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• What does project management software do.. Using the Project Management Software PMS • Basic computer training.. Are These Really Necessary?Are all the above recommendations really req

There are several basic areas of training that must be provided for the peopleinvolved in the project management process, which may include the following.

General Skills for Project Managers (and Key Players)

• Presentation skills • Leadership skills

• Communication skills • Stress management

• Team building • Time management

• Decision making • Organization and management theory

• Problem solving

Corporate-Specific Practices

• Understanding the organization

• Operating practices and procedures

• Specific roles and responsibilities

General Project Management Knowledge

• Principles and practices of project management

• What does project management software do

• Estimating, proposals, and project initiation

• Techniques for project planning

• Role of the project manager

Using the Project Management Software (PMS)

• Basic computer training

• Basic PMS training

• Using the PMS for your applications

• Application-specific formats and procedures

• System interfaces

Tip Training should be designed to meet the specific needs

to the trainee This will require multifaceted, multilevel ing sessions, aimed at a target audience The project manage- ment system should be designed to recognize the role of each user, especially in regard to input forms, output forms, and in- cluded data The training sessions should pick up on these specifics and show how the system is designed for each user in the audience, and how it will be used by each.

Team-Fly®

Are These Really Necessary?

Are all the above recommendations really required for the successful tation of a computer-based project management capability? It is dangerous totake for granted that your people have any of these skills, or that your objectiveswill be met without them Every time I have been called into a company to fix aproject management software application, I have found that the majority of theproblems were not directly attributed to the software itself They nearly alwaysfell into the categories listed above: lack of commitment, poorly defined roles andresponsibilities, lack of essential skills, and misunderstanding of what the projectmanagement software does

implemen-Trap Here is something that I can state with absolute

cer-tainty It is entirely impossible to implement a computer-based

project management capability without also implementing a

broad, multilevel training program Even if the computer plays

a small role in your project management process, an

under-standing of the principles of project management and the

lo-cal practices that have been put in place cannot be taken for

granted A formal training effort is required to prevent failure

of the project management initiative.

Do You Really Want Success?

Some time ago, I was called in to help a well-respected NASA component thatwas experiencing problems with its project management software application Itseems that the plan being presented by the system was not reflecting the actualplan as desired by the project manager Furthermore, reports being produced bythe system were not getting the desired results

Upon interviewing the participants in this process, I found two underlyingproblems First, there was a widespread lack of knowledge about what the sys-tem did, and especially of what was done with the plans and data they enteredinto the system Second, the framework (work breakdown structure) that wasestablished within the system did not reflect the actual working breakdownused by the people who were planning their work It wasn’t really their fault

No one had bothered to provide an orientation on these principles So how wasanyone to know?

Even if the system had been outputting accurate and consistent planning formation, it would have been lost on those who were targeted for the output

First, the system operators had failed to design good reports They needed toidentify who the project decision makers were, and what kind of information theyneeded to support that responsibility Then, they should have designed specificreports for each, containing the records that were appropriate to their action area.The reports should have been sorted in the most effective manner to facilitateanalysis of the data and limited to the data elements needed to support their ex-pected response.

No one had bothered to indoctrinate the recipients of these data You have totell people how to read the reports and how to interpret the data They need toknow how to identify an out-of-tolerance condition, and what is expected of them

in the way of a response

In the case just illustrated, the situation was completely turned around by senting two half-day workshops As a result, the framework was changed, the in-put data was reconfigured to support the CPM process being employed, and thereports were redesigned to support the needs of the intended recipients The par-ticipants were now able to understand how the process worked and what theirrole was in the process

pre-Heading for Success

Getting back to my experience with the company that I felt was proceedingwith a worthy program to implement project management, here is what theywere doing:

1 An individual was assigned responsibility to lead in the design of the

appli-cation, including system interfaces and configuration

2 That individual also set up standards and templates for using the selected

project management software product Although system users get uct training, they do not have to design their own reports, forms, tables,

prod-or filters

3 A multifaceted training program was implemented This included:

• A two-day series of lectures and workshops on the general skills that areuseful in the project environment

• A one-day seminar and workshop on the principles and practices of ect management, including roles and responsibilities, and project initia-tion techniques The workshop was customized for the client by havingthe consultant precede that effort with a day of interviewing and examin-ing the company’s methods and program

proj-• A two-day seminar in using the project management software

It would appear that this firm has demonstrated the level of commitmentessential to the successful implementation of the computer-based project management capability And they have backed it up with a comprehensive indoctrination/training program.

