The Dual Role Project Manager / Functional Manager - PMI ...

The different points of view of the PM/FM’s main
stakeholders about his dual role
The PM/FM has to meet the expectations of three main stakeholder
categories: customers, management, and employees
(including both functional team and project team).
In general, all stakeholders criticize the fact that the PM/FM is
not fully available, neither as a project manager nor as a functional
manager. This often makes communication and conflict
resolution between the PM/FM and his stakeholders more difficult.
Therefore, it is important to obtain the stakeholders’ approval
before assigning someone the dual role of PM/FM, in
order to minimize misunderstandings and conflicts.
Customers
Customers (or clients, or project sponsors) expect that their
projects succeed and that project managers are fully dedicated
to the assigned projects. From their perspective, the PM/
FM’s activities as functional manager are seen primarily as an
obstacle to the project success. This weakens the PM/FM’s
position with his customers in case of conflicts or problems
due to his dual role.
Management
By assigning the dual role as PM/FM, management on one
hand expects that projects are a success, and on the other that
employees in the line of the functional manager are managed
in an optimal way according to the organizational processes
and directives. In doing so, they should be aware of putting
the PM/FM in a potentially critical function. Nevertheless, they
often do not provide an increased support to PM/FM, either
because they believe that he should be able to handle this dual
role, or because they actually do not have additional resources
but still want the project done.
Employees
They expect the PM/FM to be always available for their own
coaching and support and usually have little understanding for
his dual role. They can be divided into two main categories according
to their relationship with their superior (i.e. the PM/FM).
a) Project collaborators under PM/FM’s direct responsibility
are manageable, because they work closely with the PM/FM
on a daily basis.
b) Employees, who are in the PM/FM’s functional team, but not
in his project team, risk to be neglected if the PM/FM focuses
on his project management role, since he will not have enough
time to adequately support them and their problems, which are
often ranked as a second priority.
The critical position of the PM/FM towards his stakeholders
In summary, the PM/FM is usually in a weak position with his
stakeholders, as they have expectations, which he hardly can
fully and consistently satisfy. By assuming this dual role, the
PM/FM risks to disappoint some stakeholders by trying to meet
the expectations of other stakeholders. In some cases, despite
the many ways and means used, there are few chances of success.
The reasons for this difficulty are due to the advantages
and disadvantages described in the following chapters and to
the own nature of the dual responsibility.
The Dual Role Project Manager / Functional Manager
Advantages and disadvantages of the PM/FM dual role
PM/FM’s time management and workload
Proper time management and a balanced workload are the
biggest problems the PM/FM has to face. They are also the
main reasons for failure in both roles.
The functional manager role includes responsibilities such as
coaching, staff support, problem solving, which cannot be easily
planned and can generate significant peaks in the workload.
This represents a serious conflict with the project management
activities, especially during the most intensive project phases.
Under a strong workload, the PM/FM basically has two alternatives:
a) he can give up some activities either in the project
manager or in the functional manager role or b) he can bear the
workload, which is often exhausting. In both cases, there can
be important and sometimes serious consequences on both
the work quality and the individual. Moreover, the increased
workload is not always actually sustainable by a single person
over longer periods of time, may that be for legal and contractual
as well as for human limitations. The situation does not
improve even with the flexibility and good will of the PM/FM,
who accepts working overtime and delaying personal activities
and holidays. The only possibility to manage this conflict is to
give up some project management and/or functional management
responsibilities.
However, this approach can become the source of other major
problems. As previously described, the PM/FM seldom enjoys
the understanding of his stakeholders. They expect him to efficiently
and effectively perform in his role – whichever may be
in focus.
Just the fact of assigning a dual role as PM/FM induces management
and employees to put on the PM/FM higher expectations
as they would on a “simple” project manager or functional
manager. On the other hand, project customers do not
reduce their expectations, as they want successful projects
and are simply not interested in the dual role problems. Thus,
the PM/FM has to work under a great pressure and often without
additional support.
Project team set-up
For the set-up of the project team, the PM/FM’s two hats may
represent both a benefit as well as a disadvantage. In the assignment
of tasks, the PM/FM may have the advantage of
choosing the employees with the best suited skills, particularly
if he knows them from past work experiences. In addition,
employees who are both in the project and line of the PM/FM
will benefit from better training plans, professional growth and
career development. These aspects may not be so relevant
for some project managers, who often just consider their own
project goals. Moreover, often project managers in matrix organizations
have no control on the choice of their team members,
as they are assigned by the functional managers. In this
sense, the PM/FM has the advantages of having direct access
to his staff and having decision power on the tasks assigned to
his collaborators. On the other hand, the dual role may also be a
disadvantage when the PM/FM primarily pursues his goals and
interests in the project team composition. These goals may not
always match with those of his employees or other projects.
PM@CH 7