Change management

Experienced project managers know that change is inevitable and there are many consequences of failing to manage project changes. Some of the critical consequences are;     

• Scope creep
• Cost and budget overruns
• Project delays
• Poor quality of the project deliverable
• Often the project team performs incomplete work for the project deliverables
• Stakeholders express concerns about the project manager’s ability to manage the project

So the problem is not the change itself but how the change is managed. There are many benefits of managing changes properly such as increased stakeholders’ satisfaction, improved quality of the project deliverables, opportunities for the additional project work etc. There are basically three types of changes that need to be addressed in order to ensure a project success. These are; 

Technical changes: These are the internal modifications in scope of the work of the project. 

Market changes: These are changes that are inevitable due to external market conditions such as competitors’ product or service enhancements or regulatory changes. 

Contractual changes: Changes that are made on the contract with the stakeholder or supplier. These changes include but not limited to the terms & conditions, scope of work, requirements, schedule, costs etc. 

The most important function of a project manager is to prevent uncontrollable changes. Uncontrolled and unexpected changes in user /stakeholder expectations and requirements as a project progress always negatively impact a project. This is known as scope creep. Many times new features are added to the project with a wrong assumption that one small feature will add nothing to cost or schedule. This unplanned addition is called feature creep. 

A change in the one of the  triple constraints of a project has an impact on the other two. The key is to find balance between the need to manage the scope of the project against the agreed requirements, cost & schedule. 

Impact Analysis for Change Request

Changes may negatively or positively impact a project. When a change request is made, you as a project manager need to analyze the same in order to evaluate whether it is within or outside the scope of the original project requirements as well as how it is going to impact the three constraints of your project namely scope, schedule and cost.  Impact analysis is the most important step to effective change management procedure.  Your impact analysis should not only reveal the impacts of changes on the above three project constrains but also it should provide you the essential information related to the effects of changes on people, processes, quality of the project and on the operation of your company.  By implementing proper impact analysis procedure you should also be able to evaluate the overall project risks, how the change is going to alter the existing risks, whether or not the project is going to face new risks and the cost associated in managing those risks.    

Every organization has its own way of doing things and in most cases structured processes are available.  You need these organization process assets that may or may not have formal procedure for impact analysis. However, the following guidelines will always help you understand essentials of impact analysis procedure and how you can diligently implement such procedure. 

Step one: Do you have the money? 

Every work involves some cost and the impact analysis of change requests also requires some budget especially when it is a large change request.  Do you have the contingency budget to cover the cost or do you need to request the project sponsor / customer to pay for the added cost? 

Discuss this with the project sponsor and always come up with adequate numbers so that you can properly make formal presentation to the project sponsor and request the extra fund that you need for the impact analysis. 

Step two: Determine the reason for the change. 

Why the change request is made in the first place? Can you avoid it / defer it or is it inevitable? Determine the business need for this change and how the change is going to benefit the project, the process, the work product, the quality, the stakeholders and the organization.  Also review the Change Log to determine if the amount of change is excessive on the project. If change is certain, determine what is the priority of this change in comparison to other changes, such as current requests and requests being implemented? 

Step three: Analyze the impact on triple constraints. 

Scope: Determine the impact on the overall scope of the project, Work Breakdown structure (WBS), Product Breakdown Structure (PBS) and Resource Breakdown structure (RBS). You need to find out information in details by identifying the product features that would need to be added, changed, or deleted and any sections of the PBS, components of the WBS that would also need to be added, changed, or deleted and also the resources that would be required to implement changes and how it is going to alter the RBS. 

Also you need to identify any changes that need to be made to the agreement with the customer or any vendor or subcontractor.  

Cost: Identify any changes that need to be made to the cost management plan and the overall financial plan. Who is going to pay for the added cost? Find out whether the change will be paid for by an external sponsor. Similarly like scope, you also need to identify any changes that need to be made to the agreement with the customer or any vendor or subcontractor.  If subcontractors are involved, determine whether the change is going to impact the subcontracting cost. Refer to your organizational process assets and guidelines to ask for the additional cost or price for the change from the procurement department. Your impact analysis report also should highlight the financial benefit to the project and the financial benefit to your organization. You should also document other benefits such as improved schedule, better performance, lower risk, future opportunities, stakeholder satisfaction, enhancements to the organization’s intellectual capital, and technological advancement. 

Schedule: Your project needs to be completed within time otherwise you are invariably going to incur cost overruns because the project schedule is linked to scope and cost. Estimate the time required to define and plan the proposed solution and the time required to implement the proposed changes. Evaluate the changes to the milestones and to the critical path.  Also identify the changes that would need to be made to the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), the project management schedules and the milestone lists. Determine changes to the contractual schedule with the subcontractors. Also determine the impact of the change outside the delivery organization by identifying any changes that would need to be made to the Agreement with the sponsor and with any subcontractors. 

