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KEYLINKS RESEARCH
- ONLINE SURVEY DATA ANALYSIS -
PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION PHASE
Involved Partners: Siauliai University (Q 1-4)
MERIG (Q 5-8)
ECQ (Q 9-11)
Date: 2009-03-11
This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This document contains views of the author and the Commision cannotbe held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
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Content
Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 3
Executive Summary ............................................................................................................................. 4
1. Differences between the view of PM & PCM ................................................................................. 5
2. Gap between training offered and required ...................................................................................... 9Project management and coordination ............................................................................................. 9
Financial management ................................................................................................................... 11
Monitoring and evaluation ............................................................................................................. 12
Project completion and reporting ................................................................................................... 14
General tasks and responsibilities related to successful project implementation. ......................... 15
Conclusions regarding training offered and requested .................................................................. 17
3. Influence of project management experience ................................................................................ 23
The most important tasks for inexperienced, experienced and expert project managers
and why? ........................................................................................................................................ 23
The Most Important and/or Difficult tasks for Inexperienced, Experienced and Expert
Project Managersand Why? ....................................................................................................... 27The most important and difficult tasks for all project managers related to their experience ......... 31
4. Influence of training in project management ................................................................................. 32
5. Influence of the scope of projects ............................................................................................... 39
Final Task-Ranking ........................................................................................................................ 45
6. Type of training required in the project implementation phase ..................................................... 46
Project management and coordination ........................................................................................... 46
Financial Management ................................................................................................................... 50
Monitoring and evaluation of the project implementation process................................................ 54
Project completion and reporting ................................................................................................... 58
General tasks and responsibilities related to successful project completion ................................. 61
7. Competencies program managers (PCMs) consider important for project managers ................... 66
8. Results of Brainstorming ............................................................................................................... 67
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Introduction
Approximately 250 project managers (PMs), 45 programme managers and administrators (PCMs) and 60
representatives of educational institutions (EDUs) from different EU countries and beyond participated in the
KEYLINKS survey. In this survey the project managers and programme managers were asked in particular
to rank the project managers various tasks during the different phases of a project according to their
importance (only PMs) and difficulty (PMs and PCMs). Representatives of educational institutions were
asked to provide information if subjects related to these tasks were part of their training programs.
To analyse the results the consortium created two groups, both groups answering the following eleven
questions in their reports. (Work group one dealt with the project preparation phase while the second group
worked on answers related to the implementation phase.):
1. Differences between the viewpoint of project managers (PMs) and program managers (PCMs).
2. List of most difficult tasks.
3. Gap between training offered and required.
4. The most difficult tasks for inexperienced, experienced and expert project managers andwhy?
5. The most important tasks for inexperienced, experienced and expert project managers and
why?
6. The most important and/or difficult tasks for inexperienced, experienced and expert project
managersand why?
7. The most important and/or difficult tasks for trained and untrained project managersand why?
8. The most important and/or difficult tasks for national and transnational project managers.
9. What type of training is of interest to or sought after by project managers?
10.What competencies are considered by PCMs as important for themselves?11.Differences between the answers of different categories of institutions?
The area under discussion for this report is the IMPLEMENTATION phase (Work Group 2).
These analyses are based on the data in the final Excel tables and on the answers to the open questions.
In total 242 questionnaires were filled in by project managers. 73 participants registered but did not fill
in any question related to the implementation phase. Therefore the analyses are based on the results of
169 valid questionnaires.
Although program managers (PCMs) completed 44 questionnaires, 14 participants did not fill in anyquestion related to the implementation phase. Therefore the analyses are based on 30 valid
questionnaires.
The analyses of answers given by the representatives of educational institutions are based on 58
completed questionnaires.
In the section about the project implementation phase 35 tasks have been rated according to how the
respondent gauges the importance and difficulty of the task for project management. The scale used was
1 to 4 (1not important / easy to 4very important / difficult).
The section of the questionnaire for project implementation was organised into five subsections each
followed by an open question. (Project management and coordination, Financial management,
Monitoring and evaluation, Project completion and reporting and General tasks and responsibilitiesfor successful implementation).
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Executive Summary
Chapter 1, Differences between the views of PMs & PCMs, the gap between training offered and required,
refers to the first question. Both groups, project managers and programme managers, ranked tasks according
to their difficulty. Project managers were asked to provide information if they thought a certain task was
difficult ( rank the task according to your perception of its level of difficulty) whereas programme
managers were asked to provide information about what they thought is difficult for project managers
(Please rank each task according to your observation of its level of difficulty for the managers.). Chapter 1
outlines the differences in the two groups answers to these closed questions. When drawing up a list of the
12 most difficult tasks for both groups, PMs as well as PCMs were relatively consistent in that they both
mentioned the same eight tasks. Here we observe that programme managers (PCMs) tended to rate tasks to
do with day-to-day project management as more difficult while project managers (PMs) rated tasks related
to the management of people (communication, human resources in the project etc.) as more difficult for
them.
In chapter 2, the gap between training offered and required, the answers of all three groups were considered
in order to answer the third question. The goal was to find out which proje ct managers tasks are the subjectof training courses offered by educational institutions and if this is consistent with what is seen as important
and/or difficult by the project managers (PMs) and programme managers (PCMs). Essentially project
managers ask for more specific training in the area of soft skills like communication, partnership
management and also for specific training in terms of financial rules and management, reporting etc. related
to projects funded from European sources.
Chapter 3, the influence of project management experience, addresses questions 4, 5 and 6. All deal with the
influence of project managers experience on their rating of the importance and difficulty of tasks. To
conclude we organized all the results into a list of the most important and difficult tasks, relating to the
second question. The analyses show no clear relation between experience and how the importance or
difficulty of tasks is rated. Project managers, regardless of their experience, see tasks related to reporting andfinancial management as most important and tasks related to communication and management of people as
most difficult. But in the ranking of the top 12 difficult and important tasks we find tasks related to different
areas like communication, management, reporting, finances etc.
In chapter 4, the influence of training in project management, which refers to question 7 and chapter 5, the
influence of the scope of projects which refers to question 8, the results are similar. Here too we find no
obvious influence on the way project managers rank tasks regardless of whether they received project
management training or not.
Chapter 6, type of training required according to project implementation phase, also provides an analysis of
the answers given to the open questions in the questionnaire. It contributes to questions 9, 10 and 11 by
revealing the answers given to the open questions according to project phase (Project management andcoordination, Financial management, Monitoring and evaluation, Project completion and reporting
and General tasks and responsibilities for successful implementation), organisational background of the
participant etc.
In chapter 7, Competencies program managers (PCMs) consider as important for project managers, the open
answers of program managers are shown.
Chapter 8 presents in brief the results of a brainstorming session with approx. 40 project managers at the
KEYLINKS conference in Rovaniemi/FI, which are similar to the research results.
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1. Differences between the view of PM & PCM
According to PCMs, the most difficult activity (Diagram No.1) for PMs in the project management and
coordination (M1=2,72) is making sure activities are carried out in accordance with administrative and
financial regulations. However, the PMs answers showed that the most difficult (M=2,54) task is to overseetasks and ensure they are carried out and that deadlines are kept in accordance with the project proposal.
Diagram No. 1
PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND COORDINATION. COMPARISON
OF LEVEL OF DIFFICULTY.
