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Tag: Stakeholder

PMTimes_Aug9_2023

Five Ways Construction Companies Can Avoid “Technical Debt”

This article was cowritten by Lucas Marshall and Robert LaCosse of Milwaukee Tool.

 

Construction companies know the importance of integrating their systems (e.g., 85.1% of owners viewed mobile integrations as a “very important” or “important” priority in the 2021 ConTech Report). Yet, full-system integration remains an industry challenge – a global KPMG study revealed that a measly 16% of executives surveyed reported their organizations have fully integrated systems and tools.

 

In early 2023, 40% of SMBs in the construction industry stated they’d be looking to upgrade their software in the next 12 months.

When deploying any software system, you run the risk of accruing technical debta term that commonly fits into the vernacular of software developers and represents the #1 biggest threats according to 69% of business leaders.

 

An academic study revealed that 75% of technical debt instances originate from clunky legacy software systems. Many construction companies on legacy software systems may find themselves in a catch-22: Addressing the technical debt of their legacy system or facing downtime to deploy and learn a more cloud-friendly, adaptable solution.

In this article, we define what tech debt might look like at a construction company and offer five ways to avoid it or put solutions toward it.

 

What Is Technical Debt?

In short, technical debt refers to the dependencies one introduces when deploying new software and hardware solutions.

A dependency may be one system not communicating with another, or perhaps an accumulation of software bugs that make a software interface sluggish and hard to use.

Technical debt, like financial debt that can lead a person to bankruptcy if left to accumulate, poses a significant business risk; growing technical debt, that is, refers to the cascading effect that happens when these dependencies, ignored, exponentially propagate and become insurmountable, involving massive operational costs to fully resolve.

 

Examples of a Construction Company’s Tech Debt

  • Mobile apps not integrating with construction ERPs
  • Single-application heritage systems running on outdated hardware
  • Time needed to learn new software
  • Discovery time needed to perform security risk assessments of new system

 

Five Ways to Avoid Tech Debt

Now that we’ve established what technical debt may mean to a construction company, here are five ways to avoid tech debt from accumulating:

 

1. Embrace a Culture of Collaboration over Isolation: Rituals, Governance, and Retrospectives

A retrospective is a classic practice in Agile software development where teams reflect on recently completed work and, through these rituals, the team gets more efficient and collaboration yields greater productivity over time.

 

Planning Poker

Planning poker is a conversational tool that exists online and physically – it’s a great tool for facilitating critical discussion. It centers on the reality that if you want to avoid technical debt – which can emerge from complexities not commonly understood by all stakeholders – you need to implement a process whereby all stakeholders, or more importantly all disciplines, have the ability to voice what they believe or know to be benefits and threats of any implementation.

“Collaboration” Apps and Systems

A joint-Autodesk/FMI study revealed that construction has some work to do in terms of collaboration:

  • 60% of general contractors see problems with coordination and communication between project team members and issues with the quality of contract documents as the key contributors to decreased labor productivity.
  • 68% of trades point to poor schedule management as the key contributors to decreased labor productivity.
  • 9% of construction industry professionals say that the top reason for miscommunication is unresponsiveness to questions/requests.

 

Construction companies can address these collaboration pitfalls by: Adopting cloud-based productivity apps and encouraging company-wide usage. Conveniently accessible communication apps like Slack can empower back-office workers as well as those in the field to communicate with each other more seamlessly, while powerful project management apps like Procore can help construction managers oversee full-lifecycle projects onsite. We’ve built our tool management app with workflows in mind – allowing, for example, tool managers to text or email team members from their smartphone contacts list without leaving the app. It’s of course important to stress, though, a collaboration platform, no matter how powerful, can’t empower its users unless they actually commit to using it together! Our advice: Pick an app and integrate it with other teams’ apps and systems (see in our next section about integrations) to avoid information silos.

 

2. Hire a Dedicated Software Engineer, Technologist, or CTO

A construction technologist is an important, emerging role within an organization that oversees a company’s construction technology program—responsible for researching and piloting advanced technology (see in next section).

 

True, labor shortages in the construction industry are staggering, though the US construction market is expected to continue to grow. Mass layoffs in the tech industry present a unique opportunity to absorb the tech industry’s displaced software engineering talent to help address the industry’s productivity challenges:

 

  • Addressing Technical Debt – In lieu of three months downtime to fully port over one system for another, software engineering expertise can guide a company in taking a portion of a larger software ecosystem offline at a time and replacing it with a part, but there are complexities and hairiness to that, which will require nuanced expertise.
  • Integrations – Building connectors between project management and an ERP, connecting specialty design to prefab, BIM and asset management, etc., to limit manual reentry of project information, remove data silos, and better connect the flow of project data between your teams’ various software systems and apps.
  • Open APIs – Open APIs allow software providers to empower your company’s technical team; in the event an integration doesn’t exist, technologists have the tools to build a custom solution in the short-term.

