A Project Manager Coach's Guide to Radical Candor

What is Radical Candor?

Radical Candor is a leadership philosophy that combines two essential elements: caring personally and challenging directly. As a project management coach, I've can see how Kim Scott's framework helps leaders build stronger relationships while maintaining high performance standards. It's about being honest and direct with your team, but doing so from a place of genuine care and support.

The project manager's challenge

I often hear this struggle from project managers transitioning into leadership roles: "I know I should be letting go of "doing" the work, and not be in the detail as much, but it feels easier to just do the work myself." This tension between doing and leading is where Radical Candor becomes particularly useful.

You've likely experienced this yourself. You're technically brilliant, with a track record of delivering projects successfully. Yet now, as you advance in your career, you're expected to step back and lead others to deliver instead. It's a pivot that can shake your confidence and challenge your reputation as a project manager.

The reality of leadership transition

I've witnessed the toll of moving to a project leadership position through coaching for project managers. You might find yourself lying awake at night, replaying conversations where you felt out of your depth. Perhaps you're managing former peers, and every conversation and decision feels awkward with the changing relationship dynamics. Then impostor syndrome creeps in, saying to yourself that you're not ready for this level of leadership.

How Radical Candor helps project managers lead

Radical Candor addresses this transition. Scott's framework of 'caring personally' whilst 'challenging directly' offers a framework for those moments when you're unsure whether to step in and do it yourself or coach your team through the challenges.

Imagine this - your team member has missed several deadlines. You know you could step in and do it yourself, possibly faster. The old you would have done exactly that. But that's not leadership. That's falling back into the comfort zone of doing. Instead, by applying the challenge directly while caring personally, you end up with a better outcome for you and your team member:

"I've noticed the last few deliverables have been delayed, and I'm concerned about this and how this might be impacting you. Can we talk about what's happening and work together to find a solution?"

Practical tips for project managers

What makes Scott's Radical Candor approach so valuable for project managers is its emphasis on building genuine relationships while maintaining high standards. You are not expected to become a different person now that you are a leader. You need to grow into a more confident version of yourself as a leader. Here are great tips to help you develop Radical Candor:

1. Schedule regular 1:1s with team members, and stick to them. Don't cancel them when a "fire" is burning that you need to deal with. This builds the 'caring personally' foundation.

   
   

2. Practice the "situation-behaviour-impact" feedback model. For example: "In yesterday's meeting (situation), when you disagreed with the approach without offering alternatives (behaviour), it left the stakeholder feeling uncertain about our capability to deliver (impact)." This builds your 'challenge directly' muscle.

   
   

3. Before jumping in to solve a problem, take a pause. Ask your team member: "What do you think we should do here?" Then again, wait. The silence might feel uncomfortable, but it's where growth happens for you and your team member.

Building confidence through project management coaching

Remember, feeling uncertain about this transition is completely normal. Many of my clients initially doubted their ability to lead without being the technical expert.

The transition from doing to leading is one of the most challenging career shifts you'll make as a project manager. As a project management coach, I can help you move from being the 'problem solver' to empowering others to implement solutions, and build the confidence to have those tough conversations you might be avoiding.

Are you ready to build confidence in the next steps of your project management career?

Book a free project manager coach discovery call to find out more on how I can support your growth from a project doer to a project leader.

About the Author:

Andy Kenneally is The Project Manager Coach, specialising in helping project managers move to fulfilling roles so they can thrive in the next step of their career. He is a PMP-certified project manager with 14 years of experience delivering transformation programmes across banking, professional services, and technology sectors. You can check out Andy’s work on LinkedIn or The Project Manager Coach website, where you can check out his free project manager career tools to help you in your project management career journey.