The Virtual PM

Abstract

The era of the Virtual PM (project manager) is alive and well! In an age of cellphones, Blackberries, e-mail, conference calls, flextime and flex place, the PM no longer has the luxury of always being able to schedule face-to-face, weekly meetings with his or her team. The current work environment requires the PM to be even more adaptable, flexible and available virtually. Decisions no longer can be made on paper or staffed through layers of management; instead they have to be made out of sight and in real time from wherever the PM is located, and whenever the situation calls for it. For some of us older PMs, it has been quite an adjustment, but in many ways a very welcome one, depending on the circumstances. I find myself in the role of senior acquisition specialist supporting an Army PM who is very mobile and constantly on the move. Fortunately, I am not required (nor do I chose) to be a road warrior, so I can support the project team from home base while the PM takes care of business outside the office environs as the project and schedule require. The keys to success in this new virtual environment, I believe, are centered on the following five traditional management principles.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Nov 01, 2013
Accession Number
ADA608880

Entities

People

  • Robert L. Weinhold

Organizations

  • Defense Acquisition University

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Acquisition
  • Air Force
  • Body Armor
  • Commerce
  • Contracts
  • Electronic Mail
  • Environment
  • Governments
  • Information Operations
  • Military Acquisition
  • Personnel Management
  • Program Management
  • Specialists
  • Universities
  • Virtual Reality
  • Visibility

Readers

  • Agent-Based Social Robotics and Mobile-Assisted Learning in Virtual Environments.
  • Defense Acquisition Program Management
  • Systems Analysis and Design