TOPIC 1
Based on your own references and/or the readings provided (primarily, but not necessarily exclusively, the first PMBOK Guide reading), discuss the following:
1. What knowledge, skills, experience and personality make for an ideal project manager?
2. How should a project manager balance management and leadership, how does emotional intelligence facilitate this balance, and what leadership style(s) do you believe works best in project management (and why)? Or if you believe that the best leadership style depends on the project and other factors, then expound on your views.
3. How important is it for a project manager to grow her/his sphere of influence, and how can she/he go about doing that?
TOPIC 2
Based on your own references.
1. Do you believe that project management is a profession worth pursuing from the point of view of demand for project managers, salary, career progression, work-life balance, etc?
2. What is the success rate of projects, what insights can you share about the factors that influence this success rate, and what do organizations need to do to raise project success rates?
3. How do you see project management (and the role of the project manager) evolving over the next five to ten years?
4. To what degree, if any, do you see agile project management gaining in popularity and adoption over traditional project management (or do you think it will be the other way around)? In some circles, agile project management is regarded as an unproven upstart or even a fad which won’t last long. What do you think?
5. If you have a futuristic bent of mind, share your perception of the robotic project manager of the not-too-distant future (maybe 10 to 15 years from now) that would use artificial intelligence to manage projects, either all by itself or in partnership with a human. You are welcome to use a touch of humor and imagination, but any technologies you advocate should be within the realm of possibility and not bordering on science fiction!