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PMTimes_Dec26_2023

Project Scope: A Comprehensive Guide

Written by Suchita Panchal on . Posted in Articles.

Clearly defining scope is the foremost step to completing a project successfully. The project scope outlines the boundaries and objectives of the project, providing a roadmap for project stakeholders to understand what needs to be accomplished, the required resources, and the timeline for completion.

 

This article is a comprehensive guide that will delve into the key aspects of project scope, including its definition, importance, elements, and how to manage scope changes efficiently.

 

What is the Project Scope?

Project scope refers to the specific objectives, deliverables, features, and functions of a project. It defines the boundaries of the project, outlining what is included and what is not. By defining the project scope, project managers can establish a clear understanding of what needs to be achieved, ensuring that all stakeholders are on the same page.

 

Importance of Project Scope:

 

1. Clarity and Direction:

A well-defined project scope provides clarity and direction to the project team, stakeholders, and clients. It ensures that everyone involved in the project understands what needs to be accomplished, reducing confusion and improving collaboration.

2. Resource Management:

Project scope helps in efficient resource allocation. It enables project managers to identify the necessary resources, such as staff, equipment, and budget, required to complete the project successfully. By having a clear scope, project managers can avoid over-allocation or underutilization of resources.

3. Cost and Time Estimation:

Project scope assists in estimating the cost and duration of a project accurately. With a well-defined scope, project managers can identify the tasks, dependencies, and milestones, allowing them to create realistic project schedules and budgets.

4. Risk Mitigation:

The project scope also aids in managing risks effectively. By clearly defining what is included and excluded in the project, potential risks and challenges can be identified early on, allowing project managers to develop appropriate risk mitigation plans.

 

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Elements of Project Scope:

1. Objectives:

Clearly defined project objectives are crucial to the project scope. It is essential to understand what results the project aims to achieve and how it aligns with the overall organizational goals.

2. Deliverables:

The project scope should identify the tangible outputs or deliverables that the project team will produce. These deliverables could be physical products, software, reports, or any other measurable outcome.

3. Boundaries:

The scope must outline the boundaries of the project by specifying what is included and what is excluded. This helps in avoiding scope creep, which refers to the uncontrolled expansion of project boundaries during the project’s execution.

4. Constraints:

Identifying constraints within the project scope is also important. Constraints may include limitations in terms of time, budget, resources, technology, or any other factor that may impact the project’s execution.

 

Managing Scope Changes:

In the course of a project, changes to the scope are inevitable due to various factors such as changes in requirements, stakeholder requests, or unforeseen circumstances. However, managing scope changes is crucial to prevent scope creep and ensure project success.

 

Here are some key steps to effectively manage scope changes:

1. Clearly communicate the change

When a scope change is proposed, it is important to transparently communicate the implications of the change to all stakeholders, including the project team, management, and clients. This ensures that everyone understands the impact of the change and can make informed decisions.

2. Assess the impact:

Project managers along with business analysts must assess the impact of the proposed scope change on the project timeline, budget, and resources. It is crucial to evaluate whether the change can be accommodated without significantly affecting the project’s objectives.

3. Obtain stakeholder agreement:

Before implementing any scope change, obtaining agreement from all relevant stakeholders is essential. This ensures that all parties are aligned with the proposed change and minimizes the chances of misunderstandings or conflicts.

4. Adjust project plan:

If the scope change is approved, the project plan, including the schedule, budget, and resource allocation, must be adjusted as mentioned in the scope document. Project managers should update the project documentation and communicate the changes to the team.

5. Monitor scope changes:

Throughout the project, it is important to monitor and control scope changes continuously. Project managers should regularly review the scope to identify any unauthorized changes and take appropriate actions to prevent scope creep.

In a nutshell, a well-defined project scope is vital for the successful execution of any project. It provides clarity, direction, and a framework for project stakeholders to understand the project objectives, deliverables, and boundaries. By effectively managing scope changes, project managers can ensure that projects stay on track, avoiding scope creep and delivering successful outcomes. Therefore, project managers and business analysts must invest time and effort in developing and maintaining a comprehensive project scope, right from the project’s initiation.

PMTimes_Dec20_2023

Three Attributes of Construction Sector PMs and Nine Important Concepts to Know

Written by Lucas Marshall on . Posted in Articles.

