Normally, I would enjoy the sight of new leaves on the trees. It heralds the beginning of Spring. Rejuvination. Out with the old and in with the new after the Winter season.

But, I’ve just noticed new leaves on trees that have quite literally only finished shedding maybe 4 weeks ago.

It just doesn’t feel right at all. We’ve only just started Winter and know that there is alot more of it to come.

There are new leaves on the trees because the climate is changing. Nature is “confused” about what time of year it is. (There are still summer roses trying to flower in the garden too!).

Irrespective of how passionately or otherwise you believe in global warming, all of us realise that this is happening. Man is directly interfering with nature’s ability to self-regulate and as a consequence, change is afoot!

Business projects, are you changing for the worse?

When we look at how we manage our projects in business, they can sometimes be a little like global warming if we’re not careful. Particularly if projects in our business works.

We do successful implementation after successful implementation. We’ve learned as we’ve gone along and the efficiency and excellence that we are trying to achieve is there.

And then circumstance makes us think that maybe there are other ways of doing things.

• We look at taking on a new supplier who is cheaper – but maybe the quality is not as good.
• We put a less experienced project manager in charge and don’t give them the support they need.
• We put a less capable team in place to reduce the baseline costs.

For whatever reason, we’ve decided to cut back on an area that works.

And we get green shoots. Some leaves that show us that things are changing, getting better.

The problem is, it’s still Winter. The green shoots will soon die back as the weather gets colder. Your projects will run into difficulties as timelines get extended to cope with less capability, customers give out because the product that you are delivering are not what they used to be.

Sometimes, it is just better to let things be if they are working. While change can be good, change for changes sake can radically impact your success.

What are your thoughts? Have you interfered in your project delivery to squeeze an extra few % margin points and suffered?

Photo: Wickenden

Aside from Agile, the most commonly used form of project planning in my experience is the standard waterfall model.  Each stage of the project follows in sequence – as one completes, the next commences.

Having worked in operations for most of my life, along with the odd sojourn into the project management space, it’s safe to say that it appears almost impossible to operate a linear strategy to project management beyond the very high level work package structures.

At least this is certainly the case when you are reliant on operational resources to participate in projects as most organisations are.

On paper, within a work package, an operational resource might be mapped in the plan to do their “bit” in the following form;

 But in reality, an operational person is usually working that more closely resembles;

• Plan for the day:  “Project time for the day as agreed with my manager”

• Reality of the day: “It’s breaking, we need  you now, you’ll just have to leave the project work til later.

Expected time on project work: 8 hours. Actual time on project work: 3.5 hours.

Result : Stressed out operational person, delayed project plan, frustrated P.M.

This is not through any fault of the engineer.

• The fault lies with the operational manager for over-estimating the available time to that engineer

or

• The project manager who pushed the operational manager so hard to give an estimate that fitted the timelines of the project.

Operational work effort is business as usual for an operational team  and not project work. In order for a resource to be given the correct amount of time required,  realistic availability needs to be put forward to the project manager.

If the timelines available do not work for the project then backfill needs to be found for the operational resource in question and this needs to be factored into the project costs. Ignoring the issue will end up simply causing problems for the project during implementation.

By organising operational resources correctly within the context of a project timeline, you can get closer to a linear delivery.  Just don’t look to closely at the operational resources day though – that’ll never resemble linear!

Photo: Raiderslight

“If you chase two rabbits, both will escape”

— Unknown

As a project manager, are you focused on achieving your project goals and objectives? Or are you trying to micromanaged and as a consequence are not as focused as you should be?

Project manager, remaining focused

The tools of a project management methodology such as work packages are designed to assist the project manager in delivering a successful project. However, if there are multiple issues arising at any one time within a project, a project manager can end up trying to deal with them all in parallel and failing simply through the sheer volumes of work required to do so.

In order to remain as an effective project manager in control of a project, it is vital for that project manager to organise their work in such a way that what can seem like overwhelming levels of issues can be handled correctly – each in their own right.

Prioritisation and impact analysis are the most obvious ways of handling this type of scenario.

•  Can the project continue with this issue for the moment?
• Does the issue cause a significant impact on one of the big four – Budget, Time, Quality of Scope?
• Do the issues require the same resources to resolve them or can a different resource set take-on some of the challenges?

Each project issue requires this level of analysis. It is only by doing this, the relevance of that issue can be determined and the work structures altered to handle them. The project manager needs to assess the impact of the project issue against each of the big four and prioritise based on that.

The other key to managing multiple issues that arise when they seek to overwhelm the project manager is to ensure that others are engaged to focus on the actual resolution i.e. people with the right set of expertise. Even if this means in drafting other managers to focus on their resolution. The project manager can then focus on working the issues into the project plan and assess the impacts at a project level rather than at the issue level.

