| Course | PJM-5200 Project Leadership and Communication |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 1 |
| Paper type | Module 1 written assignment: means of project control |
| Length | About 614 words, 5 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Thomas Edison State University |
| Program | M.S. in Management in Project Management |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for PJM 5200 Module 1
Process, Influence and Metrics: Controlling a Portal Upgrade Without Authority
Student Name
M.S. in Management in Project Management, Thomas Edison State University
PJM-5200: Project Leadership and Communication
Mentor Name
Month Day, Year
Process, Influence and Metrics: Controlling a Portal Upgrade Without Authority
The Project and the Problem
Our customers, regional trucking companies, use our web portal to track shipments and invoices. The upgrade adds real-time tracking maps, a new billing view and single sign-on, with a fixed launch date before a major customer's contract renewal. Eleven people contribute: four engineers, two designers, two support specialists, one sales engineer and two security analysts. Every one of them answers to a department manager whose priorities lie elsewhere. I have responsibility for the result but authority over no one.
Kendrick's Three Means of Control
Kendrick (2012) argues that project leaders without authority can still control projects through three sources: process, the shared methods and plans the team agrees to follow; influence, the relationships and persuasion that win cooperation; and metrics, the measures that make progress and problems visible. Each compensates for the lack of formal power.
Process
A process the team helps create is one the team will follow. In the first week I will hold a planning workshop where contributors estimate their own tasks and agree on how we will track work: a shared board, a fifteen-minute stand-up three times a week and a rule that blocked tasks are raised within a day. The workshop will also set a definition of done for each type of task, so that finished means the same thing to an engineer and a security analyst. Kendrick stresses that plans built with contributors carry their commitment in a way plans handed to them do not, and the collection on leading teams makes a similar point about goals that teams help shape (Harvard Business Review, 2006).
Influence
Influence comes from relationships and from understanding what each contributor and manager wants. Yukl and Tracey (1992) compared influence tactics and found that reasoned arguments, appeals to values and consulting people won the most commitment, while pressure and appeals to authority won the least. That fits a project without authority: I cannot order, but I can explain, inspire and consult.
Reciprocity matters too. I can offer the support team early access to the new billing view to answer customers' questions, and offer functional managers visibility for their people's work with the account executive.
| Contributor group | What they want | Influence approach |
|---|---|---|
| Engineers | Interesting work; protection from interruptions | Consultation on design; protect stand-ups from scope creep |
| Support specialists | Fewer customer complaints | Show how the portal reduces calls; involve them in testing |
| Security analysts | Early involvement, not last-minute reviews | Invite to design sessions from week one |
| Functional managers | Their people's time used well | Monthly update on what their people delivered |
Metrics
Metrics make problems visible before they become crises, which matters when I cannot simply ask managers for status. I will track three measures weekly: tasks completed against plan, open defects by severity and the number of blocked tasks older than two days. A one-page dashboard will go to contributors and their managers every Friday. Kendrick notes that shared metrics shift conversations from blame to facts, and visibility to managers creates gentle accountability. The measures are deliberately few, because a long list of numbers buries the signal and invites gaming.
Risks to Control
The greatest risk is that a functional manager pulls a contributor for another priority. The monthly update and the dashboard give managers reasons to protect their people's time, and if a conflict arises, the project sponsor, our vice president of product, has agreed to resolve it within two days.
Conclusion
Without authority, control rests on a process the team owns, influence built on what each person wants and metrics that make progress visible. Together they give the project the control that a reporting line would otherwise provide.
References
Harvard Business Review. (2006). Leading teams: Expert solutions to everyday challenges. Harvard Business School Press.
Kendrick, T. (2012). Results without authority: Controlling a project when the team doesn't report to you (2nd ed.). AMACOM.
Yukl, G., & Tracey, J. B. (1992). Consequences of influence tactics used with subordinates, peers, and the boss. Journal of Applied Psychology, 77(4), 525-535. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.77.4.525
What the PJM 5200 Module 1 instructions ask for
PJM-5200 requires nine written assignments, together worth 45 percent of the grade, plus three discussions and a final paper. The texts are Kendrick's Results Without Authority and two Harvard Business Review collections on leading teams and virtual teams. This first written assignment covers the means of project control. You will explain how a leader keeps control of a project with no formal authority, then apply the ideas to an actual or plausible project with concrete actions under each means of control. Avoid Wikipedia and other encyclopedias, which the syllabus rules out. Describe the project's contributors and their reporting lines so the reader understands the limits of your authority. For each means of control, give at least one specific action you will take and explain why it should work with these people.
How this PJM 5200 Module 1 example is built
The paper describes the project and the leader's lack of authority. A section introduces Kendrick's three means of control. Sections apply process, through a planning workshop and shared rules; influence, with research on influence tactics and a table matching contributor groups to approaches; and metrics, with three weekly measures and a dashboard. A section on risks to control and a conclusion follow. The process section adds a definition of done, and the metrics section keeps measures few to avoid burying the signal. A risks section names the most likely threat to control and the sponsor's role in resolving it. A table matches four contributor groups to what they want and how to influence them.
PJM 5200 Module 1 rubric: what earns full marks
Mentors grade written assignments on mastery of course material and the ability to analyze and interpret it. Papers that apply each means of control with specific actions, rather than defining them, show mastery. Using research on influence tactics to choose approaches demonstrates analysis. Planning for the most likely threat to control, a manager reclaiming a contributor, shows practical judgment, and clear, organized writing completes the work. Specific actions under each means of control, and a plan for the most likely threat, show that the analysis can be put into practice. Linking influence to research, rather than intuition, shows graduate-level reasoning. A heading for each means of control keeps the paper orderly.
Common PJM 5200 Module 1 mistakes, and how to avoid them
Students lose points by describing control in general terms, by relying on authority they do not have or by listing metrics without saying who will see them. Others treat influence as manipulation. Apply each means of control to your project. Match influence to what people want. Choose a few metrics and share them. Plan for the threat most likely to break control. Write down the actions you will take under each means of control, and name the person who resolves conflicts over people's time. A free first sample on your own PJM-5200 written assignment is available on request.
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PJM 5200 Module 1 questions, answered
Where can I find a free PJM 5200 Module 1 sample paper?
A project manager's plan to control a portal upgrade without authority is the assignment above.
What are Kendrick's three means of project control?
Process, influence and metrics.
Which influence tactics work best for gaining commitment?
Reasoned argument, appeals to shared values and consultation won the most commitment in the research.
Why build the project process with the team?
Contributors commit to plans they helped create more than to plans handed to them.
What textbooks does PJM-5200 use?
Kendrick's Results Without Authority and two Harvard Business Review collections on leading teams and virtual teams.