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Author: Lisa Anderson

Start off Your New Year with a Quick Win

Written by Lisa Anderson on . Posted in Articles. 6 Comments on Start off Your New Year with a Quick Win

As we start off the New Year, it often takes a while to get back into the swing of things.  Thus, project results can become delayed or dampened while ramping back up to speed.  Instead, in today’s new normal business environment, where sales are lackluster and cash is tight yet service is paramount, there isn’t a moment to lose on achieving critical project results. 

One of the best ways to accelerate project results is to orchestrate a small, quick win.  A quick win gives the project team a reason to celebrate success and become re-energized on the project objectives.  It reminds the team of where they left off, why the project is important to the executives and company objectives, and it gives the team members a way to kick off the New Year with recognition.

 Undoubtedly, there are countless quick win possibilities for every project team yet achieving them when you need them can be a challenge.  So, what are a few tips to ensure your project team achieves a quick win?  1) Reengage.  2) Ask Questions.  3) Pick a “win”.

  1. Re-engage:  First, you must reengage your project team!  Don’t expect your team to continue where they left off.  Even if they wanted to do this, there have likely been too many distractions over the holidays.  Instead, kick off the New Year by bringing your team together. Reengage with them.  Back up for a few minutes and discuss why the project is valuable.  Recognize each team member for their part of the project success thus far or their key role in the project.  Remind the team of the critical path and where they left off.  And last but not least, reengage as the project leader.
  2. Ask Questions:  It’s surprising how simple it is to ask questions yet this secret to success is often overlooked.  First, find out where you project team stands.  Ask them what they think is most important to ensure success?  Is timing critical?  Resources?  Overlap with other departments or external resources?  Encourage debate and brainstorming.
    Find out which are the most critical upcoming tasks. Why? Is everyone on the same page? If not, why not? Should we incorporate any tweaks given the progress so far?  Ask about potential roadblocks. Listen carefully.
  3. Pick a “win”:  Choose a small, quick win as a project team.  Most importantly, ensure everyone is on the same page.  Ensure everyone has an opportunity for input and feedback. 

Then, develop or clarify a plan to achieve the quick win.  Make sure the leader of each project task understands its importance.  Communicate in advance that a critical path task is coming up.  Encourage teamwork.  Do not dictate; instead, participate. 

Plan to celebrate the win.  Begin promoting the importance of the quick win immediately to key stakeholders and executives.  Your #1 job as project leader is to ensure the quick win is perceived as a quick win!

The power of a small, quick win is incredible – there’s nothing like it to gain momentum.  It isn’t complex, expensive or time consuming yet it can propel your project forward in the New Year.  Why not reengage your project team to plan a quick win immediately?

Don’t forget to leave your comments below.

Would You Like To Close Out The Year With Project Success?

Written by Lisa Anderson on . Posted in Articles. 3 Comments on Would You Like To Close Out The Year With Project Success?

FEATURENov30thfAs we close out the year, wouldn’t it be nice to achieve year-end results with critical projects?  As many companies and leaders get lost in the holidays, it is an opportunity for those who stay focused on the key priorities.  By no means should you forget the holidays and thanking your people for a good year; however, if you channel your efforts on the critical few, you could not only end the year on a positive note but also accelerate project results in time for year-end.

There are several keys to success in delivering project results; however, one simple yet secret weapon is follow-up.  The best plans are useless without follow through and follow-up. I’ve found it quite amazing the number of highly paid, intelligent leaders that do not value or do not make the time to follow-up. Why spend millions of dollars developing plans if you don’t plan to put in the work to make sure they occur?  So what are a few tips to ensure results occur?  1) Plan.  2) Prioritize.  3) Follow-up.

