Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.
Marry a man/woman you love to talk to. As you get older, their conversational skills will be as important as any other.
Do not believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you want.
When you say, "I love you", mean it.
When you say, "I'm sorry", look the person in the eye.
Be engaged at least six months before you get married.
Believe in love at first sight.
Never laugh at anyone's dreams. People who do not have dreams do not have much.
Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt but it is the only way to live life completely.
In disagreements, fight fairly. No name-calling.
Do not judge people by their relatives.
Talk slowly but think quickly.
When someone asks you a question you do not want to answer, smile and ask, "Why do you want to know?"
Remember that great love and great achievements involve great risk.
Say, "Bless You" when you hear someone sneeze.
When you lose, do not lose the lesson.
Remember the three R's: Respect for self; Respect for others; Responsibility for all your actions.
Do not let a little dispute injure a great friendship.
When you realize you have made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.
Smile when picking up the phone. The caller will hear it in your voice.
Spend some time alone.
Thursday, March 23, 2006
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
Does Your Project Still have Value?
Are you working on a project that has diminished in value? Does your project seem like it would have been a good idea if it was implemented two years ago, two years from now? If you are questioning the value of your project think about these things.
What would happen in your company if the project were cancelled?
Does the project link to your organizations strategic goals and/or objectives?
Does the project have visible support from senior management?
Does the project generate excitement?
Is your organization going to gain efficiencies or be more competitive as a result of successfully completing the project?
Is there lots of negative "buzz" about the project?
I'm sure there are lots of other questions that could be asked when it comes to questioning the value of projects. We need to keep in mind that all projects eventually end. Some end when they are completed successfully, and others are terminated early for a variety of reasons.
The important thing to keep in mind is that you must continually communicate across, up, and down the organization to find out what others are thinking about your project.
If the project manager is the only person in the organization that thinks his or her project has value, then the project manager isn't really thinking.
Does your project still have value? A tough question for certain projects, but one that must be answered on a regular basis.
What would happen in your company if the project were cancelled?
Does the project link to your organizations strategic goals and/or objectives?
Does the project have visible support from senior management?
Does the project generate excitement?
Is your organization going to gain efficiencies or be more competitive as a result of successfully completing the project?
Is there lots of negative "buzz" about the project?
I'm sure there are lots of other questions that could be asked when it comes to questioning the value of projects. We need to keep in mind that all projects eventually end. Some end when they are completed successfully, and others are terminated early for a variety of reasons.
The important thing to keep in mind is that you must continually communicate across, up, and down the organization to find out what others are thinking about your project.
If the project manager is the only person in the organization that thinks his or her project has value, then the project manager isn't really thinking.
Does your project still have value? A tough question for certain projects, but one that must be answered on a regular basis.
Monday, March 13, 2006
More Project Management Sayings
It takes one woman nine months to have a baby. It cannot be done in one month by impregnating nine women (although it is more fun trying).
The same work under the same conditions will be estimated differently by ten different estimators or by one estimator at ten different times.
Any project can be estimated accurately (once it's completed).
The most valuable and least used WORD in a project manager's vocabulary is "NO".
The most valuable and least used PHRASE in a project manager's vocabulary is "I don't know".
Nothing is impossible for the person who doesn't have to do it.
You can con a sucker into committing to an impossible deadline, but you cannot con him into meeting it.
At the heart of every large project is a small project trying to get out.
If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything.
The more desperate the situation the more optimistic the situatee.
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it probably is a duck.
Too few people on a project can't solve the problems - too many create more problems than they solve.
A problem shared is a buck passed.
A change freeze is like the abominable snowman: it is a myth and would anyway melt when heat is applied.
A user will tell you anything you ask about, but nothing more.
A user is somebody who tells you what they want the day you give them what they asked for.
Of several possible interpretations of a communication, the least convenient is the correct one.
What you don't know hurts you.
The conditions attached to a promise are forgotten, only the promise is remembered.
There's never enough time to do it right first time but there's always enough time to go back and do it again.
The bitterness of poor quality last long after the sweetness of making a date is forgotten.
I know that you believe that you understand what you think I said but I am not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.
Estimators do it in groups - bottom up and top down.
If you're 6 months late on a milestone due next week but really believe you can make it, you're a project manager.
No project has ever finished on time, within budget, to requirement - yours won't be the first to.
Activity is not achievement.
The first myth of management is that it exists.
Managing IT people is like herding cats.
If you don't know how to do a task, start it, then ten people who know less than you will tell you how to do it.
A minute saved at the start is just as effective as one saved at the end.
People under pressure do not think faster.
If an IT project works the first time, it is wrong.
If you don't plan, it doesn't work. If you do plan, it doesn't work either. Why plan!
Planning without action is futile, action without planning is fatal.
The person who says it will take the longest and cost the most is the only one with a clue how to do the job.
Planning is an unnatural process, doing something is much more fun.
The nice thing about not planning is that failure comes as a complete surprise rather than being preceded by a period of worry and depression.
Projects happen in two ways: a) Planned and then executed or b) Executed, stopped, planned and then executed.
It's not the hours that count, it's what you do in those hours.
Good control reveals problems early - which only means you'll have longer to worry about them.
If there is anything to do, do it!
If it can go wrong it will - Murphy's law.
If it can't possibly go wrong, it will - O'Malley's corollary to Murphy's law.
It will go wrong in the worst possible way - Sod's law.
Work expands to fill the time available for its completion - Parkinson's law.
Finely chopped cabbage in mayonnaise - Coleslaw.
A two year project will take three years, a three year project will never finish - (anyone know who's law this is?)
Murphy, O'Malley, Sod and Parkinson are alive and well - and working on your project.
The same work under the same conditions will be estimated differently by ten different estimators or by one estimator at ten different times.
Any project can be estimated accurately (once it's completed).
The most valuable and least used WORD in a project manager's vocabulary is "NO".
The most valuable and least used PHRASE in a project manager's vocabulary is "I don't know".
Nothing is impossible for the person who doesn't have to do it.
You can con a sucker into committing to an impossible deadline, but you cannot con him into meeting it.
At the heart of every large project is a small project trying to get out.
If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything.
The more desperate the situation the more optimistic the situatee.
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it probably is a duck.
Too few people on a project can't solve the problems - too many create more problems than they solve.
A problem shared is a buck passed.
A change freeze is like the abominable snowman: it is a myth and would anyway melt when heat is applied.
A user will tell you anything you ask about, but nothing more.
A user is somebody who tells you what they want the day you give them what they asked for.
Of several possible interpretations of a communication, the least convenient is the correct one.
What you don't know hurts you.
The conditions attached to a promise are forgotten, only the promise is remembered.
There's never enough time to do it right first time but there's always enough time to go back and do it again.
The bitterness of poor quality last long after the sweetness of making a date is forgotten.
I know that you believe that you understand what you think I said but I am not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.
Estimators do it in groups - bottom up and top down.
If you're 6 months late on a milestone due next week but really believe you can make it, you're a project manager.
No project has ever finished on time, within budget, to requirement - yours won't be the first to.
Activity is not achievement.
The first myth of management is that it exists.
Managing IT people is like herding cats.
If you don't know how to do a task, start it, then ten people who know less than you will tell you how to do it.
A minute saved at the start is just as effective as one saved at the end.
People under pressure do not think faster.
If an IT project works the first time, it is wrong.
If you don't plan, it doesn't work. If you do plan, it doesn't work either. Why plan!
Planning without action is futile, action without planning is fatal.
The person who says it will take the longest and cost the most is the only one with a clue how to do the job.
Planning is an unnatural process, doing something is much more fun.
The nice thing about not planning is that failure comes as a complete surprise rather than being preceded by a period of worry and depression.
Projects happen in two ways: a) Planned and then executed or b) Executed, stopped, planned and then executed.
It's not the hours that count, it's what you do in those hours.
Good control reveals problems early - which only means you'll have longer to worry about them.
If there is anything to do, do it!
If it can go wrong it will - Murphy's law.
If it can't possibly go wrong, it will - O'Malley's corollary to Murphy's law.
It will go wrong in the worst possible way - Sod's law.
Work expands to fill the time available for its completion - Parkinson's law.
Finely chopped cabbage in mayonnaise - Coleslaw.
A two year project will take three years, a three year project will never finish - (anyone know who's law this is?)
Murphy, O'Malley, Sod and Parkinson are alive and well - and working on your project.
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
A Collection of Project Management Sayings
I thought the statements below made a lot of sense, or were humorous. I have many more that I will pass along soon.
Good estimators aren't modest: if it's huge they say so.
The sooner you begin coding the later you finish.
A verbal contract isn't worth the paper it's written on.
What is not on paper has not been said.
If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there.
If you fail to plan you are planning to fail.
If you don't attack the risks, the risks will attack you.
A little risk management saves a lot of fan cleaning.
The sooner you get behind schedule, the more time you have to make it up.
A badly planned project will take three times longer than expected - a well-planned project only twice as long as expected.
If you can keep your head while all about you are losing theirs, you haven't understood the plan.
When all's said and done a lot more is said than done.
If at first you don't succeed, remove all evidence you ever tried.
Feather and down are padding - changes and contingencies will be real events.
There are no good project managers - only lucky ones.
The more you plan the luckier you get.
A project is one small step for the project sponsor, one giant leap for the project manager.
Good project management is not so much knowing what to do and when, as knowing what excuses to give and when.
If everything is going exactly to plan, something somewhere is going massively wrong.
Everyone asks for a strong project manager - when they get him they don't want him.
Overtime is a figment of the naïve project manager's imagination.
Quantitative project management is for predicting cost and schedule overruns well in advance.
Good project managers know when not to manage a project.
Metrics are learned men's excuses.
For a project manager overruns are as certain as death and taxes.
If there were no problem people there'd be no need for people who solve problems.
Some projects finish on time in spite of project management best practices.
Good project managers admit mistakes: that's why you so rarely meet a good project manager.
Fast - cheap - good: you can have any two.
There is such a thing as an unrealistic timescale.
The more ridiculous the deadline the more money will be wasted trying to meet it.
The first 90% of a project takes 90% of the time the last 10% takes the other 90%.
The project would not have been started if the truth had been told about the cost and timescale.
To estimate a project, work out how long it would take one person to do it then multiply that by the number of people on the project.
Never underestimate the ability of senior management to buy a bad idea and fail to buy a good idea.
The most successful project managers have perfected the skill of being comfortable being uncomfortable.
When the weight of the project paperwork equals the weight of the project itself, the project can be considered complete.
If it wasn't for the 'last minute', nothing would get done.
Nothing gets done till nothing gets done.
Warning: dates in the calendar are closer than you think.
There is no such thing as scope creep, only scope gallop.
Anything that can be changed will be changed until there is no time left to change anything.
If project content is allowed to change freely the rate of change will exceed the rate of progress.
If you can interpret project status data in several different ways, only the most painful interpretation will be correct.
A project gets a year late one day at a time.
A project isn’t over until the fat check is cashed.
Powerful project managers don't solve problems, they get rid of them.
Good estimators aren't modest: if it's huge they say so.
The sooner you begin coding the later you finish.
A verbal contract isn't worth the paper it's written on.
What is not on paper has not been said.
If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there.
If you fail to plan you are planning to fail.
If you don't attack the risks, the risks will attack you.
A little risk management saves a lot of fan cleaning.
The sooner you get behind schedule, the more time you have to make it up.
A badly planned project will take three times longer than expected - a well-planned project only twice as long as expected.
If you can keep your head while all about you are losing theirs, you haven't understood the plan.
When all's said and done a lot more is said than done.
If at first you don't succeed, remove all evidence you ever tried.
Feather and down are padding - changes and contingencies will be real events.