 

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3. Embrace Technology

It may sound counterintuitive—to attack technical obstacles by introducing more technology, especially when 42% didn’t have a budget for IT (according to the same ConTech report). But successful pilot programs and onboarding can empower contractors and business owners to deploy technology in a meaningful, outcomes-driven way:

 

  • BIM – Building information modeling, the digital tools of trade that architects, engineers, and contractors use to create unified, collaborative, multi-dimensional representations of built environments and infrastructure can mitigate risk and shorten project timelines by 50%, according to a scientific case study.
  • Industrialized Construction is not so much a technology as a complete redefinition of construction processes in favor of “productization” over one-off projects that improves quality, consistency, and value for customers. It takes advantage of multiple approaches, such as:
    • Offsite construction – both prefabrication and modular prefabrication – which moves preassembly of certain components to an offsite, manufacturing-style facility, and which has proven to increase project timeliness by 50% while reducing waste by 20%.
    • 3D Printing – 3D printing (aka: additive manufacturing) offer rapid design freedom and speed of delivery, delivering a 10-house community in China in a single day, for example. Respondents surveyed about their use of 3D printers reported the following benefits they viewed as most important: Ability to create complex geometrical objects, 69%; Value of quick iteration of products, 52%; Mass customization abilities, 41%.
  • Drones – Drones can be used ahead of breaking ground on projects in land surveying just as they can be used to provide real-time project reality capture.
  • Robots – Robots can be used to automate procedural tasks to free skilled trades to tend to tasks that require a higher degree of human intelligence; they can also keep workers out of harm’s way by automating dangerous tasks.
  • Smart Tools – Smart power tools can deliver installations faster and safer, using advanced technology like machine learning to protect operators against dangerous kickback events. Advanced software/hardware interaction can be used to dial in precision settings for application-specific repeatability, utilization data from events performed on tools in the field can be packaged up in a fully customizable reporting suite to provide proof-of-work documentation to customers, building inspectors, and stakeholders.
  • Generative AI – It may be a faux pas in certain circles, but exploring realistic ways in which generative AI may fit into construction workflows (e.g., assisting project managers, inventory managers, construction safety trainers, etc.) is critical as the industry looks to execute on growing backlogs.

 

4. Lean Construction

Just as agile software seeks to improve quality over time, lean construction is an approach to the business of building things that aims to minimize waste and maximize value for all stakeholders by reducing waste commonly encountered on construction sites such as:

 

  • Excessive material handling
  • Rework
  • Design errors
  • Conflicts between trades
  • Conflicts between other contractors
  • Ineffective supply chains

 

5. Digital Twins and IoT

Digital twin technology seeks to mirror real systems and drive smarter, predictive analytics with real-time sensor data through machine learning and artificial intelligence – and it’s helped reduce rework in manufacturing by 15-20%.

Digital twins aggerate data through related IoT sensors that can be used in construction to keep track of tools and equipment in real-time across various jobsites as well as drive safer, smarter installations.

McKinsey some six years ago predicted the rise of IoT devices to empower companies to monitor and repair equipment in real-time through automated alerts for preventive maintenance, inventory management and ordering, quality assessment (i.e., “smart structures”), energy efficiency, and safety.

Today, many of those predictions have come true; with the launch of Apple’s Vision Pro recently, renewed discussion in the construction wearable space, for example, is worth having to enhance safety training.

 

Bottom Line

The construction industry, strapped for talent (both skilled trades and engineering), is rife with opportunities for technical debt – however, there’s a myriad of tools at a business owner or technologist’s disposal to prevent technical debt from getting out of hand.

 

We recommend:

  1. Collaboration and ownership through project retrospectives
  2. Hiring a Dedicated Software Engineer, Technologist, or CTO – perhaps displaced talent from the technology sector
  3. Embracing advanced technology
  4. Embracing lean construction principles
  5. Supercharging your data analytics via digital twins and IoT

 


Robert LaCosse is a User Experience strategist with over 10 years of experience improving user experiences for major companies like Intel and Razorfish. At Milwaukee Tool, he is a leader in the UX Research discipline, responsible for ritualizing user research practices for One-Key software products. He also serves as a UX mentor and adjunct professor of computer science at Clark College in Washington state.

PMTimes_Aug1_2023

Engagement Management: A Key to Successful Projects

If you are experiencing unproductive disagreements, dissatisfied stakeholders, finger pointing, and misunderstood roles and responsibilities, look to your engagement management (EM) process.

 

All projects are engagements among project managers, performers, clients, sponsors, functional managers, and “customer care” people in sales and support roles. Whether you are in an organization providing contracted services or you are managing in-house projects with clients in your same organization, if you manage a project without managing the engagement, you are likely to fail to satisfy stakeholders, even if your project achieves its objectives.