Step four: Identify dependencies 

Your various project activities are interwoven by complex successor relationships.  Identify other tasks that are dependent on this change being approved. Also determine the predecessor relationship and prioritize the tasks that must be completed before this change is implemented. Also it is equally important to determine the resource dependencies and how you are going to use resources for this change.  And finally, you also need to identify other dependencies such as market conditions, government regulations etc. 

Step five: Analyze the risks 

Analyze the risks that are associated with this change. Identify all the risks qualitatively and quantitatively the project is facing or will face in the future due to this change. Also identify threats that are associated with this change. Threats would include changes that have possible negative impacts or risk. Even a small change might include a high amount of risk. 

Step six:  Determine the impact on the Project management system 

Identify and list all the changes that would need to be made to the project procedures description or to the project decision structure. Identify changes that would need to be made to the communications management plan, the project quality plan, the risk management plan, the technical environment plan and overall the project management plan.  Also determine the costs to update the project management system.  

Step seven: Document your findings  

Properly document all the results of your impact analysis. Prepare a detail report for the change control board to approve changes. Follow your organizational process assets and procedural guidelines to document reports of the impact analysis. When the change request is approved by the change control board, the change order is created. Identify the project documentation, including the project management system documents, which must be changed or updated to reflect the approved change. Update the financial management plan when a change has a financial impact. In order to show the changes to work items or completion dates, update the project management schedule, operational schedule, and the work breakdown structure. Most of the change request is associated with changes to the scope and in such scenario update the project definition, deliverable definition, or other documents that control the project scope.  Also update the technical specifications, the test plans, the quality management plans.  A great deal of a project manger’s time is spent on communication.  With every approved change request, you need to prepare new reports or arrange new meetings and that is why it is imperative that you also update the communications management plan.  Most important document update is the updates on the risk register. Document all the qualitative and quantitative risks and also include updated risk definitions due to this change.  

If the change control board approves a change request then you need to create change management work product that will consist of change request templates, instructions for the changes or the change order and a log to record changes.  

Implementation of change management also equally important and things may go wrong if a project manager fails to properly implement change management. That is why it is important that the project manager work cohesively with the team as well as with the change control board.  

Also another important factor to remember is that the impact analysis for multiple change requests may not reveal hidden costs. In such scenario, it is always recommended to rely on expert judgment.  

Identify stakeholders and bring them early. Stakeholders who are found later will make changes and could cause delays. Any change that is made later is harder to integrate and is much more costly. Communicate with the stakeholders effectively and on a regular basis. Give a project presentation, list all their issues and concerns, report progress and inform changes and updates to the project management plan. Another important function of a project manager is to prevent uncontrollable changes. Stakeholders have greater influences over the requirements as well as changes in a project. That is why it important to have effective communications within the team and between the team and other project stakeholders.

Let’s try to understand why do you need a communication management plan?

• Communications management plan reduces and mitigates risk
• It provides you clear guidelines on how  you formally  interact with the project stakeholders
• Communication management  plan provides tools to utilize resources effectively
• It gives you the ability to analyze the impacts of various meetings
• It also ensures mutual commitments with the sponsor and other stakeholders
• The Communications management plan clearly documents all the deliverables and delivery schedules
• You should  be able to deliver  the right message at the right time to sponsors so that you can control  rumors and unnecessary work products
• A well defined communication management plan enhances your ability to meet stakeholders’ expectations

A project manager inspires people, shares the project vision with the group and creates a very motivating environment.  Communicate with all levels of the members of your team regardless of level. Communicate clearly your plans & ideas and make sure everybody understands them.

Your communication management plan should include both internal communications and external communications. Your internal communication management plan includes status report, progress report, trend report, forecasting report, variance report, earned value report etc. External communications requirements include types of meetings and reports, existing policies and contractual agreements etc.

Here are some simple steps to create an effective communication management plan.

Step 1: Documents the followings

1. With whom you need to communicate?
2. What deliverables are needed?
3. What media you are going to employ in the communication?
4. When the communication will occur?
5. Where the communication will occur?
6. The purpose of the communication

Step 2:  Document the list of deliverables, the list of stakeholders and your stakeholder analysis for each stakeholder. You need to document communications requirements with the sponsor, with the functional management, the subcontractors and with the team.

Step 3:  Determine the needs for media. Your communication management plan should have a media section where you document the types of media that you plan to use for communications on this project. Document the media requirements to make sure that all stakeholders have access to the particular media or technology that they need for their required communications.