A project manager cannot afford to be like the hunter of the two rabbits. The project manager needs to send two hunters out – one for each rabbit – that way, both will be caught.

What are your thoughts? Do you think a project manager should engage other management resources to help overcome issues?

 Photo: Robobobo

Repeatability in project management

When your business or project team engages on a project, the margin you make will depend very much on how proficient at delivery you are or have become.

When you do something for the first time, irrespective of how well planned the project is, problems or issues will arise that you simply did not consider because you’d never experienced them before.

• A team member that was not quite sure of what their role was.
• A piece of material that you ordered that was not quite up to scratch.
• A poorly managed client which led to scope creep.

Whatever the issue encountered, it leads to margin erosion or even worse – a loss!

We’ve all done projects like this and it’s nothing to be ashamed of. We’ve learned how to overcome these problems and hopefully are now applying them to new projects that we are engaged in.

As the circle of project delivery is repeated over time, the efficiencies start to come through.

• The team are more confident and become more expert at their responsibilities.
• The project manager becomes better at managing scope and client expectation.
• Material quality is no longer an issue because the supplier we now use is giving you the expected quality.

All of these things, whether large or small, will contribute to a higher margin on your project delivery.

Without learning lessons, discarding what is redundant or failing, adopting efficiencies from prior experience – creating and maintaining a healthy margin will be an impossibility.

All of this goes hand in hand with the management of any current project and the tracking of the spend and time on that project. Without tracking what’s going on with the current project – how will we learn for the next time?

What are your thoughts? Do you use repeatable process in your project delivery to enhance margin?

Photo: Teretta

I was in conversation yesterday with a colleague and we got onto the subject of how projects are handled by different cultures. The two in question were Israeli and Irish.

Irish approach – all gung-ho at the beginning. Everyone is on board. Whiteboards abound. Team work the key. Open communications. But the projects invariably hit that “uh-oh” phase at the end and all hell breaks loose.

Israeli approach – everyone gets very hot and bothered at the beginning. Lots of arguments. Lots of passionate shouting. Lots of issues. And the projects invariably come in early.

What struck me was the “shouting and screaming” bit. Either before the project started or when it finished.

My view is why can’t we just deliver the project in a planned and organised way with no shouting, screaming or panic.

Delivering a project with a fuss!

• Get the right team.
• Agree the scope and make sure that everyone knows what they are doing.
• Create a viable and achievable project plan.
• Understand the various risks that are possible and mitigate accordingly.
• Stay close to the project team and address issues as they arise.
• Engage with and manage the client (and make sure they stay engaged and understand their responsibilities).
• Deliver the project to time, quality, project and scope.

A solid blend, in this case, of the positive team work of the Irish approach to the effectiveness of the Israeli approach to come in early sounds like a good one!

There is no need for huffing and puffing at any stage if the project is managed correctly! Much better to just get on with it.

I was getting my daily fix of Seth Godin this morning and read his post entitled merging/emerging.

It was a quick post on how a company managers expect you to “merge” in with everyone else to suit the business.

“Emerging” is the allowance of the individual to develop in their own way to get the most out of themselves which effective leadership allows for.

The same can be applied to a project team and how a project manager manages that team.

Project manager as leader

Does the project manager create an open and trusting team relationship that allows people the creative freedom to get the job done to the best of their ability?

Or does the the project manager follow the latest PM methodology to the letter of the law and simply follow a dictated process?

Sure, a project manager is tasked with producing an end result. The project scope.

But the manner in which that is achieved will dictate the quality of the delivery and the “chi” of the team – their ability to work effectively.

The project manager must follow process to get the job done.  The project manager will ensure that work packages are clearly defined. End goals clearly visible. Budgets on track.

The effective project manager will do more than manage.

The effective project manager will lead.

The effective project manager will create a working environment that allows the team to “Emerge”.

An environment;

• Where issues are shared and addressed without fear of retribution.
• Where input is sought from the team rather than just the individual on how to approach a task or challenge.
• Where creative flair is encouraged and fostered.
• Where the status quo is unacceptable and challenged.
• Where credit is given where credit is due.
• Where guidance is given where it’s needed.

“Merging” is destructive in nature. It stifles. Far better to allow your project team to “emerge”.

What are your thoughts?

Photo: SidPix (Thanks Sid!)

Rage against the machine – a most excellent rock band… but not the topic of this blog.

The machine I am talking about here is the one that I see day and day out in business projects and operations.

The machine that creates;

1. Pointless meetings that cost in lost man hours and achieve very little.
2. The debates on quality and consistency of delivery.
3. Over-commitment but under delivery.
4. Disappointed clients.
5. Stressed out teams.
6. Reduced productivity.