There are no good project managers - only lucky ones.
The more you plan the luckier you get.
A project is one small step for the project sponsor, one giant leap for the project manager.
Good project management is not so much knowing what to do and when, as knowing what excuses to give and when.
If everything is going exactly to plan, something somewhere is going massively wrong.
Everyone asks for a strong project manager - when they get him they don't want him.
Overtime is a figment of the naïve project manager's imagination.
Quantitative project management is for predicting cost and schedule overruns well in advance.
Good project managers know when not to manage a project.
Metrics are learned men's excuses.
For a project manager overruns are as certain as death and taxes.
If there were no problem people there'd be no need for people who solve problems.
Some projects finish on time in spite of project management best practices.
Good project managers admit mistakes: that's why you so rarely meet a good project manager.
Fast - cheap - good: you can have any two.
There is such a thing as an unrealistic timescale.
The more ridiculous the deadline the more money will be wasted trying to meet it.
The first 90% of a project takes 90% of the time the last 10% takes the other 90%.
The project would not have been started if the truth had been told about the cost and timescale.
To estimate a project, work out how long it would take one person to do it then multiply that by the number of people on the project.
Never underestimate the ability of senior management to buy a bad idea and fail to buy a good idea.
The most successful project managers have perfected the skill of being comfortable being uncomfortable.
When the weight of the project paperwork equals the weight of the project itself, the project can be considered complete.
If it wasn't for the 'last minute', nothing would get done.
Nothing gets done till nothing gets done.
Warning: dates in the calendar are closer than you think.
There is no such thing as scope creep, only scope gallop.
Anything that can be changed will be changed until there is no time left to change anything.
If project content is allowed to change freely the rate of change will exceed the rate of progress.
If you can interpret project status data in several different ways, only the most painful interpretation will be correct.
A project gets a year late one day at a time.
A project isn’t over until the fat check is cashed.
Powerful project managers don't solve problems, they get rid of them.
Tuesday, February 28, 2006
100 Rules for NASA Project Managers
These have been floating around the Internet for years, however they are still powerful and worth reviewing often. While the list is long, I believe that reading them is well worth your time. More information about the list is presented at the end of this posting.
The Project Manager
Rule #1: A project manager should visit everyone who is building anything for his project at least once, should know all the managers on his project (both government and contractor), and know the integration team members. People like to know that the project manager is interested in their work and the best proof is for the manager to visit them and see first hand what they are doing.
Rule #2: A project manager must know what motivates the project contractors (i.e., their award system, their fiscal system, their policies, and their company culture).
Rule #3: Management principles still are the same. It is just that the tools have changed. You still find the right people to do the work and get out of the way so they can do it.
Rule #4: Whoever you deal with, deal fairly. Space is not a big playing field. You may be surprised how often you have to work with the same people. Better they respect you than carry a grudge.
Rule #5: Vicious, despicable, or thoroughly disliked persons, gentlemen, and ladies can be project managers. Lost souls, procrastinators, and wishy-washies cannot.
Rule #6: A comfortable project manager is one waiting for his next assignment or one on the verge of failure. Security is not normal to project management.
Rule #7: One problem new managers face is that everyone wants to solve their problems. Old managers were told by senior management—"solve your own darn problems, that is what we hired you to do."
Rule #8: Running fast does not take the place of thinking for yourself. You must take time to smell the roses. For your work, you must take time to understand the consequences of your actions.
Rule #9: The boss may not know how to do the work but he has to know what he wants. The boss had better find out what he expects and wants if he doesn't know. A blind leader tends to go in circles.
Rule #10: Not all successful managers are competent and not all failed managers are incompetent. Luck still plays a part in success or failure but luck favors the competent hard working manager.
Rule #11: Never try to get even for some slight by anyone on the project. It is not good form and it puts you on the same level as the other person and, besides, probably ends up hurting the project getting done.
Rule #12: Don't get too egotistical so that you can't change your position, especially if your personnel tell you that you are wrong. You should cultivate an attitude on the project where your personnel know they can tell you of wrong decisions.
Rule #13: A manager who is his own systems engineer or financial manager is one who will probably try to do open heart surgery on himself.
Rule #14: Most managers succeed on the strength and skill of their staff.
Initial Work
Rule #15: The seeds of problems are laid down early. Initial planning is the most vital part of a project. The review of most failed projects or project problems indicate the disasters were well planned to happen from the start.
Communications
Rule #16: Cooperative efforts require good communications and early warning systems. A project manager should try to keep his partners aware of what is going on and should be the one who tells them first of any rumor or actual changes in plan. The partners should be consulted before things are put in final form, even if they only have a small piece of the action. A project manager who blindsides his partners will be treated in kind and will be considered a person of no integrity.
Rule #17: Talk is not cheap; but the best way to understand a personnel or technical problem is to talk to the right people. Lack of talk at the right levels is deadly.
Rule #18: Most international meetings are held in English. This is a foreign language to most participants such as Americans, Germans, Italians, etc. It is important to have adequate discussions so that there are no misinterpretations of what is said.
Rule #19: You cannot be ignorant of the language of the area you manage or with that of areas with which you interface. Education is a must for the modern manager, and this means more than a
few classes from an online university. There are simple courses available to learn computerese, communicationese and all the rest of the modern "ese's" of the world. You can't manage if you don't understand what is being said or written.
People
Rule #20: You cannot watch everything. What you can watch is the people. They have to know you will not accept a poor job.
Rule #21: We have developed a set of people whose self interest is more paramount than the work or at least it appears so to older managers. It appears to the older managers that the newer ones are more interested in form than in substance. The question is are old managers right or just old? Consider both viewpoints.
Rule #22: A good technician, quality inspector, and straw boss are more important in obtaining a good product than all the paper and reviews.
Rule #23: The source of most problems is people, but darned if they will admit it. Know the people working on your project to know what the real weak spots are.
Rule #24: One must pay close attention to workaholics—if they get going in the wrong direction, they can do a lot of damage in a short time. It is possible to overload them and cause premature burnout but hard to determine if the load is too much, since much of it is self generated. It is important to make sure such people take enough time off and that the workload does not exceed 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 times what is normal.
Rule #25: Always try to negotiate your internal support at the lowest level. What you want is the support of the person doing the work, and the closer you can get to him in negotiations the better.
Rule #26: If you have someone who doesn't look, ask, and analyze; ask them to transfer.
Rule #27: Personal time is very important. You must be careful as a manager that you realize the value of other people's time (i.e., the work you hand out and meetings should be necessary). You must, where possible, shield your staff from unnecessary work (i.e., some requests should be ignored or a refusal sent to the requestor).
Rule #28: People who monitor work and don't help get it done never seem to know exactly what is going on (being involved is the key to excellence).
Rule #29: There is no greater motivation than giving a good person his piece of the puzzle to control, but a pat on the back or an award helps.
Rule #30: It is mainly the incompetent that don't like to show off their work.
Rule #31: There are rare times when only one man can do the job. These are in technical areas that are more art and skill than normal. Cherish these people, but get their work done as soon as possible. Getting the work done by someone else takes two or three times longer and the product is normally below standard.
Rule #32: People have reasons for doing things the way they do them. Most people want to do a good job and, if they don't, the problem is they probably don't know how or exactly what is expected.
Rule #33: If you have a problem that requires additional people to solve, you should approach putting people on like a cook who has under-salted the food.
Reviews and Reports
Rule #34: NASA has established a set of reviewers and a set of reviews. Once firmly established, the system will fight to stay alive, so make the most of it. Try to find a way for the reviews to work for you.
Rule #35: The number of reviews is increasing but the knowledge transfer remains the same; therefore, all your charts and presentation material should be constructed with this fact in mind. This means you should be able to construct a set of slides that only needs to be shuffled from presentation to presentation.
Rule #36: Hide nothing from the reviewers. Their reputation and yours is on the line. Expose all the warts and pimples. Don't offer excuses—just state facts.
Rule #37: External reviews are scheduled at the worst possible time, therefore, keep an up-to-date set of business and technical data so that you can rapidly respond. Not having up-to-date data should be cause for dismissal.
Rule #38: Never undercut your staff in public (i.e., In public meetings, don't reverse decisions on work that you have given them to do). Even if you direct a change, never take the responsibility for implementing away from your staff.
Rule #39: Reviews are for the reviewed an not the reviewer. The review is a failure if the reviewed learn nothing from it.
Rule #40: A working meeting has about six people attending. Meetings larger than this are for information transfer (management science has shown that, in a group greater than twelve, some are wasting their time).
Rule #41: The amount of reviews and reports are proportional to management's understanding (i.e., the less management knows or understands the activities, the more they require reviews and reports). It is necessary in this type of environment to make sure that data is presented so that the average person, slightly familiar with activities, can understand it. Keeping the data simple and clear never insults anyone's intelligence.
Rule #42: Managers who rely only on the paperwork to do the reporting of activities are known failures.
Rule #43: Documentation does not take the place of knowledge. There is a great difference in what is supposed to be, what is thought to have happened, and reality. Documents are normally a static picture in time that get outdated rapidly.
Rule #44: Just because you give monthly reports, don't think that you can abbreviate anything in a yearly report. If management understood the monthlies, they wouldn't need a yearly.
Rule #45: Abbreviations are getting to be a pain. Each project now has a few thousand. This calls on senior management to know hundreds. Use them sparingly in presentations unless your objective is to confuse.
Rule #46: Remember, it is often easier to do foolish paperwork that to fight the need for it. Fight only if it is a global issue which will save much future work.
Contractors and Contracting
Rule #47: A project manager is not the monitor of the contractor's work but is to be the driver. In award fee situations, the government personnel should be making every effort possible to make sure the contractor gets a high score (i.e., be on schedule and produce good work). Contractors don't fail, NASA does and that is why one must be proactive in support. This is also why a low score damages the government project manager as much as the contractor's manager because it means that he is not getting the job done.
Rule #48: Award fee is a good tool that puts discipline both on the contractor and the government. The score given represents the status of the project as well as the management skills of both parties. The project management measurement system (PMS) should be used to verify the scores. Consistent poor scores require senior management intervention to determine the reason. Consistent good scores which are consistent with PMS reflect a well-run project, but if these scores are not consistent with the PMS, senior management must take action to find out why.
Rule #49: Morale of the contractor's personnel is important to a government manager. Just as you don't want to buy a car built by disgruntled employees, you don't want to buy flight hardware developed by under- motivated people. You should take an active role in motivating all personnel on the project.
Rule #50: Being friendly with a contractor is fine—being a friend of a contractor is dangerous to your objectivity.
Rule #51: Remember, your contractor has a tendency to have a one-on-one interface with your staff. Every member of your staff costs you at least one person on the contract per year.
Rule #52: Contractors tend to size up the government counterparts and staff their part of the project accordingly. If they think yours are clunkers, they will take their poorer people to put on your project.
Rule #53: Contractors respond well to the customer that pays attention to what they are doing but not too well to the customer that continually second-guesses their activity. The basic rule is a customer is always right but the cost will escalate if a customer always has things done his way instead of how the contractor planned on doing it. The ground rule is: never change a contractor's plans unless they are flawed or too costly (i.e., the old saying that better is the enemy of good).
Rule #54: There is only one solution to a weak project manager in industry—get rid of him fast. The main job of a project manager in industry is to keep the customer happy. Make sure the one working with you knows that it is not flattery but on-schedule, on-cost, and a good product that makes you happy.
Engineers and Scientists
Rule #55: Over-engineering is common. Engineers like puzzles and mazes. Try to make them keep their designs simple.
Rule #56: The first sign of trouble comes from the schedule or the cost curve. Engineers are the last to know they are in trouble. Engineers are born optimists.
