Author: Cynthia Low

Looking for Inspiration in 2008

Written by Cynthia Low on January 3, 2008. Posted in Articles. 6 Comments on Looking for Inspiration in 2008

Editor’s Comments

Isn’t it the way of the world that we’re always looking for inspiration, that unexpected thought that seems to come like a bolt from the blue. In 10 Ways to Inspire Your Team, Michelle LaBrosse says that Inspiration comes, not from vision and mission statements, but from example and gives some practical primers on how you can inspire your team.

At some time, you’ve probably asked yourself or been asked by others, “what is a project management office? And, depending on the organization, it could mean many different things. Ian Gittens knows that the PMO can have many different titles, with many different functions. In Creating a Successful Project Management Office, he examines the different roles and expectations that term project management office conjures up.

We have a new blogger this month, Ilya Bogorad, who joins David Barrett and Claude Emond with their views on many of the changing issues in our business. We hope you find their comments interesting and food for thought. Also, take a look at our Forums and add your comments to those we’ve received already.

Finally, it remains to wish everybody a successful, prosperous and happy 2008 and to say we hope that this issue of Project Times will inspire you to keep coming back.

Creating a Successful Project Management Office

Written by Cynthia Low on January 3, 2008. Posted in Articles. 4 Comments on Creating a Successful Project Management Office

What is a Project Management Office?

The Project Management Institute (PMI) states that a Project Office may operate on a continuum from providing support functions to project managers in the form of training, software, templates, etc., to actually being responsible for the results of projects. Project Management Office (PMO) is one name used for this business function. Other names include:

Project Office (PO),
Project Control Office (PCO),
Central Project Office (CPO), and
Project Support Office (PSO).

Depending on the organization, the role of the PMO might be to provide an infrastructure for centralized status and budget reporting, providing training and mentoring in project management best practices, creation of methodology templates for use by project managers, and / or completion of projects from inception to benefits realization.

Creating a Successful PMO

ust like building a house, to create a successful PMO, a solid foundation is required. One of the key building blocks for establishing and maintaining a viable PMO is continued executive support. All the templates and methodology in the world will not help you if you can’t get the main sponsors to realize the benefits of a PMO. With this support in place, the PMO can begin to initiate change in the organization.

The next big hurdle is to communicate the PMO mandate beyond the executives. The ability to provide business value and having a clear mandate are two ways to ensure the organization at large understands the importance of the PMO objective. Once this is demonstrated business departments should understand and appreciate what the PMO brings to the table.

Another hurdle to overcome, is removing the control stigma from the PMO. People often associate a PMO with the gathering of status data and providing methodology templates. In some organizations the PMO fulfills an internal audit role for status and budget tracking, this is not an appropriate use of PMO resources. In order to provide the most benefits to the organization, the PMO should be providing the methodology used to measure project manager performance. The actual measurement should be conducted by the organization’s internal audit department, and should not be part of the PMO mandate.

To ensure your PMO is providing value to the organization and the business departments it services, it’s also important to complete projects from inception to benefits realization. Too many PMO departments are guilty of providing only administrative and support functions for project managers. When the budget belt needs to be tightened, if the PMO has demonstrated its value to the organization by completing strategic high- risk projects, it should withstand any organizational restructuring.

One of the PMO responsibilities is to develop the organization’s project methodology, including the project templates. The true measure of a good PMO is whether it can “eat its own cooking”, actually using the templates it creates in PMO managed projects. This way the PMO can get a first hand account of how useful its tools and methodologies are to the organization, and how they can be improved.

The measurement of the benefits realized per project, and how those benefits align to the organization’s strategic objectives, is an important contribution the PMO can make. The focus here is on portfolio management. Do the completed projects contribute to the bottom line? Project benefits should be aligned to the organization’s strategic goals. PMO portfolio management provides the mechanism for evaluation of the overall portfolio health. This will be a key input to executive project prioritization decision- making.

With this foundation in place, a successful PMO can be established and can play a key role in building a successful organization.

Ian Gittens, PMP, is a senior consultant with SPM Group Ltd. specializing in project fulfillment, methodology development, project portfolio management, business process reengineering, change enablement, and the development and implementation of project management infrastructure. Ian has 20 years’ experience in project management, business analysis, and application development, supporting multiple customers such as financial institutions, third party logistics providers, distribution organizations, high-tech manufacturers and retail organizations from APAC, EMEA and the Americas. His past responsibilities have included program management of regulatory and compliance initiatives and enterprise resource planning technology implementations for various business verticals. Ian can be reached at [email protected], or 416-485-1584 X 243

10 Ways to Inspire Your Team

Written by Cynthia Low on January 3, 2008. Posted in Articles. 3 Comments on 10 Ways to Inspire Your Team

Inspire. Just the word itself causes us to pause and think. We may remember our own personal heroes like Martin Luther King or Mother Theresa or a teacher or mentor who brought out the best in us and showed us the power of one person.

