Strategic Project Management

Dwight Eisenhower said, "You don't lead by hitting people over the head—that's assault, not leadership."

Over the course of my career I've had the opportunity to witness first hand many different leadership styles—and, some are more successful than others. Nobody likes to get hit over the head and most people respond well to a little freedom regarding how they manage and approach their work. Within project teams (where collaboration is critical) autonomy among team members is very important. Eisenhower also said, "Only strength can cooperate. Weakness can only beg." I think that's true of project teams too.

I'll admit that what I'm about to say is probably easier said than done, but is worth the effort. I have had the opportunity to work as a team member or project leader on many teams over the years, and believe that fundamentally people "step up" when given the opportunity. Of course, that doesn't mean that everyone will. In those instances, it's important to step back and evaluate whether or not that particular team member should remain on the team. That being said, I recognize that not all project managers have the luxury of picking who's on their teams in the real world. However, depending on the organization, they probably have a lot of influence. For any project team to be successful, it's critical to jettison the dead weight that refuses to contribute to the team or doesn't add value. The burden of doing more with less includes doing it with the right people, or projects are doomed from the start.

Beating people over the head is not a long term solution to motivating anyone. Fear is only a motivator for a short period of time, but is ultimately a credibility destroyer and eventually team members tire of being threatened or insulted, and leave—or worse, they leave mentally but stay physically.

As a general rule, I believe that people are really driven by a desire to contribute to something bigger than themselves. Let's face it, most of us don't spend our time changing the world, curing cancer or building bridges to world peace, but there is value to what all of us do. Team members who are allowed to share in the greater vision of what they're doing and understand how their efforts contribute to the success of a worthwhile endeavor tend to be engaged and motivated.

I don't pretend to have all the answers, these are simply some of my observations and opinions. That being said, I am a firm believer in people's desire to do good work. I've worked with very few people who didn't want to excel. Please feel free to contribute to the conversation and share your thoughts and ideas.
 

Vince Lombardi started his coaching career at Green Bay the year I was born. As a boy growing up, my dad had only one team and admired only one coach, the Green Bay Packers and Coach Lombardi. Having won five NFL Championships, including Super Bowls I and II, it's not hard to understand why.

Lombardi once said, "Leaders aren't born, they are made. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal which is worthwhile."

When Lombardi took over the Packers, they weren't the winning team they would become. He instilled in his team the understanding that "Winning is not a sometime thing. You don't do things right once in a while... you do them right all the time."

I can't help but think that Coach Lombardi was also talking to us as project leaders. Although it might be true that some people are more naturally inclined to some of the skills that make a good leader, part of leadership is "Individual commitment to a group effort—that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work." Those traits described by Lombardi can be fostered and encouraged in anyone.

I once worked on a team where the regular project retrospective was focused not only on what "we" could do better as a team, but what "he" could do better as a project leader. I'm sure it wasn't always easy, but I came to respect his desire to improve his skills to better lead the team. Although some of those skills might come more naturally to some, he demonstrated to me that anyone can learn to become an effective leader.

Lombardi also said, "Some of us will do our jobs well and some will not, but we will all be judged on one thing: the result."

In a business climate where more and more is expected of project leaders and project teams, I don't think it's asking too much for all of us to refine our skills, to always be looking for ways to improve and recognize that "Man's finest hour is the moment when he has worked his heart out in a a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle victorious."
 

I think it's safe to say that most organizations are looking for good employees. People who will show up on time, do reasonably well at their jobs and don't rock the boat. The same is true for project teams and even project managers. Unfortunately, I don't think being good is enough anymore.

Saying that, we need to realize that the reason most organizations are looking for good employees is because they are predictable and replaceable (although they might not realize that's what they're doing). What's more, being a good employee isn't really very good for your career.

With that in mind you should understand that exceptional employees, or irreplaceable employees, are considered risky by many organizations. They are more expensive than good employees and they are harder to replace (although nobody is impossible to replace).

Why do you want to be and hire the exceptional?

The environment we live in today is highly competitive. Truly great organizations understand that it is great people within their organizations that make them great. About a week ago we talked about how Talent Trumps a System, and how a smart system does not really make a mediocre team member smart—it just makes them easier to replace. However, there are organizations who understand this and leverage exceptional people to create exceptional companies. If you are lucky enough to work for one of those organizations, it won't take long before your efforts to become exceptional are recognized and opportunities to create more value will come your way.

As project leaders, it's important for us to recognize those people on our teams that are exceptional and provide opportunities for them as well. Frankly, I enjoy working with team members who have talents that I don't have and are adept at skills that I don't posses. My job is not to compete with them, but leverage their talents (as I expect mine to be leveraged) to accomplish things that are truly remarkable.

Over the last few days we've been talking about excellence and the small differences between good and great. Admittedly, being better than good, nay being great, takes extra effort and investment. However, for most truly exceptional people, the system has stacked the cards against them. I have to agree with the American sociologist and writer Paul Goodman, who said, "Few great men could pass Personnel."

Unfortunately, most companies and hiring managers rely too heavily on automated resume scrapers and degrees or credentials to determine if a candidate is "good enough" for an interview, missing many "exceptional" candidates to interview "good enough."

When project teams are increasingly asked to provide value, being exceptional and working with exceptional teams is critical. Part of our role as project leaders is to help build teams where "good" just isn't good enough.

What do you do to insure that you're project team is irreplaceable?
 

Humorist and author Mark Twain said, "The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightening and the lightening bug."

I have to agree with Twain, I think the difference between something that's good and something that's great is often very small. I wonder if the same holds true when we consider the differences between a good project team and one that's really great.

I'd like to take a little bit different approach today and ask all of you, what's the difference between a good team and a great team, a good project manager and a great one, a good team member and a great one?

Thanks in advance for participating in today's conversation. I'm really looking forward to learning from you. I'll share more of my thoughts in a couple of days after we've had the chance to hear from all of you.
 

It's all up to you.

In large part, the relationship you foster with project sponsors is up to you. Everyone, including the project sponsor, has a role to play that helps determine whether a project is successful or struggles. However, unlike most members of the team, a project sponsor might not completely understand his or her role. With that in mind, here are some suggestions for keeping sponsors engaged and participating:

1. Schedule regular meetings (usually monthly) with sponsors, team members and other important stakeholders: This my be a good time for a quick status update; but more importantly, it is a time for reinforcing the value and significance of the project in terms of business value and the 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 in steering/stakeholder committee meetings 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 the project move forward.
3. Don't neglect impromptu one-on-one time with the project sponsor: Make sure your sponsor is willing to have the occasional informal meetings when needed. It's not only important to cultivate the relationship with the sponsor—your success impacts their success within the organization.

Keeping sponsors engaged often makes the difference between a project that succeeds and one that fails. Project management tools that facilitate sponsor and stakeholder communication can make this easier, but regardless of whether or not it's part of your work management solution, allowing project sponsors to sit on the sideline isn't a good idea.

How do you keep your project sponsors involved? Is there anything we can add to the list?