Which is Better: A big picture or detail-oriented PM?
If you want to be a better project manager, do you enhance your big-picture thinking, or focus on being more detail-oriented? Ideally, both! For some types of projects, one style or the other can be advantageous. Here are some situations when big picture thinking and detail-oriented thinking are more helpful.
Big picture thinking is best when:
- The organization considers a series of inter-related projects to address strategic needs, and inter-project relationships have to be identified and managed.
- Many stakeholder groups are involved, and you have to define and establish the relationship between the stakeholders’ needs.
- There are many potential approaches for delivering the project. To be successful, you have to evaluate different methods and determine the sequence of high-level activities and high-level business risks.
- Resourcing issues will arise due to demands from projects and operations. You’ll need big-picture thinking to figure out ways to satisfy the resource demands from both.
- Continuous improvement is the motivation for the project(s). With continuous improvement projects, the outcome of each project is a new environment which future projects are designed in.
A detail-oriented project manager is better suited when:
- The PM needs to be in charge of building the WBS, task groupings and task sequences. This is often the case when the PM also serves as a technical expert, or when particularly careful project planning is required.
- The PM needs to be a focal point for resolving technical issues and working with management to justify the project team’s proposed actions.
- A strong focus on risk, budget, or quality practices is required. As the saying goes, “the devil is in the details.” When a project is heavily constrained by the budget or timeline, attention to detail is crucial. Also, strict quality standards require a detail oriented PM.
- Improving processes requires detailed analysis to be successful. The insights identified by a detail-oriented PM are helpful with this type of project.
- Intricate or numerous specific requirements need to be satisfied. Attention to detail ensures that all requirements are captured and met.
I hope this information gives you a different perspective on project management skills and your personal tendencies. Use it to identify your areas for improvement and to recognize the need for different thinking styles so you can communicate to sponsors/potential hiring managers accordingly.
Remember, neither style is better than the other. And a big-picture person can be detail-oriented and vice versa. Some people are naturally big-picture thinkers, while others tend to be detail-oriented. Being adept at both isn’t common. If you lean one way or the other, consider having someone of the other style on your project. That way, you get the best of both!
Have you tried to expand your thinking to include the style that isn’t your strong suit? What issues did you run into? What was most helpful to your improvement? Share with us in the comment section.
Coming Up
Project success is driven to a large extent by healthy relationships within your project teams, which is why a lot of people skills go into project management. In this Office Hours on June 1, 2023, at 11:00am MT, Todd Dewitt will join me to talk about how to build better relationships – by learning to overcome our own fears and by building rapport with others through empathy and mutual respect.
Todd will be sharing some of the insights and strategies from his new book, Dancing with Monsters. I’m a big believer in relationship-building, so I’m looking forward to this conversation. I hope you’ll join us and bring your questions and challenges! Here’s the link to join: https://www.linkedin.com/events/betterrelationships-betterresul7060330084796170240
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