 

This article describes engagement management and the critical importance of collaboration and the clarity of roles, responsibilities and objectives to ensure that stakeholders are satisfied:

  • Clients are satisfied because their expectations are met – what you promised, what they bought, what they need, and what you deliver match up.
  • Sponsors are satisfied because there is value to the organization, desired benefits are realized at an acceptable and expected cost
  • Performers and managers are satisfied when they are not overburdened by impossible demands, unnecessary bureaucracy, unhealthy relationships, and poor working conditions
  • Regulators, accountants, attorneys, procurement specialists are satisfied when their views are respected and rules, protocols, and regulations are followed

 

The Engagement Management Process

Wise service industry organizations formally recognize the engagement management process with pre-sales, sales, performance (projects and services), relationship management, and support functions as part of an overall engagement.

 

For example, a typical service organization has the following functions involved in each engagement

  • sales and marketing to attract and ‘close’ clients
  • engagement management to oversee and coordinate
  • delivery to manage and perform projects
  • functional managers and staff to provide resources and expertise
  • procurement to find vendors, negotiate, and manage contracts
  • legal to make sure that contracts are clear, valid, and satisfy needs of the parties
  • quality management to make sure what is delivered is acceptable
  • customer service to manage the relationship, maintain communications, and provide support,  before, during and after the project
  • administration and finance for accounting, billing, reporting and other services.

 

Roles and Responsibilities

Roles and responsibility assignments vary depending on organization structure and the relationship between the client and the providers. The structure and degree of formality of the process depends on the stakeholders’ legal relationship. If they are in separate corporations, procurement, accounting, and legal issues must be formal and precise to avoid unnecessary conflict and better manage the conflict that does arise.

 

When the providers are in-house, there is a similar need for clear understanding among the stakeholders. Though, since there are no legal requirements, it takes greater discipline to follow best practice standards that manage disagreements and unmet expectations. Legal and procurement professionals may have no involvement but someone (the PM, a PMO, or a quality management group) needs to make sure that agreements are clearly documented, and decisions are made with objectivity.

Whether in-house or not, a project manager (PM) may play multiple roles. For example, sometimes the PM provides customer support and sometimes business analysts, salespeople, or customer service specialists play this role. Sometimes the PM is the engagement manager.

 

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The Engagement Manager

Everyone should be clear about who is doing what, who has final authority, what reporting is required, and how decisions will be made – majority, consensus, authority.

Holding the engagement together is an engagement manager, who may be managing a portfolio of accounts with multiple projects and is responsible for making sure the clients are happy and the contributors to the engagement are playing together nicely.

 

Whether the client and provider are in the same organization or not, there is a similar need for attracting and closing realistic deals, establishing and performing a project, maintaining healthy stakeholder relations, and following up with support.

The Engagement manager makes sure all engagement functions are assigned, coordinated, and well performed, and that the expectations of all parties, including performers and executive sponsors in both provider and client organizations are managed.

 

The Sales Role

The sales role is as important when the project is in-house as it is in vendor situations.  Though in-house engagements often fail to recognize the need for a sales role.  Some of the in-house sales work, performed by “champions,” evangelists, or advocates, may be to promote project ideas and “sell” sponsors and clients on an in-house solution over vendor alternatives.

The sales function often leads when it comes to setting client and sponsor expectations and pricing, though these must be influenced by project constraints and costs.

 

Effective engagement management (EM) avoids a disconnect between the people who set client expectations (sales)and the project and support people charged with delivering the results. A well-defined EM process will ensure input from delivery and a decision by engagement management or sponsors as to the final deal. Salespeople are most effective for the organization when they are compensated based on the profitability of their sales.

Consultative selling ensures that both the client and provider understand the client’s needs. Collaborative selling involves delivery experts in the process of defining and pricing the work.

 

What You Can Do

Engagement management is both necessary and complex. If you are experiencing dissatisfied stakeholders and lots of useless and avoidable conflicts, it is likely that your engagement management process needs to be assessed and improved.

The first question to ask is “Do we have a defined process?” There is always a process, but if it isn’t defined, roles and responsibilities are likely to be unclear and some functions may not be performed well or at all.

 

For example, if customer service and engagement management functions are not identified and assigned, responsibility defaults to the PM. If the PM is aware of the needs and has the necessary competency, all will be well. But if the PM expects someone else to handle the relationships and accountabilities, and no one picks up the work, there will be trouble – arguments, dissatisfaction, etc.

To avoid trouble, whether you are part of a contractor firm or an in-house service department, step back, assess and define your process. You can do this for a single project, but it is better if it is done on a broader scale. It requires involvement and buy-in from all the stakeholders in the sales, customer service, and performance organization.