2,11
2,41
2,54
2,43
2,20
2,28
2,35
2,18
2,23
1,56
2,61
2,64
2,72
2,16
2,12
2,36
2,00
2,04
1,00 2,00 3,00
Close contracts with the funding authority
Manage the project consortium by facilitating
communication and motivation
Oversee tasks and assure they are fulfilled and that
deadlines are kept in accordance with the project
Make sure activities are carried out in accordance
with the administrative and financial regulations
Carry out project amendments (contract
amendments) whenever necessary
Communicate with the target group/s (i.e. end
users, other beneficiaries and/or stakeholders)
Foster sustainable long term co-operation with
consortium members
Be available and well prepared for monitoringvisits held by the funding authority
Compile project outputs and outcomes according
to the project proposal
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
PM PCM
The analysis showed that both groups of managers found the most difficult activity (Diagram No.2) in the
financial management stage was making sure the financial rules are clear for all consortium members.
1Average indicator of difficulties
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Diagram No. 2
FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT. COMPARISON OF LEVEL OF
DIFFICULTY.
1,72
1,97
2,37
2,29
2,52
1,48
1,39
2,14
1,96
2,21
1,00 2,00 3,00
Transfer payments to partners according to
the partner contracts
Ask funding authorities for clarification if
specific questions related to the financial
Adjust project budget if necessary, for the
implementation of the proposal project
Carry out financial monitoring during the
project implementation
Make sure the financial rules are clear for all
consortium members
49
50
51
52
48
PM PCM
The average indicator of difficulties in project monitoring and evaluation of the project implementation
process (Diagram No. 3) was distributed equally among the respondents of both manager groups: the most
difficult task being monitoring set qualitative and quantitative project indicators.
Diagram No. 3
MONITORING AND EVALUATION. COMPARISON OF LEVEL OF
DIFFICULTY
2,13
2,48
2,34
2,30
2,31
2,22
2,24
2,15
2,46
1,92
2,08
2,29
1,88
2,20
1,00 2,00 3,00
Monitor the project results compilation
Monitor set qualitative and quantitative
project indicators
Collect and process feedback from project
team and beneficiaries
Analyse the information collected andpropose changes if needed
Monitor financial issues: check if spending by
consortium members is in accordance with
Organise external project evaluation (for
example monitoring by external sub-
Perform internal project evaluation
54
55
56
57
58
59
53
PM PCM
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The completion of project results and preparation of project reports presented quite difficult activities for
PMs (M=2,48). PCMs, however, identified that the most difficult task for PMs is reacting to additional
claims by the funding authority and sending necessary clarifications.
Diagram No. 4
COMPLETION AND REPORTING. COMPARISON OF LEVEL OF
DIFFICULTY
2,44
2,48
2,23
2,20
1,84
1,92
1,68
1,93
1,00 2,00 3,00
Complete project results
Prepare project reports (technical and financial)
Submit reports in due t ime to the funding autho rity
React to additional claims by the funding autho rity and
send necessary clarifications
60
61
62
63
PM PCM
The most difficult tasks and responsibilities essential to the successful completion of a project PMs stressed
as clear delegation of tasks and responsibilities by taking into account the teams competence (Diagram No.
5).PCMs found that PMs experience difficulties in setting upsound human resource management practices
for consortium management and managing of transnational partner networks and provision of a proper
working structure for the project. Both groups of managers agree that inspiring the multicultural project
team and encouraging ownership of the projectis not an easy task either.
Diagram No. 5
GENERAL TASKS. COMPARISON OF LEVEL OF DIFFICULTY
2,36
2,67
2,21
2,52
2,71
2,54
2,36
2,08
2,57
2,50
2,20
2,46
2,46
2,46
2,44
2,48
2,22
1,72
2,42
2,08
1,00 2,00 3,00
Have a clear picture of projects objectives, desired
results, and outcomes and deliver it to the consortium
Inspire the multicultural project team and encourage
the ownership of the project
Give the framework for reporting and communication
practises
Manage transnational partner networks and provide
proper working structure for the project consortium
Empower the team, clearly delegate tasks and
responsibilities by taking into account the team
Set up sound human resource management practises
for consortium management
Introduce and use different working methods and tools
in project implementation
Disseminate information about the project and the
results as a good practice example
Observe situation changes and modify the project
implementation in order to guarantee projects desired
Know the financial obligations and assure that the
whole project consortium understands
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
PM PCM
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With reference to the research results, the average level of difficulty among PCM and PM respondents was
distributed in the following way (diagram No. 6): the most difficult tasks for PMs were identified as
empowering the team by clear delegation of tasks and responsibilities, inspiration of the multicultural project
team and encouraging ownership of the project. PMs mentioned that observing situation changes and
modifying project implementation in order to guarantee a projects desired deliverables is a difficult task as
well. According to PCMs the most difficult tasks for PMs are: managing the project consortium by
facilitating communication and motivation, overseeing tasks and ensuring they are fulfilled and thatdeadlines are kept in accordance with the project proposal, making sure activities are carried out in
accordance with the administrative and financial regulations. There are some tasks that were identified by
PMs as most difficult but not mentioned by PCMs and vice versa.
Diagram No. 6
THE MOST DIFFICULT TASKS FO R PM COMPARING WITH PCM
2,71
2,67
2,57
2,54
2,54
2,52
2,48
2,43
2,52
2,5
2,48
2,44
2,44
2,46
2,42
2,64
2,48
2,46
2,46
2,72
2,61
2,46
2,36
2,29
2 2,1 2,2 2,3 2,4 2,5 2,6 2,7 2,8 2,9 3
Empower the team, clearly delegate t asks and respons ibilities by taking into
account t he team members strengths and s kills
Inspire the multicultural project t eam and encourage the ownership of the
project
Observe situation changes and modify the p roject implementation in order to
guarantee projects desired deliverables
Oversee tasks and assure they are fulfilled and that deadlines are kept in
accordance with the project proposal
Set up sound human resource management p ractises for consort ium
management
Manage transnational partner networks and provide proper working structure
for the project consortium
Monitor set qualitative and quantitative project indicators
Make sure activities are carried out in accordance with the administrat ive and
financial regulations
Make sure the financial rules are clear for all consortium members
Know t he financial obligations and assure that t he whole project consortium
understands
Prepare p roject reports (technical and financial)
Complete project results
Manage the p roject consortium by facilitating communication and mot ivation
Give the framework for reporting and communication practises
Foster sustainable long term co-operation with consortium members
Monitor financial issues: check if sp ending by consortium members is in
accordance with the project proposal
68
65
72
41
69
67
55
42
48
73
61
60
40
66
4
5
58
PM PCM
PM Q No. PCM Q No.
2,71 68. 2,72 42.
2,67 65. 2,64 41.
2,57 72. 2,61 40.
2,54 41. 2,48 69.2,54 69. 2,46 55.
2,52 48. 2,46 65.
2,52 67. 2,46 66.
2,5 73. 2,46 67.
2,48 55. 2,44 68.
2,48 61. 2,42 72.
2,44 60. 2,36 45.2,43 42. 2,29 58.
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2. Gap between training offered and required
The content analysis method was used when seeking to identify the gap between courses offered by EDUs
and training required by PMs and PCMs. The research data, representing the comments of all respondents
groups, was categorized according to 5 research instrument implementation phases:
1. Project management and coordination2. Financial management
3. Monitoring and evaluation of the project implementation process
4. Project completion and reporting
5. General tasks and responsibilities related to successful project accomplishment
The respondents answers were grouped according to similar content and the categories were named.
