Meeting the Needs of Executives, Project Managers, and Project Teams

 

One of my co-workers recently introduced me to a program produced by the BBC called Top Gear.  At his suggestion, I have started watching the three hosts test drive cool cars, interview interesting people, and otherwise do all the things middle-aged guys like myself would enjoy doing on a Saturday afternoon. 

In a recent episode, the three were asked to pretend that they were 17 years old and given a modest budget with which they needed to purchase and insure a used car.  My wife claims that none of the men she knows (including myself and our three sons), matured much past 17, so she thought it was funny that they had to remember what it was like to be 17 again.

All agreed that a 17 year old boy's first car needed to meet some general, if not conflicting, criteria to please both the boy and his parents:

1. It had to be cool
2. It had to be quick and sporty
3. It had to be safe
4. It had to be cheap to insure

In other words, there was no way it could meet the 17 year old's expectations while meeting his parents expectations.  The used cars ultimately picked were, a VW Golf, Hyundai's Scope, and a Volvo 240 Wagon (somebody's mom must have chosen this one). 

While watching this particular episode, I couldn't help but think of the groups within an organization who use project management tools, and what their different requirements were.  In a nutshell, I think you'll agree that the list of "required" project management features is relatively short:

1. The solution should help business leaders sift through project requests and evaluate each request based on business value, alignment with strategic objectives, along with any potential risks and rewards.
2. The solution should help manage "the process" of project implementation and execution to ensure that projects stay on track and are completed on time, on budget, and with the desired functionality.
3. The solution should make it easy for project team members to participate in the process without forcing them to become project managment experts themselves.
4. The solution should give business leaders access to relevant, timely, and qualifiable information that enables them to make better-informed decisions.

In my opinion, for any work management solution to be effective, it must address the needs of:

1. Project Teams: The more difficult it is for project teams to participate in the process, the less likely they are to do it.  It doesn't matter how sophisticated a project management solution's reports and dashboards are, the data will not be accurate or timely if it's challenging for project teams to update task status.
2. Project Managers: Helping project managers "manage" the process doesn't mean forcing them to manually input status information to push up to the executive level.  It means automating those processes that can be automated and creating an environment where team members will voluntarily update project status so managers can spend more time helping team members be effective and successful.
3. Executive Decision Makers: Formalizing the project selection process and providing executives with the information they need to make well-enformed decisions enables business leaders to think strategically.

Unlike a teenager trying to buy a reasonably-priced car that will meet with parental approval, you can meet the needs of project teams, project managers, and executives when you are looking for a project management solution. 

How does your project management solution address the needs of executives, project managers, and project teams?