Training and Commitment Make the Difference

The message here is a simple one If you are going to invest in an improved ect management capability, you should back that investment up with the trainingand commitment that are essential to make that investment pay off A compro-mise in this area is very likely to lead to total failure of the effort

C H A P T E R 1 3 2

M AKING P ROJECT C OMMUNICATION W ORK

Everything You Need to Know about Project Communication

344

In real estate, it’s “location, location, location.” When it comes to project cess, the three most important factors are: “communication, communication,communication.”

suc-Throughout the entire life cycle of the project, it is communication that ables the flow and transfer of knowledge that is essential to project success Inits earliest stages, it is communication that is the amniotic fluid that sustains theemerging project and brings the project to life During the sensitive planningstages, it is communication that brings out ideas and builds to consensus Dur-ing the project execution phase, it is communication that supports and reportsprogress, and facilitates corrective action and management decisions as needed.And at the conclusion of the project, it is communication that spreads the wordabout the success of the project and records the knowledge gained and lessonslearned

en-Tip When properly handled, good, effective, timely,

appro-priate communication can have an important role in achieving

project success On the other hand, poor, haphazard,

incom-plete, untimely, and misdirected communication is a recipe for

project failure.

If we review the reasons why we communicate, we should easily see itsimportance.

Why We Communicate

Discuss Objectives and Strategies

Perhaps this is the most important communication of them all This is where wecollect ideas as to the best ways to achieve the project objectives and to avoid pit-falls Here is where we start to build project consensus and develop buy-in by theproject stakeholders

Disseminate Project Guidelines

Once the project objectives, constraints, and strategies have been defined, it is portant that the project participants all get on the same track This requires leader-ship and guidance It requires that these key data be broadcast to the projectparticipants and that it be made clear that these guidelines are be followed by all.This can be accomplished by the issuance of a Project Charter The practice ofhaving Project Charters as the defining guideline is a key factor in achieving suc-cessful projects The Project Charter will have signature approvals by senior man-agers, as a sign of authorization to proceed and demand for support

im-Collect Project Plan Inputs

The Project Charter becomes the basis for building a Project Plan It is a nication vehicle to collect plan inputs from all the project contributors Very early

commu-in this planncommu-ing stage, the team should create a Project Milestone Schedule(PMS) and a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

The PMS serves as a guideline for building a schedule It contains the projectstart and end dates and key interim dates It notes important milestones, contractcommitments, and constraints It communicates the preferred (or required) peri-ods for each project phase Ordinarily, if the project contributors can committheir support for work within the defined periods on the PMS, it minimizes thenecessity to micromanage the schedule

The WBS serves as a guideline for defining and organizing the workscope Itprovides a checklist for selecting the work items that make up the project It pro-vides a structure for assigning responsibilities, and its hierarchical form facilitatessummarization, selection (filtering), and sorting of the project work items for re-porting The WBS is also used for earned value and performance analysis

Build Baseline Plan

The Baseline Plan is the convergence of the definition of the workscope, theschedule, the assignment of resources, and the project budget Achieving objec-tives in each of these areas often precedes meeting the objectives in other areas

So the establishment of a Baseline Plan may involve negotiation and adjustment tofind the best balance in each area Obviously, this is a major communication event

Communicate Baseline Plan

Support for the plan cannot be expected if it is not communicated ing the baseline plan means more than circulating a document The plan andeveryone’s role in that plan must be fully understood Responsibilities for manag-ing and performing the work must be clear A traditional weak spot is the inter-face where performance or management of work is transferred to other people.These areas should receive special attention to be sure that the people involvedwill communicate status and transfer data, and that they clearly understand thenature of the interface

Communicat-Again, senior management should indicate approval of the baseline plan andapproval to move to the project execution phase

Gather Project Progress Data

Gathering progress information is getting easier and easier with today’s advancedcomputer-based systems We have the ability to generate automatic notifications

of events, changes, and accomplishments Our systems can now communicateover direct, hardwired links, via facsimile transmission, by e-mail, and so on In-formation is now available in real time We have electronic timesheets, and auto-mated routines for approval or rejection

There is no excuse for failing to collect timely and accurate progress data Yet,there is still a great possibility for grossly erroneous data unless the communica-tion of such data has human intervention

The project team should designate someone to facilitate the dissemination ofprogress information and the retrieval of progress data from the participants Thisindividual(s) shall review all progress data and check it for validity Communica-tion, at this point, is more in the nature of mentoring and providing assistance toparticipants so that they understand what kind of progress reporting is neededand expected.

