Australia's “Citizen Project Managers:” Smartsheet’s Inaugural Report Uncovers New Truths About Project Management

Rhea-AI Summary

The Future of Work Management Report by Smartsheet reveals that 83% of Australian employees manage projects without formal project management training. Nearly 18% are 'citizen project managers' unprepared for their roles, with 90% reporting negative impacts from poor project management. The report identifies a resource recession across industries, indicating a shortage of trained personnel. Key takeaways highlight the need for better support, focus on essential project tasks, and improved processes. The survey emphasizes the necessity for organizations to shift towards a resource revolution to enhance productivity and job satisfaction.

Positive

• 83% of Australian employees manage projects without formal titles, indicating a growing trend in workforce flexibility.
• Report highlights an opportunity for organizations to innovate project management, potentially leading to improved outcomes.
• Emphasis on supporting employees and enhancing project processes might lead to increased job satisfaction and productivity.

Negative

• 18% of respondents act as untrained 'citizen project managers', which could lead to inefficiencies.
• 90% of respondents have faced negative consequences from poorly managed projects, including increased work hours and missed deadlines.
• 45% believe their organizations do not staff projects appropriately, indicating a structural issue in project management.

Data reveals that nearly one in five Australians are taking on project management roles, despite about eight in ten of these people having no formal project management training

SYDNEY--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Smartsheet (NYSE:SMAR), the enterprise platform for modern work management, today released its first annual Future of Work Management Report. The company surveyed thousands of Australian employees about project and process management at their workplaces. The report found that over four in five Australians (83%) say projects at their company are sometimes, often or always managed by people who do not have a formal project management title or role, which has created “citizen project managers'' who are stepping up to fill the gap.

Smartsheet’s inaugural Future of Work Management Report reveals new insights about global resource recession. (Graphic: Business Wire)

In a slowly reopening world under macroeconomic pressure, Smartsheet’s survey shows that Australian organisations—regardless of industry—are experiencing a resource recession in which they must function with limited personnel, support, or employees with the proper training or experience. Nearly one in five (18%) of Australian respondents manage projects despite the function not being within the scope of their job title or job description. 50% of these respondents—the “citizen project managers” moving work forward—claim they were at least somewhat unprepared for the first project they managed and 17% were mostly or completely unprepared. Further, nearly all (90%) respondents have seen or experienced negative consequences from the challenges of working with an improperly managed project team, including having to work more hours, duplicating work and missing deadlines.

“Australia’s talent shortage means more employees are expected to assume additional work that they are not trained or qualified for,” said Nigel Mendonca, Vice President, Asia Pacific, Smartsheet. “Instead of accepting burn out and poor business outcomes, leaders have a unique opportunity to transform the way work is done for the better by thinking innovatively when it comes to project and process management.”

Although results show that we are in a resource recession, the survey also revealed an opportunity for organisations to move towards a resource revolution. To do this, leaders need to shift away from the idea of measuring success against deadlines and instead focus on their people and implementing the right technology. In order to make this shift, the report found three key takeaways:

• Support is sacred, and teams need more of it
  Although the people doing the work recognise–and actively push for–support, the report found that 45% of Australian respondents believe their organisation doesn’t staff projects appropriately, with 31% saying projects are understaffed. Just 43% feel their company is investing as it should in tools and processes to address common project management challenges. With so many doing project-based work today, there’s a greater need for foundational project support, with regards to both resources and tools, and senior leaders must recognise that, too.
• The “middle work” is most critical to a project’s success and to avoid employee burnout
  The middle work, or the tasks and processes that make up a project, is where the project moves forward, but it can also be where projects break down. Nearly three-quarters of Australian employees expect their company to ask project teams to accomplish even more with less in the near future (73%), and over half of project professionals expect deadlines to stay the same moving forward (54%). This shows that things aren’t slowing down, regardless of whether teams have the resources or tools to be successful. In order to overcome these challenges, teams need to focus less on deadlines and more on the middle work that will take the project from start to finish. Report data shows that irrespective of deadlines, there is a clear connection between effectively managed projects and job satisfaction, with almost half (45%) of Australian employees reporting that when projects run smoothly stress is lower.
• Repeated work is wasted work
  Projects are only as good as the processes they’re built on. Since the middle work is so critical, the best way to ensure the success of a project is to take learnings and insights and turn them into scalable, repeatable processes. The report showed that when projects have an experienced project manager, Australian respondents felt that work quality was higher (53%), more efficient (49%), within budget (42%) and that there was greater collaboration between teams (41%).

To read the full Future of Work Management 2023 report and insights for you and your company, click here.

About Smartsheet

Smartsheet (NYSE: SMAR) is the enterprise platform for modern work management. By aligning people and technology so organisations can move faster and drive innovation, Smartsheet enables its millions of users to achieve more. Visit www.smartsheet.com to learn more.

Methodology

The Smartsheet Future of Work Management Report survey was conducted in September 2022 by Wakefield Research among 8,000 employed adults aged 18-74, who work at companies with a minimum of 50 employees, evenly distributed among the following markets: United States, UK, Australia, and DACH (Germany, Austria, Switzerland). All respondents self-reported that they engage, in some capacity, in project-based work, as defined as “projects that have a beginning and an end.” These project professionals—who represent about 60% of the adult employed audience who work in companies with 50+ employees—span a wide range of industries from IT and business services, to healthcare and pharma, to banking and finance, and construction and manufacturing and a wide range of titles and levels within their organisations.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230124005148/en/

PR Contact

Chrissy Vaughn

pr@smartsheet.com

Source: Smartsheet

FAQ

What does the Future of Work Management Report by SMAR reveal?

The report indicates that 83% of Australian employees manage projects without formal training, highlighting a trend of 'citizen project managers'.

What is the impact of citizen project managers mentioned in SMAR's report?

Citizen project managers, often untrained, report inefficiencies, with 90% experiencing negative outcomes from poor project management.

What are the key takeaways from SMAR's Future of Work Management Report?

Key takeaways include the need for better support, focusing on essential project tasks, and improving processes for better project outcomes.

How does the resource recession affect project management in Australia according to SMAR?

The resource recession indicates a shortage of qualified personnel, leading to increased reliance on untrained employees to manage projects.

What is the proposed solution for organizations according to SMAR's report?

Organizations are encouraged to shift towards a resource revolution, focusing on employee support and effective project management technologies.