Project Director vs. Manager: Understanding Roles
When it comes to project management, there are plenty of definitions available. Thus, you need to understand the difference between a project director vs. project manager. This will help you understand how professionals in different roles handle projects. Remember, for the successful and timely delivery of projects, it is important that the right people are there for the right projects. This is where understanding the difference between a project director and a project manager is important.
Understanding the Concept – Project Director vs. Project Manager
Mature project executives and organizations that have an excellent project accountability track record, generally make use of complementary roles in all possible combinations. The idea behind this concept is to achieve desired project outcomes and manage cost-effectively. Accordingly, some of the roles in an organization are – Program Officer or Program Coordinator, Program Director, Project Officer or Project Coordinator, Project Manager, and Project Director.
Let us now look into the roles of a project director and project manager separately to get an insight into how organizations handle various projects.
Role of Project Director
When you become a project director in an organization, you are basically taking on the role of a true leader. However, this role is basically at a tactical or strategic level. There are quite a few things a project director understands and takes on as a part of his/her role. Understanding these things will help you know the difference between the role of a project director vs a project manager better.
Among different things a project director needs to understand are the context of the organization in a broader perspective and all the changes that take place outside the realm of the operational area and the program. Also, as a part of the role of a project director, he/she needs to have the project approach, timing, and impact all aligned properly simultaneously. Usually, these roles are given to experienced and proven project leaders that have project implementation experience.
Ideally, this professional also has to be one who provides advisory services when required. Being an experienced leader, the executive team does not need to supervise or provide direction to the project director. In fact, the project director himself provides coaching, guidance, direction, and leadership to the project team and project manager. This is in employee relation to various issues, risks, activities, general management, and project approach.
Role of Project Manager
A project manager, on the other hand, looks after the management side of a project or project team. In this role, the manager implements agreed-upon approaches and defined plans, without necessarily taking on the responsibility of ongoing refinement. Normally, you’ll find project managers working with Gantt charts that comprise various tasks and templates. These monitor the progress of projects against the set plan. In addition, it may contain more documents like status reports, project initiation documents, project closure documents, and project plans. Unlike project directors, project managers may need executive guidance, coaching, and reviewing after initial drafting.
Understanding the different roles in an organization gives a clear idea of how activities are organized and how reporting relationships work. This clarity is imperative for the successful execution of any role.
Explore: First time manger programs
Contact us if you are interested in a first time managers training program that is tailored to the needs of your organization or team.
