The Think eBiz Blog

A Train Wreck Tale: The case of the missing PM

It has been a long while since we wrote about project management principals on Think-ebiz, however a recent event leads me to write this article.

It goes without saying that the Project Manager plays an essential role in a project's overall success. But what happens when that project manager steps away from their role at a critical junction and what should be the best way to manage through this event? Recently this happened - where the PM left for a pre-scheduled vacation. Like pulling your quarterback off the field while your offense remains on the field, the likelihood of success falls off dramatically. Yet sometimes these things happen - a PM gets sick or gets called away. Life happens. BUT what to do next to keep the project on track?

First, all project managers should prepare for this possible risk by having back up support, documentation and plans in place. It could be that the PM cross-trains another PM or manager to take the reigns - with specific instructions on how to keep the project on track.

Secondly, if it is known, the departure of the PM should be embedded within the project plan itself. The project should work around this eventuality. Plan more risky tasks before the PM leaves or preferably after the PM returns.

And if no other back up is available, the project schedule may have to be altered. This is a tough call to make, but having the project fall off the tracks is a much worse outcome.

Unfortunately, in the situation that I am writing about- all three of these suggestions were overlooked. The PM's departure was not embedded into the plan - and in fact wasn't announced until 1/2 day before he left. There was no backup plan nor clear instructions provided to all team members. The result was pure chaos and miscommunications. The moment the PM left the drivers seat, there was no clear leadership, a chaotic vacuum was left in his wake. The results, the train jumped the tracks and the task scheduled during this time period failed. The fall was fast and furious without the leadership to reign in the chaos.

To be fair, there were other factors involved, including errors made by one of the development vendors -but it was clear that the lack of leadership was a major root cause to the overall failure of the tasks... and subsequent bad feeling through-out the team.

Lessons learned. When a leadership void is detected or anticipated - it is best for someone to step up and call a time-out. Pause the project and bring senior management into the picture to review the current plan and options. This "pause" might cause a project delay, but failure is much worse. And in this case - it was.

Project Manager as Change Agent

Project Manager's are traditionally recognized for providing the expertise to guide a company's endeavor to completion; on-time and on-budget. PM 101. However for many organizations the PM is a solution enabler; a process re-engineer; a project team facilitator.

To be an effective change agent; a well seasoned PM should be part of the project team as a leader. Solving business problems often require the cooperation and collaboration of multiple silo's. The PM is in a unique position to span all the silo's and lead the project to conclusion.

Case in point; your blogger is aware of a project designed to close serious financial gaps involving special programs offered to clients and a related issue related to retail promotions. The problems have been known by the company but never adequacy solved. No single business owner (silo) was able the leadership necessary to design a solution, as they each represented only a segment of the problem. In this instance, the project manager is effectively crossing the organizational boundaries to secure individual support and provides the leadership to work towards a solution.

If your organization has a well seasoned strategic minded project manager, you already have the leadership on-hand to facilitate change. And then once a solution is mapped out, this person is in the best position to deliver the goods; on-time and on-budget.

JAD – facilitating your way to better project success.

Defining the scope of a project and gain support from the stakeholders, this describes two vital responsibilities of the project manager. If you have been in this position, you know it is both time consuming and difficult to gain clear consensus.   And without clear consensus and agreement, most projects start off - doomed.

JAD - Joint Application Development - was designed to help speed up this process, gain consensus and create a foundation of project success. By bringing together IT and Business stakeholders, JAD accomplishes the following goals:

• IT learns from those that know the business best

• Business managers learn first hand the constraints and possibilities that IT can deliver

• The project does not begin until there is clear consensus and agreement between IT and the Business.

I have effectively used JAD to build a highly strategic internet selling portal and an internal customer start-up process. With clear scope, and agreed upon expectations, before groundbreaking, these projects met their objectives and were delivered on-time, on-budget. A win for everyone involved.

Click here to view a concise, well outlined overview of the JAD process.

Project Management in a Creative Environment

When cultures collide... How does an organization introduce project management principles where the culture is creative? Programmers, structured by nature, perform well under project management discipline and methodology. However, creative talent tends to live and thrive outside of structured constraints.

Growing marketing companies will face this dilemma at some point, as the need for consistency, efficiency and attention to margins balances against unbounded creativity and innovation.

We faced this scenario as the company added more account management headcount. The do-it your own way worked well when we had 2-3 account managers, but failed when new ones were added at an increased pace.

The key is to implement a solution gradually and with clear management support. The last thing your organization needs is another layer of corporate bureaucracy.