Project management and coordination
Important for the phase ofProject management and coordinationare the following: closing contracts withthe funding authority, managing the project consortium by facilitating communication and motivation,
overseeing tasks and ensuring they are fulfilled and that deadlines are kept in accordance with the project
proposal, making sure activities are carried out in accordance with the administrative and financial
regulations, carrying out project amendments (contract amendments) whenever necessary, communicating
with the target group/s (i.e. end users, other beneficiaries and/or stakeholders), fostering sustainable long-
term co-operation with consortium members, being available and well-prepared for monitoring visits held by
the funding authority, compiling project outputs and outcomes according to the project proposal.
Appl. No. 1: Categories of the course offered by EDUs at the project management and coordination phase.
The research results showed that these skills are trained by EDUs in several types of courses (Appl. No.1):
project management (R.c.2project management, coordination of project, PCM, PM-tools, etc.), financial
management (R.c.procurement, project financial management, etc.), international projectmanagement
(R.c. the specifics of international project management, international project management, etc.), EU project
management (R.c. EU project management, successful EU applications, etc.), human resource
management (R.c. role of advisors and consulters, motivation, human resource management in
international context, etc.),project monitoring (R.c. on-going evaluation & reflection, developing and
implementing a monitoring system, report writing, etc.), project planning (R.c. project planning, project
planning and development of practical skills, etc.),development of practical and specific skills (R.c. MS-
project, project planning and development of practical skills, participatory methods, etc.).
2R.c.respondents comments
Proejct
management
andcoordination
(EDU)
Project
management
Financial
management
International
project
management
Human
resource
management
EU project
management
Project
monitoring
Development
of practicaland specific
skills
Project
planning
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Similar categories were identified analyzing PMs and PCMs answers, i.e. project management (PMs,
PCMs), project monitoring (PMs), financial management (PCMs) and project planning (PMs). However, a
gap was recognized between courses offered by EDUs and courses required by PMs and PCMs in this phase.
Appl. No. 2: Categories of courses required by PMs at the project management and coordination phase.
PMs would like to have some courses on (Appl. No. 2): communication skills development (R.c.
communicating with target groups, training on facilitating motivation and communication, communication
skills (speaking, writing, persuading), interpersonal and communication skills, training on long-distance
communication, moderating groups, etc.); partnership management (R.c. working in partnerships, training
in EU standards/procedures for local partners, management of time constraints and problems with partners
respecting deadlines, ensuring motivation and participation of partners throughout the projects
progression so as to guarantee timely and high quality outcomes, etc.). The category development of
practical/ specific skills was identified in both (EDUs and PMs) answers; nevertheless the content differed.
PMs need to develop teamwork and coordination skills, to know more about marketing and dissemination
techniques, some legal knowledge, etc. They also pointed out methods that might be used in training, i.e.
preparing a case study, action learning, practical exercises and case studies to discuss, training with
practical tasks, etc. Finally, PM respondents emphasized that training should be organized with donor
institutions as well.
Appl. No. 3: Categories of courses useful for PMs at the project management and coordination phase
according to PCMs answers.
PCMs suggest that it would be useful for PMs to have some courses on (Appl. No. 3): document
management (R.c. record keeping, work with documents, preparation of review of activities realized, etc. ),
time management,leadership training, and international partnership management.
Some PM and PCM respondents indicated that PMs need no trainingin this phase.
Projectmanagement
and
coordination
(PM)
Project
management
Project
monitoring
Project
planning
Partnership
management
Communicati
on skills
development
No training
needed
Development
of practicaland specific
skills
Project
management
andcoordination
(PCM answers)
Project
management
Financial
management
Document
management
Leadership
training
Time
management
No training
needed
International
partnership
management
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F inancial management
Forfi nancial managementit is important to make sure financial rules are clear for all consortium members,
to transfer payments to partners according to the partner contracts, to ask funding authorities for clarification
if specific questions related to the financial management arise, to adjust the project budget if necessary, to
project activities for the implementation of the proposal, to initiate and execute a project amendment if
necessary, and to carry out financial monitoring during project implementation.
Appl. No. 4: Categories of courses offered by EDUs at the financial management phase.
During analysis similar categories were identified in all three groups: general project financial
management and project management. EDUs also offer courses on (Appl. No. 4): international project
management (R.c. the specifics of international project management, etc.), EU project management (R.c.
successful EU applications, management of EU funded projects, etc.), project planning, project
monitoring and development of practical/ specific skills (R.c. information technology of project
management, project planning and development of practical skills,etc.).
Appl. No. 5: Categories of courses required by PMs at the financial management phase.
On the other hand, courses required or otherwise by PMs (App. No. 5.), i.e. specific / case project financial
management (R.c. specific training on financial monitoring could be helpful, knowing local accountancy
and project accountancy is important, training in specific financial rules and guidelines, etc.) , financial
monitoring (R.c. how to ensure that money is spent as stated and convince partners to also follow rules,
monitoring tools, etc.), cooperation with donor institutions on financial issues (R.c. adjusting the budget:
easy when the donor agree to make this kind of adjustment, training with funding authorities, etc.) PMs
suggested training methods, i.e.simulations, social network, case studies, practical training with a simulatedreal case, workshops & online community, etc.
Financialmanagement
(EDU)
General
Projectfinancial
management
Project
management
International
projectmanagement
Project
planning
EU project
management
Development
of practical/specific skills
Project
monitoring
Financial
management (PM)
General Project
financialmanagement
Project
management
Specific / case
project financialmanagement
Cooperation with
donor institutionson financial issues
Financial
monitoring
Development of
practical/ specificskills
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Appl. No. 6: Categories of courses helpful to PMs in the financial management phase according to PCMs
According to PCMs PMs should have some training in (Appl. No. 6): document management (R.c.
preparation of reports, adjustment of formal rules and criteria - limits and opportunities, etc.), cooperation
with donor institutions (R.c.participation in preliminary meetings organized by donoretc.)
Some PM and PCM respondents indicated that PMs need no trainingin this phase.
Monitoring and evaluation
The following tasks and abilities are important to the Monitoring and evaluationstage: performing internal
project evaluation, monitoring compilation of project results, monitoring set qualitative and quantitative
project indicators, collecting and processing feedback from project team and beneficiaries, analysing
information collected and proposing changes if needed, monitoring financial issues and organising external
project evaluation.
Appl. No. 7. The categories of courses offered by EDUs in the financial management phase.
Categories identified in all three groups: project monitoring, project evaluation. EDUs and PMs also
mentioned similar tasks as those in the project management category.
However there was some variation in the answers of EDUs, PMs and PCMs. Beside the categories
commonly mentioned EDUs also offer courses (App. No. 7) in: international project management, EU
project management (R.c. successful EU applications, management of EU funded projects, etc.), human
resource management (R.c.,feedback, negotiations and confrontation), development of practical/ specific
skills (R.c. PCM LFA training, project planning and development of practical skills, etc.). The analysis
showed that EDUs offer general courses on project monitoring and evaluation (R.c. Monitoring &
Evaluation, Participatory Monitoring and Evaluation, Monitoring and Evaluation of Development
Interventions, Developing Terms of Reference for external evaluation and/or monitoring, Learning from
Monitoring and Evaluations, etc.) as well as specific (R.c. Existing project monitoring tools, Monitoringvisits, Project evaluation (internal, external, Role of the evaluator, etc.)