Rule #57: The project has many resources within itself. There probably are five or ten system engineers considering all the contractors and instrument developers. This is a powerful resource that can be used to attack problems.
Rule #58: Many managers, just because they have the scientists under contract on their project, forget that the scientists are their customers and many times have easier access to top management than the managers do.
Rule #59: Most scientists are rational unless you endanger their chance to do their experiment. They will work with you if they believe you are telling them the truth. This includes reducing their own plans.
Hardware
Rule #60: In the space business, there is no such thing as previously flown hardware. The people who build the next unit probably never saw the previous unit. There are probably minor changes (perhaps even major changes); the operational environment has probably changed; the people who check the unit out in most cases will not understand the unit or the test equipment.
Rule #61: Most equipment works as built, not as the designer planned. This is due to layout of the design, poor understanding on the designer's part, or poor understanding of component specifications.
Computers and Software
Rule #62: Not using modern techniques, like computer systems, is a great mistake, but forgetting that the computer simulates thinking is a still greater mistake.
Rule #63: Software has now taken on all the parameters of hardware (i.e., requirement creep, high percentage of flight mission cost, need for quality control, need for validation procedures, etc.). It has the added feature that it is hard as blazes to determine it is not flawed. Get the basic system working first and then add the bells and whistles. Never throw away a version that works even if you have all the confidence in the world that the newer version works. It is necessary to have contingency plans for software.
Rule #64: Knowledge is often revised by simulations or testing, but computer models have hidden flaws not the least of which is poor input data.
Rule #65: In olden times, engineers had hands-on experience, technicians understood how the electronics worked and what it was supposed to do, and layout technicians knew too—but today only the computer knows for sure and it's not talking.
Senior Management, Program Offices, and Above
Rule #66: Don't assume you know why senior management has done something. If you feel you need to know, ask. You get some amazing answers that will astonish you.
Rule #67: Know your management—some like a good joke, others only like a joke if they tell it.
Rule #68: Remember the boss has the right to make decisions. Even if you think they are wrong, tell the boss what you think but if he still wants it done his way; do it his way and do your best to make sure the outcome is successful.
Rule #69: Never ask management to make a decision that you can make. Assume you have the authority to make decisions unless you know there is a document that states unequivocally that you can't.
Rule #70: You and the Program Manager should work as a team. The Program Manager is your advocate at NASA HQ and must be tied into the decision makers and should aid your efforts to be tied in also.
Rule #71: Know who the decision makers on the program are. It may be someone outside who has the ear of Congress or the Administrator, or the Associate Administrator, or one of the scientists—someone in the chain of command—whoever they are. Try to get a line of communication to them on a formal or informal basis.
Program Planning, Budgeting, and Estimating
Rule #72: Today one must push the state of the art, be within budget, take risks, not fail, and be on time. Strangely, all these are consistent as long as the ground rules such as funding profile and schedule are established up front and maintained.
Rule #73: Most of yesteryear's projects overran because of poor estimates and not because of mistakes. Getting better estimates will not lower costs but will improve NASA's business reputation. Actually, there is a high probability that getting better estimates will increase costs and assure a higher profit to industry unless the fee is reduced to reflect lower risk on the part of industry. A better reputation is necessary in the present environment.
Rule #74: All problems are solvable in time, so make sure you have enough schedule contingency—if you don't, the next project manager that takes your place will.
Rule #75: The old NASA pushed the limits of technology and science; therefore, it did not worry about requirements creep or overruns. The new NASA has to work as if all projects are fixed price; therefore, requirement creep has become a deadly sin.
Rule #76: Know the resources of your center and, if possible, other centers. Other centers, if they have the resources , are normally happy to help. It is always surprising how much good help one can get by just asking.
Rule #77: Other than budget information prior to the President's submittal to Congress, there is probably no secret information on a project—so don't treat anything like it is secret. Everyone does better if they can see the whole picture so don't hide any of it from anyone.
Rule #78: NASA programs compete for budget funds—they do not compete with each other (i.e., you never attack any other program or NASA work with the idea that you should get their funding). Sell what you have on its own merit.
Rule #79: Next year is always the year with adequate funding and schedule. Next year arrives on the 50th year of your career.
The Customer
Rule #80: Remember who the customer is and what his objectives are (i.e., check with him when you go to change anything of significance).
NASA Management Instructions
Rule #81: NASA Management Instructions were written by another NASA employee like you; therefore, challenge them if they don't make sense. It is possible another NASA employee will rewrite them or waive them for you.
Decision Making
Rule #82: Wrong decisions made early can be recovered from. Right decisions made late cannot correct them.
Rule #83: Sometimes the best thing to do is nothing. It is also occasionally the best help you can give. Just listening is all that is needed on many occasions. You may be the boss, but if you constantly have to solve someone's problems, you are working for him.
Rule #84: Never make a decision from a cartoon. Look at the actual hardware or what real information is available such as layouts. Too much time is wasted by people trying to cure a cartoon whose function is to explain the principle.
Professional Ethics and Integrity
Rule #85: Integrity means your subordinates trust you.
Rule #86: In the rush to get things done, it's always important to remember who you work for. Blindsiding the boss will not be to your benefit in the long run.
Project Management and Teamwork
Rule #87: Projects require teamwork to succeed. Remember, most teams have a coach and not a boss, but the coach still has to call some of the plays.
Rule #88: Never assume someone knows something or has done something unless you have asked them; even the obvious is overlooked or ignored on occasion, especially in a high stress activity.
Rule #89: Whoever said beggars can't be choosers doesn't understand project management, although many times it is better to trust to luck than to get poor support.
Rule #90: A puzzle is hard to discern from just one piece; so don't be surprised if team members deprived of information reach the wrong conclusion.
Rule #91: Remember, the President, Congress, OMB, NASA HQ, senior center management, and your customers all have jobs to do. All you have to do is keep them all happy.
Treating and Avoiding Failures
Rule #92: In case of a failure:
a) Make a timeline of events and include everything that is known.
b) Put down known facts. Check every theory against them.
c) Don't beat the data until it confesses (i.e., know when to stop trying to force-fit a scenario).
d) Do not arrive at a conclusion too fast. Make sure any deviation from normal is explained. Remember the wrong conclusion is prologue to the next failure.
e) Know when to stop.
Rule #93: Things that fail are lessons learned for the future. Occasionally things go right: these are also lessons learned. Try to duplicate that which works.
Rule #94: Mistakes are all right but failure is not. Failure is just a mistake you can't recover from; therefore, try to create contingency plans and alternate approaches for the items or plans that have high risk.
Rule #95: History is prologue. There has not been a project yet that has not had a parts problem despite all the qualification and testing done on parts. Time and being prepared to react are the only safeguards.
Rule #96: Experience may be fine but testing is better. Knowing something will work never takes the place of proving that it will.
Rule #97: Don't be afraid to fail or you will not succeed, but always work at your skill to recover. Part of that skill is knowing who can help.
Rule #98: One of the advantages of NASA in the early days was the fact that everyone knew that the facts we were absolutely sure of could be wrong.
Rule #99: Redundancy in hardware can be a fiction. We are adept at building things to be identical so that if one fails, the other will also fail. Make sure all hardware is treated in a build as if it were one of a kind and needed for mission success.
Rule #100: Never make excuses; instead, present plans of actions to be taken.
Jerry Madden, Associate Director of the Flight Projects Directorate at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
Updates to this list and full credit for contributors can be found here
The Project Manager
Rule #1: A project manager should visit everyone who is building anything for his project at least once, should know all the managers on his project (both government and contractor), and know the integration team members. People like to know that the project manager is interested in their work and the best proof is for the manager to visit them and see first hand what they are doing.
Rule #2: A project manager must know what motivates the project contractors (i.e., their award system, their fiscal system, their policies, and their company culture).
Rule #3: Management principles still are the same. It is just that the tools have changed. You still find the right people to do the work and get out of the way so they can do it.
Rule #4: Whoever you deal with, deal fairly. Space is not a big playing field. You may be surprised how often you have to work with the same people. Better they respect you than carry a grudge.
Rule #5: Vicious, despicable, or thoroughly disliked persons, gentlemen, and ladies can be project managers. Lost souls, procrastinators, and wishy-washies cannot.
Rule #6: A comfortable project manager is one waiting for his next assignment or one on the verge of failure. Security is not normal to project management.
Rule #7: One problem new managers face is that everyone wants to solve their problems. Old managers were told by senior management—"solve your own darn problems, that is what we hired you to do."
Rule #8: Running fast does not take the place of thinking for yourself. You must take time to smell the roses. For your work, you must take time to understand the consequences of your actions.
Rule #9: The boss may not know how to do the work but he has to know what he wants. The boss had better find out what he expects and wants if he doesn't know. A blind leader tends to go in circles.
Rule #10: Not all successful managers are competent and not all failed managers are incompetent. Luck still plays a part in success or failure but luck favors the competent hard working manager.
Rule #11: Never try to get even for some slight by anyone on the project. It is not good form and it puts you on the same level as the other person and, besides, probably ends up hurting the project getting done.
Rule #12: Don't get too egotistical so that you can't change your position, especially if your personnel tell you that you are wrong. You should cultivate an attitude on the project where your personnel know they can tell you of wrong decisions.
Rule #13: A manager who is his own systems engineer or financial manager is one who will probably try to do open heart surgery on himself.
Rule #14: Most managers succeed on the strength and skill of their staff.
Initial Work
Rule #15: The seeds of problems are laid down early. Initial planning is the most vital part of a project. The review of most failed projects or project problems indicate the disasters were well planned to happen from the start.
Communications
Rule #16: Cooperative efforts require good communications and early warning systems. A project manager should try to keep his partners aware of what is going on and should be the one who tells them first of any rumor or actual changes in plan. The partners should be consulted before things are put in final form, even if they only have a small piece of the action. A project manager who blindsides his partners will be treated in kind and will be considered a person of no integrity.
Rule #17: Talk is not cheap; but the best way to understand a personnel or technical problem is to talk to the right people. Lack of talk at the right levels is deadly.
Rule #18: Most international meetings are held in English. This is a foreign language to most participants such as Americans, Germans, Italians, etc. It is important to have adequate discussions so that there are no misinterpretations of what is said.
Rule #19: You cannot be ignorant of the language of the area you manage or with that of areas with which you interface. Education is a must for the modern manager, and this means more than a
few classes from an online university. There are simple courses available to learn computerese, communicationese and all the rest of the modern "ese's" of the world. You can't manage if you don't understand what is being said or written.
People
Rule #20: You cannot watch everything. What you can watch is the people. They have to know you will not accept a poor job.
Rule #21: We have developed a set of people whose self interest is more paramount than the work or at least it appears so to older managers. It appears to the older managers that the newer ones are more interested in form than in substance. The question is are old managers right or just old? Consider both viewpoints.
Rule #22: A good technician, quality inspector, and straw boss are more important in obtaining a good product than all the paper and reviews.
Rule #23: The source of most problems is people, but darned if they will admit it. Know the people working on your project to know what the real weak spots are.
Rule #24: One must pay close attention to workaholics—if they get going in the wrong direction, they can do a lot of damage in a short time. It is possible to overload them and cause premature burnout but hard to determine if the load is too much, since much of it is self generated. It is important to make sure such people take enough time off and that the workload does not exceed 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 times what is normal.
Rule #25: Always try to negotiate your internal support at the lowest level. What you want is the support of the person doing the work, and the closer you can get to him in negotiations the better.
Rule #26: If you have someone who doesn't look, ask, and analyze; ask them to transfer.