The role of an effective project manager has been studied and observed—scholarly researchers studying the managerial profiles of successful project managers (ref 3) observed common traits including extroversion, rational judging, and structured behaviors, for example. Another study from researchers at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ref 1) found common traits of project managers to include openness to experience, surgency, adjustment, agreeableness, and compositeness.

 

I’ve previously written about how the construction industry needs more software project managers—particularly to address labor shortages (i.e., half a million, the ABC reported) as well as help absorb some of the displaced talent from big tech layoffs, I argued.

But what attributes might those PMs need entering the construction industry, and what are some of the important concepts construction PMs should know?

 

Three Traits that Make an Effective Construction PM

Certainly, the above-mentioned managerial profiles of project managers would be useful to have as a project manager in the construction industry.

If I had to choose just three traits needed of a construction project manager, they would be:

 

1. Adaptability

The construction ecosystem is one that is fragmented and requires a high degree of finesse from its practitioners. For example, did you know that the average home has 22 subcontractors working on it? Research from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB; ref 2) found that builders, on average, employ two dozen different subcontractors and subcontract out 84% of their construction costs in the typical home they build.

 

The job of a project manager, then, is one that requires synchronization of many moving parts and coordination through many more project stakeholders. It’s ever-critical for project managers in the construction sector to understand change management modalities, for when equipped with these, they will be able to dynamically guide customers, stakeholders, and cross-functional project delivery partners through:

  • Project kickoff and discovery to fully understand project scope.
  • Resource allocation, organizational commitments/dependencies (and possibly technical debt) to strategically facilitate project scheduling in a way that is faithful to organizational resources and customer needs.
  • Strong customer relationship management and project planning to ensure a high-quality customer experience while allowing for a dynamic response to (and also limiting the quantity of) change orders requested from customers.

 

2. Business Acumen

Forecasting construction projects properly is a mission-critical task that allows businesses to stay profitable, and it’s also a skill that requires business owners and important collaborators (e.g., project managers) to have great finesse.

A project manager might work in lockstep with a business analyst as well as an inventory manager, for example, to better calculate financial commitments annually through job costing, building financial reporting dashboards as well as project management dashboards, etc.

Seeking educational opportunities (e.g., understanding construction financial management) offered through the Construction Financial Management Association (CFMA) can help project managers strengthen these skillsets.

 

3. Collaboration

As hinted above, construction is a highly collaborative business sector that requires coordination (and cooperation) of a lot of critical cross-functional teams.

Above graphic credit: Fuks et al (ref a) via 4. Polančič (ref 4)

 

The best ways to achieve a higher degree of collaboration with fewer blind spots and information silos include:

  • Adopting cloud-based collaboration tools – Online collaboration (e-collaboration) have been studied by scholarly researchers (ref 4) and prove to deliver a “mutually beneficial relationship between at least two people, groups or organizations, who jointly design ways to work together to achieve related or common goals and who learn with and from each other, sharing responsibility, authority and accountability for achieving results.” Common advantages of cloud-based systems, the researchers highlight, include:
    • Usability – i.e., “SaaS should be easy to use, capable of providing faster and reliable services. User Experience Driven Design aims to maximize the usability, desirability and productivity of the application” (table 1).
    • Efficiency – SaaS, cloud-based solutions allow “computers [… to] be physically located in geographical areas that have access to cheap electricity whilst their computing power can be accessed over the Internet” (table 1).
    • Maintainability – “SaaS shifts the responsibility for developing, testing, and maintaining the software application to the vendor” (table 1).
  • Collaborating with IT and construction technologists to build interoperability of systems (e.g., standardization of change orders, quality control and consistency through the systemization of processes through industrialized construction, standardization of IoT deployment, etc.) as well as the implementation of advanced technology to drive greater real-time visibility and quality assurance (e.g., site-observational drones; robots to automate procedural tasks with a greater degree of consistency, while also removing humans from needlessly dangerous situations, etc.).

 

Nine Important Concepts Every Construction PM Should Know

Now that we’ve covered the common traits that would make a project manager successful in the construction sector, what are some of the important concepts PMs entering the construction industry should know?

