Is Project Manager Completely Accountable For The Outcome Of A Project?

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Project Manager is accountable for anything related to the project, only if he is fully empowered. This in turn allows the project manager to embrace accountability for the successful delivery of the project. Without authority, an incredibly weak matrix structures is seen where the project manager becomes a facilitator or sorts without empowered responsibility, if you are ultimately made accountable for something out with your empowerment levels you can verge into the dysfunctional territory.

If you are making someone accountable try at least not to tie their hands behind their backs. This really depends on the project and the position of the project manager within the organization. In some cases the project manager doesn’t have as much power as they’d like or need to make things happen. So it depends on the situation if the project manager can be held 100% accountable every time. A project manager should be accountable, if they have the authority to succeed. That means that they have authority and control over the team, budget and communication directly to major stakeholders. In this situation, the Project Manager has control and should be held accountable for the project’s outcome. If authority is missing, which is often the case, the answer is no. Without authority, you have a management problem in the organization in which the project manager cannot be successful. If they are not accountable, how are they the project manager?
There’s the responsible professional, one who follows or establishes procedures, plans, documents, proactively addresses issues, provides and implements viable solutions – regardless of that person’s role in the organization. Everyone is a stakeholder. Responsible and accountable, there’s a difference between these two; at some places these words are used interchangeably.

We all are aware

  • We are responsible/accountable for application of company policies and procedures.
  • Project managers are implicitly (delegated) held responsible & accountable for delivery but seldom explicitly.
  • We have a tendency to hold ourselves personally responsible/accountable (a good thing).
  • Project team dynamics are dependent on the belief the project manager is responsible, and accountable for certain aspects.

There are references to “assuming that” or “theoretically”, the latter indicating of many so-called “professionals” who respond to the flaws in their deliverable with “Well, in theory, it should have worked.” But these professional should provide an explanation to the client as to why the project isn’t viable, along with alternatives of what can realistically be delivered within the existing conditions. Determine if the alternative solution is acceptable prior to just stepping off. At some places a project manager can indicate the requirement of more resources or budget in order to meet the deliveries but the he might not be able to sign for the money. Managers manages the project team and keep the stake holders informed about the project’s progress. If he want to be the one in charge, the total accountability comes with the job.

In a PMBOK (Project Management Body of Knowledge) scenario, the project manager carries all responsibility from kick off to delivery and monitoring. Project manager needs to be accountable for everything related to the project (success or failure) as he controls and manages everything and everyone. But it depends on the authority level of the project manager, if it is right to hold him accountable for every happening during and at the end of the project.

About Aditi Malhotra

Aditi Malhotra is the Content Marketing Manager at Whizlabs. Having a Master in Journalism and Mass Communication, she helps businesses stop playing around with Content Marketing and start seeing tangible ROI. A writer by day and a reader by night, she is a fine blend of both reality and fantasy. Apart from her professional commitments, she is also endearing to publish a book authored by her very soon.

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