Rule #27: Personal time is very important. You must be careful as a manager that you realize the value of other people's time (i.e., the work you hand out and meetings should be necessary). You must, where possible, shield your staff from unnecessary work (i.e., some requests should be ignored or a refusal sent to the requestor).
Rule #28: People who monitor work and don't help get it done never seem to know exactly what is going on (being involved is the key to excellence).
Rule #29: There is no greater motivation than giving a good person his piece of the puzzle to control, but a pat on the back or an award helps.
Rule #30: It is mainly the incompetent that don't like to show off their work.
Rule #31: There are rare times when only one man can do the job. These are in technical areas that are more art and skill than normal. Cherish these people, but get their work done as soon as possible. Getting the work done by someone else takes two or three times longer and the product is normally below standard.
Rule #32: People have reasons for doing things the way they do them. Most people want to do a good job and, if they don't, the problem is they probably don't know how or exactly what is expected.
Rule #33: If you have a problem that requires additional people to solve, you should approach putting people on like a cook who has under-salted the food.
Reviews and Reports
Rule #34: NASA has established a set of reviewers and a set of reviews. Once firmly established, the system will fight to stay alive, so make the most of it. Try to find a way for the reviews to work for you.
Rule #35: The number of reviews is increasing but the knowledge transfer remains the same; therefore, all your charts and presentation material should be constructed with this fact in mind. This means you should be able to construct a set of slides that only needs to be shuffled from presentation to presentation.
Rule #36: Hide nothing from the reviewers. Their reputation and yours is on the line. Expose all the warts and pimples. Don't offer excuses—just state facts.
Rule #37: External reviews are scheduled at the worst possible time, therefore, keep an up-to-date set of business and technical data so that you can rapidly respond. Not having up-to-date data should be cause for dismissal.
Rule #38: Never undercut your staff in public (i.e., In public meetings, don't reverse decisions on work that you have given them to do). Even if you direct a change, never take the responsibility for implementing away from your staff.
Rule #39: Reviews are for the reviewed an not the reviewer. The review is a failure if the reviewed learn nothing from it.
Rule #40: A working meeting has about six people attending. Meetings larger than this are for information transfer (management science has shown that, in a group greater than twelve, some are wasting their time).
Rule #41: The amount of reviews and reports are proportional to management's understanding (i.e., the less management knows or understands the activities, the more they require reviews and reports). It is necessary in this type of environment to make sure that data is presented so that the average person, slightly familiar with activities, can understand it. Keeping the data simple and clear never insults anyone's intelligence.
Rule #42: Managers who rely only on the paperwork to do the reporting of activities are known failures.
Rule #43: Documentation does not take the place of knowledge. There is a great difference in what is supposed to be, what is thought to have happened, and reality. Documents are normally a static picture in time that get outdated rapidly.
Rule #44: Just because you give monthly reports, don't think that you can abbreviate anything in a yearly report. If management understood the monthlies, they wouldn't need a yearly.
Rule #45: Abbreviations are getting to be a pain. Each project now has a few thousand. This calls on senior management to know hundreds. Use them sparingly in presentations unless your objective is to confuse.
Rule #46: Remember, it is often easier to do foolish paperwork that to fight the need for it. Fight only if it is a global issue which will save much future work.
Contractors and Contracting
Rule #47: A project manager is not the monitor of the contractor's work but is to be the driver. In award fee situations, the government personnel should be making every effort possible to make sure the contractor gets a high score (i.e., be on schedule and produce good work). Contractors don't fail, NASA does and that is why one must be proactive in support. This is also why a low score damages the government project manager as much as the contractor's manager because it means that he is not getting the job done.
Rule #48: Award fee is a good tool that puts discipline both on the contractor and the government. The score given represents the status of the project as well as the management skills of both parties. The project management measurement system (PMS) should be used to verify the scores. Consistent poor scores require senior management intervention to determine the reason. Consistent good scores which are consistent with PMS reflect a well-run project, but if these scores are not consistent with the PMS, senior management must take action to find out why.
Rule #49: Morale of the contractor's personnel is important to a government manager. Just as you don't want to buy a car built by disgruntled employees, you don't want to buy flight hardware developed by under- motivated people. You should take an active role in motivating all personnel on the project.
Rule #50: Being friendly with a contractor is fine—being a friend of a contractor is dangerous to your objectivity.
Rule #51: Remember, your contractor has a tendency to have a one-on-one interface with your staff. Every member of your staff costs you at least one person on the contract per year.
Rule #52: Contractors tend to size up the government counterparts and staff their part of the project accordingly. If they think yours are clunkers, they will take their poorer people to put on your project.
Rule #53: Contractors respond well to the customer that pays attention to what they are doing but not too well to the customer that continually second-guesses their activity. The basic rule is a customer is always right but the cost will escalate if a customer always has things done his way instead of how the contractor planned on doing it. The ground rule is: never change a contractor's plans unless they are flawed or too costly (i.e., the old saying that better is the enemy of good).
Rule #54: There is only one solution to a weak project manager in industry—get rid of him fast. The main job of a project manager in industry is to keep the customer happy. Make sure the one working with you knows that it is not flattery but on-schedule, on-cost, and a good product that makes you happy.
Engineers and Scientists
Rule #55: Over-engineering is common. Engineers like puzzles and mazes. Try to make them keep their designs simple.
Rule #56: The first sign of trouble comes from the schedule or the cost curve. Engineers are the last to know they are in trouble. Engineers are born optimists.
Rule #57: The project has many resources within itself. There probably are five or ten system engineers considering all the contractors and instrument developers. This is a powerful resource that can be used to attack problems.
Rule #58: Many managers, just because they have the scientists under contract on their project, forget that the scientists are their customers and many times have easier access to top management than the managers do.
Rule #59: Most scientists are rational unless you endanger their chance to do their experiment. They will work with you if they believe you are telling them the truth. This includes reducing their own plans.
Hardware
Rule #60: In the space business, there is no such thing as previously flown hardware. The people who build the next unit probably never saw the previous unit. There are probably minor changes (perhaps even major changes); the operational environment has probably changed; the people who check the unit out in most cases will not understand the unit or the test equipment.
Rule #61: Most equipment works as built, not as the designer planned. This is due to layout of the design, poor understanding on the designer's part, or poor understanding of component specifications.
Computers and Software
Rule #62: Not using modern techniques, like computer systems, is a great mistake, but forgetting that the computer simulates thinking is a still greater mistake.
Rule #63: Software has now taken on all the parameters of hardware (i.e., requirement creep, high percentage of flight mission cost, need for quality control, need for validation procedures, etc.). It has the added feature that it is hard as blazes to determine it is not flawed. Get the basic system working first and then add the bells and whistles. Never throw away a version that works even if you have all the confidence in the world that the newer version works. It is necessary to have contingency plans for software.
Rule #64: Knowledge is often revised by simulations or testing, but computer models have hidden flaws not the least of which is poor input data.
Rule #65: In olden times, engineers had hands-on experience, technicians understood how the electronics worked and what it was supposed to do, and layout technicians knew too—but today only the computer knows for sure and it's not talking.
Senior Management, Program Offices, and Above
Rule #66: Don't assume you know why senior management has done something. If you feel you need to know, ask. You get some amazing answers that will astonish you.
Rule #67: Know your management—some like a good joke, others only like a joke if they tell it.
Rule #68: Remember the boss has the right to make decisions. Even if you think they are wrong, tell the boss what you think but if he still wants it done his way; do it his way and do your best to make sure the outcome is successful.
Rule #69: Never ask management to make a decision that you can make. Assume you have the authority to make decisions unless you know there is a document that states unequivocally that you can't.
Rule #70: You and the Program Manager should work as a team. The Program Manager is your advocate at NASA HQ and must be tied into the decision makers and should aid your efforts to be tied in also.
Rule #71: Know who the decision makers on the program are. It may be someone outside who has the ear of Congress or the Administrator, or the Associate Administrator, or one of the scientists—someone in the chain of command—whoever they are. Try to get a line of communication to them on a formal or informal basis.
Program Planning, Budgeting, and Estimating
Rule #72: Today one must push the state of the art, be within budget, take risks, not fail, and be on time. Strangely, all these are consistent as long as the ground rules such as funding profile and schedule are established up front and maintained.
Rule #73: Most of yesteryear's projects overran because of poor estimates and not because of mistakes. Getting better estimates will not lower costs but will improve NASA's business reputation. Actually, there is a high probability that getting better estimates will increase costs and assure a higher profit to industry unless the fee is reduced to reflect lower risk on the part of industry. A better reputation is necessary in the present environment.
Rule #74: All problems are solvable in time, so make sure you have enough schedule contingency—if you don't, the next project manager that takes your place will.
Rule #75: The old NASA pushed the limits of technology and science; therefore, it did not worry about requirements creep or overruns. The new NASA has to work as if all projects are fixed price; therefore, requirement creep has become a deadly sin.
Rule #76: Know the resources of your center and, if possible, other centers. Other centers, if they have the resources , are normally happy to help. It is always surprising how much good help one can get by just asking.
Rule #77: Other than budget information prior to the President's submittal to Congress, there is probably no secret information on a project—so don't treat anything like it is secret. Everyone does better if they can see the whole picture so don't hide any of it from anyone.
Rule #78: NASA programs compete for budget funds—they do not compete with each other (i.e., you never attack any other program or NASA work with the idea that you should get their funding). Sell what you have on its own merit.
Rule #79: Next year is always the year with adequate funding and schedule. Next year arrives on the 50th year of your career.
The Customer
Rule #80: Remember who the customer is and what his objectives are (i.e., check with him when you go to change anything of significance).
NASA Management Instructions
Rule #81: NASA Management Instructions were written by another NASA employee like you; therefore, challenge them if they don't make sense. It is possible another NASA employee will rewrite them or waive them for you.
Decision Making
Rule #82: Wrong decisions made early can be recovered from. Right decisions made late cannot correct them.
Rule #83: Sometimes the best thing to do is nothing. It is also occasionally the best help you can give. Just listening is all that is needed on many occasions. You may be the boss, but if you constantly have to solve someone's problems, you are working for him.
Rule #84: Never make a decision from a cartoon. Look at the actual hardware or what real information is available such as layouts. Too much time is wasted by people trying to cure a cartoon whose function is to explain the principle.
Professional Ethics and Integrity
Rule #85: Integrity means your subordinates trust you.
Rule #86: In the rush to get things done, it's always important to remember who you work for. Blindsiding the boss will not be to your benefit in the long run.
Project Management and Teamwork
Rule #87: Projects require teamwork to succeed. Remember, most teams have a coach and not a boss, but the coach still has to call some of the plays.
Rule #88: Never assume someone knows something or has done something unless you have asked them; even the obvious is overlooked or ignored on occasion, especially in a high stress activity.
Rule #89: Whoever said beggars can't be choosers doesn't understand project management, although many times it is better to trust to luck than to get poor support.
Rule #90: A puzzle is hard to discern from just one piece; so don't be surprised if team members deprived of information reach the wrong conclusion.
Rule #91: Remember, the President, Congress, OMB, NASA HQ, senior center management, and your customers all have jobs to do. All you have to do is keep them all happy.
Treating and Avoiding Failures
Rule #92: In case of a failure:
a) Make a timeline of events and include everything that is known.
b) Put down known facts. Check every theory against them.
c) Don't beat the data until it confesses (i.e., know when to stop trying to force-fit a scenario).
d) Do not arrive at a conclusion too fast. Make sure any deviation from normal is explained. Remember the wrong conclusion is prologue to the next failure.
e) Know when to stop.
Rule #93: Things that fail are lessons learned for the future. Occasionally things go right: these are also lessons learned. Try to duplicate that which works.
