We recently undertook a small piece of work for a new corporate client, explaining the difference between the functions of development management and project management. We also reviewed the structure and performance of these two roles, in terms of both the various ‘in house’ and third party personnel utilised by the organisation. We thought we would share an extract of our work here, in case anyone else was interested.

While there is clearly some overlap between these two important functions, the roles and responsibilities of both are quite different and frequently confused, which can lead to duplication of resources, or worse, not retaining all of the expertise necessary to optimally deliver your project.  

Also, often but not always, the types of personalities who are high performing in either of these roles may not have the necessary skills or aptitude to carry out the other function.

As we all know, every business and every project is different, but the old “Good to Great” advice of making sure you have the right people on the bus, the wrong people off the bus and the right people in the right seats always applies.

There are a real quality mix of poor to great PM’s and DM’s out there. These people are the fundamental key to your project’s success. Making sure that you have both the right people and the right structure will make all the difference to project performance. So don’t settle for second best and if you would like a second opinion please feel free to contact us.