Project managementand coordination
(PCM answers)
General Projectfinancial
management
Cooperation with
donor institutions
Document
managementNo training neededProject management
Monitoring
and evaluation
(EDU)
Project
monitoring
and evaluation
Project
monitoring
Project
evaluation
EU project
management
Project
management
Development
of practical/
specific skills
International
project
management
Human
resource
management
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Appl. No. 8. The categories of courses in Monitoring and evaluation phase required by PMs.
PMs in contrast to EDUs would be interested in types of courses such as knowledge management (R.c.
training in European Quality plan Existing tools, Info sources or directories to find external quality experts,
etc.), risk management, time management, and the development of communicational skills (R.c. cross-
cultural communication, etc.). The category Development of practical / specific skills was also identified in
the analysis of the PMs answers, emphasizing, however, the need for different practical skills, i.e. how to
best present proposals for changes, how to develop efficient people skills and active listening skills & having
clear and transparent information. (Appl. No. 8) PMs suggested training methods, i.e. collaborative e-
learning, carrying out case studies, having the opportunity during training of using examples of successful
case monitoring, training in new and innovative monitoring and evaluation methods. Some PM respondents
indicated that they need no trainingin this stage.
App. No. 9: Categories of courses useful to PMs in the Monitoring and evaluation phase according to PCMs
Besides common categories (project monitoring and evaluation), PCMs mentioned that PMs need some
courses that develop skills in research and interpretation of research results and critical and analytical
thinking. (Appl. No. 9)
Monitoring
andevaluation
(PM)
Project
monitoring
Project
evaluation
Project
management
Risk
management
Knowledge
management
Development
of practical/
specific skills
Time
management
Communi-
cation
development
No training
needed
Project monitoring and evaluation
(PCM answers)
Project monitoring Project evaluation Development of practical/ specific
skills
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Project completion and reporting
Important to the phase ofProject completion and r eportingis the following: completion of project results,
preparation of project reports (technical and financial), submission of reports in due time to the funding
authority, and reaction to additional claims by the funding authority and sending of necessary clarifications.
Appl. No. 10. Categories of courses offered by EDU in the Project completion and reportingphase.
The results of the research showed, that these skills are taught by EDUs in several types of courses (Appl.
No.10): project reporting (R.c. Compiling the Final Reports, Report Writing, etc.), project management,
EU project management (R.c. EU Project Management, Successful EU Applications, etc.), international
project management, and project evaluation. EDU also offer more restricted courses such as Technical
issues, ECHO guidelines, Project planning and development of practical skills.
Appl. No. 11. Categories of courses required by PMs in Project completion and reportingphase.
PMs also mentioned (Appl. No. 11) that they need courses in project reporting (R.c. Report writing and
communication skills, etc.). However they requested courses which are not offered by EDUs, i.e . time
management (R.c. reporting deadlines control, time management, preparing and supervising team in
sharing responsibilities, etc.), communication with donor institutions (R.c. training in how to react to
additional claims by the funding authority, training in how to interpret comments and remarks from the
commission, etc.)partnership management (R.c. managing partner consortium tasks and responsibilities,
etc.). The specific need of PMs in the completion and reporting stage was identified as: training in audit and
control issues, hints on preparing project reports (this probably has to be program specific) and financial
reporting.
Projectcompletion and
reporting (EDU)
Project reporting Project
management
EU project
management
Project
evaluation
Internationalproject
management
Development of
specific skills
Projectcompletion
and reporting
(PM)
Project
reporting
Specific
projectreporting
courses
Time
management
Partnership
management
Communicati
on with donor
institutions
No training
needed
Project
planning
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Appl. No. 12. Categories of courses helpful for PMs in Project completion and reportingphase according to
PCMs
There were only a few similarities between the PMs and PCMs answers. PCMs comments have nothing in
common with courses suggested by EDUs. They believe that PMs should have training (App. No. 12) in:
research methodology, report/document management (R.c. how to substitute hard copies of archives with
electronic versions and how to organize electronic archives, report writing, etc .) and time management.
Some PCM respondents indicated that PMs need no trainingin this stage.
General tasks and responsibil i ties related to successful project implementation.
Important to the phase ofGeneral tasks and responsibilities related to successful project implementation
is: having a clear picture of the projects objectives, desired results and outcomes, and delivering it to the
consortium, inspiring the multicultural project team and encouraging ownership of the project, giving the
framework for reporting and communication practices, managing transnational partner networks and
providing a proper working structure for the project consortium, empowering the team, clearly delegating
tasks and responsibilities by taking into account the team members strengths and skills, setting up sound
human resource management practices for consortium management, introducing and using different workingmethods and tools in project implementation, propagating information about the project and its results as an
example of sound practice, observing situational changes and modifying project implementation in order to
guarantee the projects desired deliverables, being informed about financial obligations and ensuring that the
whole project consortium understands.
Appl. No. 13. Categories of training courses offered by EDUs in general tasks and responsibilities.
The results of research showed that these skills are taught by EDUs in several types of courses (Appl.No.13): partnership management (R.c. international partner networks, defining action plans in a
consortium, building alliances, etc.), communication skills (R.c. intercultural communication,
Project completion and
reporting (PCM answers)
Research methodology Report/document
management
Time management No training needed
General
tasks and
responsibilities(EDU)
Partnership
manage-
ment
Communic
ation skills
Human
resourcemanage-
ment
Project
manage-
ment
EU project
manage-
ment
Manage-
ment oforganiza-
tion policy
Project
evaluation
Inter-
nationalproject
manage-
ment
Develop-
ment ofspecific
skills
Team
manage-
ment
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communication skills and practices, etc.), human resource management (R.c. human resource
management, team building, etc.), EU project management (R.c.EU project management, successful EU
applications, etc.), team management, project management,management of organization policy (R.c.
the nature of organizations, advocacy and policy influencing organizational development, etc.),
international project management, project evaluation (R.c. project planning, project planning and
development of practical skills, etc.), development of specific skills (R.c. E-collaboration tools, project
planning and development of practical skills, etc.).
An analysis of PMs and PCMs answers revealed similar categories, i.e. human resource management
(EDUs, PMs), communication skills (EDUs, PMs, PCMs), team management (PCMs, PMs), project
management (EDUs, PMs, PCMs), and partnership management (EDUs, PMs).
Appl. No. 14. Categories of training courses required by PMs in general tasks and responsibilities.
PMs would like to have some courses on (Appl. No. 14): leadership training, financial management, and
project results dissemination.
PMs also indicated methods which might be used in training, i.e. seminar or module type training withpractical tasks, introducing methods in self-oriented bodies, preparing case studies and examples, list of
tools available, software, practical case studies to discuss, etc.
Appl. No. 15. Categories of courses useful for PMs in project management and coordination phase according
to PCMs
The only specific courses that PCMs consider potentially useful for PMs are (Appl. No. 15) project
planning matrix and record/ documents management.
General tasksand
responsibilities
(PM)
Humanresource
management
Communicatio
n skills
Team
management
Partnership
management
Project
management
Financial
management
Leadership
training
Project results
dissemination
General tasks andresponsibilities
(PCM answers)
Record/Document
management
Communication
trainingProject management Project planning
matrixTeam management
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Conclusions regarding train ing off ered and requested
The following table, showing the training categories of the courses generally offered by EDUs and required
by PMs reveals that the gap between what is offered and required is not substantial.