Report Project Status

This is an area where a little creative thinking can produce very productive results

We need to discard the old approach, wherein we produced voluminous pages ofinsipid data, which was distributed to all involved parties This generally led to thereports accumulating dust in a far corner of the office, or taking up valuable space

on the hard drive It was usually too much data and not enough information.First of all, the capability exists to customize project status reports so that eachparticipant receives information that is tailored to his or her specific need The datamay be detailed or summarized, depending on need The data can be selective, pro-viding detail over a narrow band, or at a higher level of detail for a wider span of in-terest Data can be restricted to a particular area, such as schedule, cost, or resourceutilization It can focus on accomplishments, performance, and problems

The key to success in this communication area is to consider each targeted cipient, individually If we can determine what each person is going to do with theinformation, we can tailor the reports to serve that purpose We need to considerwhat type of decisions are to be made on the basis of the information, and designthe communication to provide what is needed, in the format that is needed, and

re-in the detail that is needed

Trap There is a tendency to employ a one-size-fits-all

philos-ophy when designing input screens and reporting formats.

This will encourage resistance to support of the system by the

target users, and cannot be justified in light of the capabilities

of today’s PM tools.

We need to provide more than just data, but real information about the icance of the data Where corrective action is indicated, we should (where feasi-ble) provide information about effect and alternatives

signif-The Project Progress Reporting function will also serve to support the following:

• Report out-of-tolerance situations.

• Request or report scope changes

• Facilitate corrective action

Keys to Effective Communication

The project manager is at the center of project communications The projectmanager must ensure that all communication needs, both formal and informal,are fulfilled The project manager must always look for and close gaps in under-standing and communication, between all participants and interested parties, andbetween all work items The project manager is a bridge

• Communication and measurement bases must be consistent from period

to period

• Schedule, resource, and cost information must be synchronized

Project Phases and Communications

A lot of information can be processed during the project These will change as wemove through each phase of the project As a guide, here is an example of itemsthat can be communicated for each phase of the project

Project Development and Initiation

• Workscope

• Organization

• Stakeholder Analysis and Strategy

• Objectives and Constraints

• Baseline Plan (schedule, resource plan, costs)

• Punch List (What/Who/When).

• Personnel Reports and Recognition Letters

• Project Historical Data

• Project Post-mortem Analysis and Report

Communication Targets

Information should be tailored to maximize the usefulness and impact for eachinformation target For example, here are some of the categories of people withwhom we communicate project information

• The Project Manager and Project/SubProject Leaders

• The Functional Managers

• Progress and Status.

• Performance Evaluation

• Exceptions (out of acceptance range)

• Turn-around Data (for statusing)

Types of Communication Information

There are also differences in the level of detail and the formats of the tion Again, just which type is appropriate will depend on the role and needs ofthe target audience Effective communication will be achieved by limiting thecommunications to the most appropriate formats, rather than bombarding peo-ple with the full warehouse of project data An advantage of accessing data viacomputer screen retrievals (today’s most popular mode) is that the user can go tothe most favored format, but then drill-down or summarize up to see eithermore details or a wider picture, or a different format Key traditional informa-tion formats include:

Whether detailed or summarized, whether inputs or outputs, whether hard copy

or screen based, the information will fall into these traditional formats

Tabular

• Typical: Rows for records; columns for data fields

• Matrix: Select two sets of data (i.e., Resource/Cost vs Time)

Graphic

• Gantt Chart Schedule (bar chart)

• Network Diagram (PERT chart)

• Time-scaled Network or Linked Gantt

• Resource and Cost Histograms—incremental or cumulative

• Performance Curves (Earned Value)

Team-Fly®

• Distribution • Summarization Criteria.

• Data Items (fields) • Subtotals

• Selection Criteria (records) • What is the reader supposed to be looking for?

• Sorting Criteria • What is the expected response?

Project Portfolio Management and Communication

All the preceding discussion was directed toward communication on a single ect Most of us contribute to or manage multiple projects, which necessitates ad-ditional considerations for communication

proj-Most of the preceding comments can also apply to the multiproject ment Here are a few additional considerations

environ-• Resource-oriented data, especially in formats designed to obtain timesheetdata, should cover all projects that involve the target personnel

• Performance data may cover multiple projects so that the performance tributed to groups involved in multiple projects can be fully evaluated

at-• Milestone-level data for multiple projects can be tracked in combined mats, for comparative progress and performance analysis

for-• Special reports should be developed to address specific concerns involvedwith managing the portfolio

• If the firm works on projects that are similar in nature, it might be geous to develop a standard Work Breakdown Structure, to be used for allprojects in such a group In this case, the project becomes the second level

advanta-of the standard WBS, and the project group becomes the senior level Thisallows performance analysis and reporting to be performed across projects

C H A P T E R 1 3 3

W HY P ROJECT M ANAGEMENT

I MPLEMENTATION P ROGRAMS F AIL

352

Trap The failures in implementing PM can be traced back to

this simple misconception: that we can take shortcuts with

PM—that we can treat it casually and unprofessionally—and

still have it work.

