Title: The evaluation of soft skills by information technology executives when hiring a project manager: a qualitative study

Authors: Nadia Pedrosa; Luciano Ferreira da Silva; Cristina Dai Prá Martens

Addresses: Business Administration, Universidade Nove de Julho, UNINOVE, São Paulo, Brazil ' Business Administration, Universidade Nove de Julho, UNINOVE, São Paulo, Brazil ' Business Administration, Universidade Nove de Julho, UNINOVE, São Paulo, Brazil

Abstract: The aim of this article is to describe the process of evaluating soft skills when hiring information technology (IT) project managers, from the perspective of IT executives. We opted for the qualitative approach in which the research method adopted involved in-person interviews with 16 Brazilian IT executives from different business segments. Data analysis was performed using the ATLAS.ti tool and guided by the grounded theory technique with three coding cycles: open, axial and selective. The results showed that the scientific methods that evaluated the behaviour and personality of candidates are deprecated by Brazilian IT executives, because they prefer to use empirical methods, such as interviews with situational questions oriented to practical issues within the area. The theoretical contribution is made by means of six propositions resulting from the study of the hiring process of IT project managers, and can pave new paths for future research.

Keywords: information technology project manager; soft skills; hiring; competencies in project management.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBEX.2023.130230

International Journal of Business Excellence, 2023 Vol.29 No.4, pp.546 - 568

Received: 03 May 2020
Accepted: 15 Jul 2020
Published online: 10 Apr 2023 *

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