Sergey Arkhipenkov: “Intellectual people cannot be managed”
Today, information technology can not be imagined without competent management. Programming ceases to be the "lot of the elect", attracting more and more people to work in this area. Therefore, the profession of an IT project manager is becoming more and more important; it is able to assemble a team of first-class specialists and solve a given task within a specified time frame.
What is project management in IT, what is the personality of a modern project manager and what needs to be done to become a professional in this field? Sergey Archipenkov will tell about this craft_brother , director of the department of complex architectural solutions of Er-Style CJSC, the author of 5 books, over 100 articles, reports and courses, chairman of the program committee of the conference on the management of IT projects SPM Conf - 4 .
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1. Is the IT project manager a profession, vocation or lifestyle?
Of course, a project manager is, first of all, a profession. However, before a person first studied to work well, and then diligently worked to live happily. Now the difference between study, work and life is being erased. This is one inseparable process. Modern society is designed so that the highest results are achieved by people for whom the main thing is not work, career or study separately, but vocation. “To be,” not “to possess.” That, in my opinion, is the main life goal of a modern successful person. Therefore, if someone does not have a vocation to be a leader, then such a person will not achieve much in this profession.
2. How did you yourself become a project manager? Would you wish others such a fate?
I think I was a little lucky. In the scientific research institute where I then worked as a young specialist, a new scientific program was opened - simulation modeling of large and complex systems, which is very closely connected with programming. Apparently, I managed to positively recommend myself before, and therefore I was entrusted with leading one of the directions of this program.
One of the authorities of our industry, Tom DeMarco, once said: “Management is noble in its essence. Management has nothing to do with the activity of the bureaucrat sitting on top. The manager does the most necessary work in the company. Thanks to him, it is possible to complete the most ambitious projects. There is no more honorable work than the one that a real manager does. ” I share this opinion, what I want to wish for others.
3. What are the key qualities needed to become an IT project manager?
Here is a small set of core skills that, in my opinion, should have a successful modern leader of IT projects:
• Vision of goals and strategies to achieve them.
• In-depth analysis of problems and the search for new opportunities.
• Focus on success, striving for the best results.
• The ability of sympathy, understanding the status of team members.
• Sincerity and openness in communication.
• Skills in conflict resolution.
• Ability to create a creative atmosphere and a positive microclimate.
• Tolerance, the ability to accept people for what they are, the acceptance of their rights to their own opinions and mistakes.
• Ability to motivate the correct professional behavior of team members.
• The desire to identify and implement individual opportunities for professional growth of each.
• Ability to actively “provide”, “get”, “knock out”, etc.
4. What problems do modern IT managers face?
My colleague, Slava Pankratov, I think, very accurately noted that the main problem in the management of IT is that smart people work here.
About other difficulties is not ready to answer for all managers. I think that each of them has its own set of “rakes”. For me, the main problem that I had to deal with painfully at the very beginning of my managerial path was the failure of my slim model of personality types. According to my theory, there should have been only two types of personality: the right ones are those who think and act the same as me, and the wrong ones - all the others, which need urgently to be redone into the right ones. But life is straightened. I had to understand that all people are different and each person is unique. True, this had a chance to run a lot on the same “rake”.
5. What should be the ideal IT project manager?
Modern managers should be both managers and leaders. Leadership and management are equally important, they can not exist in isolation from each other. You can not be the leader of stocks, cash flow and costs. They need to be managed. Because things do not have the right and freedom of choice, which are inherent only in man. With people, you need to be efficient, with things you need to be productive. You can not focus on performance in relationships with people. Intellectual people cannot be controlled. Creative teams can only be guided and led.
6. How to achieve this state?
Well, firstly, we must really want this. And if there is motivation, then the rule of 10,000 hours works further.
7. Does a project manager need an assistant? If so, who can they become?
"Aerobatics" management - is the delegation of authority and monitoring the work of the team. Therefore, ideally, each fighter of the project team should become an assistant manager. True, for this the manager will have to work hard. Delegation is impossible without mutual trust. The one to whom the leadership has been delegated becomes his own boss, driven by his own conscience towards achieving the agreed desired results. Trust takes time and patience, the need to train and develop people, so that their abilities can match this trust. But having made these one-time investments in human capital, we will then be able to receive dividends for a long time.
8. What is the role of PM conferences in becoming a professional?
Today, our knowledge is becoming obsolete faster than we manage to celebrate graduation. Learning is a process that now lasts a lifetime. A good conference is the newest knowledge and experience of colleagues. And, of course, new professional contacts. If you run into a problem, a “call to a friend” will always help you.
9. On the territory of the CIS, there are not so many events dedicated to project management in IT. What is the peculiarity of such Russian-speaking conferences compared to Western ones?
I think that our conference SPM Conf , which is devoted exclusively to the problems of managing software development projects, is unique. And this is its peculiarity. Google software project management conference. Google does not know anything about other similar conferences either in the CIS or in foreign countries.
10. What main advice will you give to the participants of the future SPM Conf - 4?
My advice - be happy!