 

Here are nine important concepts to know:

 

1. The Five Stages of Project Management

The five stages of project management are equally applicable to the construction industry, which include the following:

  1. Project Initiation – The start of a project, typically including documentation of responsibilities, proposed work, expectations – e.g.,
    1. Project goals
    2. Scope of work
    3. Project organization
    4. Business case
    5. Constraints
    6. Stakeholders
    7. Risks
    8. Project controls
    9. Reporting frameworks
    10. Project initiation signoff
    11. Summary
  2. Project Planning – The high-level planning and scheduling of scoped work via tools like Gantt charts, project management software (e.g., for the construction industry, cloud-based tools like Procore, Contractor Foreman, Autodesk Construction Cloud, Monday Construction, Houzz Pro, etc.). Typical deliverables may include:
    1. Work breakdown structure
    2. Activity network diagram
  3. Project Execution – The completion of scoped work
  4. Project Control – Measures to prevent scope creep (see in next section), cost overruns, etc.
  5. Project Close – The conclusion of the project.

 

2. Scope of Work, Scope Creep, and Scope Management

The scope of work is the documentation in which features and functions of a project, or the required work needed to finish a project, are defined, typically involving a discovery process during which information needed to start a project is gathered (e.g., stakeholder requirements).

Scope creep refers to the continuous and/or expanding work requirements past the project’s original scope, which can happen at any point after the project begins. Scope management is the process of defining and managing the scope of a project to ensure that it stays on track, within budget, and meets the expectations of stakeholders.

 

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3. Lean Project Management

Project managers and project leaders in manufacturing industries may be familiar with lean manufacturing principles – lean construction is an industrialized construction method whereby companies approach the business of building things more effectively and efficiently by minimizing waste and maximizing value for all stakeholders.

 

The approach centers around:

  • Minimizing waste.
  • Reducing expenses.
  • Boosting productivity.
  • Improving quality over time.
  • Increasing value for the customer.

 

Image Source: WikiCommons

Many resources exist for project managers looking to adopt lean construction – e.g., the Lean Construction Institute offers certifications, eLearning, whitepapers, membership, as well as a directory of lean practitioners, while the Lean Construction Blog offers a Lean Academy, conferences, webinars, and its industry-known podcast. Consider, for example, a recent interview I conducted with a Milwaukee Tool continuous improvement leader about lean management and industrialization as one additional resource to get started with IC and lean principles.

 

4. Project Management vs Program Management

Harris & Associates, a civil engineering and construction management company that ranks in Engineering News-Record’s Top 100 Construction, defines project management versus program management (i.e., project manager versus program manager) in the construction industry as follows:

  • Program management/program manager – management of large portfolios encompassing multiple projects on multiple sites (they provide the example of a K12 school district, where the program manager may be responsible for upward of 10 elementary schools, five middle schools, and two high schools).
  • Project management/project manager, meanwhile, will “manage work on one of the schools [… handling] the single project from cradle to grave: pre-design, design process, bid/award, construction and close-out.”

 

5. Project Management Triangle

The project management triangle is a model employed by project managers that dates back to the 1950s and it “contends” the following principles:

  1. The quality of work is constrained by the project’s budget, deadlines, and scope (features).
  2. The project manager can trade between constraints.
  3. Changes in one constraint necessitate changes in others to compensate or quality will suffer.

 

 

Image source: WikiCommons

 

6. Scrum

Project managers from the tech and software development industries may be well familiar to scrum, though its principles are equally useful for contractors. Scrum, simply put, is a framework that helps teams work together while empowering teams to learn through experiences, prioritizes self-organization while working through problems, and encourages ongoing reflection in the constant pursuit of continuous improvement.

 

7. SWOT Analysis

SWOT analysis is a commonly used business tool and acronym for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats, described as a “framework used to evaluate a company’s competitive position and to develop strategic planning.”

 

Image Credit: swot-analyse.net via WikiCommons

 

8. Quality Management

Quality management (aka: total quality management or TQM) is defined as “the act of overseeing all activities and tasks that must be accomplished to maintain a desired level of excellence [… including] the determination of a quality policy, creating and implementing quality planning and assurance, and quality control and quality improvement.”.

