How to Be a People First Project Manager

By Kelly Fumiko Weiss

In this blog post you will…

• Learn what questions to ask to ensure you are putting people first on projects
• Learn that 90% of a Project Manager’s job is communication
• Learn about how Allize can help you train your project managers and/or run your projects

Any time I’m training Project Managers, I start by asking them what it means to be a good project manager. What are the duties and responsibilities? What does success look like? 

Inevitably, the first answers are always administrative:

“Having all the paperwork in order, invoices, contracts, Gantt charts, etc.”

“Creating the project plan and keeping it updated.”

“Sending out weekly status reports. Scheduling meetings. Tracking milestones.”

While these are all tasks that a Project Manager has to do, none of them are what makes a person a good project manager. And they certainly don’t make someone a People First Project Manager. 

My answer?

Project Management is about communication. 90% of a Project Manager’s job is communication. 

You could have the best project management in the world and never see a Gantt chart. You could have the worst project management in the world and have all your paperwork in order. 

What makes the difference?

The key is making sure the PEOPLE on the project are taken care of and that they know what’s going on.  

What does this look like?

Here are some of the key components to being a People First Project Manager:

To start the project off:

• Does everyone know why the project is important?
• Does everyone know why the project will help people?
• Does everyone know their role on the project?
• Does everyone know everyone else’s role on the project?
• Does everyone understand what’s expected of them and when?
• Does everyone have the tools, skills, and access they need to succeed?
• Does the project have a shared, open, transparent space to post project information?
• Does everyone know how to use collaboration tools? And understand why open, transparent work is important and impactful?
• Does everyone know what to expect of you? What are your SLAs and are they shared with the project team? For example do they know:
  • When you will post status updates
  • How long it will take you to follow-up after meetings
  • How long it will take you to answer questions
  • How often you will update project documentation
  • What format your posts will come in
  • What you will be using to document the work

During the project:

• Does every meeting have an agenda?
• Does anyone need extra support prior to a meeting?
• Is it clear who is leading each meeting and why?
• Do meetings include what questions need to be answered, and record what those answers are?
• Is every meeting followed up with a meeting summary AND clear action items 
  • Clear action items include who is to do the work and by when
• Are status reports easy to read? 
• Do status reports convey the most important information? (outstanding items, action items, blockers)
• Are RAID logs actively used to guide conversations and track progress?
• Are project plans reviewed in internal stand-ups and external client meetings?
  • And by reviewed, we mean are changes discussed? Updates verified? Is the work to update the project plan collaborative and not done in a silo?
• Are stakeholders asked if their needs are being met?
• Are needed changes being communicated effectively?
• Is there a clear escalation path for issues?
• Are milestones being celebrated?
• Is there a mechanism for sharing praise and/or success stories?
• If mistakes are made and solutions created, is that being celebrated as well?

To end the project: 

• Is it clear what constitutes the project’s end? 
• Is the end of the project being celebrated?
• Is it clear who does what after the project ends, aka that the project has a clear path to operationalization?
• Is a Lessons Learned session conducted? And are those results shared out?

I could go on and on here, but we hope the theme is clear. Every bullet point on these lists is about making sure:

• expectations are clear
• information is readily shared
• people’s needs are considered and met
• work is done collaboratively 

There is no mention on this list of administrative work being the sign of quality project management. Sure, we need RAID logs and project plans and invoices need to be paid. But those are just artifacts. The COMMUNICATION around project artifacts is what’s key. What difference does a RAID log make if people don’t talk about the Risks, Actions, Issues, and Decisions that are critical to a project? What difference to project plans make if people are not working together to adjust them and agreeing to the project’s course? What difference does invoicing make if there isn’t agreement as to how the invoices are being sent, at what points, for what milestones, and what to expect? 

90% of a Project Manager’s job is communication. 

And being a People First Project Manager means using the tools of project management to facilitate conversations that will ensure everyone has what they need and knows what they are meant to do. 

Project Managers are meant to serve. And the best way to serve is to put the people’s needs first. 

To help, Allize offers a variety of Project Management capabilities that are effective in the short and long term. We can help train your project management teams on how to run effective projects OR we can help lead by example and serve as the project manager for initiatives starting or in flight.

​Project management is at the heart and soul of what we do, and we want to share our skills with you! 


Blog post follow-up…

• Find out more about our Project Management services, including leading and management projects, project evaluation, PMO set-up, and training Project Managers on our website
• Check out our past blog posts on
  • Lessons I’ve Learned from Managers I’ve Loved
  • The Employee Experience: What Different Markets Have in Common and How We Can All Make the Employee Experience Better
• Contact Us if you have any questions about Project Management or our Project Management Services