The main categories EDUs point out are:project management, financial management, international projects
management, EU project management, human resource management, project monitoring, project planning,
development of practical/ specific skills, general financial management, project monitoring & evaluation,
project evaluation, project reporting, partnership management. In almost all cases PMs and PCMs identified
the necessity for training already offered by EDUs.
Nevertheless, in the main PMs would like a course or training in: communication skills development, donor
training, specific / case project financial management, financial monitoring, cooperation with donor
institution on financial issues, knowledge management, risk management, time management, specific project
reporting courses, communication with donor institutions, team management, leadership training, project
results dissemination.
Unlike the other two groups, PCMs do not think that training PMs is needed at all with the exception of
record/ documents managementcourses, which they believe to be necessary for PMs.
An interesting and useful part of the research was the PMs hints on how training in competence could be
given or courses organized. The main methods mentioned were: case studies, simulations, practical training,
experiential learning, etc.
Training categories table of courses offered by EDUs and required by PMs and PCMs
Categories EDU PM PCM
PROJECT
MANAGEMENT
Project management (11) Project management course (3) Project management (3)
Coordination of a project (alltopics)
Project management tools How to distinguish betweenformal requirements andevolving needs for thechanging environment
PM-tools Project management Output management
Project Cycle Management(4)
Training of project management They need to know therules of the game, and be
willing to study them
Managers' Questions How to manage and coordinate projects Project management skills
Change Management inorganizations
General Management
PCM (3)
Project implementation
Implementation training
Closing contracts
General project management tools
Training in how to carry out activities in
accordance with administrative and financial
regulations
Monitoring and management training as well asmethodical training
Training in exchange of effective working methodsand tools for the Management of European fundedprojects.
Project management training
FINANCIAL
MANAGEMENT
Procurement Project management - technical and financial Financial management
Project Financial
management
Auditing and finance
INTERNAT-
IONAL
PROJECTS
MANAGEMENT
The specifics of international
project management (2)
International ProjectManagement (5)
EU PROJECT
MANAGEMENT
EU Project Management (5)
Management of EU fundedprojects (3)
Successful EU Applications(5)
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HUMAN
RESOURCE
MANAGEMENT
Human Resourcemanagement (2)
HR management
Human Resources
Management in anInternational Context
HR and personnel, multi-cultural, negotiation and
conflict resolution skills, communications, resultsanalysis
Role of Advisers andConsultants
Training in setting up sound human resourcesmanagement practices
Motivation Leading teams, conflict management
Organizational Development Common sense and basic general management andHR management skills training
Feedback, Negotiation and
confrontation
Training in personnel management and staff
appraisal also useful, as is additional language &cross-cultural training for both expat and local staff
to work together more effectively.
Human ResourcesManagement and
Development
Intercultural training in human resources leadershiptraining
Team building
Integrated project
Assignment
Negotiation
PROJECT
MONITORING
On-going Evaluation &
Reflection
Existing project monitoring tools All types of training related
to monitoring andevaluation - especially froma scientific perspective ofthese subjects
Develop and Implement amonitoring system
Project monitoring package Project monitoring
Social and economic
evaluation of projects
Monitoring for project managers
Monitoring and Reporting Monitoring visits
Develop Monitoring System Training in monitoring system development andimplementation
Monitoring of the project M&E
Report Writing M & E skills
Giving and Accepting
Feedback
Monitoring
Project Monitoring Monitoring training
Develop Indicators at alllevels of intervention
Monitoring tools
M&E training for all involved partners
Training in the set-up and implementation ofinternal monitoring and qualitative and quantitative
indicators
Some training in selection of indicators andmonitoring / benchmarking techniques will beuseful.
Monitoring processes implementation
Training in how to monitor qualitative and
quantitative project indicators
PROJECTPLANNING
Project planning (2) Setting realistic goals about outputs and outcomesProject planningand
development of practicalskills (2)
The art of planning
DEVELOPMENT
OF PRACTICAL/
SPECIFIC
SKILLS
MS-Project Some legal knowledge is necessary Experience with research
and interpretation of itsresults
Project planning anddevelopment of practical
skills (5)
Team working and coordination Critical and analyticalthinking
Information technologies ofproject management
Marketing and dissemination techniques
PCM LFA training E- learning
Knowledge Management Audit trail
E-collaboration tools Having adequate emotional intelligence and asystemic view
Technical Issues Training in how to best present proposals forchanges
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ECHO guidelines Having efficient people skills and active listeningskills & Having clear and transparent informationParticipatory Methods
GENERAL
FINANCIAL
MANAGEMENT
Financial Management fornon-financial managers
Budget training (European regulations) Management of finances
Financial Management and
Administration (all topics)
Financial resource management Project financial
management
Public Finance Management Financial issues Budgeting, accounting
Procurement processes Basic Financial Management training Finance managementFinancial Management ofEU-Projects: all tasks above
General financial management training inaccordance to EU funding would be highly useful.
Preparation of reports
Project Financialmanagement
Financial management of projects andadministrative rules foreseen by the authorities
Adjustment of formal rulesand criteria - limits andopportunitiesProject's financial management trainings
Good training in European financial planning andmonitoring
Training in Financial Management Tools
More training in financial management, monitoring
and surveying.
General training in budget management and
specific training in accordance with the rules ofindividual programmes / hints on how to clarify
complicated financial rules for partnersFinancial planning scenario
Training on financial management
Project financial management
Financial project management of course,budgeting, presentation of financial info and
projections
Project Financial management training
Training in budget preparation
Training for interpretation of the official
administrative and financial rules of EU-Projectswith practical examples.
Training which facilitates the budget adjustment
process.
Cost accounting, analytic accounting
PROJECT
MONITORING
& EVALUATION
Monitoring & Evaluation
Monitoring and Evaluation
Participatory Monitoring and
Evaluation
Monitoring and Evaluation
of Development
Interventions
Develop Terms of Reference
for external evaluation
and/or monitoring
Learning from Monitoringand Evaluation
PROJECT
EVALUATION
Evaluation -Methodology Project evaluation Evaluation: tasks,techniques and purpose
Project evaluation (internal,
external)
Evaluation and in particular the set up of relevantand reliable indicators
Evaluation skills
Role of the evaluator M & E skills
Project Evaluation and
Mainstreaming (2)
M&E training for all involved partners
Evaluation (o) project
management
Importance and difference of external and internal
evaluation and its purpose.
Training regarding evaluation methods, setting up
qualitative indicators
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Training in different types of quant. and qual.project evaluation / training in budget management(see above); criteria on how to choose an evaluatorand hints on how to find one that is good (similar to
choosing good partners)
Project evaluation
Project evaluation course
PROJECT
REPORTING
Project reporting Each foundation could organize seminars about
project reportingCompiling the Final Reports Project reporting
Report Writing Report writing and communication skills
Some training in report writing is useful for more
technically minded team leaders for whom thewriting of such does not come easily.
Report writing
Reporting skills
PARTNERSHIP
MANAGEMENT
International partner
networks
Working in partnerships North-South/Provision oftraining on EU standards/procedures etc to localpartners
Facilitation of partnership
meetings
Management of time constraints and problems ofpartners with respecting deadlines
Managing International
Partnership
Workshops & online community
Defining an action plan in a
consortium
Ensuring motivation and participation of partnersthroughout the projects progress in order to
guarantee well-timed and quality results
Building Alliances Consortium management: Not so easy to adapt,
depending on the partners (and the donorslimitations).
