Where the Rubber Hits the Road: Project Execution

 

We spend a lot of time talking about the best way to manage projects, communicate with stakeholders and engage project teams. All those things (and dozens of others) are critical to whether or not projects are successful. However, none of them matter if we aren't able to execute.

Have you ever worked with someone who could talk a good game, knew all the lingo, could draft a wicked proposal and could convince the boss that he had "the right stuff"—but couldn't get anything done? I have. I've not only worked with them, I've worked for them. Working with them is frustrating. Working for them is demoralizing.

If we loose sight of the fact that our responsibility is to actually get stuff done, we might as well turn in our project manager badges and start flipping burgers (not that there's anything wrong with working in fast food). You get the point. Leading a project team is about getting stuff done.

The CEO doesn't care how the Gantt chart looks. He could care less about the milestone path. All she cares about is that the projects we are working on are successfully completed, provide the value they were intended to and don't cost a lot more than the anticipated budget. He (or she) wants us to get stuff done!

Next time you're about to start a new project and create the "perfect" project plan, stop. Ask yourself, "What is going to be the most efficient way to ensure that this project is done right, meets the stated objectives and doesn't go over budget?"

If it requires a well-defined milestone path, great, create the plan. If it requires a simple "to do" list for one or two members of the project team, all the better. The simplicity of the plan does not negate the importance of the project or minimize the skill of the project leader. Project management methodologies and project tools are just that, tools. To be used by a skilled project leader to meet objectives—to get stuff done.

Just because we can, doesn't mean we should. In other words, making things complicated for the sake of justifying our existence is silly. I think it was Einstein who said, "Any idiot can make things more complicated, it takes a real genius to make things simple." My apologies to Einstein if I have misquoted him. I'm on a roll and too lazy to look up the quote.

I hope you get my point. If we remember that our primary objective as project leaders is to get stuff done, not create sophisticated project plans, shouldn't we be looking at those solutions that are the simplest to execute? It's better for the team, it's more practical for the organization and it's better for us.

Please don't misinterpret my rant as implying that we don't need well-defined project management methodologies, we do. We just don't need them for every project. I have actually watched people spend several hours on a project plan for a project that would only take an hour or two to finish. Does that really make a lick of sense? Of course not.

When you look at a new project and create a new plan, what do you do to implement the simplest methodology for accomplishing the most? How do you make sure your project teams are known for execution when the rubber hits the road, rather than spinning wheels?