Rule #94: Mistakes are all right but failure is not. Failure is just a mistake you can't recover from; therefore, try to create contingency plans and alternate approaches for the items or plans that have high risk.
Rule #95: History is prologue. There has not been a project yet that has not had a parts problem despite all the qualification and testing done on parts. Time and being prepared to react are the only safeguards.
Rule #96: Experience may be fine but testing is better. Knowing something will work never takes the place of proving that it will.
Rule #97: Don't be afraid to fail or you will not succeed, but always work at your skill to recover. Part of that skill is knowing who can help.
Rule #98: One of the advantages of NASA in the early days was the fact that everyone knew that the facts we were absolutely sure of could be wrong.
Rule #99: Redundancy in hardware can be a fiction. We are adept at building things to be identical so that if one fails, the other will also fail. Make sure all hardware is treated in a build as if it were one of a kind and needed for mission success.
Rule #100: Never make excuses; instead, present plans of actions to be taken.
Jerry Madden, Associate Director of the Flight Projects Directorate at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
Updates to this list and full credit for contributors can be found here
Thursday, February 23, 2006
Symptoms of Defective Strategic Planning
To be successful, organizations need to ensure that their projects and project outcomes support their strategic goals. Poor strategic planning leads to failed projects and people working on projects that add no value to the organization’s bottom line.
Lately I have been interested in learning more about Strategic Planning and the role it plays in the success or failure of projects. I found the text below in the book, Advanced Project Portfolio Management and the PMO– by Gerald I. Kendall, PMP and Steven C. Rollins, PMP. The book is an excellent resource for the seasoned project manager looking to move his or her Project Management Office to the next level.
Symptoms of Defective Strategic Planning (pg. 73)
Project and resource managers often fight over resources. The organization’s arteries are clogged with too much work.
Priorities of projects frequently change, with resources reassigned.
Senior managers have the authority to unilaterally approve and release projects
Projects are released as soon as approved by a senior manager, irrespective of the availability of the resources to do the work
Senior management frequently complains about how long it takes to implement change
Even when a strategic idea is implemented, the company sometimes does not achieve major or expected improvement
There is no comprehensive document or portfolio that links all of the organization’s projects to the goals and the strategic plan
There is significant turnover at the senior management level, right up through the president
The strategic plan is presented as a list of ideas or initiatives. There is no attempt to validate if those initiatives are sufficient by themselves to meet the organization’s goals. The cause-effect logic tying those ideas and the resulting effects to the goals of the organization is absent
The list of ideas in the strategic plan is not sequenced. Therefore, each executive assumes that he or she must try to implement all ideas simultaneously, and that his or her functional initiative must be the top priority
The book goes on to talk about some of the problems that executives face when creating strategic plans. I have summarized some of the information below.
Root Problems of Strategic Planning Processes (pg. 75)
Executives don’t speak the same language. They tend to view the organization through the eyes of their experience and silo. They don’t understand the organization as a whole.
The organization has measurements and policies that are silo-oriented.
Executives lack the skill to build a strategy that has the commitment of the entire senior management team, meets the goals of the organization, and can be implemented with current or planned resources
Strategies ignore internal systems that are out of control. When executives attempt to improve something before bringing it under control, they often throw the entire system into chaos.
Closing Thoughts
Many organizations I have worked for experience the challenges noted above. As project managers we know that poor or ineffective planning can lead to failed projects. The challenges I currently face in the workplace can in many instances be tied back to the lack of an effective or poorly communicated strategic plan.
I really could use some feedback on this subject. I’m not an expert in this area and always welcome the e-mails I receive that offer additional information.
Lately I have been interested in learning more about Strategic Planning and the role it plays in the success or failure of projects. I found the text below in the book, Advanced Project Portfolio Management and the PMO– by Gerald I. Kendall, PMP and Steven C. Rollins, PMP. The book is an excellent resource for the seasoned project manager looking to move his or her Project Management Office to the next level.
Symptoms of Defective Strategic Planning (pg. 73)
Project and resource managers often fight over resources. The organization’s arteries are clogged with too much work.
Priorities of projects frequently change, with resources reassigned.
Senior managers have the authority to unilaterally approve and release projects
Projects are released as soon as approved by a senior manager, irrespective of the availability of the resources to do the work
Senior management frequently complains about how long it takes to implement change
Even when a strategic idea is implemented, the company sometimes does not achieve major or expected improvement
There is no comprehensive document or portfolio that links all of the organization’s projects to the goals and the strategic plan
There is significant turnover at the senior management level, right up through the president
The strategic plan is presented as a list of ideas or initiatives. There is no attempt to validate if those initiatives are sufficient by themselves to meet the organization’s goals. The cause-effect logic tying those ideas and the resulting effects to the goals of the organization is absent
The list of ideas in the strategic plan is not sequenced. Therefore, each executive assumes that he or she must try to implement all ideas simultaneously, and that his or her functional initiative must be the top priority
The book goes on to talk about some of the problems that executives face when creating strategic plans. I have summarized some of the information below.
Root Problems of Strategic Planning Processes (pg. 75)
Executives don’t speak the same language. They tend to view the organization through the eyes of their experience and silo. They don’t understand the organization as a whole.
The organization has measurements and policies that are silo-oriented.
Executives lack the skill to build a strategy that has the commitment of the entire senior management team, meets the goals of the organization, and can be implemented with current or planned resources
Strategies ignore internal systems that are out of control. When executives attempt to improve something before bringing it under control, they often throw the entire system into chaos.
Closing Thoughts
Many organizations I have worked for experience the challenges noted above. As project managers we know that poor or ineffective planning can lead to failed projects. The challenges I currently face in the workplace can in many instances be tied back to the lack of an effective or poorly communicated strategic plan.
I really could use some feedback on this subject. I’m not an expert in this area and always welcome the e-mails I receive that offer additional information.
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
Free Project Management Software
In case you didn’t know, there are a couple of free software packages available that fit nicely into the Project Managers tool box. The first is Control CE 6.3. The vendor states that this free program can be used for Process Mapping, Business Improvement, Business Reengineering, Software Package Implementation, and Quality Management.
The vendor goes on to say “Whatever the project, it all starts with an understanding of the business from a process and metrics perspective. That means mapping processes, and identifying KPIs. To get REAL ownership and buy-in they need to be developed in LIVE workshops. Control-CE was designed to be used confidently by consultants with little training, in live workshops where people have a short interest span.
Whilst control-CE has some great process mapping functionality, it extends beyond simply creating hierarchies of diagrams”.
I have reviewed and used the Control CE software and find that it is quite powerful and worth a look.
The other free software program is Open Workbench. According to the vendor, “Open Workbench is an open source desktop application that provides robust project scheduling and management functionality. Already the scheduling standard for more than 100,000 project managers worldwide, Open Workbench is a free and powerful alternative to Microsoft Project.
Released in December 2005, Open Workbench 1.1.4 provides significant new enhancements and bug fixes. For more information on version 1.1.4, please review the Open Workbench 1.1.4 Release Notes. The source code for Open Workbench 1.1.4 is also available on SourceForge.
The open source distribution and community development model will now bring quality, innovation and cost advantages to the project management world. Open Workbench can also be used in a fully integrated fashion with CA's Clarity solution. Please visit www.niku.com/go/owb for more details”.
I have found Open Workbench to be a powerful standalone project management scheduling software package. Again, you will have to determine if Open Workbench's features and functions can work for you.
Hopefully some of you will find one or both of the above software packages useful. Your comments are always welcome.
The vendor goes on to say “Whatever the project, it all starts with an understanding of the business from a process and metrics perspective. That means mapping processes, and identifying KPIs. To get REAL ownership and buy-in they need to be developed in LIVE workshops. Control-CE was designed to be used confidently by consultants with little training, in live workshops where people have a short interest span.
Whilst control-CE has some great process mapping functionality, it extends beyond simply creating hierarchies of diagrams”.
I have reviewed and used the Control CE software and find that it is quite powerful and worth a look.
The other free software program is Open Workbench. According to the vendor, “Open Workbench is an open source desktop application that provides robust project scheduling and management functionality. Already the scheduling standard for more than 100,000 project managers worldwide, Open Workbench is a free and powerful alternative to Microsoft Project.
Released in December 2005, Open Workbench 1.1.4 provides significant new enhancements and bug fixes. For more information on version 1.1.4, please review the Open Workbench 1.1.4 Release Notes. The source code for Open Workbench 1.1.4 is also available on SourceForge.
Open Workbench provides all the functionality and benefits that project managers expect in a world-class scheduling application:
- Open Workbench can be used and distributed free of charge throughout an enterprise.
- Open Workbench is a stand-alone desktop application that provides robust project scheduling functionality.
- Open Workbench provides the unique ability to generate project schedules based on resource constraints.
- Open source developers will find a ready-made community of business users interested in their enhancements and extensions.
The open source distribution and community development model will now bring quality, innovation and cost advantages to the project management world. Open Workbench can also be used in a fully integrated fashion with CA's Clarity solution. Please visit www.niku.com/go/owb for more details”.
I have found Open Workbench to be a powerful standalone project management scheduling software package. Again, you will have to determine if Open Workbench's features and functions can work for you.
Hopefully some of you will find one or both of the above software packages useful. Your comments are always welcome.
Tuesday, February 07, 2006
Eight Stage Process of Creating Major Change
I like the process below for creating major change. It was taken from the book "Leading Change" by John P. Kotter (see source information at the end of the posting).
1. Establishing a Sense of Urgency
a. Examining the market and competitive realities
b. Identifying and discussing crises, potential crises, or major opportunities
2. Creating the Guiding Coalition
a. Putting together a group with enough power to lead the change
b. Getting the group to work together as a team
3. Developing a Vision and Strategy
a. Creating a vision to help direct the change effort
b. Developing strategies for achieving that vision
4. Communicating the Change Vision
a. Using every vehicle possible to constantly communicate the new vision and strategies
b. Having the guiding coalition role model the behavior expected of employees
5. Empowering Broad-Based Action
a. Getting rid of obstacles
b. Changing systems or structures that undermine the change vision
c. Encouraging risk taking and non-traditional ideas, activities, and actions
6. Generating Short-Term Wins
a. Planning for visible improvements in performance, or “wins”
b. Creating those wins
c. Visibly recognizing and rewarding people who made the wins possible
7. Consolidating Gains and Producing More Change
a. Using increased credibility to change all systems, structures, and policies that don’t fit together and don’t fit the transformation vision
b. Hiring, promoting, and developing people who can implement the change vision
c. Reinvigorating the process with new projects, themes, and change agents
8. Anchoring New Approaches in the Culture
a. Creating better performance through customer and productivity-oriented behavior, more an better leadership, and more effective management
b. Articulating the connections between new behaviors and organizational success
c. Developing means to ensure leadership development and succession
SOURCE: Adapted from John P. Kotter, “Leading Change,” Harvard Business School Press 1996
1. Establishing a Sense of Urgency
a. Examining the market and competitive realities
b. Identifying and discussing crises, potential crises, or major opportunities
2. Creating the Guiding Coalition
a. Putting together a group with enough power to lead the change
b. Getting the group to work together as a team
3. Developing a Vision and Strategy
a. Creating a vision to help direct the change effort
b. Developing strategies for achieving that vision
4. Communicating the Change Vision
a. Using every vehicle possible to constantly communicate the new vision and strategies
b. Having the guiding coalition role model the behavior expected of employees
5. Empowering Broad-Based Action
a. Getting rid of obstacles
b. Changing systems or structures that undermine the change vision
c. Encouraging risk taking and non-traditional ideas, activities, and actions
6. Generating Short-Term Wins
a. Planning for visible improvements in performance, or “wins”
b. Creating those wins
c. Visibly recognizing and rewarding people who made the wins possible
7. Consolidating Gains and Producing More Change
a. Using increased credibility to change all systems, structures, and policies that don’t fit together and don’t fit the transformation vision
b. Hiring, promoting, and developing people who can implement the change vision
c. Reinvigorating the process with new projects, themes, and change agents
8. Anchoring New Approaches in the Culture
a. Creating better performance through customer and productivity-oriented behavior, more an better leadership, and more effective management
b. Articulating the connections between new behaviors and organizational success
c. Developing means to ensure leadership development and succession
SOURCE: Adapted from John P. Kotter, “Leading Change,” Harvard Business School Press 1996
Tuesday, January 31, 2006
My Love/Hate Relationship with Project Teams
Project teams can be a project manager's greatest resource or can be a huge impediment to getting things done. I have a lot of opinions about project teams and most people would find them to be controversial. I will state them here and hope for feedback.
