At Projecting Success, we’re passionate about developing the next generation of project delivery professionals, not only through our apprenticeship programmes and learning pathways, but through the continued growth of our own team. Recently, one of our Data Engineers, James, had the opportunity to attend the MPA Rising Star Awards, an event celebrating emerging talent and future leaders across projects, data, and delivery. Below he shares his reflections of the first event.
“What does it mean to be a project manager or leader for a major project?”
This question is asked at the start of the Major Project Association’s (MPA’s) Rising Star event, hosted at the Macdonald Burlington hotel in Birmingham. As I look back on part one of the event I realise how much I was able to learn about what makes up a major project, and what it means to be a manager for such a large undertaking. Some of the key concepts covered by Rising Stars include:
· Understanding your capabilities and your own preferences
· Self-management
· Social awareness and the preferences of others
· Applying the understanding of others to foster a more inclusive environment
After a warm welcome and introduction day 1 begins by asking ‘what makes a major project different?’ As a data engineer with most of my experience in technical delivery it is a nice step back to approach it at a high-level. The definition of the major project includes:
· High monetary and/or long timeframe
· Macro level (regional/ national) impacts
· Organisational and managerial complexity
· Technological complexity and/or high level of complexity
Major projects rarely happen in isolation, often impacted by both political and technological cycles, and involving a huge range of roles and skillsets. This is one of the key strengths of the Rising Star events – of the 30 attendees there is a massive range of roles, responsibilities, and experiences. It is a microcosm of the skills required for a major project, and an incredible (and enjoyable) networking experience.
After the discussion we look into our Judgement Index reports in a fun session. The Judgement Index is a report generated from a series of questions the attendees completed beforehand, and helps us to understand our preferences on how to approach problems and what we under or over value.
Day 1 then took a look into leadership styles, communication styles, and mindsets. I found this particularly useful as I look to improve my communication skills, and it was also very fun to hear how Mary Poppins excels as a capable (if not fictional) leader.
Day 1 closed with a dinner and speech from a guest speaker, a previous Rising Stars attendee Paul Unwin, who explained how what he had learned during the Rising Stars program has benefitted him.
On day 2 we were split into teams of 6 and set a case study, to propose a social value investment level for the multi-million pound Grand Union Canal Transfer major project. This is a real project where we would need to present our proposals to a committee (played expertly by Andy Murray and Clare Carlaw), utilising the government’s Green Book 5 Case Models (Strategic, Economic, Commercial, Financial, and Management).
This was a great chance to put our skills to the test in a supportive environment (it also gave everyone a greater appreciation on why these proposals take time to make, there is a lot to include!). After some feedback there was an award ceremony where the winning team was announced, with a small donation made to a charity of their choice.
Overall it was a very enjoyable and educational experience, and I look forward to part 2 taking place in London in March.