 

Related articles
Improving Project and Engagement Management Performance
Vision and Systems View to Improve Performance
The Challenge Of PM In Engagement Management
PMTimes_July11_2023

Managing Disgruntled Stakeholders: All Feedback is Useful

You can please some of the people all of the time,

you can please all of the people some of the time,

but you can’t please all of the people all of the time.

John Lydgate adapted by A. Lincoln

 

In complex programs and projects (as well as in life in general) it seems that you can’t always satisfy everyone. Even if you put out a great product someone will think it should be more perfect, different, or delivered sooner for less.

 

If you choose a vendor, won’t like your pick. Some think there is too much communication while others think there is not enough. Some have an old grudge, an ax to grind, and no matter what you do it won’t be enough, they’ll criticize and come up with should haves and could haves that make your decisions look lame. Some like green, others like blue.

 

The master project manager cares about what the critics have to say but is not driven or upset by it. The PM cares because what critics say may be relevant and useful and/or because others my hear it and it may affect their decisions, opinion of the product, and the PM’s performance. The goal is to satisfy everyone, if possible. And it is not always possible.

 

As a rule, it is best to hear what is being said about your project, decisions, and results, objectively assess its content and relevance so you can decide what to do about it Note that if you ignore it, you open yourself to the risk of making a disgruntled stakeholder even more angry and dissatisfied.

 

Timing

Criticism is most valuable when it is received before action is taken. If a plan or decision is criticized there is an opportunity to make changes before it is acted upon with minimal cost. After the fact, the information may be useful as a means for learning, but it won’t affect the outcome or may be too costly to use.

 

In one case a stakeholder, let’s call her Jane, criticized the choice of a contractor based on history with the vendor. The information would have been useful in making the decision to put the vendor on a “short list” after an initial assessment. When the list was made public Jane complained, with disdain for the decision makers – “How could you shortlist them after what they have done?”

 

Because the final choice had not yet been made Jane’s information could still be used. Had Jane waited until the final choice was made, the information would have been completely useless and no more than a way to make the decision makers look bad or somehow make Jane look good.

 

Soliciting Feedback

To get timely criticism it must be solicited. This may take the form of focus groups, or asking individuals to provide their opinions so you can use them to make better decisions.

Who do you ask? As usual, it depends on the situation – sometimes you seek out people with expertise in the subject matter, or who have ‘good’ taste, or who will be affected by the decision.

 

For example, if you are considering design you would want to solicit technical design input from engineers, software experts, etc. If it is about look and feel, then it would be potential users or clients, as well as designers with aesthetic views.

 

Note that it is not uncommon for project managers and decision makers to avoid getting input from others. They may believe that it overcomplicates the decision making and is costly in the time and effort needed to prepare effective solicitations, sift through, assess, and respond. Avoiding feedback may also be caused by “ego issues” like a sense of superiority or insecurity.

 

While it is true that extra effort is required, not soliciting feedback opens the risk that stakeholders will be dissatisfied and critical after the decision has been acted upon to create a fait accompli.

Note that we are not implying that a democratic vote should be taken or that opinions received must be used to make the final decision. The project plan and organizational protocols and policies establish the authority of decision makers. What is being implied is that it is wise to solicit input as a means of making better decisions.

 

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Substantive or Empty: Fact Check

The timing of criticism and the solicitation of feedback are important as is considering the accuracy and relevancy of the content.

Was Jane’s experience with the vendor recent or in the far distant past? Had the contractor learned from the experience and changed its methods and personnel to avoid a repeat of poor performance? What were other customers’ experiences? What was Jane’s relationship with the vendor, for example was there a personal issue that tainted Jane’s view? How complicit was Jane in the vendor being unsuccessful?

 

To make effective use of critical input it is necessary to assess, and fact check it in order to make an informed decision. To simply take it at face value, whether you accept it, reject it, or ignore it, leaves the door open for additional criticism and loses the benefits that may come from the feedback.

 

Politics

There are political issues. Feedback from a senior stakeholder must be addressed in a way that does not create unpleasant ripples. Imagine if Jane was the project’s senior sponsor or a highly placed and influential client. Would questioning his/her/their opinion result in an explosive response or would it be viewed as the normal and wise thing to do? That depends on Jane’s mindset.

Stakeholders are people with biases and beliefs that are often perceived as being “truths.” Questioning their opinion may be taken as a personal affront. So be careful.

 

Ignore or Respond

If you receive feedback respond. Ignoring it risks upsetting its source and demotivating people from giving feedback in the future.

The response may be a simple statement like “Thank you.  We will take your input and fold it into our decision making.”  This recognizes the effort taken by the source while not committing the decision makers to following the advice offered. You might want to go further and give reasons for not complying or to say how you chose to make a change based on what you have received.

 

Open To Criticism

If you are open to feedback and criticism, solicit it, and respond with courtesy and respect, you will have fewer disgruntled stakeholders and better decisions.

