Leisure Reading Professional Project Managers (PMP), The Super Heroes of Business | Professional Project Managers (PMP), The Super Heroes of Business |
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A superhero is a fictional character who is noted for feats of courage and nobility, who usually has a colorful name and costume and abilities beyond those of normal human beings. A female superhero is often called a superheroine. The common traits of almost all superheroes are …
- A strong moral code, including a willingness to risk their own safety in the service of good without expectation of reward. - A special motivation, such as a sense of responsibility (e.g. Spider-Man), a strong sense of justice (e.g. Superman), a formal calling (e.g., Wonder Woman), or a personal vendetta against criminals (e.g., The Punisher). - A secret identity that protects the superhero's friends and family from becoming targets of his or her enemies. Most superheroes (but not all) use a descriptive or metaphoric code name for their public deeds. - A flamboyant and distinctive costume. - An underlying motif or theme that affects the hero's name, costume, personal effects and other aspects of his character (e.g., Batman resembles a large bat, calls his headquarters the "Batcave" and his specialized automobile, which also looks bat-like, the "Batmobile"). - A trademark weapon (e.g., Wonder Woman's "Lasso of Truth," Captain America's shield). - A supporting cast of recurring characters, including the hero's friends, co-workers and/or love interests, who may or may not know of the superhero's secret identity. Often the hero's personal relationships are complicated by his/her dual life. - A number of enemies that he/she fights repeatedly, including an archenemy who stands out among the others. Often a nemesis is a superhero's opposite or foil (e.g., Sabretooth embraces his savage instincts while Wolverine battles his). - Independent wealth (e.g., Batman or the X-Men's benefactor Professor X) or an occupation that allows for minimal supervision (e.g., Superman's civilian job as a reporter). - A secret headquarters or base of operations (e.g., Superman's Fortress of Solitude). - An "origin story" that explains the circumstances by which the character acquired his/her abilities as well as his/her motivation for becoming a superhero. Many origin stories involve tragic elements and/or freak accidents that result in the development of the hero's abilities. Most superheroes work independently. However, there are also many superhero teams. Some, such as the Fantastic Four and X-Men, have common origins and usually operate as a group. Others, such as DC Comics's Justice League and Marvel's Avengers are "all-star" groups consisting of heroes of separate origins who also operate individually. Some superheroes, especially those introduced in the 1940s, work with a child or teenaged sidekick (e.g., Batman and Robin, Captain America and Bucky). This has become less common since more sophisticated writing and older audiences have lessened the need for characters who specifically appeal to child age readers and made such obvious child endangerment seem implausible. Sidekicks themselves are often seen as a separate classification of superheroes.1
All Professional Project Managers (PMP) will recognize the traits listed above as virtually the same traits that have made many of us what we are today. For those of you who don't … follow along below … Extraordinary powers and abilities, mastery of relevant skills, and/or advanced equipment - In order for a Project Manager (PM) to become a PMP you are required to complete one of the following two qualification sets; Set #1: Set #2: The advanced equipment starts with the PMBOK (Project Management Body of Knowledge) and expands exponentially larger as Project Managers network, develop and share tools & templates accumulated over the years.
a. PMP provides professional/personal recognition.
Every day, Project Managers are asked to complete the seemingly impossible tasks of balancing Project Costs, Schedule, Scope of Work, Quality and Customer Satisfaction to make a project as success as it was envisioned … a task which most, if not all, of us accept willingly.
Stan Lee Chairman Emeritus of Marvel Comics summed up the connection between Superheroes and Professional Project Managers best "While no one is expected to leap tall buildings in a single bound, our aspiring heroes will be tested on their courage, integrity, self-sacrifice, compassion and resourcefulness - the stuff of all true superheroes." & "When you work with people whom you respect and whom you like and you admire because they're so good at what they do, it doesn't feel like work... It's like you're playing." Godspeed PMPs … Godspeed !! Sloan Campbell MBA, PMP, P.Mgr (c) 2006
1. Super Heroes: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superheroes 3. PMO: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_management_offices References 1. Dc Comics: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DC_Comics 2. Marvel Comics: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marvel_Comics 3. Five Traits of Great Project Managers: http://www.syntelinc.com/syntelligence/index.aspx?id=287 4. Characteristics of an Outstanding Business Intelligence Project Manager: http://www.dmreview.com/article_sub.cfm?articleId=1026063 5. Project Management Leadership Group Presentation "Traits of Great Project Managers": http://www.pmlg.com/documents/TraitsofGreatProjectManagersPresentation01.pdf 6. Project Management: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Management
Sloan Campbell is a Program Manager and Super Hero, at ELCAN Optical Technologies.
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