People, Planet, Profits & Projects

We're glad when the topic of sustainability in project management comes up.  And it came up in a big way in the most recent issue of PMI's Project Management Journal.  Here's the mission of the Journal:

"...to shape world thinking on the need for and impact of managing projects by publishing cutting-edge research that advances theory and evidence-based practice."

The most recent issue has an article called "Sustainability and Success Variables in the Project Management Context" by Mauro Luiz Martens, Methodist University of Piracicaba (UNIMEP) and University of São Paulo (USP), São Paulo, Brazil, and Marly M. Carvalho, University of São Paulo (USP), São Paulo, Brazil.

From the article's introduction:

"Sustainable development and the concept of sustainability, connected to the triple bottom line—economic, environmental, and social—has required a new perspective for projects (Labuschagne, Brent, & Van Erck, 2005; Valdes-Vasquez & Klotz, 2013; Munck, Galleli, & Souza, 2013).

Despite the fact that sustainability has attracted the interest of professionals and scholars in the project management field (Silvius, Schipper, & Nedeski, 2013; Sánchez, 2015; Silvius & Schipper, 2015; Sarkis, Meade, & Presley, 2012; Valdes-Vasquez & Klotz, 2013; Labuschagne, Brent, & Van Erck, 2005), and that project management can be a means to positively influence the integration of sustainability dimensions (Bocchini, Frangopol, Ummenhofer, & Zinke, 2014), there is a gap between the perception of importance and the actual use of sustainability in project management (SPM) practice (Martens & Carvalho, 2016a). In addition, project management can be considered a missing link in the ecodesign literature (Brones, Carvalho, & Zancul, 2014), being an incipient theme approached in specialized ecodesign articles (Brones & Carvalho, 2015)."

Notice all of the references.  That's because the Journal is an important academic instrument.

We suggest that you have a look at this survey of the literature.

And we also suggest (humbly, of course) that you also look at a couple of books that weren't mentioned in the survey of literature: Green Project Management, which won the Cleland Award in 2011, and follow-up Driving Sustainability Success in Projects, Programs, and Portfolios.

Whatever your choice of reference - the connection between project management and sustainability is undeniable, interesting, and important.  Look into it!

As project managers, we normally think of core values as beliefs that are very important to an organization.  As Oxford’s Dictionary puts it, a core value is “a principle or belief that a person or organization views as being of central importance”.

...and this is a theme we’ve discussed many times in this blog and on EarthPM – the need for projects to connect to the core values of their organization, using that connectivity to drive motivation for project team members, because if they know that their project work connects to project success, which connects to organizational success – it provides a sort of golden thread.

This post is not, however, about that type of core value.

Well, it is – but only tangentially.  This post is about the literal values determined by scientists when they take core samples of the thawing Arctic tundra, to better understand the effects of climate change on the tundra, and – unfortunately – vice versa.

You see, based on recent research highlighted in this article from the most recent issue of Scientific American, there is a bit of a spiraling effect here.  Record warm temperatures are thawing the Arctic tundra’s permafrost, which allows the decomposition of plant and animal remains in the warming soil, which in turn is potentially allowing almost 1,500 billion metric tons of organic carbon to be released into the Earth’s atmosphere.  That’s almost twice as much carbon as that which already exists in the atmosphere.  And it’s not just carbon – it’s methane, which is much more powerful as a greenhouse gas.

In other words, climate change has opened the door to accelerating climate change, which…which causes more climate change, which accelerates... well, you get the picture. 

In the article, author Ted Schuur discusses the scientific research project, which involves taking core samples, and recording significant amounts of data to better understand this dangerous scenario.  In fact, there is something called The Global Terrestrial Network for Permafrost – and it is loaded with the data taken from tundra core samples in the Arctic.  Below is a short video explaining their work:

The Permafrost Carbon Network started in 2011 and their main objectives are to synthesize existing research about permafrost carbon and climate in a format that can be assimilated by biospheric and climate models, and that will contribute to future assessments of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).  Their site contains research and maps of the core samples which indicate that this problem is serious and needs further study.

The point of this post is to remind us as project managers that there are project risks, and there are overarching risks (both threats and opportunities).  In this case, we see a massive overarching risk of not just climate change, but accelerated climate change – a nasty feedback loop, if you will – that we should understand.  The research projects being undertaken by these scientists is important.  Already, the research is yielding answers.  The question as to what percentage of the carbon pool will be released by thawing permafrost has been answered, using the data and expert judgment of the Permafrost Carbon Network: it’s 10 percent plus or minus 5 percent.  This is 130 to 160 billion metric tons of additional carbon entering the atmosphere, similar to the amount of carbon released worldwide thus far by deforestation and other land-use changes.  It will make climate change happen even faster than scientists project from human activities alone.

