The 18 Rays of Project Management

A while back I created this training material for project managers in 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴. I am now sharing it widely since it is useful to a broader audience.

A central theme is that project management is much more than putting together presentations. It covers all kinds of high-level cognitive efforts, which is why it is exciting (at first).

It is also important to note that you do not improvise your way into project management. It is a well developed craft that is far down the experience curve.I started my career at McKinsey & Company in 1984 and was an Engagement Manager between 1986 and 1989. I then was elected partner. So my project management days are long gone, but I have interacted with and trained countless young consultants since.

The document is not a manual. If you follow it 100% you would not have time to do your project management job. But I trust there is always an idea or two that is useful on any project.

To me, the most difficult part of this document was to create the 18 rays with the grey contours. Getting this right was fun.