Want Success? Kill the Ambiguity!

I was talking with a friend recently and an old story popped into my head. I was working for a large organization and was the project manager for a notoriously tough client. The client, we will call Barbara, was known for constantly complaining, never being pleased, and generally difficult to deal with. At the time, my incentive package included a customer survey. I met the category of my incentive if I received an overall rating of 4 or 5. Barbara was widely known for distributing a 1 or 2 overall score. There is a large percentage of survey respondents who would rarely give a 4 or 5 based on the feeling that nobody is ever perfect!

In the first meeting, I openly told Barbara that I would be distributing a survey at the completion of the project. The survey would ask for ratings in several categories including an overall rating. I asked Barbara directly, "My goal is to have you be satisfied to the point that you feel compelled to select a 5 on the survey. Can I ask you, what constitutes a 5 in your mind?" She was perplexed. She asked me what I meant. I continued, "Given this project and what we are trying to accomplish, imagine you and I are now meeting for the final review and I have just given you the survey. In order for you to select a 5, what would the end look like?" She thought further and started to name things that she felt would be important. The first thing she said is that she wanted to be completely satisfied. I dove in deeper. "Barbara, while I want you to be completely satisfied, we need to define that into terms that can be measured. Such as stating we need to be on budget. If we were to come in over budget by 5%, would that be a 5?" She said no. I asked her what would be a 5? She thought further. At the end of the meeting, we had a list of defined objectives that could be measured. We both agreed that if the objectives were met, then I could receive a 5 on the survey. A couple of examples were:

- Budget: To achieve a 5, the budget must come in under the amount documented. If it goes over at all, it is a 4 and every 10% over will reduce the score further.
- Time: All tasks within the scope of control would be completed within the timeframe documented. If more that 10% of tasks run late, the score will be a 4. For every 10%, the score will reduce further.

There was a definition applied to each score on the survey. During the project, the software that was purchased and installed did not function as it had advertised. We were installing the hardware and then rolling out the package after the software had been delivered. Many tasks were late, but those that ran behind were outside of the scope of my control. There were also some new things, just like in every project, that the client had discovered, changed, or decided they wanted during the project. We completed the work, but due to the multiple software errors, the project felt clunky. It didn't flow very well. There were many issue resolution calls and late nights. At the closing meeting, I presented the survey to Barbara. She proceeded to state that she would follow her pattern of circling 1's and 2's. I then went back to the definitions that we had agreed upon and showed the facts of the project. According to our definitions, I deserved a 5 on all categories. We discussed why she was thinking the 1's and 2's and each reason was something that came up well after she had defined success. While these items were items that we could address on the next project, it would be unfair to rate us against criteria she hadn't thought of until later. She agreed and circled all fives. She listed in her comments that she was unhappy about a few things but realized that they were not things that were directly attributable to me or my organization.

When the survey was turned in, I immediately received calls from many levels of management inquiring how I could have gotten her to turn in a survey saying that she was completely satisfied. I told them that it was simple. I asked her to define what a 5 was and then held up my end of the bargain. In the end, she held up hers. The next time I worked with her, she had new and tougher definitions of what constituted a 5, but we both were clear on what had to be done to achieve the rating. To this day, she is still a reference for me.

The reason I wanted to share this story is that we often list project success and failure in ambiguous terms: on time, on budget, within scope. I have taken the technique that I learned and now apply it to projects. I ask the sponsor to define what a 5 would mean. There are always issues and things outside of our control. This technique is a good one to start talking in more realistic terms as to what success really means.

Keep marching forward!

Rick

A Positive Mindset

It is what it is. This is one of my favorite statements. I teach project managers that they should always reveal the truth and believe in the concept of "it is what it is." No amount of sugar-coating or truth bending can shade the fact that the project is where it is. It may be behind budget, it may be late or doing very well. No matter what, the project manager should always tell the truth. This statement seems to get questioned the most. In a recent seminar, I received the question "Telling the truth is often considered 'being negative' or 'not a team player' even with data. How do you get past that?" Fantastic question! I get past that with my mindset.

I truly believe that with the right time and resources, a project manager can accomplish anything. In the 1960's, John F. Kennedy stated that we would put a man on the moon, which at the time was only accomplished in science fiction. We have accomplished that feat. There were many failures before success, but we did it. Computers today are more robust and cheaper than they ever have been. We would have never dreamed that 25 years ago. That being said, I have the mindset that we can accomplish anything, given that we have enough time and resources. If I have the proper mindset, then the message that I am delivering to my sponsors or stakeholders takes a different spin. If I say, "That date is impossible unless I get three more resources," then likely that is perceived as negative. However, if I state it as "We have analyzed what you want and found a way to deliver it successfully. I need three more resources, but we can deliver," it takes on a different connotation. I try to never say no. Instead, I try to say yes with conditions. It is the same statement. One is negative and one is more positive.

