3 good skills for project managers to have.

Difficult to answer. Broadly speaking, I’d say that there are 2 major types of project managers: the more junior ones that do admin tasks (schedule meetings, take notes, align the communication with the different stakeholders) and the senior ones that are critical to the success of the project (manage expectations, unblock problems and are trusted by top leadership). I’ll focus on senior project managers. You can be a junior for your entire career doing administrative tasks. I’d avoid that.

It’s difficult to state the top 3, because there are many. This is my view. If you were to ask the same question to other people, or even to me in the future, you would probably get different answers.

1. In project management (PM), you’ll necessarily deal with a variety of different people: different personalities, different personal agendas, and different roles within the project. Even if they all had the same personality (impossible), all projects have pulling/pushing forces with natural competing interests (for example, product teams are usually “dreamers” who want everything faster, while engineering teams are traditionally more “rational” and prefer to think very precisely, disliking ambiguity). This creates natural and unavoidable friction. Good PMs will understand the forces/ interests in the project and provide alignment and win-win situations for all stakeholders involved (this is NOT a zero-sum game). He will adjust his communication/ plan, style, narrative, and information provided depending on the context, and by doing so, he will reduce friction (this one is the most difficult for me because I’m naturally introverted and impatient, and have had my share of problems myself).

2. Secondly, a good PM has an unshakable reputation: if he says that he will do it, people can trust him that it will happen. He provides clarity when there’s ambiguity, creates alignment when there is conflict, and makes a decision when no one takes the first step, and he will deal with the consequences in a graceful way. The PM is always trusted (at all times) by senior stakeholders. The PM has its own personality, but it’s adaptable to the context for the benefit of the company (creating value) and the team (stakeholders). This also shows up in his personal image: he dresses well, speaks well, and is always well-intentioned. Sleeps and eats well, and he is seen as a reference of precision and energy within the project.

3. Thirdly, he will understand the current stages (technically) of the project, without pushing any theory onto the group (e.g., the PM understands that the project might be in the initiating stage (foggy), or planning (setting expectations and timelines/resources allocation), or executing (aligning and mapping the critical path)). Others don’t need to know. But the PM knows. Even if the company doesn’t adhere to any standard (or even understand the stages), he can detect project fluctuations and act accordingly.