Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Project Managers - Yes, Sometimes You Are the Problem

In my last post, we discussed some of the issues that clutter the pipeline and prevent you, the Project Manager, from moving your project forward.  Missing deadlines, jeopardizing the budget or falling short of the resources you need to complete the project.  Well, today I'm going to ask you to take a long look in the mirror, because sometimes you, the Project Manager, are the one causing the problem!  Shocking, isn't it.

Now, let's not get all out of shape.  I'm not saying that you are intentionally torpedoing your own projects.  Rather that occasionally stuff happens and sometimes, just sometimes, you might be the one causing the issue.

We're all human!  And humans, by nature, are not perfect.  We err, sometimes it's the small things, sometimes it's the really big things.  What I want to explore in our discussion today is your responsibility as the Project Manager to look at things honestly and admit it when you're the one causing the wreck that is laying on the floor at your feet.

Throughout the overall project, the Project Manager has ample opportunities to stumble.  Let's take a look at some of the ways you might stumble as the Project Manager:
  1. Mismanaging the relationship between the Project Manager and individual Team Members.
  2. Mismanaging the relationship between the Project Manager and the Project Sponsor.
  3. Mismanaging the relationship between the Project Manager and the Project Office.
  4. Forgetting to send critical data to the Project Sponsor or the Project Office.
    1. Expected cost over-runs.
    2. Expected timeline adjustments.
    3. Key resource changes.
    4. Significant issues that could impact the project.
  5. Forgetting to send critical data to outside vendors.
    1. Changes/clarifications to specifications.
    2. Changes to timelines.
  6. Neglecting to send out meeting minutes with the associated decisions and action items.
  7. Neglecting to follow through on an issue identified by one of your team members.
  8. Neglecting to get feedback from the entire team when clarification/changes are identified
The list could go on, but I'm hoping that you notice that there is just as much opportunity for you to slip up and cause problems as the next person.

When something does happen, before you go out on the hunt to lay the blame on someone, make sure you've done your homework and you're absolutely sure that you aren't the one that caused the problem.  Nothing deflates and demotivates a team more than a Project Manager who doesn't acknowledge when they've caused a problem and deflects the blame on to someone else within the team.

Once you've figured out that you have caused a problem - you need to be the one to solve the issue.  Sit down, identify your mitigation plan.  Sometimes it's simple: you forgot to send out the meeting notes, send them out; you forgot to update a vendor on a date change, call them. 

Sometimes its bigger and could have damaging consequences - here is where true Project Managers show their metal.  Quickly identifying how they will mitigate the issue and then meeting with the Project Sponsor and key players to review what happened and what is being done to mitigate the issue and what you are personally doing to ensure that this type of an issue doesn't happen again.

I actually expect people to fail every once in a while.  The key is what have they learned from the experience and what are they doing to make sure it doesn't happen again.  If they can look me in the eye and tell me what happened and that they've admitted the mistake to those people impacted and are working to ensure it doesn't happen again, that's a good thing.

Tags: Project Management, SDLC, Project, Management, Conflict, Resolution, Project Manager, Software Development Lifecycle,  Project Lifecycle, Project, Manager

For more information on David L. Collison: LinkedIn Profile

No comments:

Post a Comment