The list goes on and on. Project and operational teams the world over are guilty of some or all of these and indeed many more besides.

But why does this happen? Why do services business continue to operate in this manner?

Clients are largely responsible in many ways. With pressure on to reduce costs and the large amount of choice out there, it is easy for them to push and push project delivery houses to lower the delivery costs while asking for greater scope.

At some point the value proposition is lost in many businesses and it becomes simply a drive to offer to deliver a project more cheaply than the next guy. But a race to the bottom is not where any of us want to be.

But clients only do this because they can.

Because service delivery businesses allow them to do this. By not creating the value proposition that their business provides. By not creating the unique selling point that allows them to be more expensive than the other guy, but to still get the business.

The problem is that by reducing the selling price, then investment to make things better in the longer term because difficult and the circle starts all over again.

So try to find your value proposition. Your way of delivering projects that allows you to deliver solid quality while retaining a viable cost base and profit margin to allow you to get better and stronger.

Rage against the machine!

What are your thoughts? Is there a way of stopping the race to the bottom and the focus on simply delivering cheaply rather than with value?

Photo: IT290

Seth Godin wrote a little post this morning about digging holes for ourselves. And he’s quite right – we do!

In a project management context we dig holes when;

1. We don’t address project issues as they arise in a timely manner.
2. We don’t have a closed project scope.
3. We havn’t relayed to the customer correctly what they will be getting out of the project.
4. We under-quoted to get the job and are now trying to do things on the cheap.
5. We havn’t the right resources on the project.
6. We don’t apply lessons learned from previous projects to the latest ones.

We all have the things we don’t address when we encounter them before, during or after a project implementation.

But why don’t we address project management issues quickly?

Personally, I feel that this is mostly about fear.

• Fear of not getting the job in the first place.
• Fear of displeasing the customer if we don’t jump over ourselves to deliver the world.
• Fear of creating a bad impression with the boss.
• Fear of being “found wanting”.
• Fear of making the wrong decision.
• Fear of failure.

This is human nature. It’s natural to fear what can and does go wrong.

But fear simply makes a small hole bigger.. and bigger….

Better to stick your head above the parapet and make the touch calls when they are necessary. Hiding issues is simply delaying the inevitable and in the longer term can actually make them much larger.

Protect against fear within the project team by ensuring that they have;

• A feeling of openness and the ability to express themselves without fear of retribution.
• Iron tight processes for delivering a project.
• A “people orientated” project manager who can handle team, customer and senior management alike.

There are, I’m sure, lots more ways of ensuring that issues get dealt with quickly so those big holes don’t get dug.

What would you add to the list?

Photo: Coljay72

Project management methodology – guaranteed project success?

Project management methodologies are highly useful tools with which to learn how to develop and deliver projects. The intention behind theme is to give the project manager a structure against which the project can be delivered.

However, there is a danger in my view and experience.

The danger that is the methodology can be rigidly adhered too to the detriment of the project or that the wrong methodology is applied to the delivery of a project.

Different organisations have different types of project. Project methodologies from one organisation may not necessarily appropriate for the project delivery methodology of another.

A project manager applying a waterfall based project approach in one organisastion may find that an Agile approach is required in another. The former project methodology simply doesn’t work and when attempted causes the projects to fail or run into difficulties.

Traits of a successful project manager.

The underlying principles of effective project management are independant of the methodology learned i.e. they form the basis against which a methodology is applied;

1. Ability for a project manager to communicate effectively at all levels.
2. Ability for a project manager to understand the importance of budgeting.
3. Ability for a project manager to understand how to manage risk and mitigate against same.
4. Ability for a project manager to work as part of a team and to understand that a project is reliant on successful team work.
5. Ability for a project manager to maintain the “big picture” view even when dealing with minutuae during the project delivery.
6. Ability for a project manager to deliver to time, quality, scope and budget.

A successful project manager will be able to do the above irrespective of the methodology applied. The methodology can then be learned for a particular organisation and applied appropriately.

If the fundamentals required for a successful project manager are not in place, the methodology will simply create a student of process which if applied incorrectly will not deliver the desired outputs.

What are your thoughts?

Can a project manager be successful simply by following a project management methodology?

Photo: Hyperbob

Is there a problem with how your business delivers its projects?

The power to change how a project is delivered from your business to a client (or indeed internally) is there.

But the only person who can change it is the person who runs those projects.

• He/She/They/You know there is a problem.
• He/She/They/You know how to fix the problem.
• He/She/They/You know that it’s got to be fixed.

He/She/They/You just need to make the decision right now, today to make that change.

What’s stopping you?

Remove the blockers, make the change and profit from the improvement.

Project methodologies in businesses are there to help not hinder. If your processes are not helping then they need to change.

So go on – give it a go. It will make a difference.