What can we do as project managers?  I return to the primary definition of core values.  Most of your organizations include sustainability, including ecological sustainability in their core values.  Make sure your projects are connected to those core values.  Your project includes and outcome.  That outcome will have an ecological impact.  Have you thought about that impact - the steady-state impact?  Or are you focused only on the handover of the product of the project?  We hope it's the former.  Every change you make is significant, especially put in the context of this accelerated view of climate change.  If your project can produce an outcome that is even slightly less impactful to the environment, it’s almost like a ‘matching donation’ program – the effect could be considered even larger, based on what this research shows us.

So please – learn more about this issue by visiting the links we’ve embedded, and consider that ‘golden thread’ when you set the ground rules and objectives of your project.  Connect them to your organization’s core values!

Further reference, from NASA:

Is a Sleeping Climate Giant Stirring in the Arctic?

One of the PMI Project of the Year Finalists was the CMPC Celulose Riograndense Pulp Mill in Brazil.  Its $2.4 billion expansion project was built in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, in a suburb of Porto Allegre called Guaíba.  When reading the story about this in the December 2016 PM Network magazine, I was immediately impressed with the holistic views that the project sponsors and the project managers took in order to assure that the project was truly a success in the way that we’ve been discussing here on this blog.

For starters, the mill expansion project proactively considered the stakeholders’ concerns of noise, traffic, debris, pollution, and the effect on the local water supply.  The organization CMPC, as the article says, “started the conversation early, working with the community to ensure project goals went beyond boosting company profits.”  Later in the article we learn that although these non-monetary concerns were important, this did not mean the organization was un-focused on the economic element of the triple bottom line.  Indeed, they kept economics front and center, as they should.  It’s just obvious that they had their vision not ONLY on the economics.

The project team was willing to make the investments up front in innovative and efficient technology paid off in terms of allowing them to meet ecological goals but also enabled the mill to be more productive when it was turned over to steady-state operation.

“If you don’t have a sustainable vision, probably in the future, the society will close your mill or your business”, said Mr. Lidio Nunes of the organization.

The story is loaded with examples in which the considerations of the project team go beyond the scope of usual projects, and the vision for what the project’s PRODUCT – the mill – would deliver in the long term, was broader and deeper than most.

We have been told many times that the ideas we espouse about thinking sustainably in projects are limited to wind farms or to very small projects.  This example proves that a project can integrate these ideas even when it’s large and ‘distant’ from energy or other ‘purely green’ categories of projects on what we call the spectrum of green.  (see our books).

This is a large project, not a trivial one.  In and of itself, the new mill is 1.5 percent of the state’s GDP.  It created 28,000 jobs.  This proves that even a large project can succeed – in the broader sense of the term.

Even more importantly, the project team buys into their role as a change agent.  The story ends with the idea that “they will leave a legacy within the industry, showing other companies that they can protect the environment while turning a profit”.

I did a bit further research on this project and found a very interesting source of info in this newsletter, which includes an interview with the Chairman of CMPC, Eliodoro Matte.  In it, the Chairman responds to questions about social responsibility:

What does social responsibility mean for CMPC?

We believe that, in its widest sense, the main social responsibility of companies is to remain active and profitable, producing and competing in the market. When this happens, not only does it create a return

for the shareholders, but it also has very favourable social consequences, like new employment opportunities through expansion and investment, and the creation of wealth and valuable services for society.

How has the company taken on this responsibility?

Since its establishment 90 years ago, the company has shown real concern for what used to be called ‘social issues’. Already at the start of last century, it carried out various initiatives to collaborate with

neighbours and workers. This feeling of social responsibility towards the community has continued throughout the years, determining an administration style and a company tradition. It is an attitude that has adapted to different eras and needs.

In what way?

During recent years we have increased our capacity to understand our environment, and the challenges, desires and concerns of those around us. In today’s world it is not possible to do business without looking outwards. We have to be concerned with these local factors that will be key to determining the long term viability of our ventures.

I’d like to use this blog post to encourage you – as a project manager – to watch the documentary “Before the Flood”, which you can find on the National Geographic channels. 