Examples of quality management in the construction industry may include procurement managers assuring that materials to be used are not damaged; tools and equipment used to perform work are properly serviced, calibrated, and not out of specification; the right tools to drive the highest degree of quality are employed (e.g., consider, for example, how M18 FUEL™ Controlled Torque Impact Wrenches utilize proprietary sensors and machine learning algorithms to drive greater repeatability for solar installers).

 

9. Servant Leadership

Servant leadership is described as a “leadership style that prioritizes the growth, well-being, and empowerment of employees [… aiming] to foster an inclusive environment that enables everyone in the organization to thrive as their authentic self.” What’s more, Investopedia describes servant leadership as embodying “a decentralized organizational structure.”

The application of servant leadership in the construction industry has been studied by researchers for the SA Journal of Industrial Psychology and findings have “indicated”…

… job resources mediated a positive relationship between servant leadership and work engagement and a negative relationship between servant leadership and burnout. Servant leadership had a positive significant relationship with job resources and significantly explained a proportion of the variance in job resources. Job resources, in turn, significantly explained a proportion of increase in work engagement levels and a proportion of reduction in burnout levels. An insignificant relationship was found between job demands and servant leadership.

 

Final Word

The work of project managers in the construction industry shows great promise and represent continually important roles to maintain scope management, resource allocation, budgets, and schedules as the industry faces strong headwinds. For those entering the industry, your work will be highly valued, and you may find a fruitful career when shifting from more volatile industries. The above construction PM traits and industry concepts are intended to be useful in this transition. For project managers in (or entering) the construction industry, I’ve also prepared a more extensive List of Construction Project Management Terms.

 

References

  1. Henkel, T. G., Haley, G., Bourdeau, D. T., & Marion, J. (2019). An insight to project manager personality traits improving team project outcomes. Graziadio Business Review, 22(2). Retrieved from https://commons.erau.edu/publication/1353
  2. Emrath, E. (2020, 12). Average new home uses 24 different subcontractors [Data set]. National Association of Home Builders. https://www.nahb.org/-/media/NAHB/news-and-economics/docs/housing-economics-plus/special-studies/2020/special-study-average-new-home-uses-24-different-subcontractors.pdf
  3. Montequin, V.R, Nieto, A.G., Ortega, F, and Villanueva, J. (2015). Managerial style profiles of successful project managers: A Survey. Procedia Computer Science 64, 55-62, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.procs.2015.08.463
  4. Polančič, G., Jošt, G., and Hericko, M (2015, 02). An experimental investigation comparing individual and collaborative work productivity when using desktop and cloud modeling tools. Empirical Software Engineering 20(1), http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10664-013-9280-x
  5. Fuks, H., Raposo, A., Aurelio Gerosa, M., and Lucena, C. (2005, 06). Applying the 3C model to groupware development. International Journal of Cooperative Information Systems 14(2):0218-8430, http://dx.doi.org/10.1142/S0218843005001171

 

PMTimes_Dec13_2023

5 Powerful Benefits of Capacity Planning in Professional Services Organizations

Written by Mahendra Gupta on . Posted in Articles.

Finding it difficult to mitigate skill shortages in your professional service firms?

Are you constantly struggling with frequent hiring/firing cycles?

Is a pertinent mismatch of skills affecting most of your projects?

 

If yes, then it’s high time for your organization to create an efficient resource capacity planning framework. It is key to bridging these skill gaps proactively and ensuring the availability of best-fit consultants for the right projects at the right time. This also enables managers to utilize the professionals effectively and ensure successful project delivery.

This informative article explains how SAVIOM’s ERM tool helps in effective capacity planning in professional service organizations.

But first, let’s understand the consequences of poor capacity planning.

 

Consequences of poor capacity planning in Professional Service Firms

When professional service firms lack visibility into skill requirements for pipeline projects, they find it difficult to initiate proper resource procurement measures to meet the demands. As a result, it leads to last-minute firefighting and costly recruitment practices, impacting the firm’s financial performance.

Moreover, ineffective capacity planning can lead to the under/over-allocation of consultants to projects. This can result in poor deliverable quality, cause cost/schedule overruns, and affect customer retention.

Furthermore, when managers lack foresight into future skill needs and are unable to estimate the number of resources needed, it leads to unnecessary hiring. However, once the assignment is complete, these excess resources are no longer required, forcing PSOs to terminate them. It gives rise to frequent hiring/firing cycles, hampering the company’s reputation.