Most cases you will be using the following media types:

• Conference calls
• Fax
• Knowledge repositories available on company’s intranet
• Paper reports
• Power point presentations
• E-mails
• Video conferences
• Instant messages such as AIM
• Electronic files, including zipped files, word processing files, and spreadsheets
• Web sites
• Information stored electronically on company servers
• Project management software such as MS Project
• On line project tracking tools

Step 4:  Document a schedule for the milestones and communication deliverables. You should have a table or calendar that shows your deliverables and other communications time.

Step 5: Determine the assumptions, dependencies, and risks associated with your project communications.

List all important assumptions you considered while creating communications management plan such as all stakeholders speak English or all team members will be company’s full time employees only. This may change the moment you hire contractors.

List all important factors upon which your communications management plan depends. For example, the communication among team members located in several time zones depends on how and when they communicate, what communication media they use and how they distribute reports.  A dependency is an input or output or time-related relationship.

When managing dependencies, confirm that the deliverables are well-defined, within the project scope, and also include a statement of work. Confirm that the schedule and cost are understood by the parties involved.

Identify past, present and potential risks that the current project faced, is currently facing or will face in the near future and list any important risks inherent in the communications management plan.  

Step 6:  Every work involves some cost and in your communication management you should itemize the costs associated with communications. For example, you should have a list of cost associated with conference calls , video conferences, instant messages such as AIM, your and team members time in preparing reports, cost of using other facilities etc.

Step 7:  The final step is to review your plan before you finalize it. Here is a check list of your communication management plan.

• List of your stakeholders and your detail plan on their communication needs
• Organizational type such as projectized, functional or matrix
• Document any geographic or multicultural requirements
• If you are working with a remote team make sure remote team requirements are met
• Document use of technology against your stakeholders’ access and technical skills
• Check to be sure your stakeholders are assigned appropriately to the reports, meetings, and other communications types according to role, level of detail, and personal communication preferences
• Review all the levels of communication and do not overburden stakeholders with too much or too little information

Your communication plan also should include the communication methods such as formal, informal, verbal and written. You communicate internally and externally to the project team and vertically and horizontally within the company. Use the following guidelines for selecting a communication method. However, please remember that every organization is different and you need to take into account your company’s processes and procedures for conducting work and communications.

Formal written:  Project charter, reports to the management, project management plans, communicating between divisions etc.

Formal verbal: Presentations and speeches

Informal written: Notes, e-mails, memos, status updates among team members, online chat etc.

Informal verbal: Conversations, meetings, discussion and often water cooler gossip  

In step 3, we will discuss about project changes and  how you manage a change.

by Timsamoff

Even if you believe that everything from dating to contact with God can be managed on the computer, that ain’t quite true. Despite the push for technology in every operation–and despite our first endorsement of (still-sequence) video-conferencing (VC) in a 1983 book, you will want or need to meet face-to-face at times. The message itself will determine. Caution: Don’t believe the opinion-mantra, “It’s gotta be face-to-face.” It ‘don’t gotta be nuthin’ but proper. ‘Proper’ requires thought. Meeting settings must be proper for given messages. Meetings such as skill training are best done in small groups. Military ISD (our source) presents an algorithm for settings-selection.

Every meeting-support technique has strengths and weaknesses; and one of those choices will work better for your meeting than will any others. Selected options by purpose, not dart-throwing. For key tools (pro & con) that can be used to support your message, check a reprint of our ’70s article for basics; slight augmentation needed now. See the original article on our website: click ‘Recognition/Industry’; below Note: ‘AOM & Early Mag Articles’; see article from “Advertising & Sales Promotion” magazine (web p8 of 22pp).

Specifics there are valid unless noted here:

Re: Charts, drawing, chalk-/chem-boards: Verbatim, plus: Computer-aided visuals, now.

Re: Photographs: Verbatim, plus: Also computer-aided visuals, now.

Re: Books, booklets, outlines, tape recordings or disks: Verbatim, plus: Again, computer-aided visuals, now.

Re: Demonstrations and sociodramas (constructed plays, not believed):  Verbatim, plus: Less convincing if computerized.

Re: Role playing: Verbatim, plus: Valid only if live, not computerized.

[Quoted further]: All of the above tools [in the entire original article] have intrinsic value of either a permanent or intermittent nature. By contrast, visual aid equipments are enabling technologies but have no independent value whatsoever! Today’s purveyors have neglected to mention your non-technology options. [End reprint.]

