Strategic Project Management

After mowing and edging the lawn, the weather was so nice I just had to climb on board the motorcycle and spend a couple of hours in the saddle on Saturday afternoon. It's going to be even better on my ride home from work today. I think spring is finally here and we should see warmer and better riding days ahead.

Having spent the morning working in the yard, I have to admit that I felt I had earned my saddle time on Saturday. I imagine that I'll feel the same way about taking the long way home this afternoon. Which has me thinking about the importance of celebrating the completion of a successful project and taking a pause to re-group before the start of the next initiative.

I believe the LAB day in between sprints is part of what makes it possible for SCRUM teams to be successful. It's been said that a change is as good as a rest, which is where I feel the LAB day is valuable.

That being said, I don't think it matters if you're part of a Agile team or not, taking a pause after the completion of a project (or even a major milestone) gives team members an opportunity to evaluate challenges and successful practices, step away from the grind and recharge the batteries to prepare for the next push.

I recognize that sometimes external factors might make it difficult to take a pause, but I've observed that teams can't go too long at full speed before they run out of gas and productivity suffers. I once worked with a project leader who was really good at making sure the team felt a break from one project to the next, here are some of the things he did to make sure we started the next project fresh:

1. We held a regular retrospective after every project: This was a time to honestly look at the successes and challenges associated with the project we had just done and set goals for doing better next time. Anything was fair game, including anything he did to make the process more difficult. I'm sure there were times he'd come out of those meetings frustrated because of something that had been said about his performance, but his goal was to make our team better (and that included him), so he took whatever suggestions were made to heart. He convinced all of us that we needed to do the same from watching his example.
2. We spent a day or two working on career development or special initiatives: As long as it was something that would provide benefit to the company, we had an opportunity to work on personal initiatives. Sometimes two or three of us would get together and work on something that we felt passionate about, but didn't make it on the list of active projects. Even though we were still working, it was a change from the daily routine, which made it feel like a rest.
3. We'd take a long lunch together or even spend a couple of hours during an afternoon doing something fun: Fortunately, we all enjoyed spending time together, so a team lunch was always a treat. On those occasions where we went offsite to do (dare I say) team-building activities, we had a good time as well as a short break from the daily grind. Of course this doesn't work for everyone or every team, but for those that it does, I think it could be a great way to regroup and refresh before the next big initiative.

Regardless of what you do with your team, taking a break between projects or major milestones makes sense to me. Nobody can carry on indefinitely, no matter how strong their personal stamina and work ethic. Marathon runners build rest days into their training schedules, I think we should do the same for project teams.

What are you doing to help your team refresh and regroup? I'm convinced it's an important part of creating the perfect project environment.

Over the years I can't even count the number of times I've either said that, overheard that or had it said to me. Sometimes, what we were doing really was a waste of time. Other times, because of my lack of perspective, what I thought was a waste of time really had value. Most people, whether they are able to clearly articulate it or not, want to add maximum value to whatever they are doing. I think most of us would agree that those days when we go home and feel like we've accomplished something worthwhile are very satisfying. I like what I do, and those days when I really feel like I'm making a contribution to something worthwhile and not wasting my time are very rewarding.

I don't think I'm that unique. In fact, I believe that most of the time the members of project teams feel the same way. How often have you heard, "I hate wasting time on this," or "This is a waste of time," or "I don't feel like I've contributed anything worthwhile today"?

Regardless of how you manage projects or the project management tools you use, if we can better align people to the right work at the right time, we can help people enjoy their jobs, gain satisfaction from whatever they're doing and allow them to feel like they are really contributing to something bigger than themselves. What's more, that kind of environment fosters a culture of productivity, innovation and profitability of our organizations.