The lack of real-time visibility into the workforce’s schedules prevents managers from anticipating the release of resources from ongoing projects, leading to an increase in the bench size. Consequently, when these benched employees cannot be efficiently engaged, it triggers disengagement and unplanned attrition.

Given the adverse consequences of inadequate planning, the following section delineates effective strategies to proactively address these challenges.

 

How does effective capacity planning benefit professional services firms?

A proper capacity planning process is significant for service-based firms in multiple ways.

 

Let’s see how:

1. Provides foresight into pipeline consultancy projects

When consulting managers are unable to assess skill demands in advance, they resort to reactive resourcing measures. This results in an excess or shortage of consultants in the PSO. An effective capacity planning process helps managers gain foresight into the pipeline project demands and determine the skill gaps ahead of time.

They can then take appropriate decisions to bridge the gap. If there is a consultant shortage, managers can implement an out rotation and backfill strategy or initiate training programs. Further, they can go for planned hiring and create the right blend of permanent/contingent workforce. Contrarily, to address resource excess, they can bring forward project timelines, redistribute the extra capacity among other projects, or sell them at discounted charge-out rates.

 

2. Enhances billable utilization of consultants

PSOs frequently struggle to achieve optimal utilization rates for every professional, decreasing overall efficiency. When consultants are underutilized, it negatively impacts their motivation and commitment, consequently affecting their productivity. Conversely, overutilization leads to burnout and stress, compromising the service quality.

Efficient capacity planning enables managers to anticipate and manage consultants’ utilization. This allows them to implement various strategies, such as resource smoothing and leveling to ensure uniform workload distribution. Moreover, managers can mobilize the consultants from non-billable to revenue-generating work, enhancing their billability. It helps improve the overall productivity of consultants, resulting in increased profitability.

 

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3. Facilitates diversification of consultants’ skills

In today’s hyper-competitive business environment, PSOs heavily rely on their workforce’s expertise for continued success and expansion. Thus, maintaining a proficient and skilled pool of consultants is crucial. Moreover, fostering new skill sets becomes imperative when a company aims to explore new business domains to drive revenue growth.

A proper capacity planning framework provides detailed insights into the skill sets necessary for new service areas or projects. This enables managers to identify existing skill gaps and implement upskilling/training programs as per requirement. In addition, they can also initiate on-the-job training and shadowing opportunities to help consultants gain hands-on experience. This helps create a talent pool with diversified skills and expertise.

 

4. Helps in effective bench management

In a firm, projects usually experience sudden ramp-down activities once they reach the maintenance/closure stage. The lack of visibility into the resource ramp-down makes it challenging for managers to identify consultants who will land on the bench. As a result, it increases the bench size, which leads to escalated overhead costs and reduced billability.

An effective capacity planning process helps managers identify the resources that will be released in advance and assign them to suitable projects accordingly. In addition, the benched consultants whose skills partially match project vacancies can be given on-the-job training or shadowing opportunities. This way, organizations can effectively maintain the billability of benched resources and reduce the hiring/ firing cycles as well.

 

5. Ensures project delivery within time and budget

Inadequate capacity planning poses challenges for the delivery team in securing appropriately skilled personnel, potentially necessitating last-minute wrongful hiring. This leads to skill mismatches or the onboarding of costly consultants. Consequently, it can compromise the quality of deliverables and cause budget overruns, resulting in client dissatisfaction.

Effective capacity planning empowers the delivery department to evaluate the skills required for project deliverables ahead of time. This helps managers make proactive decisions, such as hiring or implementing training/development programs. Further, they can use the out-rotation and backfill strategy to ensure the availability of niche-skilled resources for the project initiation. This enhances the firm’s ability to deliver projects within designated timelines and budgets, increasing profitability.

Given the benefits of capacity planning, the next section explains how a resource management solution can come in handy.

 

How can modern resource management software help?

Saviom’s advanced resource management tool helps managers create an efficient capacity planning process for professional services firms and reap the benefits.

It facilitates 360-degree visibility of all resources and their attributes, such as skills, experience, capacity, availability, etc. This allows managers to find the best-suited resource with the right skills for the projects.