In my experience in working with corporate clients wishing to implement a puter-based PM capability, I have found the satisfaction level to be very low.While we can easily attribute much of this to lack of adequate participation by theuser, we can’t get off the hook that easily We need to ask why this participationlevel is so low and what we can do to improve it

com-As in any other business venture, the typical consultant will experience a widerange of success (or failure) in his various engagements While some of the short-falls can be attributed, at least in part, to the consultant, there are often majorfailures on the part of the client Much of this can be categorized as lack of soundcommunication and/or inability to have a practical vision

The purpose of this chapter is not so much to place blame as to share the

lessons of these experiences “He who fails to learn from his mistakes is doomed to

repeat them.” For this chapter, I focus on engagements that involve the objective

of implementing a computer-based project management capability in

organiza-tions that did not have such a capability or had a very rudimentary system thatwas deemed inadequate.

Reflecting on personal consulting experience in working with corporate clientswishing to implement a computer-based PM capability, I often find the followingtypical sequence

1 Client expresses desire/need to know what is going on—when work is to be

done—what people are working on—what the impact of new projects are

on the firm’s resources, and so on

2 Client wants to get people to plan their work, communicate the deliverable

dates and other project info, and control the effort (somewhere in line withthe published plans)

3 Client does not have a PM methodology in place and resists the imposition

of too much structure Simple front-end practices, such as a project charter,

do not exist

4 Client is unwilling to integrate key components, such as Operations,

Fi-nance, Human Resources, Projects, and Line Management

5 Client comes up with extensive list of selection criteria for sophisticated

tool support of nonexistent practices Makes major effort to review didate products, via purchase of reports, extensive staff research, and/oruse of consultants Invites sales presentations and proposals from severaltool vendors

can-6 Client will not establish a Project Office or designate personnel as

responsi-ble for PM Client will not establish PM as a way of life in the firm, or make support of PM a condition of employment Reference to PM responsibilities

does not exist in anyone’s position guide

7 Client terminates program to implement a computer-based PM capability.

Or if client does buy a product, fails to educate users and otherwise supportthe process

8 Client determines that the failure to accomplish the goal is due to the

de-manding nature of PM and PM tools—requiring a structure and level of fort exceeding that considered to be reasonable

ef-In all fairness, we must admit that there is some truth in the last item ect Management, although based entirely on a set of common sense ap-proaches, is structured and demanding And even the best-of-breed in PM toolswill require some education and compliance with designed processes in order

Proj-to produce usable results However, I do not find these demands Proj-to be sonable As in most other things, there is an investment required if one is togain the desired payoff

With this in mind, let’s expand the above list to see what we can do to make theimplementation of a computer-based project management capability a positiveand rewarding experience.

1 Client expresses desire/need to know what is going on—when work is to be

done—what people are working on—what the impact of new projects are

on the firm’s resources, and so on

2 Client wants to get people to plan their work, communicate the deliverable

dates and other project info, and control the effort (somewhere in line withthe published plans)

• These two items represent the identification of the need for a

com-puter-based project management capability There is recognition thatsomething is either missing or inadequate What is important is that thewish list be kept practical It must be consistent with the ability to real-istically support the desired result and it must recognize the organiza-tional culture True, a strong leader can bring about changes in theculture, but I have found it to be rare for top management to go to thewall to institute major change for the purposes of implementing mod-ern project management

• Change, even simple change, should be deliberate, as part of a strategy

3 Client does not have a PM methodology in place and resists the imposition

of too much structure Simple front-end practices, such as a project charter,

do not exist

• The implementation of a computer-based project management

capabil-ity has two major components The first is the identification of a project

management methodology The automation of that methodology comes

next, but only after the first has been accomplished

4 Client is unwilling to integrate key components, such as Operations,

Fi-nance, Human Resources, Projects, and Line Management

• Managing projects is a subset of managing the business The gies that drive the projects and the conditions that impact upon theprojects involve other components of the enterprise Success cannot

strate-be achieved without full participation and cooperation of these ness components

busi-5 Client comes up with extensive list of selection criteria for sophisticated

tool support of nonexistent practices Makes major effort to review didate products, via purchase of reports, extensive staff research, and/oruse of consultants Invites sales presentations and proposals from severaltool vendors

• We all know that the purchase of a violin does not turn a layman into amusician Then how can anyone believe that the acquisition of a PM toolwould automatically position that organization to be fully PM competent,complete with practices, policies, and procedures? No! The PM tool is ac-quired to automate a set of PM practices While the tool can be helpful inclarifying the PM structure and practices, it does not actually create them.

