Project Success

Project Success

Carolyn Reid, PMP, MBAJanuary 15, 2004

You are an overworked Project Manager What to say when you get caught sleeping

at your desk:

What to say when caught sleeping at your desk10. They told me at the blood bank this might

happen.9. This is a 15 min. power nap they taught me

about in that time mgt course you sent me to.8. Guess I left the top off the Wite-out. You got

here just in time!7. I was meditating on the mission statement

envisioning a new paradigm.6. I was testing my keyboard for drool resistance.

What to say when caught sleeping at your desk5. I was doing a highly specific Yoga exercise to

relieve work-related stress. Do you discriminate against people who practice Yoga?

4. You interrupted when I had almost figured out a solution to our biggest problem.

3. The coffee machine is broken…2. Someone must have put decaf in the wrong

pot.1. Amen!

“All work can be converted into a project…. WITH SIGNIFICANT VALUE-ADDED POTENTIAL.”

Tom Peters

Contents

A Piece of Cake The Glass is

Half Full The People The Process Optimizing Project

Management

Project: Cake!

Or was it the Nightmare project!

The following is a description of a project that Management continuously said would be “a piece of cake”

Piece of Cake

Started Late Management Support:

Labeled Piece of cake Even though it wasn’t our area of Expertise

Management style: constant threat of shutting down the division SOW not matching Client contract App Engineer quits a few weeks into the 3 month project Holidays, weekends, nights…. The Good News

Fantastic Teamwork Achieved Goals

The Glass is Half Full

Learning from obstacles

Top 10 Reasons Projects Fail

10. Lack of Executive Sponsorship

9. Poor Planning

8. Poor Communication

7. Lack of objectives

6. No Stakeholder analysis

Top 10 Reasons Projects Fail

5. Lack of good Leadership

4. No Ownership/ Teamwork

3. Unrealistic expectations

2. Poor Change Management

1. Poor Risk Management

Examples of Failure Poor Stakeholder analysis:

Designing airbags for one size of person Unrealistic Expectations:

Budget: What the customer can paySchedule: When the customer needs it If Sales can sell it, you can design and build it!

Poor PlanningTitanic voyage

Scenario of Good Intensions gone wrong PM effort to please customer – changes

are freebiesSchedule slipsBudget is blown Doesn’t produce what Customer wants

Changes not discussed, documented and agreed to

Common Project Complaints Unrealistic completion dates Scope Creep Finger Pointing Fire Fighting Running on Overload No time for Communication Meetings all Day, work all night

The People

The Project Manager The Team The Customer Customers and

Stakeholders

“People are strange when you’re a stranger…”

“Project managers were put on this earth to wander purposefully aroundThe office, not to be stuck in offices dealing with spreadsheets.” Tom Peters

What makes up a Good Project Manager?

Enthusiastic Ownership of the Project Focus on both the forest and the Trees Able to plan but also adapt as needed Leader Manager

What makes up a Good Project Manager?

Analytical but also able to make quick decisions when needed

Action Oriented/ Patient Negotiator Motivator Developer of People

The Team

Owners They care They succeed

Cooperation Collaboration Communication People skills

Poor Project Management Culture

The procrastinators on your team have a deadline for building a piece of equipment by January 28Therefore, they pull an all-nighter on the 27th

What does this do to quality?

Marketing in the past: “You can have any color you want as long as it is black.” Marketing today: Customization rules, the customer is king.

What the Customer Ordered

The Customer and Stakeholders

Key to Project Success:What does the Customer want?

You can come in on budget and on time but the project failed if it did not satisfy the customer.

What do stakeholders expect? Distinguish between the different types of

customer – buyer, end user…

Examples of incorrect Stakeholder analysis End user is Taiwanese, product is

designed per American buyerDidn’t meet needs of end user

Leap several maturity levels in a process improvement project Insufficient resources to manageProcess isn’t understood by people, so isn’t

used

Another Failure to communicate Example The companies: Tier 3 supplier, Tier 2

supplier, Big 3 customer Scenario:

Mgt of tiers 2 and 3 fly cross country to customer

Presents improved designCustomer response: “Great idea! Except that

all changes are on hold indefinitely”

The Process

Time keeps on slipping into the future…….

Starting up

Clear Scope Tie to Corporate Strategy

If not, why are we doing this?Adds Value!

Motivated Team Clear, Agreed upon Deliverables Customer Focus

In the Planning

Budget Schedule Risk Planning

Follow through Resource Plan

Match resources to plan Communication Stakeholder analysis Customer agreement to plan

“Predictions are hard, Especially about the future.” Yogi Berra

During the Project

Team Building Monitor and Control

On Schedule? In Budget? Achieving expected

results? Managing Risk?

Change Management Maintain customer focus

After the Project

What went right? What went wrong

and how do we do better next time?

Celebrate Success

Rewards

Project Risk Factors

Sloppy requirements Schedule slippage Budget overrun Scope creep Poor planning and estimation Poor documentation

Summarizing: Optimizing Project Management in the Organization“Project = Stuff Done = …

Most (or A-L-L) economic value added in the modern/ emerging economy”

Tom Peters

Optimizing the Project Management Organization

Good Risk Planning Excellent Change Management Capacity planning Projects tied to Corporate Strategy Teamwork Culture

The Organization that supports Project Management Best Practices

Quality Control Knowledge management Well defined processes Proactive culture Customer Driven Top Management understanding of PM Innovative

“One hundred percent of everyone’s time should be taken up by PROJECTS.”

-Tom Peters.