In this blog, I will be diving into my experience and challenges as a Project Manager (PM) and providing any feedback or insights I may have for anyone who is PM in the future!
The Project
Our client was a charitable project that wanted our help to create a foundational level of understanding of the how they would be able to conduct business in the future; what type of data would they need or require to make this a viable or successful venture? Were they able to create insights they wanted with the data they had? What recommendations can the Data School provide them to help them to keep this project going and take it to the next level?
The Approach
My first thought as PM was, ‘What is achievable with the data we have and in the time we had to work on this project?’. I split my cohort into 3 teams that got further split into 4 after the first day and a half. We wanted to be able to make sure we tried to provide them with insightful feedback and constructive feedback whilst managing expectations of what is realistically possible in the moment vs. what could be in done in the future and at a later stage of their project?
We had some problems with figuring out how many insights we could get from the data provided, however, we came to the conclusion that we would mock up some data with realistic fields that could give them guidance into the data they would need to collect in the future. We also mocked up data to mix in with the data we had to create some insights.
My experience and challenges
It was very challenging for me mainly due to the circumstances that were handed to me - train strikes, illnesses, half the team working from home. We have been in a rigid routine of projects where everyone has been in the office during this time. This was the first project where we had a hybrid team. To change plans around and adapt plans to changing circumstances was challenging but it was a huge learning opportunity for me to handle stress and to be able to manage my time.
As this project was heavily reliant on making sure I manage client expectations, constant contact with the client was a key. It did help that they were understanding that the data was insufficient despite having not seen the data.
If I were to do this project again…
I created teams on the basis of who will be in the office for the presentation - one team member will be present, one team member working from home. However, if I were to be PM on this project again, I would focus more on putting people together based on their strengths as everyone has strengths in different areas rather than who is able to come into the office.
Feedback:
I truly was nervous for this project but my team was fantastic and everyone pulled together really well. The feedback from the clients were beyond my expectations and I think we did a really good job of being able to show them what they company could look like with the right data and make their vision come to light.