Who is responsible for a Project Team's skills?

[kasahitoo]

I was talking with other project managers and my team leaders about who should be in charge of making sure project members are qualified. I think it is the job of the supervisors to make sure their employees are ready for the work. But I often see junior staff assigned to a team with no help from their boss. This means the project managers have to train them and get them up to speed to get the job done right.

What are your thoughts on this? And who selects the team members in your company? Do project managers get to have a say in who joins their team?

 

[Red_Wilhelm]

Depends on the company. Where I'm at, project managers can reject team members if they're not the right fit, but not every org works that way. If you don't have that power, you're stuck patching holes with training sessions.

 

[Sandeep.K]

I completely get what you’re saying. It’s always a shared responsibility. Supervisors should ensure their team members have the right skills, but project managers often end up dealing with gaps when someone is new or less experienced.

Ideally, project managers should have some input in selecting team members, especially for critical projects, because we know what skills and experience are needed to succeed. But in reality, it doesn’t always happen that way, and then training and guidance become part of the project manager’s job.

It really comes down to collaboration between PMs and team leads; if both sides work together, the team is stronger and projects run smoothly.

 

[kantiishere]

Ideally, supervisors ensure their staff are ready, but in practice, project managers often end up training new or junior members and in my experience, PMs usually get some input on team selection, but it depends on the company, sometimes you can request specific skills, other times you just work with whoever’s assigned

 

[Alan]

This is such a common friction point between PMs and department heads, topic that gets poeple talking even in the physical. Funny how I feel like this varies company to company exactly I agree with @Red_Wilhelm @Sandeep.K and you @kantiishere