Managing partner consortium tasks and
responsibilities
COMMUNICATI
ON SKILLS
DEVELOPMENT
Intercultural Communication
(2)
To communicate with target groups Communication
Communication skills and
practices
Training on facilitating motivation andcommunication
Negotiation
Communication skills (speaking, writing,persuading)
Personal management
Good communication
Good interpersonal and communication skills
Training on long-distance communication
Communication, moderating groups
Communication training
Cross-cultural communication (in order tocommunicate to beneficiaries the necessity for
providing input)
Communication
Public Relations Training
Meeting management
Training on communications, visibility, PR is
useful to disseminate results.Intercultural learning
MANAGEMENT
OF
ORGANIZATIO
N POLICY
The tone of organizations
Advocacy and Policy
Influencing
Organizational Development
Management Change in
Organizations
DONOR
TRAINING
Training with funding authorities to experiencetheir ideas and strategies
Donor liaison training
SPECIFIC /
CASE PROJECT
FINANCIALMANAGEMENT
Where are the info sources for minor details (such
as the eligibility of taxi fees in a specific case...)
Specific training on financial monitoring could behelpful
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The importance of knowing local accountancy andproject accountancy. Each foundation couldorganize accountancy seminars with regard to theirspecific requests.
Training in specific financial rules and guidelines
Specialized training - experiential
How to officially adjust a project budget would beof use for my institution
FINANCIAL
MONITORING
How to ensure that money is spent as stated andconvince partners to follow rules also (esp. when
"refusing" to read financial terms on their own).
Training in all aspects of financial and budgetarymanagement is important. Without sound cash
flow, timely payments by EU to the contractors etc,
projects can easily fail. The team leaders andconsortium leaders need to monitor expenditure onan on-going basis and ensure that admin staff is
fully acquainted with Excel for example.
Monitoring tools
Expert workshop on the results of budget controls
COOPERATION
WITH DONORINSTITUTION
ON FINANCIAL
ISSUES
To adjust the budget: easy when the donor agree to
make this kind of adjustment. So... depending onthe donor.
Training with funding authorities
KNOWLEDGE
MANAGEMENT
Info sources or directories to find external quality
experts
Understanding the use of indicators as a tool tomeasure process and impact
Training in European Quality plan Existing tools
RISK
MANAGEMENT
Risk management
TIME
MANAGEMENT
Time management to do every task correctly Time management
Audit and control issues
Having enough time, having forms on time
Reporting deadlines controlTime management, preparing and supervising team
to share responsibilities
SPECIFIC
PROJECT
REPORTING
COURSES
Hints on preparing project reports (this probablyhas to be programme specific)
Financial reporting
COMMUNICATI
ON WITH
DONOR
INSTITUTIONS
Training in how to react to additional claims by thefunding authority
Participation in kick offmeeting organized by donor
Training about how to interpret comments andremarks from the commission
TEAM
MANAGEMENT
Team work coordination, team building Team building
Delegation Management oftransnational teams
Team leadingLEADERSHIP
TRAINING
Leadership training Leadership training
PROJECT resultsDISSEMINATION
Project visibility activities and informationdissemination practices
RECORD/
DOCUMENTS
MANAGEMENT
Record keeping
Work with documents
Preparation of reports
Adjustment of formal rules
and criteria - limits andopportunities
How to read changes in
rules and procedures
Preparation of "evidence"
of activities realizedINTERNAT-
IONAL
PARTNERSHIP
Management oftransnational group
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MANAGEMENT
RESEARCHMETHODOLOGY
Research, interpretation of
its results
PROJECT
PLANNING
MATRIX
Logical frame set-up
Modification of logicalframe
EDUs PMs PCMs
METHODS OF
TRAINING
Seminar or module type of training with practical tasks Experiencesharing
seminarsPreparing case studies
Case studies based on own experiences
Seminars - action learning
Practical exercises and case studies to discuss
Simulations
Social network
Carrying out case studies
Practical training with simulated real case
Practical exercises and case studies to discuss
Workshops & online community
Seminars
Training in new and innovative ways of monitoring and evaluationPractical training!
Examples of successful monitoring cases
Collaborative e-learning
Participatory workshops
Practical exercises and showing case studies
Practical application
Collaborative e-learning
Practical training!
Training must be holistic
Seminars - experiential
Scientific training in the respective field, monitoring, specialized workshops andcourses
Practical exercises and showing case studies
Introduce methods in self-oriented bodies
Prepare case studies and examples
List of tools available, software, practical case studies to discuss
Training in existing tools and good practice of remote working (work platform,chats, etc)
Collaborative e-learning
Practical training!
Good practice of what has already been done.
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3. Influence of project management experience
Participants were asked to provide information about how many years experience they had working in
funded projects and to select one of the categories: less then 5 years, 5-10 years and more then 10
years.
This chapter presents the results relative to question 5 and 6 and the issue of the influence of experience.Total valid questionnaires: 169
Less experienced project managers (less then 5 years): 74 (44%)
Medium-experienced project managers (5-10 years): 52 (31%)
Very experienced project managers (more then 10 years): 43 (25%)
The most important tasks for inexperienced, experienced and expert project
managersand why?
The basic question here is if the years of working experience in project management have an influence onwhich tasks project managers see as important and not so important in their work.
The hypothesis is that there is no significant difference between the ratings of the least and most experienced
project managers because the importance of a task is related to the type and complexity of a project, but not
to the experience of a person.
The following tables present the top third in the importance rating of tasks for the two extremes: less
experienced and expert project managers, and for all three groups: less experienced, medium -
experienced and expert project managers using only time spent in project management as the yardstick
for experience. In an in-depth analysis the time dimension could also be connected to other factors such as
number of project managed (not in the data file but in the questionnaire), complexity of projects, size in
terms of budget and partners etc.
The most important tasks for less experienced project managers
Project Managers with less than 5 years experience: MOST important tasks during project IMPLEMENTATION
(1 means that this task is not important, 4 means that it is very important)
3,55
3,58
3,58
3,59
3,60
3,61
3,65
3,71
3,73
3,74
3,75
3,78
1,00 2,00 3,00 4,00
Communicate with the target group/s (i.e. end users, other beneficiaries and/or
stakeholders)
Close contracts with the funding authority
React to additional claims by the funding authority and send necessary clarifications
Make sure activities are carried out in accordance with the administrative and financial
regulations
Know the financial obligations and assure that the whole project consortium
understands
Carry out financial monitoring during the project implementation
Make sure the financial rules are clear for all consortium members
Oversee tasks and assure they are fulfilled and that deadlines are kept in accordance
with the project proposal
Have a clear picture of projects objectives, desired results, and outcomes and deliver it
to the consortium
Prepare project reports (technical and financial)
Submit reports in due time to the funding authority
Complete project results
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The most important tasks for very experienced project managers
Project Managers with more then 10 years experience: MOST important tasks during project IMPLEMENTATION
(1 means that this task is not important, 4 means that it is very important)
3,42
3,48
3,49
3,52
3,55
3,57
3,60
3,64
3,65
3,67
3,69
3,69
1,00 2,00 3,00 4,00
Manage the project consortium by facilitating communication and motivation
React to additional claims by the funding authority and send necessary clarifications
Make sure activities are carried out in accordance with the administrative and financial
regulations
Carry out financial monitoring during the project implementation
Oversee tasks and assure they are fulfilled and that deadlines are kept in accordance
with the project proposal
Submit reports in due time to the funding authority
Know the financial obligations and assure that the whole project consortium
understands
Monitor financial issues: check if spending by consortium members is in accordance
with the project proposal
Have a c lear picture of projects objectives, desired results, and outcomes and deliver it
to the consortium
Complete project results
Make sure the financial rules are clear for all consortium members
Prepare project reports (technical and financial)
The tables show that in the 12 highest-ranking tasks for the implementation phase of a project, both groups
ranked the same ten tasks in the top 12.