It’s easy in business to get cynical when we’re surrounded by what I like to call “faux inspiration.” I’m talking about the corporate posters with motivational sayings that are easy to spoof when the actions of management don’t reflect the glossy images and quotations.

In my experience, inspiration comes from example. As Albert Einstein said: “Example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing.” So, that means we all have the power to inspire others by our actions. As project managers, you’re in a prime position to inspire your team. Here are 10 ways to get you started.

Have a clear goal with a reasonable approach to achieve it

Shooting for stars may work for you when you’re developing your personal goals, but when you’re inspiring a team, people need to be able to clearly see how they are going to get from point A to point B – and believe that it’s possible.
Be enthusiastic about each person’s contributions

Remember how good it felt when a teacher recognized your contribution? You glowed all day and nearly flew home. It costs nothing to tell people how they’re doing. Recognizing what they’re doing well, and also giving ideas on how they can work even better, goes a long way.
Wear your blue hat and leave the black hat at home
You may have played the game where you wear different hats to assume different roles. The black hat starts with the negatives and tells you everything that’s going wrong. This is the person who can kill idea generation in any meeting. When you’re inspiring a team, wear the blue hat. See the possibility and opportunity in every challenge. Begin with what is working and then build on it.
Focus on the strengths of each person

One of the biggest myths in business is to focus on weaknesses instead of building strengths. It’s a backward way to approach problem solving – like fitting the proverbial square peg into the round hole. It’s faster and more effective to focus on the strengths of your team members and develop them. Not only will you see results faster, you’ll also have a happier team because people are doing what they’re good at and contributing at their highest level.
Clear hurdles like a Super Hero
How do you get your team to feel like rock stars? Think like Superman and clear any hurdles that are in their way. When you remove obstacles, you show your team that you’ve got their back.
Get the slackers off the team

Nothing brings down a team like slackers. When people aren’t pulling their weight, it lowers the standards of everyone and makes it seem like quality doesn’t matter. When you remove people who aren’t performing, it improves morale because it shows your team that you’re serious about the best results.
Roll up your sleeves
When you work with the team in the areas where you can contribute, you send a strong message because your actions show that you are part of the team.
Acknowledge people’s contributions every week

Many managers make the mistake of recognizing people once a year. Recognition isn’t a holiday. It should be a regular part of your team dynamic. Take the time every week to tell people how they’ve contributed to the team.
Be the model of accountability you want to drive through your team
If you’re telling people to be accountable while not meeting your own deadlines, it doesn’t take too long for the eyes to roll. Keep your team inspired by keeping your commitments to them and meeting every milestone.
Show and communicate your progress

Don’t make the mistake of doing project updates only at milestones. Communicate the progress of the project every week to make sure you’re on track.

And inside every one of these steps, add one key ingredient: Fun! Whether it’s a quick team-building exercise during a milestone meeting or an inside joke that has come to define your team, give people every reason to laugh out loud and let the sound of laughter inspire your team to be the best they can be.

Michelle LaBrosse is the founder of Cheetah Learning. An international expert on accelerated learning and project management, she has grown Cheetah Learning into the market leader for project management training and professional development. In 2006, The Project Management Institute, www.pmi.org, selected Michelle as one of the 25 Most Influential Women in Project Management in the world, and only one of two women selected from the training and education industry. Michelle is a graduate of the Harvard Business School’s Owner & President Management program for entrepreneurs, and is the author of Cheetah Project Management and Cheetah Negotiations.

A Year of Change for Project Times

Written by Cynthia Low on December 14, 2007. Posted in Articles. 5 Comments on A Year of Change for Project Times

Editor’s Comments

It’s hard to believe that another year is behind us. And what a year it’s been at Project Times. We started out as a quarterly, became a monthly in late spring, and here we are now, coming to you twice a month.

In this issue Chris Vandersluis takes us back to the Cold War in his piece Perk Up for PERT, PERT being an early and successful programmatic approach to project scheduling used in the 50s and early 60s. On a recent visit to Australia, he found PERT alive and well and surmises that it will soon reappear in North America.

Ben Snyder sends us Dispatches from the PM Front Lines with his advice that it makes sense to get back to basics from time to time. He believes it’s especially important when you’re in or near the front lines of the project action. Among other things he discusses the impact of project politics on getting the job done.

Our bloggers are once again offering their take on topical PM subjects. Our discussion forums are ongoing and we hope you’ll contribute.