Three significant points:

1. The computer is extremely valuable, of course. However, the eye does not prefer, or distinguish between, the sources of usable graphics. Therefore, slides and printed materials are still valid.
2. All graphics, no matter how simple or complex, must appeal to participants’ understanding of your message’s basic concept (right brain)…to interpret, as a further explanation of the spoken/written words. On-screen words (left-brain) are not legitimate visual ‘aids’ unless the words themselves are at issue. That’s rare. Color is not essential if the graphic itself is clear. (For multiple US military findings: ‘Recognition/Industry’ button, below Note; see “FirstTake” magazine (p13 of 48pp).
3. In meetings/seminars/training, etc, eye cloys more quickly than ear. For long presentations of non-technical material, ear is the preferable recipient. Complex/technical stuff needs visual help.

Decide which of the article’s techniques best suits the purposes and requirements of your message; select the proper support materials and technologies; determine the proper setting for the message, purposes, and audience size. Proper settings might include hotel space.

Audience size is a factor. Don’t guess according to general crowd-control principles: Best size for the meeting purpose, time allotted, and optimum use of likely setting? Military ISD algorithms work well.

You can’t coach a roomful of people in any but a cursory way. Adequate? If not, how enhanced? Smaller break-out sessions suffice? Can/will managers supervise, back at offices? Enough authorities to run multiple break-outs? If not, don’t fake it! Choose: one central session or multiple regional repeats?

Every meeting-caller usually wants to reach everyone in his/her target audience simultaneously. Great, if simultaneity is a valid factor. Bad, if it causes unnecessarily-large convocations. Large meetings feed on their own size and thereby cause additional expenses.

Decades ago, American Express found about two-thirds! of the average corporate travel budget consumed by annual central sales meetings. Computers can change that somewhat: Significant savings are possible via Video Conferencing. Computer programs suffer drop-outs–just like schools or sleepers in central meetings. Also decades ago, “Sales & Marketing Management” magazine’s  ‘Survey of Selling Costs’ (annualized) found multiple regional sales meetings always to cost less than one central meeting.

Unless simultaneity is essential, hold regional meetings whenever possible. That’s more demanding of meeting-caller time, short-term, but it’s also less pressured: Local offices can usually handle most or all logistical needs.

Although computer software now allows collaboration among editors and other specialists, software enables only editorial ‘collectivizing.’ Expertise and authority are NOT created by collaboration–that’s round-table discussion from distant chairs. It does save time and travel.

Many meetings can be held in-house. Choose smaller regional facilities if you hope to avoid in-house interruptions. To manage any such meeting, embargo all phone calls, in or out. You might permit exceptions for the Chairman of the Board and CEO, but only if you value your job.

If you agree on anything with a hotel rep, get everything agreed in writing. All chains and most large facilities have an “in writing only” policy in case of disputes…common when any third party over-stays its allotted time and delays your set-up or scheduled session.

Selected reprints from “AOM” were Copyright either 1970-71, Crain Communications; or 1971-1973, “Sales Management” (later: “Sales & Marketing Management”) magazines.

For more information and a proved form for comparing criteria and selecting hotel facilities, see our website: www.meetingsCavalier.com. Click on ‘Business Writing’; then ‘Titles’ button. At book “Sales Meetings That Work,” click on ‘Chapter 18,’ complete segment. Dow Jones-Irwin’s “SMTW” cover shows under ‘Recognition/Industry’ button.

These areas of expertise may be in any area but are most likely to develop in the critical, central areas of the company where the most value is added to its products. For example, for Software Company the key skills may be in the overall simplicity and innovation of the program for users or in the high quality of software code writing.
Core competencies are not considered as being fixed.

Core competencies may change or abandoned in response to changes in the business environment. Sometimes companies are forced to make such changes due to economic environment. One of the software companies I worked for strived for innovation and customer satisfaction. Due to downturn in company business, company dissolved entire software test automation group. You can imagine the impact on quality of products and in turn impact on customer satisfaction.

Many times management of company inadvertently change or choose core competency one over the other. As business reforms and adapts to new circumstances and opportunities, so its core competencies may have to adapt and change. However, companies have to be very careful in doing so. Take an example of Toyota which is considered one of the most efficiently run companies in the world.

Toyota’s global competitive advantage is based on a corporate philosophy known as the Toyota Production System which consists of concepts such as JIT and Kaizen. According to Jeffrey Liker, the author of “The Toyota Way”, the mission of Toyota is to build trust and confidence with customers by delivering outstanding quality products and services which add real value to their businesses.