Being a stakeholder on many projects, more often the project manager approaches me with why something can't be done versus the data of what is necessary to accomplish the task. Remember that in your next negotiation. Instead of telling a sponsor why it is unlikely to achieve success, tell them how to achieve it. I often hear "we can't, we don't, it is unlikely" instead of "here is what I need for success." It is all about mindset and approach. If you establish the proper mindset, it can be very freeing. In fact, you are more likely to achieve success by asking the question of "how can we meet this objective" instead of "why will this objective fail?" It is human nature to grab the negative and roll with it. It takes practice and optimism to grab the positive and enable it.

I know that most project managers have been taught that they own a project from start to finish. Ownership and accountability are two different things. The reality is that project managers do not own the budget, timeframe, or scope. They enable them. Therefore, a project manager should never say no. They should say, "absolutely we can get that done, here is what we need." Try it. You might like it!

Sincerely,
Rick

My Bruce Pearl Story

For my project management followers, I apologize for the off topic post.

The news abounds today about the firing of Bruce Pearl, Head Basketball Coach, University of Tennessee. I believe that more and more stories will come out as to what happened and different allegations. While I don't condone the NCAA infractions and the misleading that Bruce has already admitted to, I definitely do not condone bringing this story out before our first game in the NCAA tournament. That is too much pressure to put on college kids already under tremendous pressure. I do not know all of the facts about the case, but I do think that Bruce leaving hurts the University of Tennessee. There are many critics, but what he has done to bring energy to the program is without question or equal. I think Tennessee basketball will be setback several years as a result. With all of that said, I wanted to share what type of person that I think Bruce was and it is illustrated with a simple picture.

I had just finished doing some consulting for UT and taken my family to the Tennessee vs. UCLA game. On Sunday, as we were leaving the hotel, I saw Bruce outside. I had asked my wife Stephanie to get the camera. She couldn't find it. She searched and searched the bags. When she told me she had found the camera, I turned to ask Coach for a picture. By that time, he had gotten into his car, started it, and was about to leave. I said, "Hey Coach" and turned to see him in his car. I quickly turned back around thinking that we had missed the opportunity. Coach Pearl turned off his car and opened the door and shouted, "Did you want a picture?" I said that I did. He got out of the car and then graciously took a picture with me and my children.

For me, that told me all that I needed to know about Coach Pearl. He was a man of the fans. He understood that his role was more than coach, it was also ambassador. Painting his chest, rapping at a concert, and the genuine excitement that he had for Tennessee Basketball will be hard to match. Most coaches that come in already have to coach under the shadow of the great Pat Summitt. Now, they have to work under the shadow of Coach Pearl as well. Coach Pearl has such a large heart and passion and it shows. His team loves him and it shows. He loved the University of Tennessee and it shows.


I am sure that Tennessee had cause. Coach Pearl has already admitted that he had done wrong. I wish that both sides could have worked it out. Some of our greatest icons in sports had to overcome being human. Could we not have embraced and nurtured to overcome this one? Coach Pearl has done wrong and should shoulder the consequences. Being suspended 8 games, docked $1.5 million, and publicly humiliated out to be enough.


To Coach Pearl, good luck to you and you will be sorely missed by the Vol Nation.


A Sad Vol Fan,
Rick

The Resource WAR

Project managers are often faced with limited resources and tight time frames. They are also on the hook for the project success or failure. This often means the covertly degrading of quality to slam in the project just to satisfy the deadlines. However, it is difficult for most project managers to articulate their needs for resources. Therefore, I have come up with an anagram for you to remember how to phrase the discussion to your sponsors to give them options for project deadlines.

If you have ever heard me speak, I often state that the best mindset for a project manager is the one that never says no. I say, "I can absolutely do that, here is what I need." I also teach to ask either/or questions instead of yes/no. So this brings me to the resource WAR:

W - WAIT - We can wait for the resources to become available.
A - AUGMENT or ACQUIRE - We can go hire consultants, a vendor, or get some contractors to do the work
R - REDIRECT - We can redirect the resources from another project to this one.

For every project that is resource constrained, those are your options. The key is to get the data for each of the options so that you can present it to the sponsor appropriately. For example:

W - Find out when the resources will be available. For this example, we will assume October of this year.
A - Find out the cost of the consultant or contractor.
R - Find out which projects the resources are working on.

