Going digital is the need of the moment for businesses striving for growth. While the senior management is driving their organization’s strategy by talking digital, it is the role of a project manager to do the groundwork and give shape to the vision developed by the senior management. A project manager’s role to ace digitalization in such a rapidly changing environment is vitally essential for business transformation. The importance of project managers has increased over the past decade, as organizations ought to improve their competitiveness and effectiveness by adopting new technologies and processes. Project managers have to move ahead of their traditional role and identify themselves more as digital leaders to drive digital initiatives. Many organizations either have a strategy for digital transformation or are working on one. If the organization is digitally mature, it knows the importance of a project manager for the transformation’s success. The article explains how project managers can change digital transformation vision into reality. It will also help to understand better why proper guidance is beneficial and not just necessary.
How Does a Project Manager Help?
With an inflow of technologies into businesses, all it takes is an efficient project manager skilled to change. It is critical for a project manager to ensure the business transformation timeline is met. The project managers of the pure digital companies, the Ubers and AirBnBs, are disrupting the traditional players and envisaging new solutions of doing business. Project managers play an essential role in digital transformations of the companies. They help in making critical decisions required to achieve the business outcomes just as the digital natives.
How Can You Be an Effective Project Manager?
We have spoken about the organizations transforming digitally. We need to understand why a project manager’s role is essential and what is expected from an effective project manager to succeed in the plans.
- Strategic Objectives and Reporting
Firstly, a project manager’s role is to set a clear change plan, how to achieve it, and what will constitute its success. Project managers should be able to provide a report on achieving the targets. The executive leadership and project manager should determine the organization’s success concerning timelines and budget.
- Using the Right Tools
About the previous point, communication and alignment with relevant stakeholders are vital to be an effective project manager. To make the process smooth, a project manager must utilize these tools,
- Planning – Plan schedules, timelines and workflows of the project
- Collaboration – Assign tasks, organize dashboards, allow proofing and approvals and add comments
- Documentation – Edit, document and store all types of files
- Evaluation – Assess and track the project’s success through reporting and resource management
These may help the stakeholders to understand the implementation of the project without the hours-long meetings.
- Understanding Change Management
Digital Enterprise Management is a long-term project whichever way it is looked. Project managers need to have a strong understanding of the role of change management in the industry, market, world or all three at once. The global pandemic in 2020 has already disrupted the businesses beyond what anyone could have imagined. Many organizations were caught unaware and unprepared for the current circumstances.. However, a project manager’s role entails reacting effectively to adversity with a strong communication. They ensure every measure has been implemented for the company to stand where it needs to be.
Takeaways
The current situation lets many companies see digital transformation, but lack of vision and clarity are making their attempts fail. Project management is essential in implementing technologies with clear objectives, lines of communications and measuring success. Moreover, digital transformation is a long-term process; project managers should respond to changes, adjust the organization’s objectives and help achieve new goals. In a nutshell, project managers are the excellent executioners to lead digital transformations. They have to take a more upfront leadership role to ensure their organizations shift towards a digital future that is fruitful and swift. Digital transformation helps in building capability, predictability, rhythm and discipline to operate the endeavours. In a volatile world, digital capabilities are necessary for organizations to succeed and thrive. To learn more about project management regarding business technology implementation, you can enrol into the IIM MBA courses in Digital Enterprise Management (DEM). The one-year MBA in Digital Enterprise Management from IIM Udaipur aims at developing digital business leaders to drive the digital economy.
To digital and beyond!