However, in recent years there has been a number of recalls of multiple models of Toyota including Corolla and Camry which are considered amazingly reliable. How could this possibly happen to the car company that was the undisputed leader in quality? The answer is becoming quite obvious. Toyota seems to have abandoned one of its core competencies – quality. Toyota is suffering from trying to get too big, too fast. Toyota sensed weakness from its auto rivals in the American market, and also noted opportunity in emerging markets such as China and India. So, it started enormous expansion around the world. In doing so, Toyota abandoned one of its core values which is to never build a new product in a new factory with a new workforce.

This is exactly what Toyota ended up doing with its first full-size pickup truck in San Antonio, Texas. The pickup truck was recalled due to a number of problems. The recent recalls expanded with other models as well as in other countries. Toyota’s quality problem has gone global. With abandoning one of its core competencies – quality, Toyota may have won the rights to brag as the world’s biggest car company, however, that appears to have come at a heavy cost to its reputation for quality and in turn customer dissatisfaction.

How could this relate to project management? Project managers need to make sure that their projects and their goals are aligned with organizational values and core competencies. Understanding the importance of competencies and core values, and how they need to work in conjunction, is profoundly important for project manager’s success. Project manager should give thought and efforts towards developing both of these sets of attributes and remain focused on business goals.

Before making connections, create your roadmap to job creation.  Focus on knowledge formation, be self-aware, seek guidance from others, and be creative.  It’s time to throw away traditional views and practices – - your resume´ alone no longer opens doors for you – - it’s all about presenting yourself in new and innovative ways.

Accomplishments and credentials no longer guarantee success; with more and more recognition around the power of multiple intelligences, you must be prepared to present yourself in a global way.  There are three primary intelligences to consider:  Emotional, Social and Cultural.  Emotional IQ is about your self-awareness, how you relate with others, your ability to self-manage yourself in all situations or environments.  Social IQ is having the ability to understand and manage social groups; you act wisely in groups and have knowledge of social situations.  Cultural IQ is having the ability to understand differences and cope with different behaviors. 

As you define your personal brand, remember the power of three.  Know your skills, your attitude and your behaviors.  Use this information to prepare for behavioral interviewing – this is when the interviewer will ask you probing questions under the premise that what you have done in the past will, to some extent, be a fair indicator of your future behavior.  Questions are designed to assess what you have actually done in situations that have some relevance to the role for which you are applying for.  Once asked about a certain situation, you will further interrogated with questions like, “What were you feeling at that time?” “What did you do next?”  “What did you learn from the experience?”  Prepare for multiple interviews, in group sessions, in different settings.

Before you journey down the interview path, contemplate your employment options.  Do you want a full-time role?  Are you better suited for a contract position?  Should you switch industries?  Volunteer? 

A self-assessment is a terrific way to be self-reflective before beginning the journey.  A good self-assessment includes:

A Value Inventory:  What creates job satisfaction for you?  Autonomy?  Prestige? Security? Flexible work schedule?  Leisure time?  High Salary?

An Interest Inventory:  What are your likes/dislikes regarding various activities?

A Personality Inventory:  What are your traits, motivational drivers, needs and attitudes?

A Skills Assessment:  What are you good at? 

Write it down, set it aside, and revisit a few days later.  Does it still make sense? Did you identify something new about yourself? Can you take the information from your Self-Assessment and create your own personal story?  Do you need an Assessment tool to get started?  Drop me a line, I’m happy to share—Get noticed, be hired.

Lisa DiTullio, Principal, Lisa DiTullio & Associates, LLC  www.lisaditullio.com

I truly believe in continuous improvement. In today’s world standing still really translates into regression. I apply that continuous improvement to different areas of my life: I keep pursuing knowledge on scuba diving in general and its physiology in specific, I am planning to improve my technical skills of motorcycling this year, I learn new things about a healthy lifestyle every day and of course I keep expanding my professional knowledge.

I started out in the investment banking world as an account manager for institutional clients. I decided that my drive for results and my desire to learn more about information technology would be better served in project management so I switched careers. I have never regretted that move. Since my first PM position was at Royal Dutch Airlines, I decided to follow a full year of evening classes in logistics management at the university.

After moving to the United States, I was introduced to the PMP and became certified in 2001. My desire to continuously improve continued with Toastmasters, a Scrum Master certificate, the PMI Leadership Institute Master class, a Myers-Briggs qualification, a Green belt in Six Sigma and currently an executive coaching certification. It is not the certificates I am interested in but rather the knowledge, experience, and interaction with other students from different industries. Some of the acquired knowledge I actively use on a day to day basis, other knowledge becomes part of the mental toolkit to be pulled out when the situation calls for it and some of it goes into the mental waste basket.