Once you have the data, it is time to present what you have learned to the sponsor:

PM: Mr. or Ms. Sponsor, in order to deliver the timeframe that you have requested, I will need three more resources or the date could slide to December of this year.
Sponsor: December? We need this to be done by July!
PM: The resources that we need are not available until October. I did find out that we could bring in a consultant for $XX.
Sponsor: We do not have additional budget.
PM: What about diverting the resources from project XX to this one?
Sponsor: We can't stop that project.
PM: It seems our options are to wait until December, hire the consultant, or redirect the resources. What would you like to do?

That may seem over-simplistic, but in reality, what are the other options? Get ready for the resource WAR. Get the data and present it to your sponsors. Good luck out there!

Rick

Be Careful What You Ask For!

Wow....what a week!  I have been honored to work with a phenomenal organization to architect and develop a solution that can revolutionize an industry.  This project blends project management, business process re-engineering, and solution design.  It is a once in a lifetime type of project and the immediate team that I am working with is truly amazing.  We were paid one of the nicest compliments that I have ever received from a client.  This client had been working on the design of a solution and trying to find technology to deliver it for over two years.  He said to me last night, "Where we are now is where we had hoped to be 12-14 months ago.  However, having you guys on board made it worth the wait."  That was just one of the many compliments delivered to us this week by one of the most amazing clients.  I have never worked with a client that embraced and appreciated hard work as much as this one.  We heard from the top of the organization, the senior leadership, the project manager, the business liaison, the IT sponsor and everywhere in between compliments as nice as that one.....as I said in the beginning...wow...what a week!

Early on in my career, I was called in to rescue a  project that was one year past due and one million dollars over budget.  The goal of the project was to reduce the entry of the items by the employees in the field from 5 minutes per item to 3 minutes per item.  We spent another year developing this system that was originally estimated to take 6 months.  I begged to meet with users in the field and gain their input in the design of the system.  Each time, my request was denied.  When we finally debuted the system just slightly two years overdue, the field users hated it.  It now took them up to 15 minutes per item.  We had increased their time instead of decreasing their time.  The managers all thought they knew best and made all of the decisions during requirements and design.  They were wrong.  The end result was we lost the customer, they lost 2.5 years and 3 million dollars, and they had to start all over by throwing the system away and starting from scratch.  Learning from that mistake, we had asked for user involvement in this current system we are developing.  This leads me to the title of this blog post....be careful what you ask for!

This week was the culmination of 16 months of requirements and 5 months of heavy development with 6 separate incremental demonstrations of the functionality.  We had a select group of individuals representing each of the roles in the system come in for the first true unveiling of the design.  While the system overall was a hit, we missed a core element of the system in a big way.  All of the requirements, all of the discussions, and all of the design sessions....and we missed a core element.  At first, it was devastating.  It was scary.  What did it really mean?  Luckily, it wasn't the first rodeo for me or the client.  We were prepared to have something go wrong, but we were all honestly surprised how far we missed the core element.  By the end of the session, we had a new design and a new approach hammered out and on the way to the core decision makers for their approval.

The moral of the story is you have to get to the users.  You have to get the true input of the people that are the ones that are going to use the system.  It does not matter how much expertise you have in the room, how good the developers are, or how long you spent doing requirements.  If you do not have the core users giving you input on how the systems should function, your chances of success are reduced exponentially.  At the same time, you must be careful what you ask for.  When you do solicit feedback, make sure it is early enough in the process that you can make the appropriate adjustments.  If we had this session 3-4 weeks later, I think it would have been detrimental to the project.

So the project management tip for this week, make sure you are getting users input.  Make sure that you do it early enough in the project where the feedback can be applied to the project without many changes.  Don't be afraid to ask....just be careful!

Until next time!

Rick

Time for a New Set of Goals!

Happy Anniversary! I am proud and blessed to announce that R² Consulting has turned 2 today. I can't believe it has been two years already. What an incredible journey this has been. The people that we have had a chance to work with, the solutions that we have been able to craft, and the ability to create an appropriate work/life balance have surpassed all expectations. We exceeded our first year revenue goals by over 10 % and grew an additional 5% over the next year. While 5% is modest growth, profitability grew by 61% year over year. We have also just concluded our largest revenue month ever. We created this little upstart in one of the most challenging economic times in our Nation's history and have been blessed to continue to do what we love while being able to support our families.

