What are the key skills and competencies for program managers?

A program manager's vision and strategic thinking are super important. They make sure the program's goals are aligned with the company's mission, and they provide long-term direction. This clarity helps the program adapt to change, inspires the team, and makes it easier to make good decisions. It also helps to mitigate risks and spot opportunities. A well-defined strategy gets stakeholders on board and serves as a benchmark for measuring success. Ultimately, it shows that the program manager is a leader and knows what they're doing, which gives everyone confidence. These are the essential ingredients for a successful program.

this is what really makes excellent program managers. combining vision, motivation, and passionate leadership with solid management and clear communication. Most people can do one, few people can do both. I am certainly still working on number one!

Drawing from my experience in program management, a program manager must possess robust leadership skills to inspire and motivate their team, resolve conflicts, and foster collaboration among stakeholders. He should establish clear objectives, delegate tasks, and consistently provide guidance and support to their team. A program manager should excel in problem identification and analysis, developing effective solutions to overcome challenges encountered during project execution. He must make timely, informed decisions, carefully assessing risks and trade-offs to ensure projects remain on schedule and within defined parameters. He should prioritize stakeholder engagement and communication.

There is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question, as the skills required to be a successful program manager vary depending on the specific industry and organization. However, there are some general tips that can help improve program manager skills. First, it is important to have a clear understanding of the organization's goals and objectives. This will ensure that all program activities are aligned with the company's strategy. Additionally, program managers should have strong communication and interpersonal skills in order to effectively collaborate with different teams and stakeholders.

Strategic thinking is what separates a program manager from a project manager. Program Managers are not only executors of the plan ... they must have clear understanding of the direction, a good sense for how success is being measured, and the ability to course-correct when the data and circumstances demand it. Furthermore, a visionary and strategic program manager is less interested in the "what" and "how" ... their most passionate about the "why."

Collaborative leadership style is very important when you are required to influence the stakeholders with whom you don't have direct authority.

A program manager needs to have a consultative approach as we do not have absolute authority on the cross functional team. Collaborate and supportive skillset will be essential in fostering an influence on the senior leaders, cross functional stakeholders, etc.

1. Program managers should be able to speak in diverse language. Different for the executives, different for the suppliers, vendors, project managers and other strata of the team. One should strive to get this art inculcated in ones character. 2. Successful Influence over people without having a direct reporting is a feat to achieve and that is one quality that each program manager should have for running a successful program. 3. An environment of confidence should be created for the project managers to foster ideas and come forth with their flavour of solutions.

I often tell my PMs that thought leadership and influence are the cornerstones that they must rely on to be successful. Do you know enough about your program/s to engage in meaningful discussions with your most important stakeholders? Often, your program will depend on the actions or approvals of other groups. Your ability to negotiate, evangelize, or steer depends on your leadership and influencing skills. And I've found that those skills are heavily influenced by your own knowledge and understanding of your program.

Beyond the classic array of scheduling, budgeting and coordinating tasks, an exceptional program manager embodies a distinctive collection of skills. Diplomatic steerage of stakeholders away from less advantageous pursuits, ensuring preservation of team morale. The ability to adapt focus in response to shifting priorities, simultaneously managing minute details and overarching strategy. Lastly, maintaining composed during turbulence embodies leadership and fosters team confidence. The accomplished program manager is not simply a conductor, but a vital player within the orchestral ensemble.

In my experience, Project/Program Managers who do an excellent job in risk management are not the most loved persons on the team; but they eventually get praised at the end of the project for their role in balancing the triple constraint to deliver most critical scope of the project on time with good quality

Assessing risk is incredibly important to the success of a program. Start by asking yourself some simple and broad questions - what can go wrong? and why would it go wrong? Make a short list of impacts, then expand. A good rule of thumb is to think of the people/process/technology impacts of any decision. How does these risks affect your programs performance? Your cost? Your timeline? How do these risks affect dependent partners? Once identified, create a plan for how you plan to mitigate those risks.

to me risk management this is the most important ability of both project and program managers. It's to only way to not fall into fire fighting mode!

Effective risk management is a cornerstone in ensuring the success and resilience of any program. A robust risk management strategy has two key elements: regular reviews and decisive risk mitigation actions. Regular reviews provide a dynamic understanding of the evolving landscape, enabling proactive identification of emerging risks and the refinement of mitigation strategies. Equally vital is the commitment to implementing and following through with definite risk mitigation actions. By taking decisive steps to address identified risks and ensuring their completion, organizations can enhance their adaptability, minimize potential disruptions, and fortify the overall success of the program.

In an ever changing world with customers changing needs, program managers needs to identify risk, set up mitigate plans and be flexible to change (being agile) that would have value to the projects and programs as a whole.

Program Managers are like teachers 100% in this regard...you have to know the policies and requirements, on top of enforcing and keep stakeholders in the lane that is often dictated by these policies. You can prevent a lot of scope creep and unnecessary work through utilization of policies and by being the gatekeeper for this area of expertise. Communication is the number one way of doing this and also looping in your Subject Matter Experts that may know even more than you do about their particular area.

Having a holistic view about the Business objectives is vital before identifying various projects/initiatives and grouping them as Program/s. Establishing a robust Program Governance that includes the Program Organization, Program Management Framework(Change, Risk, Communication Management) and Success Criterions, significantly contribute towards a Program's success. Tools such as Jira, Smartsheet should also be effectively put to use in order to track the respective Projects/Initiatives plans, map interdependencies, manage Risks and Issues.

In my professional experience, effective program control necessitates the utilization of automated toolsets designed to analyze factual data rather than relying on the subjective perceptions or opinions of project managers. Conversely, efficient governance mandates active engagement with project managers to comprehend their perspectives, understand their activities, and identify the challenges they encounter.

Ah governance. For early-career PMs, activities leading up to launch may seem like the most important activities related to your project or program. But as you build confidence and competence, the ongoing governance and control of your program becomes most important aspect of managing your program. This refers to how you're measuring success, what kinds of course-corrections you're implementing to further optimize, and how you keep your stakeholders engaged and informed.

I value regular lessons learned meetings, and I make sure I implement them in my projects as a fundamental practice for achieving success and fostering continuous improvement. These sessions serve as invaluable forums for stakeholders to reflect on progress, share insights, and identify opportunities for enhancement. The real-time implementation of corrective measures is a distinctive element of successful execution, enabling teams to address challenges promptly. This proactive approach not only minimizes the risk of issues escalating but also cultivates a culture of responsiveness.

Continuous Learning is the only thing that catches up with the every curve of the change. And change is the only constant, especially when it comes to Programs and Projects

"The map is not the territory." This quote encourages us to question our assumptions, embrace new knowledge and perspectives, and acknowledge that our understanding of the world is a continuous work in progress. Such is the way with business. Your customers' needs change. The technology we use evolves. The moment you think you know everything ... that's the first moment you'll begin to fail.

continuous improvement is key to the longterm survival of your company ! While the program manager can drive it it should be owned by each employee

Always have the antennae open to receiving new lessons and information. Your team will be sharing these with you all the time, but sometimes it's coded. If you have a lot of people struggling to keep the project objective in mind, it may not be clearly communicated.