Tomorrow, I start anew on a contract with a financial institution located here in Jacksonville. I am so excited I can barely contain myself. And I am nervous about this as well.
I am, if you have been following this blog, not a kid anymore. Things I used to understand on the first reading now may take me two or three times through. I am certain it is not the complexity of what I am reading as it is just loss of brain cells through age (and maybe the occasional glass of Scotch).
I have stated, in the past three blogs, that companies are becoming more and more hesitant to hire old-timers. I wish it was because of what companies see as too much experience (yes, I have been told by more than one potential employer, that I was too experienced, and the work they wanted a person for would probably bore me - hey people, let me decide if I am bored!) but I believe it may be that some potential employers may be staring at the same face as I am, getting older, slower, requiring more time to get things done.
So, I have to wonder, is my future employer going to be happy with an older, slower, (possibly more meticulous) project manager? Will they consider my work to be "plodding"? I certainly hope not.
Project management is a very intense career. I equate it with my years in nuclear power, in a way. Intense feelings exist on any project -- feelings of money being spent by the business customer -- feelings of being overwhelmed by the IT team -- feelings of "WTF" by the PM. As the point of contact between the two organizations, the PM has to be able to think with the business's hat on, and react with the IT team's hat on, simultaneously.
Sometimes, that is a "tough row to hoe." It takes focus, it takes intensity, it takes art as much as skill. Project Management is, after all, more of an art than it is a science. The art of seeing the entire project spread out across time, with product development being the overall goal.
I am very comfortable in managing this art form. It's something I love. Probably because I am, in my way, a control freak. Being the PM means, I have to be in control. My question is, am I still a viable PM? Can I be in control? Can I make this project work, making my project team a success? Because you see, if the project is a success, it will certainly be more than my success. I merely convey messages from the business customer to the IT team and back. Oh, yeah, and manage the scope, the budget, the HR resources, and a few other things.
So, looking at it all, I think I made the right decision. Time will tell if my new employer did.
Next blog -- Making it all work. OR What the hell am I doing here?
No comments:
Post a Comment