Project management is a complex process that involves several steps and considerations combined with strong skill sets to achieve a successful outcome (Watt, 2014). Reflecting on my own experience with leading projects after reading about project management in the literature has been interesting. In my previous role managing a not-for-profit, I applied for, received, and managed many grant-funded projects with no project management training. Typical for a not-for-profit, I wore many ‘hats’ and had to develop skills on the job that would be fulfilled by a specialized position in many larger organizations. Over time, I became better at leading and managing projects, yet with a greater understanding of project management after the readings in this course, it is evident that the use of proper project management skills and processes could have improved the project outcomes and my experience managing the project itself. However, barriers in this context limit the ability to have full control over managing the project.
Speaking generally of the nature of projects I have managed, they were almost always funded by the government through one-time project grants. Due to the nature of grant applications, much of the project planning is completed as part of the application process. Upon approval, the project becomes constrained within the parameters of the application, and there is very little flexibility, especially from a budget and time perspective. Moreover, many project grants do not allow for expenses related to human resources, so the project management and execution stay ‘in-house’ without the ability to hire external expertise. Watt (2014) describes the term ‘triple constraint,” in which a project quality is influenced by the balance between time, cost, and scope, and with the best projects having a perfect balance between the three factors. In my experience with grant-funded projects, the proposed project plan based on the application requirements doesn’t always allow for a perfect balance to exist, as timelines are often based on the funding agency’s fiscal plan and not always aligned with the recipient’s needs. Furthermore, many projects I have led have been in partnership with Indigenous communities, and timelines dictated by the funding agency do not support the time needed to build relationships for meaningful and long-lasting work.
When working with Indigenous communities, I am not convinced that a traditional project management approach is the most effective, and I believe it has the potential to reinforce colonial systems. Taking a wider system view and applying cultural theory can help understand the power dynamics and motivation within a social system, leading to innovative ways to address challenges (Conway et al., 2017). This is a good place to start; however, the remaining challenge is converging two systems into a meaningful, respectful, and effective process for managing projects. Additionally, advocating for funding agencies to account for this process in their guidelines would be essential for progress in this area.
References
Conway, R., Masters, J., & Thorold, J. (2017). From design thinking to systems change: How to invest in innovation for social impact. Royal Society of Arts Action and Research Centre. https://www.thersa.org/globalassets/pdfs/reports/rsa_from-design-thinking-to-system-change-report.pdf
Watt, A. (2014). Project management. BCcampus. https://opentextbc.ca/projectmanagement
Hi Leah, Thanks for your post. I have also had the experience of working in the capacity of a project manager with no training! I recently took a class in project management and I thought it was so valuable. That said, it was a short class and I could continue learning so much more!
I’m so interested in exploring this idea you raise around project management reinforcing colonial structures. I hadn’t considered this before and it has me thinking. Thanks for sharing the link to the blog post that you found.
I missed your comment here, Alex, so apologies for the late reply! Thank you for reading and connecting our experiences in project management. I am glad that my post made you think about the colonial structures that can be reinforced through our systems. I am still thinking about it myself, and although I don’t have any answers, I am certainly more mindful of it and hope to explore this further!
Hi Michelle,
Thanks for the comment. After doing a quick scan of the literature when writing my post, I did not find anything that addressed the decolonization of project management. After you posed your question here, I did find a blog post discussing the need to decolonize project management from the aid sector. The article discusses some ideas, including the need to ‘fund courageously’ in which donors accept uncertainty and messiness, ‘ trust generously’ when complex environments are not controlled, and ‘measure differently’ in which outcomes such as hope and happiness at the community level are measured (Aid-reimagined, 2019). I really like the way the author presented this information, and even though it is directed at the aid sector, I think these principles could be applied in project management in general, especially when working with Indigenous communities. The courage and trust elements create flexibility that can allow for the co-creation of project processes that can align with more than one worldview. From a grant-funded project perspective, being able to develop these processes after an application has been submitted with a more flexible timeline for implementation would be a good place to start.
Reference
Aid-reimagined. (2019, October 22). It’s time to decolonise project management in the aid sector. Medium. https://medium.com/aidreimagined/its-time-to-decolonise-project-management-in-the-aid-sector-da1aa30c5eee
Hi Leah,
Your post really highlighted for me how much misalignment we see in projects – timelines dictated by funding deadlines, or a rigid approach (again with timelines that are not realistic) that does not allow for the required relationship building. You raise a very interesting question – how do we decolonize our approaches to managing projects? What are some systemic changes that might help?