My general theories about project teams follow:
Project teams tend to waste a lot of time, and like to blame others (outside the team) for lack of project process
Project team members are rarely on the same page
Internal politics doom many project teams from the start
Project managers usually don't have the ability to reward or punish bad behavior
One or two "bad apples" can spoil the whole bunch
Many functional managers don't believe they have to support project teams, and at times they do all they can to undermine the team approach to managing projects
A "visionary" is a person that is usually disengaged from everything and accountable for nothing
Lack of leadership, direction, and follow-up from top management is the number one cause of project team failure
If you have a member of your project team that would rather be doing something else, do everything you can to grant their wish
Most project managers are wimps when it comes to managing individual members of their teams
Lots of organizations talk a good talk when it comes to project management and teams, then go about managing change using the same old failed processes
Many project team members are loyal to their functional departments, not to the project
Teams by nature are dysfunctional, and because of this fact the project schedule and estimates should reflect this
Dysfunctional project teams are the fault of senior management because of their refusal to attend important project team meetings
Many project teams are composed of the wrong people doing the wrong things at the wrong times.
My general theories about project teams follow:
Project teams tend to waste a lot of time, and like to blame others (outside the team) for lack of project process
Project team members are rarely on the same page
Internal politics doom many project teams from the start
Project managers usually don't have the ability to reward or punish bad behavior
One or two "bad apples" can spoil the whole bunch
Many functional managers don't believe they have to support project teams, and at times they do all they can to undermine the team approach to managing projects
A "visionary" is a person that is usually disengaged from everything and accountable for nothing
Lack of leadership, direction, and follow-up from top management is the number one cause of project team failure
If you have a member of your project team that would rather be doing something else, do everything you can to grant their wish
Most project managers are wimps when it comes to managing individual members of their teams
Lots of organizations talk a good talk when it comes to project management and teams, then go about managing change using the same old failed processes
Many project team members are loyal to their functional departments, not to the project
Teams by nature are dysfunctional, and because of this fact the project schedule and estimates should reflect this
Dysfunctional project teams are the fault of senior management because of their refusal to attend important project team meetings
Many project teams are composed of the wrong people doing the wrong things at the wrong times.
Tuesday, January 24, 2006
Obiturary
Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Mr. Common Sense. Mr. Sense had been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape.
He will be remembered as having cultivated such value lessons as knowing when to come in out of the rain, why the early bird gets the worm and that life isn't always fair. Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you earn) and reliable parenting strategies (adults, not kids, are in charge).
His health began to rapidly deteriorate when well intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place - reports of a six-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.
Mr. Sense declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer aspirin to a student; but, could not inform the parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.
Finally, Common Sense lost the will to live as the Ten Commandments became contraband; churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims.
Common Sense finally gave up the ghost after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot, she spilled a bit in her lap, and was awarded a huge settlement.
Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust, his wife, Discretion; his daughter, Responsibility; and his son, Reason. He is survived by two stepbrothers; My Rights and Ima Whiner. Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone.
Author Unknown.
He will be remembered as having cultivated such value lessons as knowing when to come in out of the rain, why the early bird gets the worm and that life isn't always fair. Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you earn) and reliable parenting strategies (adults, not kids, are in charge).
His health began to rapidly deteriorate when well intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place - reports of a six-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.
Mr. Sense declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer aspirin to a student; but, could not inform the parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.
Finally, Common Sense lost the will to live as the Ten Commandments became contraband; churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims.
Common Sense finally gave up the ghost after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot, she spilled a bit in her lap, and was awarded a huge settlement.
Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust, his wife, Discretion; his daughter, Responsibility; and his son, Reason. He is survived by two stepbrothers; My Rights and Ima Whiner. Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone.
Author Unknown.
Tuesday, January 17, 2006
Estimates Are Always wrong?
I have been burned more times than I can count by bad estimates. What can a project manager do to help ensure the accuracy of estimates?
First we should understand the basics behind the estimating process (there are many more than I have listed here). Some are:
Keep in mind when planning your project that estimates aren't hard and fast numbers. They are guesses, however they should be very good guesses if you have good estimators and are following tried and true estimating practices.
First we should understand the basics behind the estimating process (there are many more than I have listed here). Some are:
- The more unique the project, the more of a challenge it will be to get good estimates
- Estimates are only as good as the estimator is at predicting the future
- "Padded" estimates are not always bad as long as the padding is communicated (... and as long as the Project Manager is the one doing the "padding")
- An estimate is not a bid
- Estimates using sound estimating practices, performed by experienced estimators from clear specifications should never be negotiated
- Ballpark estimates are guesses and should be treated as much by the project team, management, and the project sponsor
- Ensure the statement of work or contract is clear and understood by the person(s) doing the estimates
- Ensure that a schedule or mandated date doesn't drive the estimating thought process
- Include Risk Management in the estimating process
- Ensure that estimates take into account the skill level(s) of the person(s) that will do the work
- If your work breakdown structure (WBS) is flawed, your estimates will be inaccurate
Keep in mind when planning your project that estimates aren't hard and fast numbers. They are guesses, however they should be very good guesses if you have good estimators and are following tried and true estimating practices.
Monday, January 09, 2006
The Leadership Void
"What creates trust, in the end, is the leader's manifest respect for the followers" - Jim O'Toole, Leadership Change.
I read that quote this morning and after thinking about it I realized that in many of the places I have worked there has been a consistent lack of respect shown to the followers by the leaders, which ultimately results in a Leadership Void. A Leadership Void exists when the goals of the leaders aren't embraced by the followers. Respect, or lack of it plays a big part in helping to create this void.
So what do you do when you are in an environment with a Leadership Void. My advice is to start modeling the behaviors of tried and true leaders.
Some Leadership principles I have come to believe are:
Be consistent in what you say and do. Inconsistency shows a lack of focus. Being inconsistent will undermine your credibility with others.
As a leader you will need to provide focus, constancy of purpose, and clear direction to your team. The problem with many leaders isn't a lack of personality or charisma, it is a lack of focus and follow-through.
When leading remember "beware of no man more than thyself" - Thomas Fuller. Ask for feedback from others. Remember the higher the leader is in an organization the more blind spots he or she will experience.
A good leader is a master of the big picture and is knowledgeable of the details. A leader that isn't willing to get involved in the details is just plain lazy and won't have the respect of the team they are leading.
Be careful about negative assumptions. Leaders that are high achievers know their behavior tells the truth about their assumptions.
Leaders ensure that their followers know where they fit into the big picture.
Leaders who underestimate the intellect of others tend to overestimate their own.
Other things that are always displayed by a leader are the ability to:
Create and nurture a vision
Laugh!
Leave their ego at the door
Think before acting (not quick to criticize)
Be a risk taker
State and meet commitments
Be a role model
Be a risk taker
Have a can do attitude
Encourage success
and finally...
BE VISIBLE (IMPORTANT)
I read that quote this morning and after thinking about it I realized that in many of the places I have worked there has been a consistent lack of respect shown to the followers by the leaders, which ultimately results in a Leadership Void. A Leadership Void exists when the goals of the leaders aren't embraced by the followers. Respect, or lack of it plays a big part in helping to create this void.
So what do you do when you are in an environment with a Leadership Void. My advice is to start modeling the behaviors of tried and true leaders.
Some Leadership principles I have come to believe are:
Be consistent in what you say and do. Inconsistency shows a lack of focus. Being inconsistent will undermine your credibility with others.
As a leader you will need to provide focus, constancy of purpose, and clear direction to your team. The problem with many leaders isn't a lack of personality or charisma, it is a lack of focus and follow-through.
When leading remember "beware of no man more than thyself" - Thomas Fuller. Ask for feedback from others. Remember the higher the leader is in an organization the more blind spots he or she will experience.
A good leader is a master of the big picture and is knowledgeable of the details. A leader that isn't willing to get involved in the details is just plain lazy and won't have the respect of the team they are leading.
Be careful about negative assumptions. Leaders that are high achievers know their behavior tells the truth about their assumptions.
Leaders ensure that their followers know where they fit into the big picture.
Leaders who underestimate the intellect of others tend to overestimate their own.
Other things that are always displayed by a leader are the ability to:
Create and nurture a vision
Laugh!
Leave their ego at the door
Think before acting (not quick to criticize)
Be a risk taker
State and meet commitments
Be a role model
Be a risk taker
Have a can do attitude
Encourage success
and finally...
BE VISIBLE (IMPORTANT)
- Walk around and talk to people (this doesn't happen much where I work)
- Schedule monthly one-on-one interviews
- Conduct regular formal group surveys and do something with the data
- Pick areas where Quality is lacking and form teams to fix the problem
What do you think. I welcome your comments.
Wednesday, January 04, 2006
Project Management Goals for 2006
Setting Personal Goals for 2006
Since the new year has begun, it is time to look at my goals from last year and make some changes. Last year's goals (listed in previous posting) have for the most part been carried over into this year, with some revisions. While goal setting is important, measuring progress towards achieving the goals is imperative. Some measures can only be gathered by asking others for feedback. I vow to solicit feedback from my peers and incorporate their comments into my behavior.
Be an effective listener
Plan each project with the end (deliverables) in mind
Conduct more face-to-face conversations
Lead by example
Evaluate criticism from others and use it to be a better project manager
Know that failures will occur and plan (or replan) accordingly
Be positive, enthusiastic, and supportive of others
Since the new year has begun, it is time to look at my goals from last year and make some changes. Last year's goals (listed in previous posting) have for the most part been carried over into this year, with some revisions. While goal setting is important, measuring progress towards achieving the goals is imperative. Some measures can only be gathered by asking others for feedback. I vow to solicit feedback from my peers and incorporate their comments into my behavior.
Be an effective listener
Plan each project with the end (deliverables) in mind
Conduct more face-to-face conversations
Lead by example
Evaluate criticism from others and use it to be a better project manager
Know that failures will occur and plan (or replan) accordingly
Be positive, enthusiastic, and supportive of others
Project Management Strategies
We all need a strategy to succeed in life. In the project management world there are many different opinions regarding how to successfully manage a project. One of the most important things we need to do in project management is manage the expectations and relationships with our stakeholders. Some things to keep in mind to help us manage our stakeholders are:
Assess the culture (Is it supportive, what is the balance of power, what are the stakeholder attitudes)
Identify the goals of the stakeholders and sponsor (Are the goals realistic, attainable, communicated)
Assess our own capabilities and limitations (Are you politically savvy, respected, a good negotiator)
Define the problem (Define goals, risks, relationships)
Develop solutions (Create action plan, determine the right solution for the right time)
Test and refine the solutions (New learnings must be incorporated, replan, retool, rethink)
Assess the culture (Is it supportive, what is the balance of power, what are the stakeholder attitudes)
Identify the goals of the stakeholders and sponsor (Are the goals realistic, attainable, communicated)
Assess our own capabilities and limitations (Are you politically savvy, respected, a good negotiator)
Define the problem (Define goals, risks, relationships)
Develop solutions (Create action plan, determine the right solution for the right time)
Test and refine the solutions (New learnings must be incorporated, replan, retool, rethink)
Wednesday, December 21, 2005
Final thoughts for 2005
As the year comes to a close, I thought it would be a good time to review my professinal goals for 2005, which I posted here at the beginning of the year. They were:
- Be a better listener
- Apply the principles of Earned Value to more of my projects
- Begin each project with the end (deliverables) in mind
- Rely less on e-mail and more on face-to-face conversations
- Be a better Project Leader
- Accept the fact that criticism from others is part of the project life cycle
- Be willing to accept failures and use them as learning experiences
- Believe that most people on your project team are doing the best they can do
- Be positive, enthusiastic, and supportive of others
I made good progress towards achieving some of the goals, but I need to work harder on some of the others. The only true measurement of my performance comes from my peers, management, and project stakeholders.