The tables also show that the average values for the twelve highest-ranking tasks are similar for less
experienced and very expert project managers.
Ranking range for less experienced PMs: 3,55 to 3,78
For expert project managers: 3,42 to 3,69
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The 12 highest-ranking tasks for all project managers
The following table shows the 12 highest-ranking tasks according to the average total of the ranking and also
the average totals for the respective tasks from the three experience groups.
Most important tasks for project managers
3,54
3,59
3,61
3,58
3,47
3,71
3,60
3,73
3,75
3,65
3,74
3,78
3,69
3,60
3,62
3,70
3,67
3,65
3,75
3,73
3,80
3,81
3,78
3,82
3,40
3,49
3,52
3,48
3,64
3,55
3,60
3,65
3,57
3,69
3,69
3,67
3,55
3,56
3,58
3,59
3,60
3,64
3,65
3,70
3,71
3,72
3,74
3,76
2,00 3,00 4,00
Transfer payments to partners according to the partner contracts
Make sure activities are carried out in accordance with the
administrative and financial regulations
Carry out financial monitoring during the project implementation
React to addi tional claims by the funding authority and send necessary
clarifications
Monitor financial issues: check if spending by consortium members is in
accordance with the project proposal
Oversee tasks and assure they are fulfilled and that deadlines are kept in
accordance with the project proposal
Know the financial obligations and assure that the whole project
consortium understands
Have a clear picture of projects objectives, desired results, and
outcomes and deliver it to the consortium
Submit reports in due time to the funding authority
Make sure the financial rules are clear for all consortium members
Prepare project reports (technical and financial)
Complete project results
49
42
52
63
58
41
73
64
62
48
61
60
exp 10y sum
In general we see a relatively uniform ranking with no extremes which supports the hypothesis that theimportance of tasks is not perceived significantly differently by any project managers regardless of how
much experience they have.
Taking into consideration all 35 tasks that were included under the heading of project implementation we can
see that most tasks score between 3important and 4very important. The lowest average value was 2,71,
the highest value 3,82. This underlines that the list of tasks used in the questionnaire was set up according to
their importance for EU project managers.
Tasks from all sections of the survey (Project management and coordination, Financial management,
Monitoring and evaluation, Project completion and reporting and General tasks and responsibilities for
successful implementation) have been ranked among the most important though it must be said that the
task which is top of the list is not really a task. To have completed the result at the end is more or less
the goal of each project
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If we also include tasks in the list which are in the TOP 12 in one or more of the individual group-rankings
but which are excluded from the total TOP ranking because of lower values for other groups then we come to
the following list of most important tasks:
Task Q
Nr.
Category
1. Complete project results 60 Completion &
reporting
2. Prepare project reports (technical and financial) 61 Completion &
reporting
3. Make sure the financial rules are clear for all consortium members 48 Financial
4. Submit reports in due time to the funding authority 62 Completion &
reporting
5. Have a clear picture of projects objectives, desired results, and outcomes
and deliver it to the consortium
64 Overall / internal
communication
6. Know the financial obligations and assure that the whole project
consortium understands
73 Financial
7. Oversee tasks and ensure they are fulfilled and that deadlines are kept in
accordance with the project proposal
41 Overall
8. Monitor financial issues: check if spending by consortium members is in
accordance with the project proposal
58 Financial
(monitoring)
9. React to additional claims by the funding authority and send necessary
clarifications
63 Completion &
reporting
10.Carry out financial monitoring during the project implementation 52 Financial
11.Make sure activities are carried out in accordance with the administrativeand financial regulations
42 Progress &financial
12.Transfer payments to partners according to the partner contracts 49 Financial
13.Compile project outputs and outcomes according to the project proposal 47 Reporting
14.Close contracts with the funding authority 39 Overall
15.Manage the project consortium by facilitating communication and
motivation
40 Communication
and management
of people
16.Communicate with the target group/s (i.e. end users, other beneficiariesand/or stakeholders)
44 Externalcommunication
In general we see that tasks related to completion of the project, and to reporting and financial issues are seen
as highly important.
Tasks related to communication (especially to external communication) and also quality management do not
rank so highly in the priority list but they have been ranked as important with values around 3 and over 3.
One obvious explanation for the high importance of tasks related to financial and progress reporting is the
nature of public funded projects: In order to receive (all) contractually agreed funds it is essential to
properly report to the authorities. So, logically, project managers see it as important, irrespective of how
many years experience they have in EU project management.
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The Most Important and/or Difficult tasks for Inexperienced, Experienced
and Expert Project Managers and Why?
Having addressed in the previous chapter the topic of importance, in this chapter our premise is the rating of
tasks according to difficulty but bearing in mind how respondents rated a tasks importance.
The hypothesis is that in general experienced project managers see tasks as less difficult then inexperienced
ones. It is important to work out which tasks are perceived as most difficult and most important as this couldbe an indication of the direction in which training programmes should turn their focus.
Again our starting point is tables presenting the top third in the difficulty ranking of tasks for the two
extremes, less experienced and expert project managers and for all three groups less experienced,
medium-experienced and expert project managers. The second bar in the chart indicates the importance
ranking for the respective task.
Even though the same scale was used the level of difficulty was ranked approximately 1 degree lower than
importance. One reason is that the extreme value very difficult was used relatively seldom in comparison
to the extreme value very important (very difficult 664 times; very important 3467 times).
The most difficult tasks for less experienced project managers (sorted by difficulty)
Project Managers with less then 5 years experience: Difficulty and Importance of Tasks (difficult tasks)(1 means that this t asks is not important / difficult; 4 means that this task is very important / very difficult)
3,78
3,36
3,65
3,59
3,47
3,38
3,60
3,37
3,00
3,74
3,52
3,44
2,49
2,50
2,51
2,53
2,54
2,56
2,58
2,61
2,63
2,64
2,68
2,74
1,00 2,00 3,00 4,00
Complete project results
Monitor set qualitative and quantitative project indicators
Make sure the financial rules are c lear for all consortium members
Make sure activities are carried out in accordance with the administrative and financial
regulations
Collect and process feedback from project team and beneficiaries
Observe situation changes and modify the project implementation in order to guarantee
projects desired deliverables
Know the financial obligations and assure that t he whole project consortium
understands
Manage transnational partner networks and provide proper working structure for the
project consortium
Set up sound human resource management practises for consortium management
Prepare project reports (technical and financial)
Empower the team, clearly delegate tasks and responsibilities by taking into account
the team members strengths and skills
Inspire the multicultural project team and encourage the ownership of the project
60
55
4
8
42
56
72
73
67
69
61
68
65
Important Difficult
The most difficult tasks for project managers with less experience are related to communication and
management of people. Under the TOP 6 tasks mentioned four tasks address these topics. We also find
tasks related to quality management and evaluation in the TOP 12. In the importance ratings these tasks
received average values but we must take into consideration that importance ratings did not greatly vary ingeneral.