 

PMTimes_Jun28_2023

BREATHE Your Way Through Conflict

Conflict in and of itself is not bad. It can drive innovative solutions as organizations tackle tough, challenging, and complex problems. While some conflict is healthy, too much is not. Conflict, if not managed correctly, can quickly spiral from something healthy, to something toxic resulting in destroyed relationships. How we manage conflict matters, in leadership, business, or at home.[1]

Conflict management is a skill everyone needs in their kit bag. When dealing with emotionally charged topics, one should have the courage to communicate their way through conflict. Confrontational situations may require one to take a moment to breathe.[2]  While physical breathing techniques to remain calm during conflict are helpful, BREATHE is a conflict management framework one can use to navigate their way to achieve productive results. BREATHE stands for:

  • Be aware of the situation; and with whom one is in conflict.
  • Reflect, then respond. Do not react.
  • Exercise emotional intelligence and empathy.
  • Actively listen, ask clarifying questions, and acknowledge.
  • T Think of others first.
  • Humble yourself.
  • Execute and evaluate the results.

This BREATHE framework can serve as a cyclical, sequential and nonlinear tool, with interconnecting components. One can initiate the framework at any point and execute multiple elements simultaneously. For example, empathy may open the door to active listening and acknowledgement, which may activate one’s humility, allowing one to think about others first and engage in teamwork. Moreover, while each component can serve as its own independent conflict management device, the comprehensive employment of all elements working together may prove most effective in producing optimal outcomes.

Be Aware.

Be situationally aware. Understand the factors contributing to the conflict. A tool to help one become situationally aware is to conduct an environmental assessment. When conducting an environmental assessment, consider the following external and internal factors. Externally, analyze the political and economic situation. Determine whether one is dealing with social or cultural issues, or labor market challenges. Evaluate technological capabilities.[3]  Internally, various friction points could contribute to conflict, such as production problems; lack of assets and resources; and ineffective policies.[4]  At the individual relational level, environmental contributors could include work life stressors, health concerns, personal finances, and or relationship issues. Finally, something to keep in mind. One or all contributing factors could exist simultaneously, affecting one or all parties.

The external and internal environment is complex and complicated enough without introducing the volatility of the human dynamic. However, one must understand with whom one is in conflict. Maintaining positive relationships is critical to achieving desired outcomes because it involves trust. Positive relationships build trust, contribute to esprit de corps within an organization, and enable one to achieve their objectives with the help of willing participants. The goal of the BREATHE framework is to help the implementor move the needle from a negative relationship to a positive one, from conflict to collaboration.[5]

To help one maintain positive relationships, a stakeholder analysis may be helpful.[6]  The intent of conducting a stakeholder analysis is to decide with whom you should engage, how you need to engage them, and when. You are trying to determine: 1) Is the conflict worth your time and effort? 2) Is the stakeholder of such influence you should care? Given the gravity of the situational context, and the relational importance of the stakeholders with whom one is in conflict, how we respond is an essential element of ensuring a positive outcome. This leads to the next stage of the BREATHE framework, reflect, then respond.

 

Reflect, then respond. Do not react.

Instead of impulsive reactions typical of conflict, take time to reflect, then respond. The difference between reacting versus responding, is analogous to instinct and thought. Instincts are primal behaviors below the conscious level responding to environmental stimuli without reason. Thought on the other hand, is a developed plan based on the intellectual product, views, and principles of a group or individual.[7]

Another difference between reaction and response is the potential impact. Depending on the severity, reacting without thinking can lead to potentially negative unintended consequences. Conversely, reflecting, and then responding can lead to planned outcomes. The BREATHE framework is a methodology requiring reflection through each phase, resulting in a deliberate and intentional response. Reflecting, then responding, is the gateway to the next phase of the BREATHE framework, exercising emotional intelligence and empathy.

 

 

Exercise emotional intelligence and empathy.

            Responding instead of reacting is an exercise of controlling one’s emotions. Therefore, while in the moment, we should understand what we are feeling, why we are feeling that way, and what can we do about it. Meaning, we should exercise emotional intelligence (EI). EI “is the ability to identify, assess, and manage the personal emotions of oneself and other people….”.[8]  The exercise of identifying, assessing, and managing one’s feelings can serve as a calming technique in and of itself. Additionally, deliberately mapping out the BREATHE framework may help influence one’s emotions to a less aggressive state. The last step of EI is to repeat the process but from the perspective of the person or group with whom you are in conflict. This leads to exercising empathy.