Looking back over 2005 I would sum up the year by saying it was at times frustrating, rewarding, confusing, challenging, but overall worth the time and effort. We probably all can agree that being a good project manager is difficult, however good is not enough. We must be great project managers is we are to be successful. The culture we work in will greatly impact just how good or great we will be, however we are ultimately the ones that determine our own success.
Have a Merry Christmas.
Wednesday, December 14, 2005
Dr. Kerzner's 16 Points to PM Maturity
Have you heard of Dr. Kerzner? If not, you must be new to project management. One of my Project Management books is written by Dr. Kerzner - Project Management - A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling and Controlling. If you don't have this book in your library, get it. If you are new to project management you will find his book to be an invaluable reference. You can purchase a copy of his book from Amazon.com by clicking the link above.
One of the things I find valuable that Dr. Kerzner created is his "16 Points to Project Management Maturity". They are listed below and discussed in the book mentioned above.
1. Adopt a project management methodology and use it consistently
2. Implement a philosophy that drives the company toward project management maturity and communicate to everyone
3. Commit to developing effective plans at the beginning of each project
4. Minimize scope changes by committing to realistic objectives
5. Recognize that cost and schedule management are inseparable
6. Select the right person as project manager
7. Provide executives with project sponsor information, not project management information
8. Strenghten involvement and support of line management
9. Focus on deliverable rather than resources
10. Cultivate effective communication, cooperation, and trust to achieve rapid project management maturity
11. Share recognition for project success with the entire project team and line management
12. Eliminate non-productive meetings
13. Focus on identifying and solving problems early, quickly, and cost effectively
14. Measure progress periodically
15. Use project management software as a tool - not as a subsitute for effective planning or interpersonal skills
16. Institute an all-employee training program with periodic updates based upon documented lessons learned
Until next time...
Stephen F. Seay, PMP
One of the things I find valuable that Dr. Kerzner created is his "16 Points to Project Management Maturity". They are listed below and discussed in the book mentioned above.
1. Adopt a project management methodology and use it consistently
2. Implement a philosophy that drives the company toward project management maturity and communicate to everyone
3. Commit to developing effective plans at the beginning of each project
4. Minimize scope changes by committing to realistic objectives
5. Recognize that cost and schedule management are inseparable
6. Select the right person as project manager
7. Provide executives with project sponsor information, not project management information
8. Strenghten involvement and support of line management
9. Focus on deliverable rather than resources
10. Cultivate effective communication, cooperation, and trust to achieve rapid project management maturity
11. Share recognition for project success with the entire project team and line management
12. Eliminate non-productive meetings
13. Focus on identifying and solving problems early, quickly, and cost effectively
14. Measure progress periodically
15. Use project management software as a tool - not as a subsitute for effective planning or interpersonal skills
16. Institute an all-employee training program with periodic updates based upon documented lessons learned
Until next time...
Stephen F. Seay, PMP
Thursday, December 08, 2005
Paradoxes of Project Management
In Tom Peter's book "Liberation Management", (Peters, Tom. Liberation Management. New York: Alfred Knopf, 1992) he talks about the paradoxes of project management. In the book Tom outlines a few things we need to keep in mind when managing our projects.
Total Ego versus No Ego - On the one hand, project managers must be consumed by the project before them. On the other hand, they must have almost no ego. They deal with many outsiders and insiders whom they can hardly command. This means the project manager must take a smaller share of the credit for accomplishments and give a larger share of the credit to other participants.
Autocrat versus Delegator - When the chips are down, the project manager must issue orders fast. At the same time, the project managers must turn ownership over to the contributors.
Leader versus Manager - Effective project managers must match their passion for inspiring others with a passion for the grubby nuts and bolts of doing the job.
Oral versus Written Communication - Communicating orally and on the run comes easily to effective project managers. But, the must also be masters of the detailed plan and the daily checklist.
Complexity versus Simplicity - Nothing is more complex than dealing with a sophisticated, multi-organization project. The effective project manager must juggle, sometimes for years, hundreds of balls of differing and ever-changing shapes, sizes, and colors. On the other hand, the project manager must be adept at keeping it simple.
Big versus Small - Project managers must appreciate forests and trees equally. They must be able to see the relationship of the small to the big and the big to the small, and do so at every moment simultaneously.
Patience versus impatience - Smart, independent leaders spend lots of time on relationship building and networking. This is a s important as pushing project participants for action.
As long-time readers of this blog know, I value the insight of Tom Peters. I believe he hit the nail right on the head in regard to a Project Manager's behavior when managing projects.
Until next time...
Total Ego versus No Ego - On the one hand, project managers must be consumed by the project before them. On the other hand, they must have almost no ego. They deal with many outsiders and insiders whom they can hardly command. This means the project manager must take a smaller share of the credit for accomplishments and give a larger share of the credit to other participants.
Autocrat versus Delegator - When the chips are down, the project manager must issue orders fast. At the same time, the project managers must turn ownership over to the contributors.
Leader versus Manager - Effective project managers must match their passion for inspiring others with a passion for the grubby nuts and bolts of doing the job.
Oral versus Written Communication - Communicating orally and on the run comes easily to effective project managers. But, the must also be masters of the detailed plan and the daily checklist.
Complexity versus Simplicity - Nothing is more complex than dealing with a sophisticated, multi-organization project. The effective project manager must juggle, sometimes for years, hundreds of balls of differing and ever-changing shapes, sizes, and colors. On the other hand, the project manager must be adept at keeping it simple.
Big versus Small - Project managers must appreciate forests and trees equally. They must be able to see the relationship of the small to the big and the big to the small, and do so at every moment simultaneously.
Patience versus impatience - Smart, independent leaders spend lots of time on relationship building and networking. This is a s important as pushing project participants for action.
As long-time readers of this blog know, I value the insight of Tom Peters. I believe he hit the nail right on the head in regard to a Project Manager's behavior when managing projects.
Until next time...
Wednesday, November 30, 2005
Lessons Learned?
Capturing lessons learned at the end of a project is important. My problem has always been how do I archive the learnings for use in the future? Post implementation meetings are good for capturing lessons learned, but outside of the team members that attend the meeting where does this knowledge go? How can it be used in the future? Where and how should it be stored?
One idea I read about related to how Boeing maintains diaries of lessons learned from each airplane project. I wonder how these diaries are accessed and utilized on future projects? Are they searchable, indexed by topic, etc...
If anybody reading this has ideas, let me know and I will publish them here.
Until next time...
Monday, November 14, 2005
Quality Revisited
Quality Revisited
Most of you know that this blog deals with the basics of Project Management. For this week’s blog we will talk a little about Quality in Project Management. Quality is a heavily tested knowledge area on the PMP exam and as such we should all be familiar with the subject.
According to Philip B. Crosby, Quality is “conformance to requirements”. He goes on to state the Four Absolutes of Quality as:
Another Quality Guru is Joseph Juran. He states that “Quality is fitness for use”. He also defines something called the Quality Trilogy. It is:
Juran also goes on to define the “Ten Steps in the Quality Improvement Process”. They are:
Lastly, we look at what Dr. W. Edwards Deming says about Quality. According to Dr. Deming, Quality is “continuous improvement through reduced variation”. His five principles are:
Do the above statements reflect the situation in your work environment? Is your management engaged in Quality? Are they hands-on, hands-off, or asleep at the switch?
Quality is everyone’s job; however Quality cannot be managed with out the participation of management. I would even be so bold to say that “poor quality equals poor management”.
Most of you know that this blog deals with the basics of Project Management. For this week’s blog we will talk a little about Quality in Project Management. Quality is a heavily tested knowledge area on the PMP exam and as such we should all be familiar with the subject.
According to Philip B. Crosby, Quality is “conformance to requirements”. He goes on to state the Four Absolutes of Quality as:
- The definition of quality is conformance to requirements
- The system of quality is prevention
- The performance standard is zero defects
- The measurement of quality is the price of nonconformance.
Another Quality Guru is Joseph Juran. He states that “Quality is fitness for use”. He also defines something called the Quality Trilogy. It is:
- Quality Improvement
- Quality Planning
- Quality Control
Juran also goes on to define the “Ten Steps in the Quality Improvement Process”. They are:
- Build awareness of the need and opportunity for improvement
- Set goals for improvement
- Organize to reach the goals
- Provide training throughout the organization
- Carry out the projects to solve problems
- Report progress
- Give recognition
- Communicate results
- Keep score
- Maintain momentum by making annual improvement part of the regular systems and processes of the company.
Lastly, we look at what Dr. W. Edwards Deming says about Quality. According to Dr. Deming, Quality is “continuous improvement through reduced variation”. His five principles are:
- The central problem in lack of quality is the failure of management to understand variation.
- It is management’s responsibility to know whether the problems are in the system or behavior of people.
- Teamwork should be based upon knowledge, design, and redesign. Constant improvement is management’s responsibility. Most causes of low quality and productivity belong to the system.
- Train people until they are achieving as much as they can (within the limits of the system).
- It is management’s responsibility to give detailed specifications.
Do the above statements reflect the situation in your work environment? Is your management engaged in Quality? Are they hands-on, hands-off, or asleep at the switch?
Quality is everyone’s job; however Quality cannot be managed with out the participation of management. I would even be so bold to say that “poor quality equals poor management”.
Wednesday, November 02, 2005
Backwards Planning
I came across this article and thought it made some very good points.
Backwards Planning6 Simple Rules for Scheduling Next Year
“Russian Submarine Captains don’t (go to the bathroom) without a plan.” -Fred Thompson, in The Hunt for Red October
There’s another saying that goes: “The more you do of what you’re doing, the more you’ll get of what you’ve got.” Tired of getting the same results year and year out? It is time to start planning for success. It is time to try something different. Here’s 6 Steps to guide you in planning ahead for success in the year ahead. Use them in your next meeting and see how the orient your entire organization’s thinking.
1. RESULTS – Try planning backwards - Start with the results in mind. Most mid-level managers plan around their schedule in an effort to “fill the calendar.” If your group’s goal is to stay active and keep everyone busy this is a great idea. But if your goal is to accomplish something like, oh I don’t know, let’s say your organization’s mission or turn a profit, this is the dumbest way to start out. Really, what are you in business to do? Move the sand pile left then move it back right the next quarter?
Smart planners begin with the results they want to achieve. They ruthlessly eliminate everything that doesn’t support this goal. They never hesitate to say, “No, that’s not what we are about.” Great leaders stay focused on the main thing they and never deter from it. What do you want to see occur next year? Where do you want to be? Set that as your planning goal and let everything fall in to place around it. Guard this and don’t let any other activity or program get in the way.