My VP of Sales, partner, and great friend Greg Huffman shared a story with me this morning on the 2 year anniversary. He had dinner last night with an associate of ours who told him the story of how he had met me. In 2005, I was a senior project manager for CA and was assigned to the Clarity implementation at a retail company in Jackson, MS. We were utilizing a partner company to do the implementation of the system. As I try to do with all of my partners and associates, I took the two gentlemen from this organization to dinner to become acquainted with them. Generally at these dinners, we tell stories of experience and past projects and begin to build a relationship with each other. At this particular dinner, I was asked what my career aspirations were. I had some ideas that were just brewing in my head at that time and listed my goals:

1) I wanted to write a book. (I have 3 on the market now)
2) I wanted to build a speaking career and seminar business around the book. (I speak for an average of two organizations or events per week)
3) I wanted to eventually own my firm. (R² Consulting)
4) I wanted to consult in many different industries and inspire organizations to look at project managers as a strategic resource. (Our client and industry list continues to grow)
5) I wanted to travel the world with my family. (We go overseas at least twice per year. Once for vacation and at least once for a speaking engagement)

Those were my long term goals. When I woke up this morning, I had an e-mail from Greg wishing me a happy anniversary. He also said that our associate had relayed the conversation and was happy to see that I had achieved all that I said that I would. That made me pause for a moment. I have achieved what I had set out to do. Sometimes, we get so busy in our day to day routines that we often do not take a step back and reflect on where we have been, where we are, and where we are heading. I was blown away by the story. I can't believe that he remembered what I had said that evening. Now thinking back to what I had listed, those were items that I had wanted to accomplish over the next 10-15 years. I have been blessed to be surrounded with such a phenomenal group of friends, business associates, and family to help me achieve these goals so quickly. So it is time to set the next set of goals. Here goes:

1) Build a proven system that promotes project management and project managers as strategic resources that revolutionize the way organizations operate.
2) Create a motivational seminar series that teaches and empowers individuals and organizations to harness the power of change and improve their lives and communities.
3) Franchise the seminar series and create a worldwide audience.
4) Expand R² Consulting to become the premiere resource for project management technology and development.
5) Spend more time fulfilling my roles for my family (Father, Husband)

There it is. Exposed for the world to see (or at least the 20 of you who actually read this post). Let's pray that the next 5 years grow like the last 5!

Finally tonight I wanted to touch on one other topic. On a post last April, I talked about why I like the small, family-based company feel (http://www.pmthatworks.com/2010/04/beyond-id-number-is-person.html). I was heartbroken to hear the shocking layoffs of two of my friends. One had been with a company for 16 years. She just recently had her second child and upon returning from maternity leave, she found out that her job was being outsourced to India. My other friend was put in a position a few years ago with no training and little chance for success. He persevered and was achieving his sales goals for the company. Furthermore, he was about to close a very lucrative deal that he had put quite a lot of effort towards. Two weeks before the signature of the deal, he was laid off. The Department of Labor talks about how transient the workforce is these days. They estimate that an average person will have five jobs before the age of 30. We also are seeing statistics of average length of employment at a company is two years. For the young mother of two, 16 years of loyalty was paid off by giving her job to a cheaper resource. The message continues to be sent that profit is more important than loyalty and service. Where has common sense gone? Where has loyalty gone? I remember I was almost removed from a company because I had exceeded my goals and it would have been more of a cost savings to the company to not pay me my incentive. They had made the decision to keep the person who was not performing as well. If I had not closed a big deal when I had, then they would have gone through with it.

I pray for my friends and for all of you out there who may find yourself in this position. Keep your head up. Maybe it is time for you to find your passion and pursue a career that gives you the freedom to do what you want and the satisfaction of doing it your way. Maybe it is time for you to set some new goals......

Until next time!

Rick

#3 and Feeling Good!

It has been a couple of weeks since my last post. No, I am not breaking my New Year's resolution, things have just been quite busy and the blessings continue to come! Here are several updates of what has been happening:

1) We received a message last night that this little old blog has been ranked #3 in a new listing of the Top 25 Blogs You Aren't Reading Yet. The two in front of this one are collaborative efforts, so we can say we are the #1 individually run (stretch much?). The list was published by Mr. Manager. You can read the article here:

http://mastersinprojectmanagement.org/25-best-project-management-blogs-you-arent-reading-yet.html#3

I have read through some of the other blogs listed and it is a great compilation of new project management blogs. I am quite honored!

2) I was interviewed recently by PM411.org for their podcast. This is the 67th podcast that they have created. You can hear the podcast here:
http://pm411.org/2011/01/14/podcast-episode-067-stop-playing-games/

Also, check out some of the other podcasts that they have. The content is fantastic!

3) I just finished working with the RMC Project Management team to create the audio book and an e-learning course based on the Stop Playing Games! book. I truly enjoy spending time with the RMC team. They always are so professional, down-to-earth, and driven for excellence. Laurie, Erica, Tim, Eric, Whitney, Jason, and a host of others are so much fun to be around and they make me look so much better than I really am!

Other than all of that, not much has been going on ;) Later this week I will restart the answering of questions that have been posed in the various webinars. I hope this message finds you well.

Passionately forging in to 2011,

Rick