Module 3 Paper

Mark Uychoco

Arizona State University

OGL 321

Professor Ben Pandya

March 21, 2021

 There can be many things that can go well during a project, but what happens when

things do not go as planned? How does a Project Manager manage through conflict? What

caused the project a set back? Was it in the planning? We can ask many questions to why a

project did not or is not going to plan. What can the Project Manager do to prevent this or

manage issues the best way possible? Issues will always happen during a project, but what

behaviors are needed for the Project Manager to be able to manage through conflict? “Project

managers who have strong behavioral skills are more likely to involve their teams in decision-

making, and shared decision-making is one of the hallmarks of successful project

management.” (Kerzner, p.379). Having the ability to handle conflict and to include your team

in the process is a very important behavior a Project Manager must possess.

Reviewing the material in module 3 helped me gained insight and understanding in how

a successful Project Manager behaves during conflict. Before reading about behavior

excellence, I was not aware of how many common types of conflicts that can be involve in a

project. There are truly many factors to think about during the planning process in the project.

From manpower resources to even personality clashes, there are all types of conflicts that can

arise during a project. Understanding the actions that you can take to resolve these conflicts

are important. I was not aware of the five types. They are: Confrontation, Compromise,

Facilitation, Force, and Withdrawal. I find myself using compromise often in my workplace, it

helps involve my team so that they feel they are a part of the problem-solving process, they feel

a sense of ownership. Just of recently I been using more of the force way of conflict

management. While it is not my leadership style, given the current state of where the world is
with covid-19, there are a lot of safety measures in place that is making work more difficult.

These barriers are considered non negotiables and finding that I am forcing a solution because

now there are certain mandated laws that went into effect very quickly, I needed to make a

change or else sacrifice closing.

Sometimes a conflict can be about team morale or lack of motivation. A great behavior

that a Project Manager should have is rewarding the team. It is very important to recognize the

team for their work, it is a great motivational tool to use to drive your team to success or to

close gaps that exist in the project. How does a Project Manager reward their team? Sometimes

it can be difficult to reward project teams because we do not understand what a team is and is

not. Understanding your team and what they appreciate more will help motivate the team

better vs wasting the time to recognize the team when they do not appreciate the style of the

reward. I find that in my line of work, recognizing someone for their hard work and their

execution on sales by announcing it to the team gives them a moral boost, a trophy value.

“However, non-cash awards carry trophy value that has great staying power because each time

you look at that television set of plaque you are reminded of what you or your team did to earn

it.” (Kerzner, p.389).

After reviewing all the behaviors that a Project Manager should have, I agree with all

their assertions. It is about the keys to behavioral excellence and not perfection. There is no

perfection because anything can happen during a project. With changes often happening, so

does conflicts. Having the right behaviors can help manage the project to completion better.

When thinking about my own experiences after reading about behavioral excellence, it gave me

a lot to think about. It helped me to generate insight onto how I can bring this back to my
workplace to be a better leader. During this time of Covid-19, one behavior that really stood out

to me is “Maintaining backup strategies (contingency plans) in anticipation of potential

problems.” (Kerzner, p.392). One thing that comes in mind is losing staffing levels because of

illness or because my staff do not feel comfortable during this time and is thinking about

leaving. I should plan better if this were to happen by planning to do interviews in my work

cadence more often. When you lose staffing levels, it can be very difficult on the current team,

and difficult to get back on track.

Thinking about the simulation, I was caught by surprise when we lost staff after week 3

and could not hire for 3 weeks which I fell very behind. If I were more proactive vs reactive, it

would not had had such an impact on the project when it happened the first time, I ran the

simulation. “It is my experience that proactive management is one of the most effective tools

that Project Managers can use to ensure the success of their projects.” (Kerzner, p.395).

Proactive management can help to be prepared for when an issue arises. If we are reactive then

we are often too late and instead of a permeant fix to the issue, it is just a patch that can be

exposed again later during the project lifetime. During the first run of the simulation, when I

lost my staff I panicked and became reactionary. The problem that I had in my Project

Management behaviors was poor preparations. “You need to have a clear picture of what

you’re going to do, in advance – as much as possible. Otherwise, you may find yourself up

stream without a paddle.” (Lim, 2019). I found myself stuck with very little progress towards the

deadline while having a stressed-out staff. Having good leadership would have planned for any

issues that could happen and be able to manage under pressure, show leadership presence of

composure to your team. Making decisions out of confidence vs despair.

 Thinking back about my own experiences as a leader after reading the materials from

module 3, it gave me a lot of insight on the things I did not do right. One that comes to mind is

the failure to define parameters and enforce them. (Lim, 2019). When I was first promoted, I

was not confident in my abilities. I was lacking in the communication aspect of being a leader

and found that most of my team did not understand the parameters. I would enforce some

here and there, but they did not really understand because of my lack of defining the

parameters and effectively communicating to the team. “When you’re a leader, PM, it’s

imperative that you’re able to work well with your team. If and when tasks or goals are not met

to standard, there should be ramifications.” (Lim, 2019). I was lacking on holding my team

accountable to the standards. Reflecting now, I plan on changing my communication style to

ensure my team understands the standards by having more one on ones to check for

understanding. “Be as open as possible. Create an environment where team members feel

comfortable raising issues with you.” (PMStudent). Communication is key to help resolve

conflicts that may arise during a project.

Thinking about how I should be a better leader and the behaviors I must possess to be

excellent, one that really help me generate insight is proactive management. I need to plan to

plan better. My plan is to give myself 30 minutes before the start of my day to understand my

plan for the day. Often, I just go headfirst and have more of a reactionary behavior towards

conflicts. I find that I do not feel like the conflict is completely resolve and often do not feel

good about the quick solution. Being more proactive will help me find better solutions to

conflicts. My first plan of action is to look at hiring more staff to prepare of the winter season.

People get sick often during the winter season and lose staff to illness. Especially with Covid-19,
I think it is important to plan so that my current staff do not need to work harder being short

staffed. I really appreciated this module and gave me a lot to question to become a better

leader, to develop excellent behaviors to manage conflicts.

 References

Kerzner, Harold. 2010. Project Management: Best Practices - Achieving Global Excellence (2nd

Edition).

Lim, Rosanne. June 4, 2019. Top 10 Main Causes of Project Failure.

https://project-management.com/top-10-main-causes-of-project-failure/

PMStudent. Why Do Projects Fail?

https://pmstudent.com/why-do-projects-fail/