Multi-Project Schedule Planning, Part II

From the Voices on Project Management Blog
by Cameron McGaughy, Lynda Bourne, Kevin Korterud, Peter Tarhanidis, Conrado Morlan, Jen Skrabak, Mario Trentim, Christian Bisson, Yasmina Khelifi, Sree Rao, Soma Bhattacharya, Emily Luijbregts, David Wakeman, Ramiro Rodrigues, Wanda Curlee, Lenka Pincot, cyndee miller, Jorge Martin Valdes Garciatorres, Marat Oyvetsky

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Categories: Project Planning

In my previous post, I set the stage for what it means to manage a project in a multi-project management (MPM) context.

In this post, I will share some best practices in the form of do's and don'ts that I hope will provide you with some basic guidance on how to steer and manage a project in an MPM environment.

Here are a few do's:

Be present. First and foremost, your project needs to be represented by you as a project manager during the MPM community's key shared events. There will be status meetings, where all project managers will report their progress, achievements or issues. There will be decision meetings, where overall decisions will lead to a shift in gears and put projects on new tracks, or where projects' priorities will be reassessed. You'll have to be there to understand the implications of these changes to the MPM environment and contribute to MPM developments.

Show commitment. The last thing your counterparts want to see from you, in a complex project environment, is the team committing for a milestone or deliverable and then not seeing it through. Show commitment and responsibility for your part of the project and demand the same from your counterparts.

Shed light. When odds are against your project and your commitments are threatened, make this visible in the MPM environment and shed light on the underlying impacts with strong communication management. Failing to communicate MPM-relevant results could generate ripples in related projects. For example, if you don't communicate on time a slight delay in the MPM project, this withheld information could cause huge delays in related projects.

Request orchestration. Request that the MPM project's overall coordination/orchestration is done by an independent person, a person other than the project managers of the underlying sub-projects. This is a prerequisite for attaining common project goals and avoiding project conflicts, due to the various project interests that are put in place.

Inform your team. Since your project team members will mainly be focusing on the project's inner scope, keep your project team informed about developments in the related MPM projects.

I recommending avoiding these don'ts:

Silo planning. In an MPM setup, where scope, timeline or resources can overlap, silo planning can jeopardize your project and the correlated projects. Plan jointly and agree on high-level planning with your MPM counterparts.

Adversity to change. To respond to changes external to your project, which can be critical for the overall projects' success, your project and stakeholders will have to be resilient to change, not adverse to it. Inform your stakeholders and enhance your change management process to allow changes that support and facilitate overall goals.

Disregard risks. When you have hard dependencies on or with other projects, do not underestimate or neglect managing risks. A tiny risk in your project can have significant impact on the related projects. Identify risks, quantify their occurrence probability and impacts, plan responses and share your risk management plan in the MPM community. Demand the same from your MPM counterparts.

Information overload. Although on one hand it's critical that your team is informed about what happens in the related projects, information overload from the MPM community can disturb your team's focus. Filter the information from the various MPM project teams, and share the significant information within yours when the time is right for your project.

Sluggish steering. While multiple forces from the MPM setup might influence your project course, do not permit your project role and influence to fade out. You are still the project manager; you are still the one holding the reins of your project.