2. ACTIVITIES – Next plan the activities it will take to accomplish your goal(s). Don’t schedule them yet. Just sit down and determine what it will take to get to the destination you have set. Some activities may be impossible to pull off, but this will give you a good idea of what you need to be doing and how you need to distribute resources to get things done. Planning activities will help you determine the Big Three questions that need to be answered in planning guidelines:
(A) What do you think you are doing?
(B) What ought you to be doing?
(C) What are you actually doing?
Examining all three perspectives will give you valuable insight into your job and time problems.
Activities that don’t meet these criteria or don’t support the mission of your company, corporation or mission should be eliminated, no matter how sacred they are. How many exercises do you do for no other reason than, we’ve always done them? Read Sacred Cows Make Great Burgers. Yes, it is risky to ask “Why?” but you’ve got to take a few risks to venture into new territory. Have some fun. Go around and ask people how certain historical practices originated and why they continue to schedule them every year. You’ll be surprised at how many people are clueless, but continue to perform them like mindless sheep.
3. PRIORITIES – The next step will happen almost automatically. You and your staff will begin to re-evaluate your priorities and find out what you need to be about in the year ahead. You’ll be surprised to find consensus when you have eliminated useless activities that don’t accomplish your mission or goals. Determining your goals and activities will help you establish clear priorities for the time period you are planning. It will help you enforce the “If it doesn’t support or goals, we’re not doing it” rule.
Use the Paretto Principle to establish priorities: “Eighty percent of our activities produce 20 percent of the results, while only 20 percent of our activities produce 80 percent of the results.” Vilifredo Paretto was a 19th Century Italian economist who established a rule for economics that works in almost every realm of planning. It is simple: List your top ten priorities in order, then circle the top two. Concentrate planning on those two and the other eight will take care of themselves. More organizations waste time on useless trivial activities that produce almost no results. The wisdom of life consists of eliminating the non-essentials.
4. TIME ESTIMATES – How long will it take? How much time will each activity require to get you closer to your annual goals? The key to successful planning is to plan both work and time. Start to determine what will take big blocks of time, how many people will be required to get it done and where will the resources be needed to accomplish each task. Next look at the smaller blocks of time and find out how they can be batched together to eliminate waste in funding and time. Where are the wasted time slots? How can they be reduced or wiped away completely?
Determine what time of the year is the peak performance time to get each task accomplished. Where are the slow periods annually that you can get more “behind the scenes” work done? When is your “showtime,” when visible tasks are best accomplished? Remember these are only estimates but they will give you a good idea as to when you need to be concentrating on the right tasks at the right time.
5. SCHEDULING - Now look at your actual calendar. Things that are scheduled tend to happen on time. Things that are not scheduled may never happen. As I said earlier, most managers tend to schedule first in an effort to fill the calendar and eliminate gaps. Knowing what you are about, why you are about it, and how long it will take will be the greatest ally you have in putting things on in ink.
Use this guideline for scheduling: Flexibility in time: Start early on major efforts, Big blocks come first; smaller jobs/activities come second; and group items that are similar in nature. Scheduling along these lines will do more to eliminate wasted time in your calendar. It will allow for the time estimates to become realities and your people to know what they are doing, why they are doing it and how it fits into your overall mission/goals.
6. FLEXIBILITY – Allow time for error and the uncertainty. This can only be done if you have set out to allow the proper amount of time for big projects. No one can predict the future (although we seem to have an abundance of philosophers, pundits and fanatics who attempt to do it every day). A well-known television economist spent the first two months of his new program telling everyone not to buy home improvement company stocks (Lowe’s, Home Depot, etc.) then was forced to retract every prediction when they soared following the devastating hurricanes in the Gulf Coast areas. One good rule: Don’t take advice from anyone who isn’t personally invested in the suggestions they are giving. You probably have example in your own life of people who said to do one thing only to change when things weren’t as certain as they assured you. Don’t get stuck paying the bill for their mistakes.
Planning flexibility allows you to adjust your schedule as needed. It allows you to drop back and re-evaluate your intentions and redistribute resources and personnel in key areas as are required. Be flexible about your schedule, but not your results or goals. Times change and although you can’t predict the future, the great leaders are able to see through the present times and prepare for both good and bad events. Those with the best outlook on life are always expecting the best, but prepared for the worst, just in case. To deny that problems will arise is foolishness. In summary, our ability to control our time is directly related to our attitude toward controlling our environment. Now you are in control of your schedule. You determine what to do and when to do it based on a simple rule: What results do we want? Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can or you can’t, you are right.”A year from today, evaluate the tasks you accomplished. How did your employees, support staff come together to meet your goals? How long did it take for everyone to get in step with the master plan and find ways to cut wasted time and reallocate resources? How prepared were you for unforeseen events in the market and society? How much more can you accomplish next year? Try “Backwards Planning” and see how everything fits better into place.
Permission is granted to reproduce this article in whole or in part provided the following byline below appears along with the article and that a copy is sent to me after publication. Thank you: JIM MATHIS is an International Speaking Professional and Trainer.
To subscribe to his FREE personal and professional development newsletter, please send an email to subscribe@jimmathis.com with the word SUBSCRIBE. An electronic copy will be sent out to you every month. For more information on how JIM and his programs can benefit your organization or group, please call 888-688-0220, or visit his website: www.jimmathis.com
Backwards Planning6 Simple Rules for Scheduling Next Year
“Russian Submarine Captains don’t (go to the bathroom) without a plan.” -Fred Thompson, in The Hunt for Red October
There’s another saying that goes: “The more you do of what you’re doing, the more you’ll get of what you’ve got.” Tired of getting the same results year and year out? It is time to start planning for success. It is time to try something different. Here’s 6 Steps to guide you in planning ahead for success in the year ahead. Use them in your next meeting and see how the orient your entire organization’s thinking.
1. RESULTS – Try planning backwards - Start with the results in mind. Most mid-level managers plan around their schedule in an effort to “fill the calendar.” If your group’s goal is to stay active and keep everyone busy this is a great idea. But if your goal is to accomplish something like, oh I don’t know, let’s say your organization’s mission or turn a profit, this is the dumbest way to start out. Really, what are you in business to do? Move the sand pile left then move it back right the next quarter?
Smart planners begin with the results they want to achieve. They ruthlessly eliminate everything that doesn’t support this goal. They never hesitate to say, “No, that’s not what we are about.” Great leaders stay focused on the main thing they and never deter from it. What do you want to see occur next year? Where do you want to be? Set that as your planning goal and let everything fall in to place around it. Guard this and don’t let any other activity or program get in the way.
2. ACTIVITIES – Next plan the activities it will take to accomplish your goal(s). Don’t schedule them yet. Just sit down and determine what it will take to get to the destination you have set. Some activities may be impossible to pull off, but this will give you a good idea of what you need to be doing and how you need to distribute resources to get things done. Planning activities will help you determine the Big Three questions that need to be answered in planning guidelines:
(A) What do you think you are doing?
(B) What ought you to be doing?
(C) What are you actually doing?
Examining all three perspectives will give you valuable insight into your job and time problems.
Activities that don’t meet these criteria or don’t support the mission of your company, corporation or mission should be eliminated, no matter how sacred they are. How many exercises do you do for no other reason than, we’ve always done them? Read Sacred Cows Make Great Burgers. Yes, it is risky to ask “Why?” but you’ve got to take a few risks to venture into new territory. Have some fun. Go around and ask people how certain historical practices originated and why they continue to schedule them every year. You’ll be surprised at how many people are clueless, but continue to perform them like mindless sheep.
3. PRIORITIES – The next step will happen almost automatically. You and your staff will begin to re-evaluate your priorities and find out what you need to be about in the year ahead. You’ll be surprised to find consensus when you have eliminated useless activities that don’t accomplish your mission or goals. Determining your goals and activities will help you establish clear priorities for the time period you are planning. It will help you enforce the “If it doesn’t support or goals, we’re not doing it” rule.
Use the Paretto Principle to establish priorities: “Eighty percent of our activities produce 20 percent of the results, while only 20 percent of our activities produce 80 percent of the results.” Vilifredo Paretto was a 19th Century Italian economist who established a rule for economics that works in almost every realm of planning. It is simple: List your top ten priorities in order, then circle the top two. Concentrate planning on those two and the other eight will take care of themselves. More organizations waste time on useless trivial activities that produce almost no results. The wisdom of life consists of eliminating the non-essentials.
4. TIME ESTIMATES – How long will it take? How much time will each activity require to get you closer to your annual goals? The key to successful planning is to plan both work and time. Start to determine what will take big blocks of time, how many people will be required to get it done and where will the resources be needed to accomplish each task. Next look at the smaller blocks of time and find out how they can be batched together to eliminate waste in funding and time. Where are the wasted time slots? How can they be reduced or wiped away completely?
Determine what time of the year is the peak performance time to get each task accomplished. Where are the slow periods annually that you can get more “behind the scenes” work done? When is your “showtime,” when visible tasks are best accomplished? Remember these are only estimates but they will give you a good idea as to when you need to be concentrating on the right tasks at the right time.
5. SCHEDULING - Now look at your actual calendar. Things that are scheduled tend to happen on time. Things that are not scheduled may never happen. As I said earlier, most managers tend to schedule first in an effort to fill the calendar and eliminate gaps. Knowing what you are about, why you are about it, and how long it will take will be the greatest ally you have in putting things on in ink.
Use this guideline for scheduling: Flexibility in time: Start early on major efforts, Big blocks come first; smaller jobs/activities come second; and group items that are similar in nature. Scheduling along these lines will do more to eliminate wasted time in your calendar. It will allow for the time estimates to become realities and your people to know what they are doing, why they are doing it and how it fits into your overall mission/goals.
6. FLEXIBILITY – Allow time for error and the uncertainty. This can only be done if you have set out to allow the proper amount of time for big projects. No one can predict the future (although we seem to have an abundance of philosophers, pundits and fanatics who attempt to do it every day). A well-known television economist spent the first two months of his new program telling everyone not to buy home improvement company stocks (Lowe’s, Home Depot, etc.) then was forced to retract every prediction when they soared following the devastating hurricanes in the Gulf Coast areas. One good rule: Don’t take advice from anyone who isn’t personally invested in the suggestions they are giving. You probably have example in your own life of people who said to do one thing only to change when things weren’t as certain as they assured you. Don’t get stuck paying the bill for their mistakes.
Planning flexibility allows you to adjust your schedule as needed. It allows you to drop back and re-evaluate your intentions and redistribute resources and personnel in key areas as are required. Be flexible about your schedule, but not your results or goals. Times change and although you can’t predict the future, the great leaders are able to see through the present times and prepare for both good and bad events. Those with the best outlook on life are always expecting the best, but prepared for the worst, just in case. To deny that problems will arise is foolishness. In summary, our ability to control our time is directly related to our attitude toward controlling our environment. Now you are in control of your schedule. You determine what to do and when to do it based on a simple rule: What results do we want? Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can or you can’t, you are right.”A year from today, evaluate the tasks you accomplished. How did your employees, support staff come together to meet your goals? How long did it take for everyone to get in step with the master plan and find ways to cut wasted time and reallocate resources? How prepared were you for unforeseen events in the market and society? How much more can you accomplish next year? Try “Backwards Planning” and see how everything fits better into place.
Permission is granted to reproduce this article in whole or in part provided the following byline below appears along with the article and that a copy is sent to me after publication. Thank you: JIM MATHIS is an International Speaking Professional and Trainer.
To subscribe to his FREE personal and professional development newsletter, please send an email to subscribe@jimmathis.com with the word SUBSCRIBE. An electronic copy will be sent out to you every month. For more information on how JIM and his programs can benefit your organization or group, please call 888-688-0220, or visit his website: www.jimmathis.com