I'm not a fan of wasting time and I don't know too many people who are. The world talks a lot about conserving our natural resources, but we seldom talk about how organizations waste their most precious resource—their people. Here are six tips to help you avoid wasting team members:

1. Make sure everyone has a clear understanding of what they should be doing: I know this sounds simple, but sometimes it’s easier said than done. When people have to spend time figuring out what they should be doing, people are wasted.
2. Don’t make it difficult for people to find documents or other project resources: When people have to hunt for the document or other project asset they should be working on, people are wasted.
3. Don’t make it difficult for managers to see what their people are doing: When team leaders and managers have to spend time trying to figure out what their people are doing, people are wasted.
4. Don’t spend entire days in meetings simply talking about work: If all you do is talk about work and never get around to doing the work, people are wasted.
5. Keep people focused on those initiatives that provide the most business value: When people spend time working on initiatives that don’t provide the most value to the organization, people are wasted.
6. Streamline repetitive processes: When people spend time in repetitive process that could be streamlined or automated, people are wasted.

Project and work management practices or tools that don't help avoid these wasteful behaviors make it difficult to maximize the value people. As project leaders, we should be looking at the processes and methods we use to manage work to see if we are contributing to frustration and waste or encouraging efficiency and empowering team members.

What are you doing to reduce waste?

Like many 10- or 11-year-olds I knew, I used to build model airplanes. It didn't really matter if it was a P-51 from World War II or an F-4 Phantom, my favorites were the models that included a pilot inside. You know how young boys are, I imagined myself as that pilot zooming around—saving the world.

Learning how to follow instructions and paying attention to what came next was important to properly finishing a model airplane. If I had done a good job assembling and painting, my Dad would usually tell me it looked like the real thing. Knowing what comes next is every bit as important for individual members of the project team as it is for boys building model airplanes. When team members have to dig around and search for their next task or assignment, it wastes valuable time and resources.

Making sure your team knows what they should be working on now and what they need to tackle next can be made a lot easier with the software or methodology you choose. For example, SCRUM teams usually don't have to look very hard to find their next task. It's usually as close as the SCRUM board. However regardless of the type of project management methods you use, some software does a better job of making it apparent to team members than others.

If you use software to distribute tasks and assign work, you need to make sure it doesn't make it harder for the team than it should. In fact, I don't think it should make it difficult at all. Unfortunately, most project management solutions are designed to help project managers plan projects and generate reporting. They leave out the critical component of clearly communicating "what's next?" to the team.

That's one reason I'm such a big fan of incorporating the social media metaphor into the project management process. The easier we can make it for team members to see "what's next?", collaborate and update status, the better we'll be able to capture accurate information at the source to provide the business leaders in our organizations the information they need to make informed decisions.

Not long ago, Tim Harmon from Forrester recorded an interesting presentation about Maximizing the Effectiveness of Your Dynamic Workforce Asset and why it's important to make sure they know what they're supposed to be working on now, and what they should be working on next.

What are you doing to make sure your team knows what they're supposed to be doing now and what they're supposed to be doing next?

I don't think any project or business leader worth his or her salt would disagree that an engaged team performs at a higher level. A recent HBR article suggests an engaged workforce is 32 percent more committed to the organization, 46 percent more satisfied with their job and self-report 125 percent less burnout. What project leader wouldn't want a team filled with contributors that fit that description.

Gretchen Spreitzer and Christine Porath, the authors suggest, "Moreover, their not sprinters; they're more like marathon runners, in it for the long haul."

Having run a couple of marathons in my life, I can appreciate the difference between a sprint and a marathon. At about mile 20, I started seriously wondering what I was doing. About that time a very old guy would usually pass me and say something like, "Finishing is winning."

Over the years I've come to appreciate that I can't ask the team to do anything that I'm not willing to also do myself. If I want to see the team be more engaged in what we're doing, I need to do the same. Linda Dulye, in a related article suggests five questions that could potentially indicate your level of engagement as a manager, or project leader, for that matter:

1. Are you invested? "This translates to time," writes Dulye. "You have to make an investment of your time to bring out the best in your employees and get them engaged." I don't think the value of regular one-on-ones is in question here. The tough part is making sure that you devote time in your schedule to do it. I recently spoke with a very successful project managers who devotes a half-hour one-on-one to every member of his team every week. With his team of ten, that means five hours of every week. It's a pretty substantial time commitment, but worth the effort in his mind. If you aren't co-located, Duyle suggests that you can do this via phone or video conference.
2. Are you immersed? "Physically get out of your office so you can personally experience the dynamics of the workplace," she suggests. "The point is to make yourself visible." It's all too easy to hid in the office or behind the computer with the headphones on cranking out work. Important as that usually is, there's real value to looking around, visiting with the team and demonstrating your personal interest in what's going on. HP made "managing by walking around" a successful management style. I've worked with people who were there in those days, and still talk about how "immersed" and engaged they felt their leaders were.
3. Are you interested? "Learn to ask open-ended questions—those that don't trigger a 'yes' or 'no' answer automatically," suggests Duyle. Make it a habit to ask questions and show interest in what people are doing. If this doesn't come naturally to you, don't worry, it get's easier with practice. What's more, the act of asking actually helps you become interested.
4. Are you interactive? Asking questions in a non-intimidating way will result in feedback. "Go beyond simply listening to feedback," she suggests. "Jot down a few notes and share what you've learned with your team or a customer. You can go from thriving on feedback as a conversation starter to actually changing how you do business." I once worked with a project manager who solicited, accepted and acted on feedback—sometimes even feedback that challenged the way he did things or reacted to situations. All of us on the team were convinced that his motives were to improve what we were doing and how we did it. It also made it much easier for us to receive the same kind of feedback.
5. Are you getting better? Duyle suggests, "All of the previous four steps comprise a process for engaging others. You need calibration on how you are doing." If  you're like me, sometimes you're better at some of these things than others. You'll need to determine a way to measure your progress. I'm pretty convinced that this is a journey, not a destination.

I'd like to add something that Duyle doesn't mention. I once attended a meeting where someone on the team asked his manager if he really believed in what we were doing. "Are you passionate about the value we're trying to provide to our customers, or is this just a stepping stone to a better job?" It was a great question. I have often thought about it since. If we want the team to take what they do seriously and treat it as more than a stop on the career path, we need to feel the same—easier said than done. However, those closest to the work often feel a more visceral connection to what they're doing than those who aren't involved in doing the work. At the very least, we need to be sensitive to that.

How did you do? Could you answer yes to all five questions?

I don't think anyone would disagree that working well with sponsors and other stakeholders is an important part of the project environment. I'm convinced it's even more important now as the line between work and projects becomes harder to recognize. I think this evolution is a good thing. What's more, as it pushes project leaders to become more invested in the business value of what their doing and compelling them to work and collaborate more closely with line-of-business managers to make sure what they're doing will provide maximum value, I think projects will be more successful and organizations will ultimately reap the rewards.

With that said, the type of relationship you foster with your project sponsors and stakeholders is largely up to you. We all understand that everyone on the project team (including the project sponsor) has a role to play that helps determine whether or not a project is successful or struggles. Unfortunately, in many instances,  the sponsor might not understand his or her role. With that in mind, here are three suggestions for keeping sponsors engaged and participating:

1. Schedule a regular meeting (usually monthly) with sponsors, team members and other important stakeholders: This might be a good time for a quick status update; but more importantly, it's a time for reinforcing the value and significance of the project in terms of business value and sponsor's commitment to helping the team.
2. Educate the sponsor on their role as part of the team: The sponsor has an important role as project advocate to communicate with other stakeholders and provide visibility to executives. Don't assume your sponsor understands his or her role, you may need to provide a little guidance so they know what they're supposed to do to help keep the project moving forward. In a recent podcast, we spoke with Peter Taylor, the Lazy PM, about the sponsor relationship. You might want to take a few minutes to listen to what he has to say about the PM/sponsor relationship.
3. Don't neglect impromptu one-on-one time with the project sponsor: Make sure your sponsor is willing to have the occasional informal meeting when needed. It's not only important to cultivate the relationship with your sponsor—your success impacts their success within the organization.

Sometimes an engaged sponsor is the difference between a successful project and one that fails. Tools and approaches that facilitate sponsor/stakeholder communication can make this a lot easier. It's never a good idea to allow your project sponsor to sit on the sidelines and avoid his or her important role.

What are you doing to keep your sponsors involved and engaged? Should we add something to the list?