STS Research Report 2014: Project Managers Common Pitfalls

PROJECT MANAGER’S COMMON PITFALLS STS RESEARCH REPORT 2014

Igor Kokcharov, PhD, PMP

About this report

The purpose of the report is to highlight the domains where project managers have more difficulties and lack of professional skills.

The difficulty of scientific analysis in project management is linked to the diversity that exists in the project management profes-

sion. Most defining characteristics of complexity in projects are multiple stakeholders (57%), ambiguity of project features (48%),

significant authority influence (35%), unknown project features (33%) and others [1].

Data mining tools

Effective analysis can be done through data mining of project simulations. The advantage of a simulation is the possibility to repeat

critical situations quickly and without incurring financial losses and develop skills via collaboration. Modern project simulations

Albasim, Cayenne, Cesim, Fissure, PM Simulation, Prendo, Sharkworld, Simventure, Simultrain®, SMG, Topsim and others [2] are

widely used for corporate professional training. Project manager’s decisions are analysed by studying the chosen options and pro-

ject performance in the business game SimulTrain® [3]. The result is based on the analysis of 2054 simulations (8000+ attendees);

75% from Germany, France, and Switzerland; 50% are corporate training and 50% are business school classes; on average 483

interactions per simulation (1 interaction per minute).

Results of PMP® Simulation tests are analysed by studying the percentage of wrong answers. The tests were made by 500 project

managers in Europe in 2013 and first half of 2014 [4].

Project Managers Common Pitfalls

The results of project simulations show the differences between participants’ choices and experts’ opinions. The analysis highlights

the major shortcomings of project delivery, decision making, and risk reaction and lists the common mistakes made by managers

[6]. Furthermore, it demonstrates that the managers’ proactive behaviour and risk prevention attitudes, as well as investing into

communication and team development result in better project performance.

Number of decisions, its frequency does not affect the overall project performance index; however it is an important factor for risk

management performance.

SEVEN MISSING MANAGERIAL SKILLS

• Proactive use of communication; • Adapting to different stakeholder requests;• Honestly informing the team about project;• Spending money to prevent risks; • Involving the team in decision making;• Investing into team development;• Avoiding micro-management.

RISK MANAGEMENT PITFALLS LACK OF

• Regular project plan updates;• Involvement of external expertise;• Planning/preparation of alternative technical solutions;• Team development to avoid missing qualifications.

THE MOST DIFFICULT PMP® EXAM QUESTIONS ARE

Knowledge areas:• Quality Management

• Integration Management• Time Management

Process group:• Planning

PMP® Examination common mistakes

Results of PMP® Simulation tests are analysed by studying the percentage of wrong answers. The tests were made by 500

project managers in Europe in 2013 and first half of 2014 [4]. The participants used exam simulator X-AM [4] that includes 1035

questions similar to PMP examination questions [5]. There are more visits for Stakeholder Management questions compared to

other topics. The analysis highlights the weak areas of exam preparation: Quality Management, Integration Management, Time

Management, and Planning process group [4]. For example, people respond wrong on 17% of Quality Management questions,

even after several attempts.

Overall Performance, % index vs. Number of decisions Risk Management Index, % vs Number of decisions

020406080

100120140160180200

0 50 100 150 200 250

Risk Management Index vs. Decisions

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200

Average Score vs. Decisions

The percentage of Knowledge Areas (A) and Process Groups (B) questions among 100 questions with the lowest success rate.

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%

Planning

Monitoring & Control

Executing

Closing

Initiating

A) 0% 5% 10% 15% 20%

Time ManagementIntegration Management

Quality ManagementProcurement Management

Human Resources ManagementCummunication Management

Scope ManagementFramework

Cost ManagementRisk Management

Stakeholder Management

B)

Literature

1. PMI’s Pulse of the Profession in-Depth Report: Navigating Complexity. September 2013.

2. List of Project Management Simulations http://pmgames.tuxfamily.org

3. SimulTrain® http://www.simultrain.com

4. A. Gontran, G. Zumbrunnen, I. Kokcharov, STS Internal Report, July 2014.

5. PMP® exam simulator X-AM http://www.sts.ch/en/products/certification/x-am-pmp-capm

6. I. Kokcharov Using Business Simulation to Analyze Project Management Decision Making. Proceeding of 45th

International Simulation and Game Association Conference, Dornbirn, Austria, 2014, p.313-318. ISBN: 978-3-7639-5420-9

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