Empathy is “the ability to understand and share other people’s feelings”, [9] enabling one to “see others as they see themselves”.[10] As you think through your assumptions regarding the other party, try to think through how the other party may feel if your assumptions about them were true. Try to place yourself in the other party’s shoes. Ask and answer, “How would I feel if I were (insert other party)?” After completing this exercise, the next step is to turn your assumptions into facts through fact-finding techniques. The most effective fact-finding technique is face-to-face communication.[11]  This leads to the next phase of the BREATHE framework, actively listen, ask clarifying questions, and acknowledge the other party or parties.

 

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Actively listen, ask clarifying questions, and acknowledge.

            Communication is a widespread problem in every organization, as well as in relationships. Therefore, effective communication skills are essential.  An essential element of effective communication is active listening. Active listening is the ability to apply one’s undivided attention to the speaker, taking in not only the words spoken, but the tone and mannerisms as well. It is the ability to hear and see past emotions to understand what the speaker is trying to communicate. One who is actively listening, hears the message, understands it, signals their understanding with appropriate body language and gestures, reflects on it, then communicates their understanding by repeating the message to the sender, followed by an appropriate interpretation.[12]

When engaging in conflict management, ask clarifying questions. Asking clarifying questions deepens one’s connection with the other party. It helps each party further understand and empathize with each other’s perspective. Asking why questions, such as, “Why did you”, may spark defensiveness. Instead, use the “What? So what? Which means? Therefore?” Technique, which is useful in turning data into actionable information.

The “what” statement acknowledges the transmission of data between sender and receiver. For example, “What I hear you saying is….” The “so what” communicates the importance of the data. It may sound like, “So this is important to me because….” The “which means” statement translates data (what and so what) into useful information, which may potentially affect the individual receiving it. Finally, the “therefore” statement translates the information into potential decisions one may take in response to the information received.

The “What? So What? Which Means? Therefore?” technique increases communication between the sender and receiver by confirming the receiver received and understood the sender’s message and knows what to do with the information. When communicating through conflict, each party wants the opportunity to voice their opinion and be heard. This technique ensures that opportunity by acknowledging the communique.

For clarity, acknowledgement is different from agreement. One does not have to agree with the other party to acknowledge what they are saying. Acknowledgement is a way to extend dignity and respect to the other party. It signals one values and understands what the other is saying. With understanding, the conflicting parties can work through the issues together to achieve amicable resolution. With shared understanding, conflicting parties can attack the problems instead of each other. This leads to the next phase of the BREATHE framework, teamwork and think of others first.

 

Teamwork. Think others first.

Conflicting parties should work through issues together as a team. Their goal should be to reach amicable solutions based on mutual interests. Suggestions for setting a positive atmosphere of trust and collaboration may start with eliminating counterproductive behaviors such as stigma and biases. These behaviors tend to isolate and divide rather than unify. To mitigate these behaviors, one should embrace the differences between parties, be culturally competent, and establish an atmosphere of psychological safety to build trust and teamwork.[13]

While cultural diversity typically applies to different ethnic groups, one can apply cultural diversity in other contexts as well.[14]  For example, within professions, there are distinct institutional cultures. Within these cultures, there are dimensions distinguishing one culture from another, driven by the output each profession produces. These differences drive how each profession deals with such topics such as power, risk, autonomy, teamwork, and operational versus strategic orientation.[15]  Further, each profession has its own distinctive language, to include, subtext associated with subspecialties or special skill identifiers. They each have a preferred way of communicating, whether a common core language or terminology, direct or indirect communication methods, or adjusting tone and volume.[16]

To effectively communicate with diverse groups, one should display a measure of cultural competence. One demonstrates cultural competence by communicating and behaving in ways that demonstrates knowledge and understanding of diverse groups. By going out of one’s way to demonstrate cultural competence, one begins to set the atmosphere for psychological safety, which enhances teamwork while reducing conflict.[17]

Psychological safety is a teamwork enabler. It sets conditions for collaboration. Psychological safety is when one feels comfortable in their environment because they believe the group in which they belong will not discard or embarrass them, regardless of circumstance. In this environment, people are free to share their relevant opinions. Once there is an atmosphere of safety, collaborative learning begins to take place.[18]

As part of establishing and maintaining teamwork, teammates should think of others first.[19] To help one think of others first, consider three key factors. First, the importance of being a steward by placing the needs of stakeholders first to build and maintain trust.[20] Second, exercise an emotive approach by focusing on the individual, trying to satisfy their individual needs while accomplishing one’s goals and objectives.[21] Third, as able, meeting reasonable accommodations.[22] While reasonable accommodation is traditionally a term used to accommodate those with physical or mental limitations, one can use it to negotiate one’s way through conflict. The objective of any negotiation is to achieve mutually beneficial outcomes. Thinking of others first while navigating and negotiating one’s way through conflict can assist in achieving this goal. Effectively managing conflict through teamwork, requires a measure of humility, which is the next phase of the BREATHE framework.

Humble yourself.