Especially in a job market that is a “buyer” market (like today’s) showing that you invest time and money in yourself will improve your chances in the job market. It demonstrates aspects like a curious mind, commitment to (self) improvement, and dedication to juggle a busy schedule with continuous learning.

What can you do? See it as the project “Investing in myself”. First, define the requirements:

1. Figure out what you are passionate about and evaluate if this is something you can pursue.
2. Look at your current skill set: are there skills you want to improve?
3. Do you see skills in others that you would like to acquire?

A lot of my continuous improvement was triggered by one of these three points. For example, I joined Toastmasters because I was in awe of the speaking skills of some of the people I met here and being from Europe there is significant less emphasis on public speaking skills while they are crucial for a successful project manager.

Secondly, figure out what you can do to start working on the desired skills. This includes:

• What courses are out there? (PMI nowadays has a plethora of certifications as do many other organizations)
• What is your financial situation?
• Will your company pay for it?
• Can you obtain the skills through self-study (and are you self-disciplined enough to do this)?

Then schedule the time to work on those skills. None of us have enough time to do everything we need and want to do so it comes down to prioritizing our time. If the project “Investing in myself” is important enough to you, you will find the time to execute it even though it might mean having to (temporarily) give up other activities.

Okay, back to my coaching studies.

My most extreme week was in March this year. One weekend I am flying to the Netherlands to spend some (most likely last) days with my best friend who was losing her battle with cancer, only to receive the shocking news at my stopover in Chicago that she didn’t make it through the night. My plan to say goodbye to her became a final goodbye at her funeral. That very next weekend I find myself in Japan to assist in a leadership workshop as a way to hopefully start a long term business relationship. The people are amazing, their gratitude and sincerity overwhelming. Talk about emotional low and high within a week.

In July this year, I realized that I needed to kick myself in the butt. My objective has always been to live a conscious full life; however, 2008 and 2009 had managed to get my spirit down. In the end, we are the architect of our own life and I realized that in my friend’s honor (and others who have lost their lives), I should live every day to the fullest. Even though this might have been a tough year, we should consider ourselves lucky for being born in a western country. That by itself puts us in the top 5% level of lucky people in this world. Whatever we deal with on a daily basis in our work and lives is nothing compared to those who try to survive on a daily basis without food, water or simple basic needs.

Only this morning it dawned on me that we are not only closing a year, we are closing a decade. A brand new decade is starting in four days. So instead of just reflecting on the last rough year, take the time to reflect on the last decade. Count your blessings and if there are areas for improvement, you are the only one who can change your life and improve it. Change is scary but also always holds opportunities.

Take the Agile approach to life, which means using your ability to both create and respond to changes in order to succeed in a turbulent business environment or live a satisfying life. During the last week of 2008, I blogged about living life smarter (read here): next week I am meeting up with a very good friend of mine to look at the new decade ahead of us to go through a goal setting exercise, prioritize them and start executing. I invite you to do something similar to chart your course through the year and decade ahead. Don’t wait.  Take control of your life and take action!!

When you’re new to a role, it’s natural to cover up your own ignorance. You want to earn respect, and everyone is looking at you. So you may not speak up when a topic is discussed that you don’t understand…you nod your head instead of asking a "stupid" question.

Here’s the thing: you will only learn by asking questions. Why not do it while you’re still the "new PM" on the block? Your teams and collegues will cut you some slack for awhile, but not for long. You need to learn quickly, and the best way to do that is by asking "stupid" questions.

Be results-oriented

Start asking yourself the following question constantly. "What is the goal?" Apply that to every part of your day. In a meeting? What’s the goal? You assigned a task? What’s the goal? For your project as a whole or pieces of it….what’s the goal? What does "done" look like and how will you know you’ve acheived it?

Hone your people management skills

Managing people is what project management is about. If you can’t manage people well, get better at it or go back to being an individual contributor. Luckily, management skills can be taught, and you can become a great manager (even if you stink at it now!)

Hone your project management fundamentals

So many project managers, new and experienced ones, fail to grasp some of the most fundamental concepts specific to project management. For instance, if you think a WBS is a task list and not a primary, central artifact to manage your project, please go get some good training on it.

Hone your political skills

The great thing about managing projects is that you get to interact with everyone! You need to speak the language of your team, sponsor, and key stakeholders. Understanding the incentives and needs of each individual and group goes with the territory.

You also need to be able to negotiate compromises between these individuals and groups. This takes finesse and you’ll probably screw up at least a few times. Just realize what this is and get better at it. Use tools like a stakeholder analysis to formalize and articulate the process.

Learn how to run meetings well

This goes along with general management skills and being results-oriented, but I can’t stress it enough. Running great meetings is a science that can be learned, and you need to protect your team from being involved with poorly-run meetings as much as possible. Meetings should have an explicitly stated goal, clear time-based agenda, be facilitated well, and followed up on with minutes and accountability assignments.

