I'm always appreciative when someone prods me to look at something familiar in a new way. Therefore, I extend my thanks to Mark Perry for his Gantthead blog posting entitled "PMO Tips: Five A+ habits PMO managers like project managers to have." I've analyzed the objectives, skills, responsibilities and education requirements of a project manager extensively, but I have to say, until I read this blog, I had never given much thought to their habits. That is until now.  

I am familiar with the work of Stephen Covey--author of "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People," his most well-known book--that triggered Perry's posting. But, while I recognize that, by definition, a project manager is highly effective, I had never considered their habits.

I won't go into details on Perry's posting here--in part because I'm not sure I agree with him--but to be fair, I've included the link above. I replied to it with my own extensive list, which refers not to habits, but to Project Managers' values and associated behaviors. The list is included here for your convenience, but I encourage you to read the posting for yourself.  Maybe you too will come to think of Project Managers in a new light.     

Steve Romero's List of Values and Behaviors of Effective Project Managers

Value 1: CUSTOMERS FIRST
- Keeps commitments to customers
- Understands and anticipates customer needs
- Understands and promotes products and services
- Acts in the best interest of the enterprise

Value 2: INTEGRITY
- Behaves in an honest and ethical manner
- Embraces diversity by treating each individual with dignity and respect
- Acts in an authentic, truthful, and straightforward manner
- Actions are consistent with words
- Deals with conflict in a timely and constructive manner

Value 3: COLLABORATION
- Thinks and acts beyond one's own work group
- Puts enterprise needs and goals ahead of individual objectives
- Takes responsibility to help others succeed
- Freely shares information
- Celebrates success

Value 4: ADAPTABILITY
- Willingly seeks and considers new ideas, approaches and best practices
- Anticipates and embraces change
- Willing to challenge current practices
- Overcomes obstacles to meet goals

Value 5: ACCOUNTABILITY
- Accepts responsibility for individual and group decisions and actions
- Holds self and others responsible for achieving results
- Takes initiative to solve problems personally and avoid unnecessary handoffs
- Acknowledges and learns from mistakes
- Takes personal responsibility for the organization's success

Value 6: EXCELLENCE
- Consistently strives to deliver superior results
- Demonstrates a sense of urgency regarding implementation
- Seeks continuous learning and improvement
- Sets and achieves high standards of performance  

Readers, what values and behaviors have I missed?

Steve Romero, IT Governance Evangelist