I enjoyed this article, 7 Must-Have Project Management Skills for IT Pros, from Jennifer Lonoff Schiff, published in CIO. I agree that an effective PM should have these skills:
- Skill No. 1: Be highly organized and a good multi-tasker.
- Skill No. 2: Take charge and know how to lead.
- Skill No. 3: Be an effective communicator.
- Skill No. 4: Know how and when to negotiate.
- Skill No. 5: Be detail-oriented.
- Skill No. 6: Recognize and solve problems quickly.
- Skill No. 7: Possess the necessary technical skills.
They also paired each skill with an anecdote that really drove the point home. For example, this is how they explained Skill #3 - Effective Communication.
“Project managers need to be able to communicate status changes, good news and bad news to all levels of staff across different departments. They also need to be able to distinguish who needs to know what, when they need to know it and how that information will be delivered.” - Nandi Hayes
CIO is a new website for me, but I’ve already spent an hour perusing their articles on project management. Check it out.