It wasn’t on the official list. It didn’t have a budget.
And technically… it wasn’t even a project.
When I was asked to “take over” a technical trial that some senior engineers were running, something felt off. They were brilliant, deeply technical and highly experienced, but stuck. They’d been experimenting with ways to re-engineer a persistent equipment failure, hoping to prove that a redesign (not maintenance) was the long-term solution.
But there was no clear path. No structure. No timeline. No one accountable. They didn’t need more technical input. They needed project leadership. That’s where I came in. And I’ll be honest, at first, I felt overwhelmed by the technical language, even with a strong engineering background. But that wasn’t the point. My job wasn’t to out-expert the experts.
My job was to create clarity.
So, I did what project managers do:
- I gave the effort a name
- Created a project charter
- Defined deliverables
- Built a timeline
- Assigned responsibilities
That’s when the shift happened. Suddenly, the team had direction. They had momentum.
They had a project.
Since that experience, I’ve told every emerging PM the same thing:
Being a Project Manager doesn’t mean being the smartest person in the room. It means helping everyone in the room move forward together. Here’s what I’ve learned from leading highly technical teams:
- Lead through clarity, not expertise
- Facilitate outcomes, don’t dominate content
- Ask strong questions, curiosity builds systems thinking
- Be consistent, discipline earns respect
- Champion the outcome, not your ego
Project Management isn’t about knowing everything. It’s about integrating everything. And sometimes, the most valuable thing you can bring to a group of experts, is a map.
No siempre se trata de ser el más experto. A veces, el liderazgo de proyectos no requiere saber más que el resto, sino aportar estructura, claridad y dirección para que el equipo avance. En este blog comparto una historia real donde mi rol fue precisamente ese: transformar un esfuerzo técnico en un proyecto claro, viable y ejecutable.
Want to go deeper? Discover The Catalyst Blueprint — my leadership model for engineers and project managers who lead with heart.
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It's Not a Legacy, It's Just Me 
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