WOW factors in Project Management

In my job, I do come across many Program Managers, Project Managers, Project Leaders and Team Leaders. These are the fancy titles that software services industry has coined over last two decades, mostly in last decade. To me, the role is only Project Manager.

Project Management role is a great one to play, enjoy, have fun and learn. Many flourish in this role and many fail too. In simplistic terms, each Project Manager is supposed to plan and manage the project in terms of deliverables, timeline, quality, configuration, change and resources. Project size and complexity define the scale and challenges of these attributes.

However, these are mere hygiene factors. To really enjoy and grow in this role, the Project Manager needs to constantly ask a simple question, “What will create a wow factor for my customer, which is not stated? And how can I keep on creating small but important wow factors throughout the project lifecycle?” And the smart Project Manager links these wow factors with the expectations of the resources in the team and superiors in the organization.