6 Client will not establish a Project Office or designate personnel as

responsi-ble for PM Client will not establish PM as a way of life in the firm, or make support of PM a condition of employment Reference to PM responsibilities

does not exist in anyone’s position guide

• The establishment of a PM capability starts with top-down direction andrequires the full diligence and support of senior management In spon-soring and taking command of the PM implementation, the CEO cre-ates an environment where PM is thoroughly integrated and ingrainedinto the organization, and the staff understands their requirement tosupport PM

• PM is a special discipline Many people can participate in PM, but onlyspecially trained and experienced people can be experts PM cannot besuccessful unless a central component is established and staffed withsuch experts The PM Office is a single point of policy direction and

PM mentoring Its leadership and expertise help to make PM a ful endeavor

success-7 Client terminates program to implement a computer-based PM capability.

Or if client does buy a product, fails to educate users and otherwise supportthe process

• By this time, the sponsors of the PM initiative realize the full scope andrequirements of the program If they haven’t yet made the commit-ment, they often decide that they are not willing to make the invest-ment in organization, policy, manpower, and procedures—as well as intools and training

• If the purchase has been made, they fail to follow up with all the thingsthat are needed to make it work—and the initiative fails

• A successful program to implement computer-based project ment starts with a realistic set of objectives, which are consistent withthe firm’s needs, culture, and strategies, and winds up with a supportablecommitment at all levels

manage-8 Client determines that the failure to accomplish the goal is due to the

de-manding nature of PM and PM tools—requiring a structure and level of fort exceeding that considered to be reasonable

• This is a self-fulfilling prophecy It is not the tools that require this ture and level of effort It is the entire program of project managementthat calls for this It is no different from any other professional disci-pline Whether it be engineering, finance, R&D, or manufacturing, weexpect that there will be leadership, organization, policies and practices,and expertise We should expect no less for PM.

struc-• The failures in implementing PM can be traced back to this tion: that we can take shortcuts with PM—that we can treat it casuallyand unprofessionally—and still have it work

However, even in the most structured organizations, it didn’t take long to ognize that there were certain situations that were better addressed outside theformal, fixed structure Yet there are always diehards, who will resist exceptions tothe very end Take this situation, for example.

rec-The Bureaucrats

A few years ago, I was called in by a company, an HMO, that had just beenhanded a virtually unachievable deadline The HMO had recently received gov-ernment approval to start a new service and was in the early stages of a four-month program to implement the new offering Coincident to this, this HMOannounced the acquisition of another HMO agency, which was already approvedand committed to offer the new service As a consequence, the federal programthat was approved to start in four months was now required to be operating in six

weeks This deadline, under the best possible circumstances, would appear to be

an impossible task

However, this HMO did not have the best possible circumstances They ated under very rigid boundaries, within a traditional hierarchy Each disciplinewithin the organization had its own director, and all practices required goingthrough the directors for action The boundaries were like stone walls

oper-With at least four months of work to be accomplished in this six-week period, Iasked if the company had set up an emergency team, with representatives of eachstakeholder group I was told that this company did not believe in any type of taskforce arrangement, under any circumstances When I asked how each of thestakeholder groups communicated and coordinated their efforts in support of this

high priority program, I was told that the directors of each group met monthly.

My pressing for an exception in this instance met with total resistance

The Task Force

I have no intention here to get into a discussion on the advantages or tages of a highly structured, rigid organization But I do want to press for the ac-ceptance of exceptions to such formal structures, when a situation such as the onejust described arises In the example, surely a task force approach is almostmandatory In this case, I would have had the Manager of Senior Services (thecritical stakeholder) head a team of representatives of each contributing depart-ment These representatives would be authorized to make decisions for their dis-cipline (following procedures that were set up by the director of eachdepartment) They would be dedicated to the special project to whatever level ofeffort was required to accomplish the goal

disadvan-The task force would meet frequently (at least once a week) to communicateresults and resolve outstanding concerns The task force members would com-municate with other contributors from their discipline and coordinate their ef-forts At the initial task force meeting, the team would develop a project planand would disseminate the plan and obtain supporting commitments from mem-bers of their department The task force leader would be able to communicatefreely with the task force members and establish commitments and program re-sults without having to go through the department directors, or to wait for amonthly meeting

Although this is a significant deviation from the rigid structure that was inplace in this organization, the use of a task force in this situation should not belooked at as an attack on the establishment It is a temporary organization,formed for a specific objective When the goal has been met, everything re-turns to normal