2023-10-06
User: Radim
"Having the right boss early in your career is a huge blessing."
- Sandeep M.
Comment#: 00021
Date: 2024-01-05
User: Radim
Let's speed things up!
One man needs one hour to dig a hole 1 meter deep, 1 meter wide and 1 meter long. How much time does it take if you engage 10 men?
ChatGPT: "If one man can dig a hole that is 1 meter deep, 1 meter wide, and 1 meter long in one hour, and you have 10 men working simultaneously, you can divide the time by the number of men to find the total time it takes for the group to complete the task.
So, it would take 1 hour / 10 men = 0.1 hours (or 6 minutes) for the group of 10 men to dig the hole."
Do you agree with ChatGPT's answer?