  1. Plan:  First, develop a simple plan.  What needs to be done?  By who?  When?  What support is required?  It doesn’t have to be fancy or use the latest technology (a scrap piece of paper with action items will likely suffice). This will provide the structure for your follow-up.  In my experience across hundreds of projects in multiple industries and geographies, working a simple list is the 80/20 of success
  2. Prioritize:  Prioritize your follow-up. It isn’t necessary to follow-up on everything. If there is one common mistake in today’s new normal business environment, it is getting caught in an endless sea of tasks in a survival mode.  Instead of going down that rabbit hole, think about what’s most important.  What can have the largest impact on your project between now and the end of the year? Next, follow up on only those priority tasks; for example, the critical path or the A priorities.  If you follow up on only the tasks that are key, the people related to those tasks will intuitively realize the implied importance and prioritize accordingly. Additionally, the more you are able to explain why the specific tasks are important, the more the people responsible for the tasks will understand and value them themselves. On the other hand, if you followed up on every task, it would just become a nuisance, and you’d likely be ignored.
  3. Follow up:  Think function & not form. It doesn’t matter whether you follow-up via email, phone, a fancy software or whatever. What matters is that you follow-up. You will achieve the best results if you change your follow-up style to the person you are following up with. For example, if you are following up with someone who reads email voraciously but doesn’t typically talk on the phone, send an urgent email. On the other hand, if you are following up with someone who enjoys talking with people (regardless of whether he/she has email), pick up the phone.

When you follow up, make sure to follow up in advance of the due date on critical tasks and critical path items. This gives the person an opportunity to remember and plan for the task. I’ve found that 99% of the people will complete the task with this type of follow-up, whereas, without the follow-up, I might receive a 50% completion ratio, mainly due to conflicting priorities and busy schedules.

It isn’t complex, expensive or requires capital investment to follow-up, it just requires a bit of energy, yet, it yields significant results. Why not close out the year with your project team celebrating a significant “win”?

Don’t forget to leave your comments below.

How Should We Set Project Goals?

Written by Lisa Anderson on . Posted in Articles. 6 Comments on How Should We Set Project Goals?

FeatureNov2ndAs the headlines on the Wall Street Journal and business magazines are increasingly concerned about the economy in today’s new normal, businesses are re-thinking their business plans and searching for opportunities to increase profitability and cash flow. In my experience, the ones who will be thriving not only in a typical business environment but also in today’s new normal are the ones that put together plans, translate those plans into business, department, individual and project goals, and then execute effectively. Goal-setting is a vital component of this process. 

So, how should we set goals?  There are several keys to effective goal setting:  1) Tie the goals to the business strategy and plan.  2) The goal must be a stretch yet achievable.  3) The goal must be measurable.

  1. Tie the goals to the business strategy and plan – This sounds obvious; however, in my experience, the two do not necessarily seem to relate, or it is unclear how they relate. Each team, department, individual and project team needs to understand how their goals fit in with the big picture – and their value to the business and their team.

There are very few employees who do not care to contribute to the success of the organization. Most would love to understand how their piece of the pie contributes to bottom line results, and it can provide an incredible source of motivation – vastly better than the approach of “do it or be fired” type messages.

For example, when I worked with a company who had to dramatically reduce costs in order to compensate for the increases in oil and gas prices in order to meet their investment bankers’ objectives (and therefore provide value to their customers who were the real motivation of the employees, since many of their customers were people similar to their grandparents or the ‘little old lady next door’), the key to the successful approach was having understandable goals. The employees were not onboard with seemingly investor-specific goals until the leaders tied the goals to the business strategy and customer needs, explained the whys behind the goals, and aligned the goals with the efforts of the project teams.  Then, suddenly, it was in the best interest of the project team to achieve the goals.

  1. The goal must be a stretch yet achievable – In my experience, I’ve seen many examples of obviously unachievable goals communicated. Unfortunately, as soon as the project team, department or employee receives an unachievable goal, motivation is lost.  Often, even worse, it is replaced by fear, which can be quite distracting to making progress towards the goal. For example, when a project team is concerned about negative consequences, they often redirect focus from achieving the goal to how to avoid possible negative consequences. 

Although preferred to a completely unrealistic goal, a relatively easy goal also falls dramatically short of providing an effective tool in driving business results. This can also become common in organizations that have a fear-based culture because the fear of not achieving the goal is overwhelming that it is tempting to sandbag goals. Unfortunately, an easy goal does not provoke brainstorming or teamwork.

On the other hand, when an achievable yet challenging goal is communicated, it can become the ingredient that brings the team together with a common purpose.  And, many times, it results in increased teamwork and motivation.