Finally, we’d like to thank you for joining us during the year and wish you a happy, relaxing and safe holiday. And, of course, a great ’08!

Dispatches from the PM Front Lines

Written by Cynthia Low on December 14, 2007. Posted in Articles. 3 Comments on Dispatches from the PM Front Lines

No matter how long you’ve spent in an industry or profession, it’s never a bad idea to revisit some of the basics you learned at the start of your career. They rarely change very much and they can often help to put things in perspective later on. And it’s no different in project management. One area where this is only too true is coping with project politics in the trenches, right up front, where the action is.

How can you make Project Politics work for you, not against you?

When thinking about the effort behind actualizing project objectives, it’s clear that formal and informal networks must be used to get work done. But it’s no easy feat to get individuals and groups with disparate goals working collectively. It requires patience, organizational awareness, and a broad, deep network of relationships.

For project-driven change to occur it needs cultivated, fertile ground and a deep well of resources. But creating that doesn’t happen overnight. While building relationships, cross-functionality is a great lateral first step to cultivation, it’s the caring and feeding of those relationships that sustain and maximize the effort, and provide a deep well of resources when needed. How does one dig that well, then care for and maintain it so the invaluable resources it contains are available when needed? It starts with creating VALUE.

Visibility. Ask questions; be curious about people; adapt your style to the style of others
Availability. Stop multi-tasking and be present for others
Lead by Example. Do what you say you’re going to do; treat others how you like to be treated
Understanding. Show empathy for constraints; lend a helping hand
Embracement. Create ownership by listening to and incorporating others’ ideas

Can you have more than one Project Sponsor?

The short answer: Yes. The better answer: The best-run projects don’t. Here’s why.

An organization that’s on a quest to run a project on time, on schedule and on budget may not realize the negative impact that having two or more project sponsors (the people that provide financing for the project and have the absolute authority to approve or cancel it) can have on the project. Think meeting time, scheduling nightmares, and decision-making challenges. Next, think overall increased costs to deliver the project due to the increased meetings, the meetings before meetings, and the time it will take to facilitate decisions on key issues across several project sponsors.

So what’s a project manager to do? From the moment you’re assigned a project, start getting your arms around the project structure by putting together a project organizational chart. The chart should clearly identify the names of the stakeholders, project team, project manager and the (one!) project sponsor. It can be used not only to get the project structure defined, but also to clearly identify team member assignments. Organizations succeed more often with a project organizational chart because:

If you don’t put it in a picture it’s hard to see
Until you see the picture with multiple stakeholders, you won’t realize how complicated (or ineffective) your project structure is, or will be
Sometimes it’s as simple as educating the organization on the difference between a sponsor and a stakeholder
You can’t win if you don’t play. Or, if you accept the structure given, you’ll later regret you didn’t try to influence it

How can you get greater Executive Support?

Executives have the ability to help us through project logjams, such as when stakeholders can’t seem to agree. When decisions need to be made, the supportive executive can help navigate the process in a timely fashion, reducing delays that would otherwise paralyze projects. They have the positional power to secure resources and funding, and can articulate the business need driving the project.

But while executives can help to get things quickly back on track when problems arise, it’s important that they be kept in the communication loop throughout the project. At the same time, don’t waste their time with details. Some of the biggest complaints executives have about their project managers include:

“They haven’t talked to me for three months and now they’re looking for more time and money”
“They bury me with details – just give me the headlines”
“They think this is my only job”
“They don’t take ownership of their projects”

So, if you don’t have executive support, you’ve got to ask yourself why not, and what can you do to get it? Consider how you’re communicating with your sponsor. Is the frequency appropriate? How about the level of detail? Should you be using more face-to-face than e-mail? When there are problems, do you bring options and recommendations? Do you know what the sponsor’s priorities are? If you don’t know what keeps your sponsor awake at night, it could be argued that you’re not doing your job.

Use a communication plan to keep people in the loop. Show that you feel the weight of the project and are proactively seeking solutions to problems. Don’t hide behind e-mail. Last but not least, develop a better relationship with your sponsor. Good rapport with your sponsor will pay enormous project dividends.

So get back to project management basics now and again and be surprised at how much you thought you’d forgotten, but really haven’t.

Ben Snyder is the CEO of Systemation, (www.systemation.com), a business analysis and project management training and consulting company that has been training professionals since 1959. Systemation is a results-driven training and consulting company that maximizes the project-related performance of individuals and organizations. Known for instilling highly practical, immediately usable processes and techniques, Systemation has proven to be an innovative agent of business transformation for many government entities and Fortune 1000 companies, including Verizon, Barclays Bank, JPM Chase, Mattel, State of Oregon, Travelers, Bridgestone, Amgen and Whirlpool.