Traditionally, project managers have been allocated a project and their role has been to deliver on time, to quality standards and within budget. With hindsight the client only recognises what they really want once the project is delivered – and there is often a gap between expectation and final product. The project management role is now changing and the total impact on the business needs to be addressed more effectively – enter the Relationship Manager.

The true role of the Relationship Manager is to act as an orchestral conductor;

• to go to the client and demonstrate his understanding of the client's short-, medium- and long-term objectives;
• to translate this into a form which the project team can address;
• to receive from the project team a specification of the work to be undertaken, including plans, estimates and schedules, together with detailed work and cost breakdown structures to check that they have really understood what needs to be done and by when – and only when the Relationship Manager is satisfied does he return to the client to sell VALUE.

The Relationship Manager has been written to fill the gap between technical and business aspects of successful project delivery. It provides practical guidance on how to make this new way of working a reality and details the skills and techniques necessary to make a success of the latest developments in project management.

Contents: Part 1: The Evolution of Project Management and the Need for a New Approach: The Evolution of Project Management: Business change. The Other Side of the Coin - Today's Account Manager: The account manager as business partner; The client's business objectives; The client's view of the business partner or account manager; The process of approving business cases; Procurement policies; Global project management; Account planning guidelines; Review. What Attributes Does a Relationship Manager Require?: Functional tasks and responsibilities; Skills; Target project nomination; Review. Relationship Management Specifics - Is the Project Viable?: The emergence of the project definition; Financial considerations; Statement of needs; Timescale; The decision; Capability; Success track record; Asking the tough questions - the suggested approach; Review. Having Established Project Viability, Will We Be Successful?: Exclusives; Relationship; Competition; Prestige and cost; Combining qualification techniques; Review. The Project Side of Relationship Management: The relationship manager; Project life cycle; Business case; Owner of the business case; Project methods; Programme management; Benefits management; Review. How to Identify a Relationship Manager: Profile of the ideal relationship manager; Elements of transition to relationship management; The relationship manager's job description; Case study; Review. Part 2: Key Project Management Concepts of Which a Relationship Manager Should Be Aware: General and Strategic Topics: Is it a project?; The project context; Programme management; Project management; Project quality; Review. Control and Technical Topics: Scope; Quality and risk; Time schedule and phasing; Calculating the duration; The Gantt chart; Resource management; Budgeting and cost management; Completing the project plan; Change control; Measuring progress; Configuration management; Review. Commercial, Organization and People Topics: Leadership; Teamwork; Conflict management; Negotiation; Project communications; Procurement; Legal awareness; Review. The Future of Relationship Management; Appendix: answers to the self-assessment questionnaires; References; Index.

About the Author: Tony Davis is senior partner with SST International. He has achieved world-wide acclaim with a range of diagnostic testing products covering sales, general and project management. Tony’s background is in marketing in the IT industry and he is the author of Selling Professional Services – a primer for selling complex IT systems.

Richard Pharro is the Managing Director of The APM Group Limited. He has been involved in the development of project management standards in Europe and lately in helping to establish PRINCE2, through an accreditation and qualification scheme, as the leading project management method. He also works with organizations to help them develop their project management people and processes.

Reviews: '...a veritable goldmine of information on how to manage a customer account.' The View, September 2003

'The text is thorough and detailed, with useful tables and check lists.'
Change Management Monitor, March 2005

‘...It is not just another project management book - it goes further to align traditional project management with the ever changing needs of business, and as such I highly recommend it as a valuable resource for those involved in this field of expertise.’ Professor H J Manners The Institute of Management Specialist

Extracts from this title are available to view:

Full contents list

Preface

Chapter 1 - The evolution of project management