Trust your teams

Too many new project managers come into a team with a good intention, but it comes across like this. "I’m the new project manager. You’ve all been doing things wrong, and I’m here to fix your problems."

That doesn’t go over well. I have a 60-90 day change policy. Unless it’s going to make the project fail, I don’t change anything except for a few general management basics for 60-90 days. I tell the team this is my policy. I give them the message that they are doing a good job, and I’m going to pay my dues and learn how they work before I start trying to change anything.

Involve your teams

Too many project managers leave their teams out of planning and decision-making for the project. This is a mistake. It’s usually rationalized by saying to yourself "it will free up the team to get more work done if I plan everything myself and make all the decisions."

What actually happens is that you make poor decisions and plan poorly because you haven’t engaged the experts. AND they get stuck with your poor job of planning and deciding which destroys trust and respect. They feel you have little respect for them, signing them up for impossible goals without even asking what they think.

Give credit to your team, keep the blame for yourself

In my status reports I give credit by name to the individuals who accomplished activities, especially when they did a spectacular job. Or I’ll say the team has done a great job with xyz, etc. It’s all about the team.

When things go bad, it’s my responsibility. I’m accountable for it. To anyone except for the individual(s) who might have messed up, it’s my fault. I explain why it happened and how we are fixing it.

When you do this, here’s what happens. Your team will notice that you don’t take credit for their accomplishments, and you have their back if they mess up. (By the way, this doesn’t mean you forgive them and move on. Good people management doesn’t mean always being nice!) You build trust and respect and your team will want to do good work. Sponsors and stakeholders notice it too. They’ll know you don’t place blame or make excuses, and you’ll buld trust and respect with them too.

Eliminate obstacles and distractions

As a project manager, I feel one of my primary duties is to eliminate all obstacles and distractions from my teams. One of the best things you can do as a project manager is identify constraints on the productivity of your team and figure out how to elevate or eliminate those constraints so more can get done. There is a balance of course….if you identify every last thing that isn’t directly related to getting work done as an obstacle then the general communication and alignment of your team will suffer.

Find a mentor

This is related to not acting like you know it all. Find someone in your organization who is more experienced than you. Offer to take them out to lunch if they agree to give some advice on things you are struggling with. Ask to help them in any way you can, and use it as an opportunity to look over their shoulder and learn how to be more effective.

Josh Nankivel
WBSCoach.com
pmStudent.com

Flickr Image credits (Creative Commons-licensed content for commercial use)

know-it-all by by TedsBlog via Flickr

meeting by Savijana via Flickr

obstacle by The U.S. Army via Flickr

Technorati Tags: project manager careers

Table of contents for Q&A Week

1. Project Methodology Madness and Confusion
2. Project Manager Career Questions
3. Career Roadblock?
4. Holy Crap, They Called Me For an Interview!
5. Thinking About Going Back to School?

Back to School - by OakleyOriginals via Flickr

A subscriber to the Project Management Career Newsletter emailed me that he would be going back to school in a few weeks, and asked me for any suggestions or advice.

My Story

I had attended 1 year of vo-tech school right after high school, but dropped out when I moved to Albuquerque, NM for a job. My studies were in electronics technology, and I found that although I was good with electronics, software was much more interesting than electronics hardware to me. I was a computer geek (still am) and was a self-taught programmer. I moved into training and management roles, and got caught in a lot of layoffs too.

Even though I had work experience, it was a struggle to find new jobs. I discovered the formal discipline of project management and found out I had been doing it all wrong, and figured I needed a degree anyway to be competitive. I went back to school for a BS degree in Project Management, I think it was in 2005.

Appreciate

I appreciated the education much more than before. When I was 18, I took out loans and didn’t really feel like I was paying for it. I skipped classes sometimes, etc. This time around, it was a degree I was particularly interested in, and I applied myself to the material as much as I could.

First, I understood the value of the money I was paying (gladly paying) to get this education, and second I understood that the value would come from what I retained and applied, NOT from the piece of paper I’d get at the end or even the grades I received.

Write, Think, and Apply

Starting my blog at pmStudent.com was great for me, because I would write about what I was learning in school and how I could apply it in my day job. I also started frequenting many online forums and reading other blogs on the topic.

I had been a manager and managed some projects in an informal, adhoc manner. Just before going back to school I had taken a job as a developer at the time to get into a company where the environment was good for me to apply project management in a formal way. I was trying to work my way into PM roles wherever I could.