Further, the tool’s multidimensional forecasting capabilities and capacity-vs-demand report help foresee and fill skill gaps proactively through appropriate internal and external channels. It, thus, reduces the last-minute resourcing hassle.

Moreover, in a resource-constrained environment, managers can leverage modeling and simulation techniques. The what-if analysis functionality helps create and compare various scenarios by changing metrics such as availability, cost rate, etc. Therefore, it allows them to determine and implement the most feasible outcome on the actual plan.

 

Final Thoughts

Capacity planning is pivotal for managing the workforce within professional service firms. It serves the crucial purpose of detecting and reconciling disparities between workforce availability and demand, guaranteeing timely project deliveries within budgetary constraints.

For this, professional services firms can adopt an advanced resource management solution that will help them create a future-ready workforce, thereby ensuring profitability and sustainability.

 

 

PMTimes_Dec6_2023

Psychological Safety and Accountability for Performance Management

Written by George Pitagorsky on . Posted in Articles.

Reading an article, “The Downside of Psychological Safety in the Workplace“[1], I am reminded of the need for clear thinking when it comes to applying any philosophy, particularly in the area of psychology and performance at work.

Albert Einstein advised us to make everything “as simple as possible, but not simpler.”

 

It is easy to take a clever idea and ruin it by mindlessly applying it as if it was the miracle cure for every situation. Avoid seeking simple solutions to complex problems. We see it operating in the application of agile management, positivity, candid communications, as well as psychological safety. When we apply a belief or theory without considering and adapting to the situation at hand, we risk making things worse instead of better.

 

Psychological Safety

Psychological safety is a good idea. It focuses on freedom from shame and fear of punishment. Proponents of psychological safety believe that this safety correlates with high performance.

How bad could being psychologically safe and high performance be?

 

But, over simplifying can lead to a belief that any kind of discipline or negative criticism is psychologically harmful and degrades performance.

The article mentioned earlier was co-authored by Wharton’s Peter Cappelli.  It says that “Too much psychological safety at work can jeopardize performance in typical jobs, according to new research.”

The research implies that people in typical jobs, as opposed to creative or innovative jobs, need less psychological safety. Too much safety, and workers will slack off and their performance will suffer.

Are people in “typical” jobs more likely to perform well if they are in fear of being punished or shamed? Are they lazier, less motivated, more deserving of psychological abuse than creative problem solvers, designers, and other creativity workers? Are creative workers immune to the downside of too much safety?

 

I do not think so.

 

What are Typical Jobs?

First, it is necessary to define “typical” when it comes to jobs. Among the most common jobs are nurse, service representative, cashier, and server. And of course, there are project manager, software developer, and all the other jobs found in projects.

Creativity and innovation are not limited to jobs in R&D or design, where there is a need to risk being wrong to get it right.

Jobs in other fields may be best done with repetitive application of accepted tools and techniques, but there is always some need for creativity. Even AI based robots must be taught to assess the situation before applying a solution. It is a think out of the box, when necessary, attitude.

In Toyota’s quality management system, assembly line workers were expected to stop the line if they saw a problem. Fear of making a mistake would inhibit workers from taking the initiative to stop the line. Fear would stop workers from creatively adapting instead of following the rules.

 

Goals Drive Performance

High quality performance is critical to success. Performance is optimized by focusing on both short-term goals like getting the task done right, and long-term goals like continuously improving process and wellness.

Optimal performance can be achieved without shame or fear of making errors by working to “perfect” process and outcome using a quality management mindset.

Some errors or defects are expected. That is why Six Sigma is not Infinite Sigma. When they appear, errors are seen as learning opportunities to discover the cause and avoid it next time. Systemic causes are explored before blaming performers.

But that does not mean there is no accountability for poor performance. If a performer continually makes errors and fails to take responsibility for their performance, discipline is required. Without it, morale and team performance suffer.

 

Too Much of a Good Thing

So, it makes sense to include psychological safety and accountability in performance management. Psychological safety is meant to relieve any kind of worker of the unnecessary and damaging effects of negative motivation. Accountability is making sure that causes of performance deficiency are discovered and acknowledged.

Psychological safety, like any psychological-behavioral-management-leadership approach, should not be taken as standalone truth. It must be applied based on each situation, integrated into a broader program that values personal, organizational, environmental wellness and optimal performance.