The formula for this is very simple. Man consists of four components: body, heart, mind and soul. The body needs money and security. Heart - love and acceptance. Reason - development and self-improvement. Soul - self-realization. And all this can be found in our industry.
Still not found? So, bad looking.
What is project management in IT, what is the personality of a modern project manager and what needs to be done to become a professional in this field? Sergey Archipenkov will tell about this craft_brother , director of the department of complex architectural solutions of Er-Style CJSC, the author of 5 books, over 100 articles, reports and courses, chairman of the program committee of the conference on the management of IT projects SPM Conf - 4 .
')
1. Is the IT project manager a profession, vocation or lifestyle?
Of course, a project manager is, first of all, a profession. However, before a person first studied to work well, and then diligently worked to live happily. Now the difference between study, work and life is being erased. This is one inseparable process. Modern society is designed so that the highest results are achieved by people for whom the main thing is not work, career or study separately, but vocation. “To be,” not “to possess.” That, in my opinion, is the main life goal of a modern successful person. Therefore, if someone does not have a vocation to be a leader, then such a person will not achieve much in this profession.
2. How did you yourself become a project manager? Would you wish others such a fate?
I think I was a little lucky. In the scientific research institute where I then worked as a young specialist, a new scientific program was opened - simulation modeling of large and complex systems, which is very closely connected with programming. Apparently, I managed to positively recommend myself before, and therefore I was entrusted with leading one of the directions of this program.
One of the authorities of our industry, Tom DeMarco, once said: “Management is noble in its essence. Management has nothing to do with the activity of the bureaucrat sitting on top. The manager does the most necessary work in the company. Thanks to him, it is possible to complete the most ambitious projects. There is no more honorable work than the one that a real manager does. ” I share this opinion, what I want to wish for others.
3. What are the key qualities needed to become an IT project manager?
Here is a small set of core skills that, in my opinion, should have a successful modern leader of IT projects:
• Vision of goals and strategies to achieve them.
• In-depth analysis of problems and the search for new opportunities.
• Focus on success, striving for the best results.
• The ability of sympathy, understanding the status of team members.
• Sincerity and openness in communication.
• Skills in conflict resolution.
• Ability to create a creative atmosphere and a positive microclimate.
• Tolerance, the ability to accept people for what they are, the acceptance of their rights to their own opinions and mistakes.
• Ability to motivate the correct professional behavior of team members.
• The desire to identify and implement individual opportunities for professional growth of each.
• Ability to actively “provide”, “get”, “knock out”, etc.
4. What problems do modern IT managers face?
My colleague, Slava Pankratov, I think, very accurately noted that the main problem in the management of IT is that smart people work here.
About other difficulties is not ready to answer for all managers. I think that each of them has its own set of “rakes”. For me, the main problem that I had to deal with painfully at the very beginning of my managerial path was the failure of my slim model of personality types. According to my theory, there should have been only two types of personality: the right ones are those who think and act the same as me, and the wrong ones - all the others, which need urgently to be redone into the right ones. But life is straightened. I had to understand that all people are different and each person is unique. True, this had a chance to run a lot on the same “rake”.
5. What should be the ideal IT project manager?
Modern managers should be both managers and leaders. Leadership and management are equally important, they can not exist in isolation from each other. You can not be the leader of stocks, cash flow and costs. They need to be managed. Because things do not have the right and freedom of choice, which are inherent only in man. With people, you need to be efficient, with things you need to be productive. You can not focus on performance in relationships with people. Intellectual people cannot be controlled. Creative teams can only be guided and led.
6. How to achieve this state?
Well, firstly, we must really want this. And if there is motivation, then the rule of 10,000 hours works further.
7. Does a project manager need an assistant? If so, who can they become?
"Aerobatics" management - is the delegation of authority and monitoring the work of the team. Therefore, ideally, each fighter of the project team should become an assistant manager. True, for this the manager will have to work hard. Delegation is impossible without mutual trust. The one to whom the leadership has been delegated becomes his own boss, driven by his own conscience towards achieving the agreed desired results. Trust takes time and patience, the need to train and develop people, so that their abilities can match this trust. But having made these one-time investments in human capital, we will then be able to receive dividends for a long time.
8. What is the role of PM conferences in becoming a professional?
Today, our knowledge is becoming obsolete faster than we manage to celebrate graduation. Learning is a process that now lasts a lifetime. A good conference is the newest knowledge and experience of colleagues. And, of course, new professional contacts. If you run into a problem, a “call to a friend” will always help you.
9. On the territory of the CIS, there are not so many events dedicated to project management in IT. What is the peculiarity of such Russian-speaking conferences compared to Western ones?
I think that our conference SPM Conf , which is devoted exclusively to the problems of managing software development projects, is unique. And this is its peculiarity. Google software project management conference. Google does not know anything about other similar conferences either in the CIS or in foreign countries.
10. What main advice will you give to the participants of the future SPM Conf - 4?
My advice - be happy!
The formula for this is very simple. Man consists of four components: body, heart, mind and soul. The body needs money and security. Heart - love and acceptance. Reason - development and self-improvement. Soul - self-realization. And all this can be found in our industry.
Still not found? So, bad looking.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/244985/
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