Thinking through problems as a team, and thinking of others first, requires humility. It takes humility to admit, “Hey, we are struggling in this area, and we need help solving this problem.” It takes humility to remain silent and listen while fellow teammates share their opinions and ideas during open dialogue. It takes humility to keep an open mind while listening to creative solutions aimed at solving complex problems. One must remain humble enough to admit when someone else has a better idea and be willing to support the idea with proper effort.

Leaders must remain humble enough to allow their fellow teammates to speak truth to power when trying to attack and solve organizational wide issues. These leaders display humility by underwriting risks associated with recommended actions, while leveraging adequate staffing, equipment, and resources necessary to ensure the plan’s success. This leads us to the final step of the BREATHE framework, execute and evaluate.

 

Execute and evaluate.

            After working through the problem as a team, it is time to execute the plan and evaluate the results.[23]  Here we are talking about measures of performance and measures of effectiveness, with measure of effectiveness being the most important, as it deals with results and desired outcomes. Measures of effectiveness answers the question of did we achieve the desired effect? Conversely, measure of performance has to do with efficiency. It answers the question of did we do what we said we would, and can we do it better? Bottom line, we are talking about quality, the “perceived degree of excellence”.[24]

We measure quality in terms of outcomes and improvement using evidence-based methodologies. Quality and its associated outcomes start with evidence-based management, which is a method of incorporating performance measurements, best practices, as well as systems and processes to achieve desirable outcomes.[25] Outcomes are the results of something.[26] Meaning, in any endeavor, results matter. However, how we achieve those results matter as well. The right way to achieve desired outcomes is through quality planning and use of evidence-based approaches and continuous quality improvement.[27]

Conclusion.

            Conflict in relationships is unavoidable. It is not a matter of if, but when. Therefore, how you deal with conflict matters, as it will impact the results achieved. You can avoid it, or deal with it counterproductively, inevitably degrading trust and perpetuating conflict. Or you can manage it using more productive methods. The BREATHE framework offers “a way” of navigating the potential messiness associated with complicated and complex relationships.  The framework encourages awareness of one’s environment, and each other. It intentionally attempts to get its users to slow down and think through their next steps. It encourages self-awareness and shared understanding. It advocates for teamwork through humility.  Finally, it is result oriented. While the BREATHE framework does not guarantee a relationship free of friction, it can provide a life raft when sailing its turbulent waters.

 

[1] A. Ripley, “How to Work with Someone Who Creates Unnecessary Conflict,” HBR, 26 March 2023, https://hbr.org/2021/08/how-to-work-with-someone-who-creates-unnecessary-conflict
[2] A. McDonald, “A Powerful Tool to Stay Grounded in Conflict,” The Ripple Effect, 26 March 2023, https://therippleeffecteducation.ca/mindful-breathing-tool/
[3] R. Dunn, “Haimann’s Healthcare Management”, 8th ed. (Health Administration Press, 2007), 123.
[4] S. Walston, “Strategic Healthcare Management: Planning and Execution, 2nd ed,”(Health Administration Press, 2013), 181-212.
[5] S. Covey, “The Speed of Trust”, (Free Press, 2018), 13-26
[6] P. Spath, “Introduction to Healthcare Quality Management,” 3rd ed. (Health Administration Press, 2009), 143-144
[7] Webster online dictionary instinct vs. thought https://www.merriam-webster.com/
[8] “A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge PMBOK,” 6th ed. (Project Management Institute, 2017), 705
[9] M. Moudatsou, A. Stavropoulou, A. Philalithis, S. Koukouli, “The Role of Empathy in Health and Social Care Professionals,” 3.1, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7151200/
[10] A. Kovner and D. Neuhauser, “Health Services Management,” 8th ed., 2004, 7;
[11] Dunn, “Haimann’s”, 8th ed., 72; “PMBOK”, 360-393
[12] R. Abrahams and B. Groysberg, “How to Become a Better Listener,” HBR, December 21, 2021, https://hbr.org/2021/12/how-to-become-a-better-listener
[13] E. Forrestal and L. Cellucci, “Ethics and Professionalism for Healthcare Managers,” 1st ed., Health Administration Press, 2016, 191-192, 267-268; K. White and J. Griffith, “The Well-Managed Healthcare Organization,” 9th ed. (Health Administration Press, 2019), 502
[14] Dunn, “Haimann’s” 10th ed.
[15] White and Griffith, “The Well-Managed Healthcare Organization,”, 337-365
[16] C. Sampson and B. Fried, “Human Resources in Healthcare,” 5th ed. (Health Administration Press, 2021), 125-150
[17] White and Griffith, “The Well-Managed Healthcare Organization,” 348
[18] C. Sampson and B. Fried, “Human Resources in Healthcare,” 5th ed. (Health Administration Press, 2021), 513
[19] M. Miller, “The Heart of Leadership,” 1st ed., Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2013;
[20] Forrestal and Cellucci, “Ethics,” 311
[21] Dunn, “Haimann’s”, 8th ed., 438
[22] Sampson and Fried, “Human Resources,” 5th ed., 38
[23] D. Sinha, “ADDIE Model: A Comprehensive Guide to the 5- step Instructional Design Model,” CHRMP, March 26, 2023, https://www.chrmp.com/addie-model-guide/
[24] Spath, “Quality,” 3
[25] White and Griffith, “The Well-Managed Healthcare Organization,” 9th ed., 509
[26] E. Briggs, “Healthcare Governance: A Guide for Effective Boards,” 2nd ed. (Health Administration Press, 2011); M.A. Krousel-Wood, “Practical Considerations in the Measurement of Outcomes in Healthcare,” NCBI, October 1999, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3145439/
[27] Spath, “Quality”, 12-14, 54, 1-7
PMTimes_Jun14_2023

