Leading Through Complexity Piece by Piece | Next Level Careers

Every project looks like chaos before it looks like anything else. Scattered team members, shifting timelines, competing priorities, a dozen moving pieces that don't yet seem to belong together. Somewhere behind the scenes is the person whose job is to make sense of it all, without controlling every piece, by knowing how they fit together. 

That’s the work of a project manager, a role Rhonda Washington, Vice President of Enterprise Portfolio Management at Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel Nation, stepped into nearly two decades ago and never left.

What began at a utility company has led Washington to the gaming and entertainment industry, where the puzzles have only gotten bigger and more complex. Her career demonstrates that the real skill isn't just managing the process; it's building trust, breaking down complexity, and keeping people at the center of it all.

Pivoting From Finance to Frameworks

When Washington joined the workforce, she thought finance was the right path for her. That changed in 2004, after she joined the utility company Southern California Edison and started paying attention to the project managers around her. 

“I was always amazed at how some of the project managers at Edison could take something that seemed so complex and break it down into smaller, more manageable pieces,” Washington explained. 

Being able to watch others lead a team to the completion of a project fascinated her and inspired her to step into that career path once given the opportunity. Career switching at any point in someone’s journey can be nerve-racking, but Washington had the courage to follow her curiosity. Her advice to anyone sitting in the same spot is simple: “Trust yourself in knowing that you're making the right decision.”

Leadership Isn't About Having All the Answers

It is safe to say that most of us look up at our managers or mentors and wonder, “How do they know everything?” You assume those leading the charge have all the answers. As Washington began growing in her career and stepping into leadership roles herself, she realized it’s not always about having the right answers, but asking the right questions. 

“It wasn't about being just that loudest person in the room. It was creating an environment for people to be able to share and grow,” Washington explained. “We don't know everything.”

Even across industries and different employee groups, people want the same thing: clarity. “They want to understand why something matters. As a leader, I see my role as removing barriers, not creating them,” Washington stated.

The Process Should Serve People, Not the Other Way Around

To succeed in a field like project management, it takes attention to detail, good time management, clear communication, and effective execution. All those things matter regardless of how much you grow in your role, but Washington emphasizes the overlooked importance of building relationships and trust with your team members. 

“Processes are important, but trust is what makes the team successful,” Washington said. “I can teach you the framework. I can teach you all the knowledge to run a project. But what really matters at the end of the day is your relationship with the team.”

How does she build this trust? By listening and being flexible. Similar to her philosophy of asking the right questions, Washington believes that opening the door for others to voice their thoughts and concerns leads to greater collaboration between teams. Forcing a process might just be what breaks it, meaning flexibility is required depending on the people, technology, and goals you’re working with.

“You have to focus more on the outcome,” Washington said. “It’s about knowing when you need structure and when you need to be flexible.”

The Proving Ground: Leading the Yaamava' Expansion

With nearly ten years under her belt at Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel Nation, Washington has seen firsthand how rapid company growth inevitably brings complexity. Thankfully, breaking down the complex is exactly what she loves about her work, even when it feels overwhelming. 

When Yaamava’ expanded, it included a new hotel, spa, entertainment venue, multiple restaurants, and a casino floor expansion bringing on over 30 departments and more than 70 individual team members to manage. A project most managers might gawk at.

“I was so intimidated about how I was going to manage that project,” Washington admitted. “But I had to sit back and tell myself, ‘Rhonda, the reason you got into project management is because you enjoy taking complex challenges and breaking them down into smaller pieces to achieve a common goal.’” She told herself that even though the scale and scope of a project changes, the philosophy and framework remain the same. 

This mindset has guided her through multiple other large projects, showing that even in the face of intimidation, it’s important to break the process down into manageable pieces and remind yourself of why you started in the first place.

What the Next Generation of Leaders Will Need to Stand Out

After nearly two decades in project management, Washington knows the nature of the game has changed with the use of AI and other automation tools. Technical skills always matter, but she doesn’t believe they’re the differentiators they might have once been.

“AI is going to be able to handle a lot of the technical, day-to-day tasks that project managers traditionally perform,” she said.According to Washington, the next generation needs to tap into the skills that AI can’t compete with, like emotional intelligence, innovative thinking, influence without authority, and adaptability.

By enhancing these qualities and layering in project management skills, you round out your capabilities and become multi-functional.

Washington provided a simple takeaway relevant to any industry today: “You have to make yourself valuable past the knowledge.”

Putting the Pieces Together

From career pivots to mammoth projects, Washington's approach has remained remarkably consistent: break down the complexity, build trust with the people around you, and never let the process outweigh the humans doing the work. It's a mindset that scales from a single project to an entire organization.

Looking back, the lesson isn't really about project management at all. It's about having the confidence to step into something that feels bigger than you and trusting your ability to figure it out piece by piece. For Washington, that curiosity transformed a finance professional into the leader every complex project needs: someone who can look at a table full of scattered pieces and know exactly where to begin.