With my management experience I could have gone for a higher paying management position, but I took a deliberate step back so that I could be part of a project team and learn from the inside. 100% of my job was defining and implementing projects to improve processes, introduce automation, and integrate proprietary systems from mergers and acquisitions.

Contribute and Go Above and Beyond

Contribute in class as much as possible, and see it as an opportunity to learn and better yourself. I tried to do extra research on topics of particular interest whenever I could (much of what I researched was on PM methodologies and various aspects of management/leadership) It’s all about what you get out of it, not about the piece of paper.

Another way to go above and beyond is to volunteer. You could start a study group, a PM student club, or volunteer for other organizations. I attempted to start a PM student club at my college, but by the time political pressures would have allowed me to do so, I was graduating and wouldn’t be able to keep it alive. Had I started earlier it may have happened.

I also joined the Students of PM SIG (Specific Interest Group) with the PMI and volunteered there. There are lots of SIGs in the PMI that focus on specific topics you can look into. Look into other PM organizations as well, my only experience is with PMI but there are others out there.

Save Some Money on Books

Book swapping, discounted buying, used sellers….there are many ways to get your hands on great books for personal development or classes without paying the full cover price.

I kept track of my savings over the university book store price when I was working through my degree in Project Management.  I saved about 60% overall compared to what it would have cost me had I purchased my books at the college.  That amounted to thousands of dollars in savings over the years.

Some I was unable to find used, because they had just come out.  They were the exception however, and even if something had been out for just a semester, I was usually able to find a good used copy somewhere.

Check out these sites for book swapping and used books. Four pieces of advice for you:

• Order books early -  It can take 2-3 weeks to get it, and you don’t want to be without your textbook on the first day of class.  If you order a month in advance, it should give you enough time.
• Get the correct edition – I learned this the hard way.  One time I didn’t pay attention to the edition number and got an old edition.  I was still able to use it for that particular class, but you may not be so lucky.
• Country-specific versions – If you do end up getting the “international version” of a textbook, most of the time it will be the exact same book….sometimes there will be slight differences.  I once had a book that was about 15 pages off from the new version, so when the professor asked us to check out page 45, I just knew to turn to page 60 in my own copy.
• Check the detailed description – Sometimes sellers will have a picture of the new edition, when the detailed description lets you know it’s a different edition.  They will use the best picture they can find online, and if they can’t find an exact picture they substitute something close.

Bookins

BookMooch

BigWords (This was my primary search tool)

Technorati Tags: project management guide, project management school, project management schools

Table of contents for Q&A Week

1. Project Methodology Madness and Confusion
2. Project Manager Career Questions
3. Career Roadblock?
4. Holy Crap, They Called Me For an Interview!
5. Thinking About Going Back to School?

Holy Crap! - by B Rosen via Flickr

They want you to come in for an interview. After the elation wears off, you start sweating.

What are they going to ask? How can I best prepare for this? What if I prepare for the wrong things?

1) Treat the interview like a discussion – This is a two-way conversation, not an interrogation. You should be looking forward to finding out about the organization and role as much as they are looking forward to picking the right candidate. Looking at it this way will help put you at ease and allow them to get to know you better.

2) Review your own history – specific examples and stories from your past are the best way to illustrate you know what you are talking about. It’s good to review your illustrative “stories” and have them fresh in your mind so you can call upon them on a whim. If they ask a “what would you do if…” question, try to respond with a specific example that closely relates and illustrate how you ACTUALLY did handle it, and what you learned from it.

3) Come with questions – Of course you want to know a lot about the company beforehand, but not to impress them with your ability to google. I think of at least 5 insightful questions and write them down beforehand. Remember, this is a conversation. More questions arise as our conversation progresses too, but it’s good to have a short list of relevant, probing questions. I like to ask specifically about their organizational structure, business model, how project management is viewed within the organization (who are the proponents and detractors of viewing it as a formal discipline), etc.

4) Come with at least 3 copies of a portfolio – The resume and coverletter sometimes get stripped down to ugly, malformed text by the time it gets to the hiring manager. I always bring a portfolio in a professional report cover including things like my resume and a personalized cover letter for each interviewer and 1 spare generic one in case of a last-minute addition (always ask for full names and titles when setting up the interview!). I also include letters of recommendation from previous employers/professors, a print-out of my LinkedIn.com recommendations, academic credentials if applicable, example artifacts from my previous work that are not confidential, etc.

Portfolios are custom-made for each interview and can contain very different materials. I give my portfolio to each interviewer at the end of the interview as something for them to keep that will give them an even fuller view of who I am as a candidate.

Everyone, please contribute your own comments!!!

Technorati Tags: interview, job interview