Defining the Project Management Technology Quotient (PMTQ)

For project managers, understanding the potential uses of technology is as important as understanding process improvement strategies and best practices for successful projects.

That is the focus of the 2019 Pulse of the Profession® report from the Project Management Institute (PMI). Faced with a business world that is making investments in technology but not necessarily putting them to best use, PMI advocates that project managers take the lead by better integrating technology into projects.

That will require something PMI calls PMTQ, or “project management technology quotient.”

PMTQ Defined

What does PMI mean by PMTQ? PMI defines the term as “a person’s ability to adapt, manage and integrate technology based on the needs of the organization or the project at hand.”

While such skills have been important for decades, they have taken on increased importance as innovative technology leads to a rapid pace of change in all industries. Success in applied project management now requires both digital fluency and the ability to support what PMI calls “digital sustainability,” or the constant changes brought on by advances in technology.

The report calls PMTQ “the must-have, make-or-break skill set” for project managers.

In a news release on the report, Murat Bicak, the senior vice president of strategy for PMI, said: “In jobs of the future, project teams will be more and more reliant on technology as either an enabler or sometimes as a team member. Having a strong PMTQ, and being technologically fluent, will be essential for anyone charged with making strategy reality.”

Measuring PMTQ

PMI offers three areas that indicate having a high PMTQ. The report names those that do well in these areas as “PMTQ Innovators,” while those that perform poorly are “PMTQ Laggards.”

Always-On Curiosity

This involves a continuous desire to find the latest approaches in project management and product delivery, as well as new strategies, perspectives and technologies. This requires keeping an open mind – but also a “healthy dollop of skepticism” and not chasing every new technology trend. PMTQ Innovators demonstrate an ability to pivot quickly and change their approach when a new, better method comes along.

All-Inclusive Leadership

This includes expertise in providing leadership to people, but also the ability to manage technology and people who work exclusively with technology. Those who excel in PMTQ make it a priority to develop project management and people management skills.

A Futureproof Talent Pool

Those who excel in PMTQ focus on recruiting and retaining talented people who have the skills needed to succeed in a digital workforce. Much like themselves, a PMTQ Innovator looks for those who seek out and incorporate current trends. They also prioritize developing project management technical skills for project workers, as well as ongoing project manager training.

Developing PMTQ

Developing PMTQ takes commitment and support from people across all levels of an organization.

As noted in the Pulse report, businesses continue to waste about 12% of their project management spend. That’s a number that has remained unchanged for five years. It indicates businesses have not moved forward in their thinking in this vital area.

While leaders often voice an intent to add more workers with technology know-how, “there is still a disconnect on how they are willing to achieve it,” according to the report. The report also quotes from a 2018 Accenture report titled, “Reworking the Revolution,” which found that while approximately 60% of businesses have increased or plan to increase investment in their artificial intelligence, only 3% said they plan to increase investment in training and reskilling programs.

What training do they need? PMI compiled a list of areas that PMTQ Innovators emphasize. They include:

• Prioritize developing project management technical skills
• Provide ongoing project manager training
• Prioritize developing project management business skills
• Have a formal recognition process for when staff meet certain milestones
• Have a formal process to develop project manager competency
• Have a formal knowledge transfer process
• Have a formal process to mature existing project management practices
• Have a defined career path for project managers
• Prioritize developing skills for executive sponsors

Why PMTQ is Important

Another point that PMI made in its Pulse report is that the nature of work is changing. No longer will people learn a skill and then work there for the rest of their careers, dealing with a “bulleted list of static responsibilities.”

Rather, they will manage a portfolio of projects that changes over time, and those projects will increasingly need technology to succeed.

This disruption and the need to manage it are the focus of several PMI thought-leadership reports. For example, its 2018 “The Next Generation PMO” report looked at the impact of technology disruption and how it has led to project management offices (PMOs) “reimagining their mission with a keen eye on bridging the costly gap between strategy design and delivery.”

A Forbes Insights report, conducted on behalf of PMI for its C-Suite Outlook report, also surveyed 537 executives around the world to gather their insights on how they are dealing with technology because they are in a situation where “it truly is disrupt or die.”

There are already numbers showing the return on investment of emphasizing PMTQ. Speaking directly to the issue of wasted dollars invested into project management, the Pulse report found that the percentage of investment wasted with PMTQ Innovators is 8.5%, while it is 16.3% with the laggards. The report also notes there is less scope creep in Innovator projects and a better chance to complete a project on time and within budget.

According to the Pulse report, developing a strong PMTQ is something project managers should want to achieve for success in the future. “To achieve true digital sustainability in the new future of work, organizations will need a ready-for-anything team that knows their technology as well as their project management.”

Pulse of the Profession is a registered mark of the Project Management Institute, Inc.