How to Be an Effective Project Coordinator

getting a project coordinator job is a great way to get into project management it's one of the few jobs you can get without any direct project management experience and where you can effectively learn another rule on the job I know loads of project managers that got their start as a project coordinator I also know a number of highly skilled and in-demand project coordinators that love their job and have no intention of ever becoming a project manager hi I'm gonna award deputy everything officer at Sula in this video we're going to help you get started as a project coordinator or if you're already in the we'll give you some ideas to help you be more effective so what is a project coordinator the project coordinator is at the heart of the project and it's their job to make sure that the project runs smoothly the helper team manage the flow of information and are responsible for all of the administrative tasks this includes updating the schedule document management report preparation and distribution communication support and keeping the various registers up to date they're also the best person to talk to if you need to get something or meet with someone in the team sometimes they coordinate Diaries travel and meeting invites but this is not always the case project coordinators use a range of tools such as spreadsheets financial management systems project management tools and Word documents so they need to be comfortable with the range of technologies how does a project coordinator spend their day when you're a project coordinator no two days are the same and the chances of you ever being bored or slum on saying that there are some tasks that are pretty much constant emails as an any job the project coordinator will be getting multiple emails a day most coordinators start the day by checking their inbox and prioritizing the various emails that need attention it's good practice to go back and check the emails at the end of the day to make sure everything that needed to be responded to husband meetings whether they're running them or just participating meetings can take up a significant portion of the day it might start with the daily standup where the coordinator captures all the previous day's progress and issues so they can update the various registered schedules reports coordinators usually attend all of the project meetings take the notes and record any actions checklists a coordinated without a checklist is like well it just doesn't happen checklist ahead the vast majority of the project coordinators I know keep their job under control whether it's a daily weekly or monthly list or a combination of that most coordinators I know start their day after their coffee and emails by working on the checklist the task will almost always vary but the process of putting them down on the list helps keep things under control as good practice to review the list at the end of the day and log progress or not as the case may be Hong calls like it or not phone calls are an integral part of a project coordinators day whether it's fielding calls from vendors giving customer updates or responding to information requests it's likely you'll be spending a lot of time on the phone it's worth stocking up on honey lemon drinks to soothe your throat and alcohol to soothe your nerves what do you need to do to be effective in the job now that I've given you a brief overview of the job let's take a look at some skills you'll need to be effective in the rule it's best if you're a person who's pretty unflappable and calm in a crisis a lot of the job is putting out fires and calming people down so a calm temperament will definitely be an asset you'll also need to be able to stand your ground when needed bolting lettuces need not apply here there are times when the coordinator has to be able to say no and stick to it even in the face of some pretty fierce opposition I wouldn't be a good coordinator because I tend to get wound up quite easily and in some of the situations I've witnessed where the coordinator has come out ahead I would have ended up throwing something at someone's head which isn't a good look being able to think on your feet is also a great skill to have you'll be balancing multiple balls and constantly having to switch between topics without much if any notice you want to be an analytical thinker and reasonably good with numbers I don't mean accountant or PhD level but being able to grasp how budgets work and spot discrepancies quickly will be a distinct advantage minute taking is the bane of my life I'm totally rubbish utter and try to get out of it as much as possible it's the one thing that I refuse to achieve to the practice makes perfect mantra unfortunately or fortunately depending on your viewpoint taking minutes is a core requirement for a coordinator so if you're like me what things can you do to take great minutes 1 prepare beforehand make sure there's an agenda and everyone has a copy before the meeting if there isn't one get to meeting with the organizer and draft one it will make everyone's life easier to know who everyone is if there are people in the room you don't know ask the chairperson to do introductions you don't want notes like wears glasses red hair etc instead of names 3 make sure you know if there are any confidentiality requirements you need to be aware of before you start a feud in the public sector you may be bound by your local version of the Public Records Act for example for all which is the past tense and the third person when writing for example Lorna Elbert agreed to distribute the minutes 5 be concise no one likes waffle make sure you stick to pertinent facts only there are three main things you need to capture from taking minutes what was decided what was accomplished what are the actions for attendees 6 proofread the minutes before you send them to be approved 7 finally send them out to the attendees as soon as possible after the meeting don't wait until just before the next meeting tempting though that may be you'll need to be comfortable influencing and communicating with people you don't manage the coordinator needs to have working relationships at every level within the organization it goes back to my earlier statement about project coordinators being at the heart of the project some tips to help you with this our usual manners I know that might sound obvious but you'll be surprised at how far a little bit of courtesy can take you simple pleases and thank-yous can go a long way towards good easing relationship wheels to keep a positive attitude you don't need to be a permanent Pollyanna but balancing any pragmatism with calmness and positivity will build people's respect liking and trust all of which are really important in your rule 3 don't be afraid to deliver bad news it's your job to help keep the project on track and there will be situations where you need to deliver bad news to the project manager and other people the best way to do this is to be upfront clearly explain the problem and def there's a solution or the type of help you need to get it fixed for it's ok to say no your job as a coordinator not a dog's body if you feel that someone is taking advantage then speak up either directly to the person or if you don't feel comfortable with that and it's okay not to feel comfortable by the way they maintain it to your project manager and get them to sort it out a big part of your job will be updating project schedules and other documentation so it's well worth making sure you keep up to date with the technology your organization uses if you can try and get specific training on each one as it will help you get up to speed more quickly creating and maintaining reports is also an important part of the coordinators job if they don't exist when you start you should consider getting some standard report template set up that way it will be much easier to update information and clearly show progress or not as the case may be it's also worth finding out what information is important to people after all it's no good sending it status reports on a Wednesday if a key meeting that relies on that data happens on a Tuesday you might be thinking at this point no one could be that silly as to not let someone know about that and you'd be wrong I had that exact scenario happen in an organization I worked at the people involved only realised when the customer complained that were always getting the information that was a week out of date if this sounds like you you'll become to know what qualifications you need to get a job as a coordinator the answer to that is it depends for a junior coordinator rule some organizations will take you on straight of university or college with no experience and to train you on the job others will use experience as a substitute for the degree and some will only ask for the equivalent of high school qualifications for a more senior coordinator role and my experience you'll be expected to have at least three years formal work and some qualifications I've known a few people who have got coordinator jobs as contractors in the first instance a lot of organizations are willing to take a chance on temps and then offer permanent roles of the work out working with a good recruitment agency is a good way to get a fruit in the door that concludes our video for today if you found this helpful please leave us a like and if you want to learn more about project coordination and management subscribe to our Channel and hit the bell to get moved to fight [Music] you

Channel: Psoda

Views: 22,690

Rating: 4.9458795 out of 5

Keywords: project coordinator, project coordinator tools, project coordinator interview questions and answers, project coordinator resume, project coordinator tutorial, project coordinator for dummies, project coordinator situational interview questions, project coordinator training

Id: 4psAordNIMQ

Length: 9min 19sec (559 seconds)

Published: Thu Jun 25 2020