 

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Accountability is Needed

Accountability is often misunderstood. It would be ideal if everyone understood the need for it, had a great work ethic, wasn’t afraid of criticism, and everyone’s performance, the organization was accepted and accepting.

 

Accountability is not Blaming

But the ideal is not the norm and even if it was there is still a need for accountability.

Accountability is not blame. It is bringing performance to the surface to identify the causes of performance quality – whether it is good or bad. It is great to be held accountable for stellar behavior and not so great to be held accountable for errors and failures.

Whenever there is accountability, some individuals will be afraid and view consequences as punishment. They may perceive management as a bunch of mean overseers ready to criticize and punish.

There is an internal psychological dynamic at work. Some fear being fired. Some have an internal judge criticizing any imperfection with an unrealistic sense of perfection. Some in leadership positions lack empathy and misread resistance to accountability as laziness. Some blame when they find someone accountable.

Fear is generated from the inside, even when there is no external threat. Recognizing the psychological dynamic enables individuals to be self- reflective and put their inner critique in its right place. Their recognition gives management and leadership the ability to be empathetic and more effective in managing performance.

 

How to Go Forward

When it comes to managing performance, consider both psychological safety and sustained effective performance and continuous improvement.

Safety and accountability are not mutually exclusive. In fact, they go together to promote wellness, process quality, and sustainable high performance.

Psychological safety is promoted by a program of training and sustained reinforcement for managers and staff on what makes for the best way to handle accountability.

That kind of program confronts the causes of blaming and resistance to accountability, psychological dynamics around fear of criticism, methods for objective accountability, and the need for a quality management process that seeks sustained optimal performance.

 

[1] https://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/the-downside-of-psychological-safety-in-the-workplace/?utm_campaign=KatW2023&utm_medium=email&utm_source=kw_campaign_monitor&utm_term=11-22-2023&utm_content=The_Downside_of_Psychological_Safety_in_the_Workplace

 

PMTimes_Nov29_2023

How Project Managers May Help Address Construction’s $30-$40B Productivity Problem

Written by Lucas Marshall on . Posted in Articles.

Productivity has been in steady decline—CNBC reported a few months ago, for example, that the U.S. had experienced five consecutive quarters of year-over-year declines in worker productivity. Last year, worker productivity was falling at the fastest rate in four decades.

Productivity in construction is an even harsher reality, the industry faced with skilled labor shortages and a recent FMI Corp report that showed productivity is a $30 billion to $40 billion annual problem, affected by planning, communication, and collaboration 3 in 4 times.

 

In this article, I discuss how, in the construction industry that faces labor shortages topping half a million, the role of the project manager is ever-critical in empowering the team to work more collaboratively, heed strict quality assurance requirements, and achieve greater productivity outcomes onsite to, correspondingly, drive better customer outcomes.

 

The Role of Project Management in Construction Projects

Studies show “an extremely strong correlation between the Project Manager and the success of the construction projects” (ref 1). What’s more, project managers with high emotional intelligence have been shown to be a catalyst for empowering team cohesion and effectiveness (ref 4), particularly with the soft skills to navigate teams through change management – a key competency that successful project managers in the construction industry possess, according to a systematic industry literature review (ref. a).

The role of a construction project manager is a multifaceted one, its duties perhaps described as a myriad of spinning plates, routinely responsible for example (ref. 3) –

  • Project cost estimating
  • Project planning
  • Production planning
  • Resource management
  • Scheduling

 

Project managers in construction are able to address these myriad challenges through agile methodologies to drive greater flexibility, correspondingly higher productivity outcomes onsite, and an integrated approach is of particular use to facilitate greater cross-functional collaboration.

 

Integrated Project Management

Experts recommend companies employ an “integrated” construction project management approach (ref 2); project managers in construction have a wider scope than the traditional time-cost-quality project management triangle, needing to address, for example, critical factors like “sustainability, health and safety, ethical requirements, social responsibility and security.”

Authors view “integration” as a “keyword” of project management in construction, with the “project managers of tomorrow [requiring] new competencies and new ways of working that embrace technology and communications” (ref 2). The authors stress the importance of “Integrating the different and fragmented process in the supply chain and with the design team.”