Tasks related to communication and management of people:
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Inspire the multicultural project team and encourage ownership of the project
Empower the team, clearly delegate tasks and responsibilities by taking into account the team
members strengths and skills
Set up sound human resource management practises for consortium management
Manage transnational partner networks and provide a proper working structure for the project
consortium
The most difficult tasks for very experienced project managers (sorted by difficulty)
Project Managers with over 10 years experience: Difficulty and Importance of Tasks (most difficult tasks)(1 means that this t asks is not important / difficult; 4 means that this task is very important / very difficult)
2,90
3,65
3,69
3,19
2,79
3,69
3,49
3,23
3,67
3,55
3,23
3,31
2,34
2,34
2,36
2,40
2,40
2,48
2,49
2,51
2,51
2,65
2,66
2,66
1,00 2,00 3,00 4,00
Set up sound human resource management practises for consortium management
Have a c lear picture of projects objectives, desired results , and outcomes and deliver it
to the consortium
Prepare project reports (technical and financial)
Monitor set qualitative and quantitative project indicators
Foster sustainable long term co-operation with consortium members
Make sure the financial rules are c lear for all consortium members
Make sure activities are carried out in accordance with the administrative and financial
regulations
Observe situation changes and modify the project implementation in order to guarantee
projects desired deliverables
Complete project results
Oversee tasks and assure they are fulfilled and that deadlines are kept in accordancewith the project proposal
Inspire the multicultural project team and encourage the ownership of the project
Empower the team, clearly delegate tasks and responsibilities by taking into account
the team members strengths and skills
69
64
61
5
5
45
48
42
72
60
41
65
68
Important Difficult
Here too we see tasks related to communication and management of people at the top of the list, which
indicates that these issues are seen as difficult for all project managers regardless of their experience.Empower the team, clearly delegate tasks and responsibilities by taking into account team members
strengths and skills
Inspire the multicultural project team and encourage ownership of the project
Set up sound human resource management practises for consortium management
In general the values are lower for experienced project managers, which suggests that this group finds the
tasks less difficult than less experienced managers. This would support the hypothesis outlined above, that
difficulty decreases with more experience. However, the difference in the values is rather small so we can
keep this slight tendency in mind but cannot prove our hypothesis conclusively.
The only statement (task) rated significantly higher by experienced project managers than by less
experienced ones is Overseeing tasks and ensuring they are fulfilled and that deadlines are kept in
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accordance with the project proposal (Q41). All other tasks ratings from less experienced project managers
are higher or roughly equal.
The following table shows the 12 TOP most difficult tasks for all project managers (average total of all three
groups) and the ranking of respective statements by the individual groups. In general the ranking is as unified
as for the importance of tasks. The lowest value of all 35 tasks is 1,63, the highest value 2,79 [diff. 1,16] (for
the importance 2,71 and 3,83 [diff. 1,12] as mentioned above).
The most difficult tasks for all project managers (sorted by av. total)
Difficulty of tasks for project managers with different experiencies(sorted by av. Sum; 1 means that this tasks is not difficult; 4 means that this task is very difficult)
2,53
2,49
2,64
2,50
2,58
2,61
2,63
2,51
2,46
2,56
2,74
2,68
2,25
2,31
2,35
2,52
2,54
2,58
2,58
2,58
2,56
2,62
2,60
2,79
2,49
2,51
2,36
2,40
2,31
2,29
2,34
2,48
2,65
2,51
2,66
2,66
2,42
2,44
2,45
2,47
2,48
2,49
2,51
2,52
2,56
2,56
2,66
2,71
2,00 3,00
Make sure activities are carried out in accordance with the
administrative and financial regulations
Complete project results
Prepare project reports (technical and f inancial)
Monitor set qualitative and quantitative project indicators
Know the financial obligations and assure that the whole
project consortium understands
Manage transnational partner networks and provide proper
working structure for the project consortium
Set up sound human resource management practises for
consortium management
Make sure the f inancial rules are clear for all consortium
members
Oversee tasks and assure they are fulfilled and that
deadlines are kept in accordance with the project proposal
Observe situation changes and modify the project
implementation in order to guarantee projects desired
deliverables
Inspire the multicultural project team and encourage the
ownership of the project
Empower the team, clearly delegate tasks and
responsibilities by taking into account the team members
strengths and skills
42
60
61
55
73
67
69
48
41
72
65
68
exp 10y sum
Experience 10y 2,24
Average 2,32
The table shows the tendency we mentioned that more experienced
project managers rate tasks as less difficult than inexperienced
ones. The medium-experienced give all 35 tasks an exactly
average rating.
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Subsequently we again compiled a list of the most difficult tasks for all three groups based on the average
rating of all project managers but also including those tasks that had been mentioned in the TOP 12 ranking
of individual groups. Because of the more inconsistent ratings of the three experience groups the list
contains more tasks beside the TOP 12. All additionally ranked statements are in the TOP 20 of the 35 rated
tasks. (The seven tasks included in addition are at places 13-19 in a different order.)
Task Q Nr. Category
1. Empower the team, clearly delegate tasks and responsibilities by
taking into account the team members strengths and skills
68 Communication and
management of people
2. Inspire the multicultural project team and encourage the
ownership of the project
65 Communication and
management of people
3. Observe situation changes and modify the project implementation
in order to guarantee projects desired deliverables
72 Monitoring, QM
4. Oversee tasks and assure they are fulfilled and that deadlines are
kept in accordance with the project proposal
41 Overall
5. Make sure the financial rules are clear for all consortium members 48 Financial
6. Set up sound human resource management practises for
consortium management
69 Communication and
management of people
7. Manage transnational partner networks and provide proper
working structure for the project consortium
67 Communication and
management of people
8. Know the financial obligations and assure that the whole project
consortium understands
73 Financial
9. Monitor set qualitative and quantitative project indicators 55 Monitoring, evaluation
10.Prepare project reports (technical and financial) 61 Completion & reporting
11.Complete project results 60 Completion & reporting
12.Make sure activities are carried out in accordance with the
administrative and financial regulations
42 Progress & financial
13. (Manage the project consortium by facilitating communication
and motivation)[ranked 13 by all three groups]
40 Communication and
management of people
14.Foster sustainable long term co-operation with consortium
members
45 Communication and
management of people
15.Adjust project budget if necessary, for the implementation of the
proposal project activities. Initiate and execute a project
amendment if necessary
51 Financial
16.Collect and process feedback from project team and beneficiaries 56 Monitoring, evaluation
17.Have a clear picture of projects objectives, desired results, and
outcomes and deliver it to the consortium
64 Overall / internal
communication
18. Introduce and use different working methods and tools in project
implementation
70 Overall
19.Monitor financial issues: check if spending by consortium
members is in accordance with the project proposal
58 Financial (monitoring)
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The most important and diff icult tasks for al l project managers related to their
experience
In the two previous chapters two lists have been presented:
1. A list of the 16 most important tasks of all project managers including at least the TOP 12 important
tasks of each of the three experience groups
2. A list of the top 19 tasks ranked most difficult by all project managers including at