Effective project leadership in computer science and engineering

Abstract

Project leaders are the most important individuals in projects. A project leader should follow some thinking styles and values which can lead his or her team to success. There is a common notion among software specialists that the more complex a project manager thinks, the better his leadership is. In this paper, we discuss the significance of simple thinking in project leadership. If the leader thinks in a simple way, then the risk of being suffocated in details is less. Complex thinking brings out greater risks of losing the general control of the system because of spending too much time and effort on details and, as a result, more confusion. Not only simplicity, but also psychological factors are important in guiding teams and developing projects in the most effective way. Here, we present a set of qualities for a good project leader in software engineering. In addition to that, we also demonstrate how cognitive and ethical issues affect leadership qualities. © 2009 Springer Berlin Heidelberg.