02/08/2024

Why Introverted Personalities Make Great Project Managers

How to leverage their unique strengths

Some years ago, my manager, who was the Chief Technology Officer at a global professional business services company challenged an “exceptional rating” that I gave to one of my project managers who happened to be an introvert. An exceptional rating was rare in the firm, awarded to less than 10 percent of employees. This particular employee did not fit the profile of a typical project manager, at least in my manager’s mind. My manager believed project managers should be assertive, outwardly sociable, confident, and outspoken, and Charles (name changed) did not fit that image. Conversely, he was reserved, introspective, and methodical. As the head of the project management office, I worked with Charles routinely, and to me, Charles was an excellent project manager because he delivered and kept our key stakeholders happy. My boss and I had a long debate, and even though I “won” tactically, it left a bitter impression afterward. After all, as the cliché goes, one should not judge a book by its cover, and one should certainly not judge another professional’s effectiveness because of an introverted personality.

In our society, at least in the West, we have an infatuation with extroverts. Most leaders are thought to be extroverts, and project managers are the leaders of their respective teams. A quick Internet search finds statistics such as “96 percent of business leaders identify as being extroverted.” At first glance, this appears to make sense. After all, sociable people are more likely to be noticed and thought to be more charismatic, more likable and more intelligent as they express their thoughts and ideas more readily and exuberantly.

As a result, they are more likely to be chosen as leaders over their more reserved peers. Yet, most of these beliefs about extroverts are either exaggerated or simply false. Studies focused on executives show that characteristics associated with extroverts such as charisma have no relationship to actual performance (Agle, Nagarajan, Sonnenfeld and Srinivasan, 2006; Tosi, Misangyi, Fanelli, Waldman and Yammarino 2004). Depending on context, another study showed that introverts and extroverts were equally effective as leaders in both business and academic environments (Atamanik, 2013).

Please select this link to read the complete article from Psychology Today.