Project Management #1: Tools for assessing PM KSAs

As part of the second phase in our PMO maturity program, I'm developing a project manager (PM) KSA assessment instrument per PM level and career path. We'll use the assessment instrument to help guide ongoing employee training, performance reviews, career path development, and possibly as part of the hiring process for new PMs. In doing research for this custom development, I thought it might be worthwhile to share several of the better resources I found on similar topics.

The Project Manager's Desk Reference by James Lewis includes a useful skills and competencies model in Chapter 19: Profiling the World-Class Project Management Organization. Lewis defines skills as the easily observed and measurable characteristics of a PM which can be trained. For each level of PM (Team Leader, Project Manager, Senior Project Manager, and Program Manager), Lewis identifies which level of skill is necessary. His explanation of competencies is more problematic:

...those traits (competencies) that lie below the surface, out of the range of the visible. We can see them in practice but we cannot directly measure them in the sense of determining whether a particular person has them and, if so, to what degree. They are also the traits that are more difficult to develop through training. Some of them may, in fact, be hereditary.

While this view might be contentious, Lewis provides a clear self assessment that could also be given to a PM and work associates as part of a 360 degree review process. If you are looking for a simple, easy to implement framework this book could be just what you need.

The Project Manager Competency Development (PMCD) Framework from PMI would work best for a PMI/PMBOK aligned environment with enough resources to create custom evaluation tools. The information is excellent and as aligned with PMI standards as possible, but after reviewing the content would take significant effort and may be overkill for making quick assessment tools. I see this as a resource for in-depth quality efforts and building a standards compliant maturity framework. As we mature the PMO's ability to provide career planning and mentoring in line with education and training this will be an essential tool.