  1. The goal must be measureable – At the risk of stating the obvious, if the goal is not measurable, how do you know you achieved it? Many times, people struggle and struggle to try to make every goal measurable with numbers. Don’t sweat it – measurable doesn’t have to correlate to numbers. Although numbers are certainly one easy way to measure progress (such as reducing costs by $2 million dollars), not all goals lend themselves to pure numbers. For example, maintaining quality standards while reducing costs is a critical goal. In some respects, it can be measured with numbers (parts per million); however, customer feedback is just fine as well. Take a step back and think about how to measure goals in a way that makes sense for your business.

Setting goals doesn’t cost money; just time, and yet it can result in a significant return on investment for your business, project team or employee. Why not put some thought into how to set project goals?

Don’t forget to leave your comments below.

How do you Implement Lean for Project Management

Written by Lisa Anderson on . Posted in Articles. 8 Comments on How do you Implement Lean for Project Management

FeatureOct19There’s no doubt that there is a vast amount of interest in lean principles.  I’ve had multiple client requests – both ones who are interested in doing the latest and greatest program that they think might be the answer to “all their issues” and those who are interested in implementing culture change.  I find that those clients who view lean as a culture change and are focused on long term fundamentals leapfrog the rest with bottom line results. 

In today’s new normal business environment, sales are lackluster and resources are scarce yet customers expect more for less.  Thus, the traditional avenues to success will no longer yield the same results.   Instead, we must try new approaches and “think smart” to thrive in the new normal business environment.  As project results can be a significant contributor to the bottom line, there is no better time to think about how to succeed in new ways.  Why not incorporate the lean concepts that make sense to project management? 
In my experience as a business consultant, a not-for-profit leader and a former VP of Operations, I’ve found that there are several lean principles which align with project management success.  The top three include the following:  1) Focus on the customer.  2) Eliminate waste.  3) It’s all about the people.

  1. Focus on the customer:  Similar to implementing lean in manufacturing environments, first take a step back and think about the customer.  Who is the customer of your project?  Or, said another way: who will benefit from the project? 

For example, one of my client projects is focused on reducing the past due metric. In this case, the customer connection is obvious – the fewer customer orders which are past due, the better service the customer will receive.  Yet, even in this case, truly understanding what the customers’ value is important.  Would the customers prefer a delivery date that is achievable and reliable or would they prefer a shorter lead time with less reliability?  I’ve yet to work with a client who didn’t have customers who value different aspects of service higher than other customers.  Find out and optimize based upon what each customer values. 

In another example, another client project is to implement an inventory management system.  Who is the customer?  There could be several:  The end customer will likely receive better service with improved inventory accuracy.  The CEO will likely improve profitability as the inventory management processes are optimized.  The CFO will be much better equipped for a financial audit.  And the list goes on.  Although it is helpful to brainstorm all the benefits, it is vital to understand which is of value to your customer.

  1. Eliminate waste:  There is a plethora of waste in project management.  First, look for waste.  Taking a step back, since it’s unlikely we’ll be looking for machine waste in project management, we should think about the best definition.  I like the following – waste is that which doesn’t add value to the customer (and that which the customer is willing to pay for). 

It is interesting how often we become used to waste and don’t see it anymore.  Thus, you need to put on a new pair of glasses to see the waste all around you.  Can you accomplish the project in a fewer number of steps?  Are you following up on every task or focusing attention on the critical path?  What will provide a return on investment?  Are you asking the project team for input and ideas to eliminate waste?

  1. It’s all about the people:  Last but not least, those who succeed with lean initiatives understand that it’s all about the people.  In essence, it is not an event; it is a culture change.  Do you engage your people in the project?  Do you ask for their input?  Do you explain the project scope and its value to the organization?  Do you do what you say you’ll do?  I find this is much harder to do than it sounds yet it is a secret to unleashing your project talent.  In my experience, an exceptional project team with a so-so project will beat a so-so project team with an excellent project every time!

Implementing lean for project management doesn’t require cash, capital or extra resources yet it can ensure that your project is delivered on time, on budget and with dramatic results.  Although it is a good idea anytime, it is a must in today’s new normal business environment.

