Which Mode Will Serve You and Your Project Best? (Productive Flourishing Pulse #497)
Visionary, Planner, and Doer all have their place on your team, and in you
Charlie’s recent note had me thinking about leadership postures and modes, particularly the tension most leaders feel as “doer (bootstrapper),” “manager,” and “executive,” and how to switch among them.
As I thought about it more, I see this pattern of three all over:
Executive, Manager, Individual Contributor (most corporate structures)
Project/Product Owner, Project Manager/Scrum Master,1 Project Team (software development for sure, but other projects, too.)
Visionary, Designer, Creator (from our Momentum Quiz)
These three roles/functions are why we set up the Momentum Quiz the way we did; to help you understand each of the three aspects of Project World: visioning, planning, doing/making/creating. Whether it’s a personal project, a team project, or a whole business, you and the members of your team or success pack will need to dance with each of these roles at different times.
Selecting which hat to wear can depend on:
the nature of the project or activity, including purpose, complexity, and urgency
the composition, capacity, and readiness of your team
your team’s workways and habits
our preferences, because we (and our teammates) tend to gravitate to certain modes of work based on our strengths and natural rhythms
There’s more to this idea, but I’ll leave you with this “homework” for now: observe these three modes in action in your own work, and think about the following questions.
Which one is your default way of being/doing? (Mine is most often planner, which generally suits my role here at PF. But not always.)
For one of your current projects, which mode are you operating in most, and why? Would a different mode serve the project (and you) better?
Are all three modes covered on your project(s)?
Does everyone know which mode/role is theirs? And do they know when it’s okay and/or necessary for them to decide to switch?
~Steve
Resources
Some resources as you’re thinking about modes, roles, and their activities.
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In Case You Missed It
I’d argue that what Charlie calls “project owner” in this article is closer to “project manager”: the person who’s responsible for planning the how, when, and who of the project and making sure it crosses the finish line.
I see the project owner as the person who had the idea in the first place (the visionary) and is the project “sponsor.” They’re either closest to and represent the customer, or they are the customer.