Ways project managers can integrate project systems and workflows to drive greater transparency, real-time data sharing, and correspondingly higher productivity outcomes onsite include:

 

Materials and Inventory

Integrating project management with materials and inventory management systems ensures project teams onsite get what they need onsite when it’s needed, that materials are appropriate (i.e., not damaged), so they can perform work on schedule.

A synchronization between project and inventory management platforms not only helps declutter and decrease outdated project data as changes are made in real-time, but also helps project managers better oversee projects with relevant alerts that:

  • Better predict stocking needs and help the team assess how they might acquire safety stock to prevent stockouts
  • Provide access to pertinent job costing information, helping project managers better forecast and improve accounting across companies’ operations; they can also work with inventory managers overseeing equipment rentals to drive better profitability and ongoing maintenance.

 

When coupled with other proper inventory strategies (e.g., inventory tracking and kitting) and other IoT solutions, project managers can work in tandem with inventory managers to better account for inventory through its lifecycle.

 

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Safety

Project managers can work with safety managers to develop safety metrics (e.g., hazard identification and assessment; hazard prevention and control; program evaluation and improvement) that ensure onsite workers are managing their own risk and abiding by site rules. Safety is a team sport, hence why the team needs to keep each other safe, which will also help drive greater quality assurance targets.

What’s more, project managers can work with inventory and procurement (as discussed above) as well as construction technology teams to implement emerging technologies to support greater safety outcomes: e.g., robots to automate needlessly hazardous installations, newer-generation drills and impacts that prevent against kickback events, drones to perform overhead safety checks, etc.

 

Project Design

An integration between project management and design (e.g., architecture, CAD, and BIM) can help drive better quality assurance, ensuring not only scoped design plans are properly installed, but also that design-related problems (and ensuing rework) are mitigated.

According to Dodge Data & Analytics, 61% report BIM processes reduced project error. In the hands of a project manager, BIM data is powerful; what’s more, integrations with smart tools can help ensure project managers and the design team alike are getting application-specific reporting so they can verify not only that designs are accurate, but also that critical fasteners were installed to manufacturer specifications.

 

Sustainability

Platforms like Green Badger are purpose-built to measure, benchmark, and report on environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) metrics, helping project managers report to business owners data on carbon, waste, water, and energy data, how projects are completed to company sustainability targets, etc.

 

Bottom Line

As the construction industry combats with a labor shortage that has topped half a million, it’s no surprise that productivity issues on sites nationwide cost the industry between $30 and $40 billion annually. All this to say, the job of the construction project manager is of prevailing importance, helping companies negotiate complicated projects and workflows and empowering cross-functional teams to be more productive with continually shrinking resources. An integrated construction project management approach is the way forward to driving the productivity needle back in the right direction, improving company top and bottom lines, and improving the industry outlook as it looks to build the green infrastructure projects necessary for our planet’s continued existence.

 

References

  1. Abdulsamad Ali, M. and Chileshe, N. (2009). The influence of the project manager on the success of the construction project [Paper presentation]. 6th International Conference on Construction Project Management (ICCPM) / 3rd International Conference on Construction Engineering and Management (ICCEM) Global Convergence in Construction, Jeju, Korea. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/265689336_The_influence_of_the_project_manager_on_the_success_of_the_construction_project
  2. Fewings, P. and Henjewele, C. (2019). Construction Project Management: An Integrated Approach. (3rd Edition). Routledge Taylor & Francis Group.
  3. Sears, S., Sears, G., and Clough, R. (2008). Construction Project Management: A Practical Guide to Field Construction. (5th Edition). John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
  4. Zhang, Q. and Hao, S. (2022, 04). Construction project manager’s emotional intelligence and team effectiveness: The mediating role of team cohesion and the moderating effect of time. Frontiers in Psychology 13 https://doi.org/10.3389%2Ffpsyg.2022.845791
    1. Oliveros, J. and Vaz-Serra, P. (2018). Construction Project manager skills: A systematic literature review. In P. Rajagopalan and M.M Andamon (Eds.), Engaging Architectural Science: Meeting the Challenges of Higher Density: 52nd International Conference of the Architectural Science Association (pp.185–192). The Architectural Science Association and RMIT University, Australia.