Mental Health Vital for Project Managers

With more and more people returning to work in the next few weeks, a new survey from the Association of Project Management (AMP), has revealed that the majority of project professionals have said their main project is causing them stress.

The chartered body for the project profession also showed that the majority of project managers are expecting disruption to projects due to the ongoing impact of the coronavirus. The survey of project professionals, which was carried out for AMP by research company, Censuswide, also discovered that over 63% of participants also said they feel stressed about issues relating to their main projects.

The survey said the key factors include:

• Poor work-life balance (40%)
• Unrealistic expectations (32%)
• Having too much to do (36.5%)

The survey also shows that just over one quarter of those who took part (27.6%) said they don’t think their workplace is doing enough in order to support the mental health and wellbeing of those who are responsible for managing and delivering projects – throughout all industry sectors.

Dr Clara Cheung, who is  lecturers in project management at the University of Manchester, and is a supporter of Mental Health Awareness Week, which is this week (May 18- May 24, 2020) said: “AMP’s latest survey reveals that project professionals experience high levels of stress in the workplace due to the often frenetic, fast paced and dynamic nature of project-based work. The recent impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the lockdown period might also have increased the risk project managers to have mental health problems, such as anxiety, burnout, depression, social isolation, and fear of unemployment. Under these circumstances, it is vital that employers review the mental health support mechanisms provided for staff and how these can be improved upon.

“This could include reminding staff of support already in place or looking at the introduction of resilience-training that focuses on post-traumatic growth, wellness action plans, mental health first aiders and access to support from a confidential counselling helpline.”

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