| The Outstanding Project 3.2 |
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Hello, Winter in the northern hemisphere feels to be on its way out, there are more signs of spring being just around the corner, every day. Thoughts will soon turn to spring cleaning at home, should you also include work? This issue, we talk about a couple of things that will help to dust away the cobwebs, open wide the windows to let in fresh air. Let me know what you're thinking about after reading this issue. What would you like to read about in the next issue?
Learning ZoneVisit our Learning Zone for information to help you understand and manage project challenges;
I don't want any surprisesHow often have you heard this in your working life? For many of us, I suspect it's been quite often. How does that feel, what do you hear beneath the words? If you've said it to your project teams, what's been the situation that prompted the statement? We've talked before about the huge benefits you can gain from involving people who have influence over your project's success (if you would like a refresher, click here ).  If you have followed the three steps we discussed (perhaps now would be a great time to look over them again), you should have a good idea of the people to involve and have pinpointed their interest and ability to influence the success of your project (example "surprise map" right). You may even have found out how involved they wish to be (often very different to initial perceptions). Now we're ready to put all this useful information to work, in a way that supports your project and gets us much closer to "no-surprises". It's about giving people the information they want, almost before they realise they want it. In recent project meetings, seminars and coaching, people say this works better when done as a team, instead of in isolation. It's an approach they've found works really well and is easy to understand. In a nutshell, it's made up of four steps; Plan for it,
You can use this rule of thumb to gauge what might be appropriate for each person on your "surprise map";
Execute your plan, Add communication activities to your project planning (for more about a practical way to plan a project, click here (time to toss out the Gantt Charts). Remember to include a way of getting feedback and measuring effectiveness. As the old adage has it "insanity is getting something wrong, repeating it time and time again and wondering why it doesn't work". We want to avoid getting stuck in that rut. Listen to the response you get, and Adjust your course, based on what you hear Modify your plans to do more of what does work (this will probably be person dependent), and stop what doesn't. Ask people who have said they didn't like something, "what would you do differently, what difference would that make to you?" Then, execute your revised plan, listen to response you get.....  How could you benefit from this approach? What actions can you take to get closer to "no surprises"? As a stakeholder, do you tell your projects what you want to hear about?
If you would like a pocket guide to "understanding who influences your project's success", mentioned at the top of this article, just This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it me. Next issue... How can you keep on top of all this information, without drowning? More than a tick in a boxCheck-lists are used in many projects, sometimes as an aide memoire, often regarded by those using them as an end in themselves or even a "waste of time". Have you ever wondered just how useful they are? Is the focus on filling in the list, or the important stuff that the list is supposed to remind you of? How would it be if you could use a check list to help take care of the important, difficult stuff that surrounds a project? Wouldn't that be useful, especially with a new team? The key is having the right things on the list, checkpoints to reinforce the process and encourage appropriate behaviour. Lets take a look at some of the items that this kind of check-list might include, to manage risks;
Reading through these examples, you will have noticed that some relate to the process, others to behaviours that oil the wheels of effective risk management. Together, these check-list items give a quick way to check the process for managing risk is being followed, and to understand where the team is. How cou ld this approach work within your organisation?What actions are needed to make this shift? Which other disciplines can you use this type of checklist for? As a participant, what steps can you take? Your professional network, visualisedDo you use LinkedIn? Curious about who knows who in your network? Feel there are some gaps in your connections? An exciting project in LinkedIn Labs helps you see the answers to these questions and more. It's called "LinkedIn Maps" and lets you map your network, to understand the relationships between you and your connections;
As usual, your comments are welcomed and appreciated, particularly with regard to what you'd like to hear about in future bulletins. Matthew Theobald
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