Tuesday, June 3, 2014

Key Tips on Hiring a Project Manager

Businesses require finding people that will make them more successful, but a lot of hiring managers go about their candidate search in the wrong way, especially when it comes to finding the right project managers. According to Forbe’s article by Veteran Project Manager Russell Harley, here are some tips to help you hire a great project manager.

Don’t Use Generic Descriptions
Every project manager posted online appears to be copied out of books, but these types of descriptions will overwhelm you with mismatched applicants. Instead of generic requirements, spend time to describe details of the project itself. By putting the specific needs for that position into the job description, you are more likely to get responses from PMs that want to do that type of project instead of those that would rather not.

Decide What You Need
By requiring specialized knowledge of PMs for projects you are reducing the pool of people that will apply. This means that an outstanding PM, who could do amazing things for your company, is left out.

Critical Projects Need Dedicated PMs
With smaller budgets in place at many companies today, hiring managers are trying to do more with less people. So, a PM is often expected not to just lead the project but also get their hands dirty in whatever the team needs doing.

Be Clear On Methodology
A common question asked of PM is, “What project management methodologies do you use?” The answer from the applicant should be, “Whatever one you want me to use.” If you need a PMBOK PM, say you are a Project Management Institute shop in the job description as this will help you reduce the number of applicants. If you aren’t sure or have a variety of processes, then say you need a PM that has experience in a variety of methods and can adjust as needed.

Get Rid of the Long Questions
Don’t ask open ended questions that, to answer in a professional manner, require more than two to three sentences. If nothing else you will have a lot less to read and can see how concise the applicant can be.


Want to learn more about this topic and network with PM and BA professionals like yourself? Don’t miss ProjectWorld and World Congress for Business Analysts 2014 in Seattle this fall. For more information about this event, click here: http://bit.ly/1kioQrc
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