Complex IT Project Management: 16 Steps to Success

14.9 Grasp of Theory and Details

The older I get, the more complex the task of assessing the intelligence of other people becomes to me and the less relevant it appears, too! In the boss management department, however, there is a requirement to make a judgment about how well he or she grasps theories and details. Why is this important, you ask? Well, among other things, this becomes a communications issue. Project managers can, and generally do, go on and on about anything vaguely related to the project. Not that this is necessarily a good thing, despite the human desire to show what a fine grasp you have of your job. Talking to the boss, however, should not be a social exercise in spewing forth all the information in your head, as much as it targets these goals.

• Education. I want the boss to understand the project the way I do.

• Status. I want the boss to hear the news, good or otherwise, from me.

• Escalation. I want to control when and how the boss learns that he or she has to do something special for the project.

In short, I want to control as much of the boss's knowledge of the project as possible, because, quite frankly, I seek to maneuver him or her as required to protect or enhance my project. I cannot put it any more simply than that. I definitely do not want the boss being unduly influenced by others, or worse, have him or her trying to manipulate me. So, I must communicate effectively. To do that, I have to find the right level to aim at.

I once had a boss it was easy to explain or educate in a conversational way and let draw conclusions at her own pace. I have also had others who stared out the window as if pondering a Super Bowl bet. Most are somewhere in between, so it behooves you to know how much detail the boss needs and how theoretical you can be regarding technologies, implementation strategies, or even the gory details of project management itself as you try getting the boss up to (your) speed. Either overloading or undershooting a supervisor can lead to confusion, distrust, and other results that do not assist you in accomplishing these boss communication goals I just rattled off. Take care not to patronize your boss, however, because the smarter among us tend not to show off in that way. In fact, more often than not, I play dumb myself, because that generally causes others to show their cards, sometimes recklessly. I guess the thinking is that I am too dull to really catch on!