NHRD Journal - National HRD Network

esponse to changes in the external
environment as well as client needs and
internal pressures. These include changes in
hiring policies, the structure of the hiring
function, the resource allocation system, pay
policies, campus hiring policies, release
policies, staffing mix policies, career
development policies, reward policies, on-site
assignment policies, training policies, and a
whole host of other workforce management
policies right down to things like dress code!
At another level, organizations themselves go
through structural changes, ownership
changes and strategic changes.
While it is all fine to make out a policy
communication or announcement, the onus for
explaining it, selling it and making it work rests
with the project manager. Depending on the
depth of the HR function and the
organization's culture this is either shared by
HR or is often placed solely on the shoulders
of the project managers.
Given their own inability to understand the big
picture and the lack of training and preparation,
many do a bad job of managing this. Some
rationalize by taking the view that their life ends
with the project and anything beyond that is
not their problem. Some others believe that it is
"management's" job to handle the change. Most
seem themselves as victims of the system.
This is where the maturity of organizational
processes makes a huge difference. Where
organizations are sensitive to the implications of
the change, they limit the burden on the project
manager and lead the change from the front.
Weak Organizations just dump it on the PM.
• External Environment
Given the truly global character of the IT
industry anything that happens anywhere in
the world can have a huge impact on the
business. This is the vulnerability with which
firms operate.
The September 11 attack, the rupee
appreciation, the visa restrictions, the antioutsourcing
protests, the spirally wage costs
and so on can all impact the industry. These
and other environmental changes almost
always have implications on costs and margins,
risks, business continuity and so on. The final
hard actions always rest with the project
manager for implementation.
While most project managers are generally well
informed about these developments thanks to
an over-active media, few are able to appreciate
its direct impact on their work or what they
need to do to manage it.
• Competency Expectations
The competencies expected of project managers
have gone up significantly over the years. His
job is today much more complex than it was in
the early days. From being back-end
coordinators they are now expected to
understand the client's business and add value
at a much higher and deeper level. They have
to contend with much larger spans of control,
far larger number of inexperienced team
members and take a far greater responsibility
for the profitability of their projects and for
retaining and growing the account.
Are project managers aware of these changing
expectations and are they doing enough to
equip themselves to respond to these changes?
Well, I must say the situation is far from
satisfactory. While many Organizations are
constantly investing in the retooling and
development of project managers, the problem
is with the project managers' ability to wake
up and smell the coffee. Many do not wake up
to the need for re-skilling themselves early
enough till they realize that they are not meeting
the demands of the new order.
The Competencies to Manage Change
What then are the competencies of a project
manager who is capable of managing change
November 2007 NHRD Journal 51