Project Management – a Key Skill for Success in STEM

Video recording from Community Call session.

Today, project management runs across a variety of sectors and industries. Many companies have embraced project management as a way to cut down cost, reduce risk and deliver on organizational goals. In the STEM industry, project management skills give you the ability to work with the increasing levels of complexities associated with projects in software development, bioscience research and health education. As a result, there is increasing demand for project management skills and knowledge.

In the Community Call session held in the month of April, we were led by Edison Gbenga to discuss a broad overview of Project Management with a focus on the approaches – Agile and Waterfall.

Edison Gbenga is a Business Strategist, Tech Evangelist and a Serial Entrepreneur. Since 2012, he has been serving as a strategist, coach and consultant for business owners and business developers of all sizes. His line of work ranges from business strategy consulting to process design and management as well as web and mobile applications development.

Edison began his presentation by giving a brief definition of project management. He described project management as the skill of moving from idea to results. In his presentation, he emphasised that project management permeates our daily lives; from planning a wedding to managing a country. He further indicated that project management has little to do with tools, procedures and recipes but more to do with mindset, practice and culture.

A good project manager knows how to solve problems, delegates effectively, works to meet deadlines and builds consensus.
Edison Gbenga

Following the introductory session, Edison proceeded to give a synopsis on two approaches to project management; Agile and Waterfall. He further described the SCRUM framework in Agile and how it helps teams work together. He delivered a detailed exposition on the two approaches and further discussed the advantages and disadvantages of these approaches. One major difference Edison illustrated in the two approaches is the iterative nature Agile employs between product design and testing as compared to the sequential order Waterfall follows. He reiterated the importance of team work, focus and discipline to project success.

Slide comparing Waterfall’s step-by-step stages with Agile’s repeating cycle of planning, design, testing and deployment

The presentation was followed by a question and answer session, where Edison presented insightful answers based on his experience in working on varied projects. Some of the questions asked by participants include: How should a Project Manager manage non-compliant team members? What are the top skills needed to successfully implement a project? What products can we design to get people interested in STEM.

Key Takeaways: What is Crucial to Project Success?

Having a solid team.
Managing people and dealing with negativity.
Understanding the time requirements of each task.
Emotional Intelligence and comprehension.

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