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by Lou Russell, Russell Martin & Associates
Here's what I'm hearing from our customers, now that we're well into the first quarter of recovery: "Just when we thought it was safe to relax, the economy is proving to be a fickle friend. Sure, some of the numbers look better, but there still isn't a customer parade marching to our door. Cautionary times still lurk ahead."
At the same time, work has become highly customized and complex. Anything that was simple has been outsourced. That leaves the tough stuff for the home troops. And that requires project management.
As I speak and teach on project management around the country, I often ask for a show of hands: "How many of you are managing more than one project?" This is generally unanimous. "How many of you are managing many more projects than you ever have?" This is also generally true. Finally: "How many of you are both the project manager and the entire project team?" With snickers and sighs, most hands are raised on this question as well.
There was a time when people were dedicated to large projects, and project teams were organized using the roles and processes taught in traditional project management training. The questions you are asked on the certification test for a Project Management Professional (PMP) still sound like they come from this perfect world. This basic project management knowledge is a prerequisite to managing today's projects well, but I do not believe it is enough.
At all times, a project manager must have a project plan that clearly outlines the next steps. At all times, this manager must be ready to change the plan should the situation merit. In order to be this flexible, the PM must have the maturity to separate his or her ego from the project itself using good technique.
Essentially, all project managers are "rubbing their tummy while patting their heads." Strong research shows that the increase in multitasking at work—brought to us through cell phones, ever-present email, and ambitious business drivers—actually makes everything slower. As Peter Senge and friends said in the book, The Fifth Discipline Fieldbook, "Fast is slow."
So how can you practice flexible structure, even if everyone else in your company is practicing the art of delusion? First, recognize that many of the tasks you are working on are actually projects and need to be treated as such. Look at your task list: Are there tasks that take more than a couple of hours, need other people, and have dependencies? Guess why they haven't been finished yet—they are projects!
Second, for each project, take a couple of minutes to review with the owner (if there is one) or yourself the following questions:
If you'd like more specific techniques for answering those questions, check out my book, Project Management for Trainers.
By answering those questions at the start and revisiting them when you get that gnawing feeling in your stomach, you will know when to be flexible and when to stay. Without the answers, you have no ability to reprioritize in a way that benefits you and the business you are part of.
A friend of mine from Lilly, Alan Colquist, once told me a wonderful story that illustrates project management today: A man was rescued from a burning oil well in the North Sea. Although the sea was deadly cold and burning below, he chose to jump and miraculously survived. When asked by a reporter how he had the nerve to jump, the man replied, "I chose probable death over certain death."
Initiating minimal project management within your company may not reap massive profits, but it may be just the thing to make sure you're still there next year at this time.