Would you please comment on this discussion and your thoughts in 3 to 4 sentences

a. What do you think the real problem was in this case?

At first glance, I would say the real problem, in this case, lies with upper management. It would appear that the company needed results fast and this pressure resulted in a star employee being "promoted" into a role they were not familiar with for the sake of the bottom line. Nick was pushed into a job and given an extremely tight deadline. Nick was able to deliver the "deliverable" that upper management wanted, however, he lacked the delivery method that upper management had become accustomed to. This is due to upper management not setting clear expectations and taking the time to train Nick on the standards of his new role. A lack of standard operating procedures falls on senior management and not on the project manager.

b. Does the case present a realistic scenario? Why or why not?

Unfortunately, the case presents a very realistic scenario where expectations are not clearly communicated down the chain of command. Nick is a star employee, so it is difficult to believe that he would have knowingly gone against company protocol or upper management's wishes. The scenario is realistic because miscommunication or lack of communication is a common problem in settings where many individuals and departments must collaborate on a project. It is extremely easy to make assumptions and be too afraid or not have the time to ask questions.

c. Was Nick Carson a good project manager? Why or why not?

Nick had the qualities of a good project manager. Nick took the initiative and was able to bring the project home so to speak. In fact, Nick's leader-like qualities may have played a role in Nick's ability to confidently take the wheel with very little insight from upper management. However, Nick has not yet fine-tuned his project management skills because he has not been trained to do so. Nick will be great once he learns the basic principles of project management and how PM differs from his previous role.

d. What could Nick have done to be a better project manager?

Nick could have reached out to previous project managers or other project managers at the company to debrief what is expected of him. Nick could have requested that the company provide him a crash course in project management or even ask directly what was expected of him in his new role. In total, Nick could have done a better job planning and communicating his thought process to his team and upper management. If upper management was unclear on what was happening then, likely, Nick's team was also unsure of certain aspects of the project. Due to this systemic miscommunication, Nick took on the role of "software integrator and troubleshooter" meaning that he likely did a lot of the work he should have been entrusting to his team. The energy he spent on troubleshooting should have been redirected to better planning to alleviate the need to troubleshoot.

e. What should top management have done to help Nick?

Top management should have provided feedback in real-time and offered training to Nick. A promotion should always be accompanied by some sort of transitionary training or mentoring so that expectations are clear and standards are set. It is senior management's responsibility to set expectations and standards for their mid-level management so that mid-level managers can pass those standards down to their staff.

Reference

Schwalbe, K., Information Technology Project Management. 8th ed (2017). Cengage Learning, Boston, MA.