Project Management for Midsize Companies

In many ways, Project Management is more art than science. Those of us who have spent years in the field have most likely studied the science of it through classes and certifications.

There are certainly best practices that apply most of the time and a Project Manager would do well to have that foundation. But dare I say, the majority of textbook concepts don’t apply much of the time? Let me share a story of a project I tried to manage “by the book” that taught me a big lesson about adapting the “book” to the needs of the company and the team.

During one of my early roles as a Project Manager I worked hard to be organized and apply all the concepts I learned while studying for my Project Management Professional (PMP) certification. I remember one project in particular where I meticulously developed a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) and calculated the critical path. I had a Microsoft Project sheet a mile long, as this was a major project that would take more than a year to complete. All my details were in order. Project Schedule – check.

Confident in my plan, I brought the project team together. I had worked with key stakeholders to identify all the departments involved in the project and worked with those department leads to know which people should represent their department. I shared my project documents with the team and talked through roles and responsibilities. Stakeholder Management – check.

I knew part of my job was to clear roadblocks for the team, which included the roadblocks of me being a bottleneck. I thought the best way to keep everyone informed was to democratize project documents and have teams make their updates directly rather than funnel all updates through me. I created automations to remind team representatives to make weekly updates.

I had automations to notify people when one of their predecessor items was updated so they would know right away. I had automations to notify both me and team representatives when an update was overdue. Everyone had access to view, so no one ever had to wait on me to share a document or give a status update. We had weekly status meetings to allow for discussion and broader visibility, as well as ad hoc meetings for specific topics as they arose. Transparency and Collaboration – check.

 

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If you haven’t already guessed, let me tell you how this worked out. Not a single person ever went into the project tracker to make an update. Not a single person ever went into the project tracker to see status. My first pivot was to start collecting updates weekly and input them into the tracker myself. This allowed me to stay closer to the project details and gave me an opportunity to do a weekly assessment of project health with more context.

Those weekly conversations turned out to be so much more valuable than independent updates in the tracker. Every week, I would take this updated tracker and the deeper context I had to give a status update. I would share my screen and show the tracker so everyone could see visually where we were compared to the overall plan.

If you haven’t already guessed, let me tell you why this failed fast. If every team was meeting with me weekly to give me an update, why did they need to sit through a weekly status meeting of me telling them where their items were in the project? They didn’t. I lost the team’s engagement fast. My next pivot was a change that has stuck with me through the years. I did the legwork to meet with teams, understand their status, challenges, dependencies, needs, and projections. I consolidated all the information and culled it to down to what was critical.

Every Monday I sent an email with the week’s game plan, including all work expected to be done with deadlines and names of people responsible for doing the work. Every Friday I sent an email as a Reply All giving an update on what had been completed as expected, what had changed, what was delayed and why. If something meaningful changed and needed discussion or a decision, I would schedule a meeting to discuss it. We now had emails for things that could be emails, and meetings for things that needed to be discussed live.

This raised my credibility with the team when I called a meeting, because they trusted that there was something meeting-worthy to discuss rather than just a status update that could and should be an email instead. My Monday “game plan” emails served as an easy reference for project team members to know exactly what they needed to work on, which increased the rate of project work completion because there was more clarity and it was easily accessible.

Nearly 10 years later, I still rely on this approach. My Monday and Friday templates have evolved as my projects have changed, but this approach has proven successful time and again.

This semi-informal approach to Project Management would likely not succeed at a company with tens of thousands of employees. With larger teams and greater numbers of stakeholders, proper project management tools and formal project communication methods are likely necessary. On the other end of the spectrum, this semi-formal Project Management with meticulous planning and centralized tracking is probably more than is needed at a small company.

When teams are small and work closely together, it’s much easier for everyone to know what everyone is working on without a person dedicated to keeping it all organized. My time at midsize companies has helped me find this Goldilocks approach somewhere in the middle.