Don’t forget to leave your comments below.

Value Your Project Team

Written by Lisa Anderson on . Posted in Articles. 3 Comments on Value Your Project Team

In today’s new normal business environment, there is a lack of a robust recovery and fears of a double-dip recession. No more easy sales. No more easy profitability. Instead, it will require more expertise and creativity to thrive in the new normal. Although I’d certainly prefer a better economic environment, much to my excitement, substance has again triumphed over form! Pragmatic is back in style.

Succeeding in today’s business environment will require a well-thought-out and fundamentally different strategy than it’s been in many years. And there has never been a more important time to be assured you’ll deliver project results — every sales revenue dollar and every dollar of profit counts. So, what are the keys to success for the next decade? As always, understanding your customers is bedrock. Without customers, there is no business. Understanding your company’s strengths and unique advantages is another key. Who is best equipped to understand and leverage these advantages? Your people — project leaders and team members.

Undoubtedly, there is a countless amount of material I could discuss on valuing your project team, and so I thought we’d address a few keys to success: 1) Find your stars. 2) Focus on your stars. 3) Be an effective leader.

  1. Find your stars: Your star team members will make the difference between surviving through the next decade and THRIVING. Thus, you must begin by identifying them. Many times, these employees are overlooked — heads down, delivering results, leading projects, etc.

Since they aren’t typically focused on politics, they are likely to be under the radar. And, worse, since they are focused on delivering results, they are likely to bring up uncomfortable topics and ask for tough decisions. Thus, they might not be considered a star — in my experience, leaders tend to think stars are those who are liked, agreeable and hard-working (in terms of hours, not necessarily productivity). In times of easy growth and profitability, it won’t mean the difference between profit and loss; however, it will now.

Look for those leaders and project team members who consistently deliver results. You’ll have to look hard, as they might not have time to promote their results since they are focused on ensuring they occur. Who is not complaining? Typically, when employees complain, we immediately wonder about the person being complained about. Why? The deviation from standard is the person complaining. It’s fascinating how we can chase our tails without considering the facts. Look for informal leaders. If someone has an issue (not a complaint), who do they go to for help?

  1. Focus on your stars: I cannot tell you how often companies make the HUGE mistake of ignoring their star employees. What could be easier to deliver your growth and profitability numbers than leveraging already-existing assets? Why must leaders jump to the conclusion that they can solve “all the company issues” by replacing star leaders and employees? Sound ridiculous? Absolutely; however, it occurs every day. And why do they treat the leaders and employees delivering results poorly? In my experience, it’s because the pragmatic approach to management is uncomfortable.

First, it hasn’t been the typical approach for many years, and so it’s understandable that there is confusion. And beyond that, it requires hard work, commitment and integrity. Unfortunately, there are no shortcuts. For example, instead of focusing on understanding roadblocks, emphasizing results and being an example, isn’t it easier to say, “We need to replace Sally, and that will solve our problem.” After all, is it more comfortable to want to spend time in project meetings with those who will agree with everything you say and appear supportive than those who push back and bring up potential roadblocks?

Those companies who THRIVE during the next decade will be those who not only identify their stars but also focus on them. Find out what they think. Ask for their ideas. Promote them. Appreciate them. Explain how their value contributes to the company’s success. Invest in them. The bottom line: Treat them like your #1 asset.

  1. Be an effective leader: Last but not least, star project leaders and employees crave effective leadership. I could write another 500 pages on effective leadership; however, a few musts include: 1) Establish goals and discuss. Both easy goals and unrealistic goals are not only ineffective but are also a de-motivator. Goal setting isn’t simple but it’s core to success; 2) Provide support, tools and appreciation on an ongoing basis. The hard work begins. These cannot be empty promises with your star employees. You will work harder than ever before to succeed; 3) Continually work together to find opportunities and evolve in a way to ensure success.

My passion surrounds delivering bottom-line results with people. Not only does it NOT require vast cash and capital resources, but people will be your single best vehicle to thriving in the next decade and consistently delivering project results.

Don’t forget to leave your comments below.