Part 3 of 7 - 2nd Book that Influenced My Project Management Career

 

This is Part 3 in a series about a second book that affected the development of my skills in the business of managing projects and program of projects    The book -  Human Factors in Project Management by Paul C. Dinsmore – published in 1990 by AMACOM-American Management Association.  

The series contains articles on:  1)  A Classical View of Project Management.    2)  Planning and Strategy.   3)  Project Interfacing.   4)  Using Managerial Time.    5)  Negotiations.   6)  Decision Making.  7)  Managing Changes. 

This article summarizes the key points in Chapter 7 – Project Interfacing and it provides commentary relating the content to PMI’s Project Management Book of Knowledge – 6^th Edition (PMBOK).

Dinsmore starts the Chapter with a concise statement “Working the Interfaces” is a major project management function.   An effectively interfaced project is a well-managed project.

At first glance, interfacing is the interconnection of scheduled project activities and the process for establishing the appropriate sequence based on the predecessor and successor activities, contract milestones, and project goals.  But scheduled activities are only a portion of the work required for managing a project.   Management activities are not discretely listed on a schedule but they are equally critical for maintaining progress and achieving success. 

Project management interfacing relies heavily on the quality of the project manager’s institutional knowledge, project experience, management skills, and acumen for influencing activity execution.   Management to scope, schedule and budget must be supplemented by broad knowledge of processes that can affect scheduled activities.   The processes may be different for the industry domain of the project.   Some of the processes involve quality management; contract administration; budgeting, accounts payable/receiving, and cash flow; code compliance and permitting; and design and contract development. 

While not directly part of the earned value mechanism, the project team’s effectiveness in interfacing processes can affect progress of activities.   After describing some interface characteristics, Dinsmore suggests project managers should:

• Size up overall  needs
• Define static interfaces such as organization structure and functions
• Establish early design control
• Emphasize project flexibility
• Adapt the organization – know the scope, responsibilities and authorities of team members
• Manage design and production
• Control dynamic interfaces such as conditions that change with time – technology and project phase

At the end of the Chapter, Dinsmore identifies the general principles for project interfacing:

• Learn how client and/or upper management personnel feel about the project.  What are their views?  Their biases?
• Start the project with a macro-scale participative planning approach.
• Develop a formal integration plan that includes project blending techniques such as integration workshops, training efforts and coaching sessions.
• Pinpoint major areas requiring interfacing and assign responsibilities to individuals for monitoring those efforts.
• Schedule periodic project overviews, management audits and routine coordination meetings.
• Make provisions for expediting efforts when activities get “bogged down.”

Project interfacing is referenced in several areas of PMBOK.  The most prominent and appropriate is Chapter 3 -  The Role of the Project Manager.   On many project, the Project Manager is expected to use organization’s in-house resources for work by the management team.   In rail transit, some common departments resources are system safety, quality assurance, contracting/procurement, fiscal control, strategic planning, public affairs, operations planning, maintenance of equipment and engineering.   As a result, the PM will need to assure that the organization’s representatives transfer knowledge on the process assets that will be used to execute the work. 

PMBOK Chapter 3.5 Performing Integration summarized the application at the process level, cognitive level, and content level.   The majority of rail transit projects require heavy integration and are considered complex.   PMBOK lists the dimensions of complexity as:

• Interdependencies of components and systems
• Interplay between diverse individuals and groups
• Uncertainty of emerging issue and lack of understanding and confusion.

PMBOK lists the characteristics of complex projects as:

• Containing multiple parts
• Number of connections between the parts
• Number of dynamic interactions between the parts
• Behaviors produced by interactions of participants
• Conditions, actions and cause of behaviors that can not be explained

Commentary:    The effectiveness and quality of project interfacing is highly dependent on the project manager, and his ability to quickly gain a working knowledge of all organizational processes affecting each project phase.   A project manager needs to be social and build relationships with the team and exchange knowledge and processes.   I have been fortunate to work on projects with project teams that willing shared information, discussed optimizing processes, recognized individual and team responsibilities, and equally supported accountabilities.