Here’s a description of the show, which features Leonardo DiCaprio, not in an acting role, per se, but rather as an ‘explorer’ of the issue of climate change and its solutions.

Before the Flood presents a riveting account of the dramatic changes now occurring around the world due to climate change, as well as the actions we as individuals and as a society can take to prevent the disruption of life on our planet. Beyond the steps we can take as individuals, the film urges viewers to push their elected officials in supporting the use of alternative energy sources such as solar and wind power. “We need everyone to demand bold action from their political leaders and to elect representatives who have their best interests at heart, not the interests of corporations to perpetuate a cycle of greed and destruction,” says DiCaprio. “This documentary shows how interconnected the fate of all humanity is — but also the power we all possess as individuals to build a better future for our planet.”

The film is directed by Fisher Stevens and produced by Leonardo DiCaprio, Fisher Stevens, Jennifer Davisson and Trevor Davidoski with Brett Ratner and James Packer of RatPac Entertainment. It was written by Mark Monroe and Executive Produced by Martin Scorsese, Adam Bardach, Mark Monroe, and Zara Duffy.

Why should a project manager care about this (aside from the ‘planetary citizen’ aspect)?

There are many significant opportunities for projects, large and small, in the area of mitigation of climate change.  We’d like to draw your attention to the Solutions portion of the Before the Flood website.

On it, they say: “The good news is that climate change can be solved today with readily available technologies and sustainability measures. It will take significant investments on the part of governments and businesses, but that investment will be a small fraction of the price we would have to pay for increasing natural disasters and other climate impacts. New research has shown that using currently available technologies, we can meet all of our energy needs for heating, electricity, and transportation through 100% clean renewable sources by mid-century. We can get on track by 2020, when the Paris Agreements enters into force by reducing pollution through a price on carbon and protecting our forest and ocean ecosystems. Learn more about the array of solutions to solve climate change.”

Think about it. The solutions are all about projects, or in many cases, program and portfolio level management.  On the site you will find examples of these in major categories like these:

• Renewable Energy
• Governmental Oversight
• Reforestation
• Climate Adaptation
• Business Leadership and Innovation
• Climate Education
• Energy Efficiency
• Green Cities
• Ocean Conservation
• Carbon Capure

My eyes were drawn to the Business Leadership and Innovation topic.  In this area, we know that it will involve us as project managers, recalling that projects – by definition – are unique endeavors, like these.

In this section of the website, there is this important write up:

“The most exciting changes happening within companies are driven by raw innovation: the development of new products, services and business models that are beginning to outstrip the competition and cutting carbon emissions at the same time. A growing army of entrepreneurs around the world are leading start-ups that are making plastics from waste landfill gas, growing furniture from mushrooms, re-inventing energy markets, and redesigning windows to generate their own power. Nike is harnessing new footwear design and dyeing processes to radically reduce waste and water use whilst improving performance. Spurred on by the rise of Tesla’s electric cars, auto manufacturers like BMW and GM are developing radically different vehicles and business units. Some lesser-known industrial companies like Royal DSM and Umicore have completely shifted their core businesses away from mining to areas like nutrition and recycling. We will only see much more of this radical change in the next few years - watch this space.”

It's going to take project managers like you, me, and our colleagues, to accomplish objectives like these.  Again, I urge you to see the film first, then explore this site for the kinds of projects that you may end up working on – either accidentally, or because you think that this is particularly important work.

In this special post, we interview Moira Alexander, PMP, author of a brand-new book. Moira is the founder and president of Lead-Her-Ship Group.  She has more than 20 years of experience in business, IT and project management for small to large businesses in the U.S. and Canada.  She writes for TechRepublic and CIO Magazine.

I was drawn to the book because of the main theme: the idea of strategic project management - and how important I consider project management the single connection point between organizations' missions, their strategies, right on through to steady-state operation.

So here's are interview with Moira.

Moira, you’ve just written a new book called “Lead or Lag: Linking Strategic Project Management & Thought Leadership”.  It makes the connection between short and long-term business strategy with project management thought leadership.  What was the trigger for writing a book at this particular intersection?

Throughout my 20+ years of working on projects within small and large organizations I realized some business cultures recognized and embraced the link between business strategy and PM thought leadership while others that hadn’t connected the dots suffered direct or indirect losses, and missed company-wide objectives.  It became clear that without strategic goals as the driver, all project, programme and portfolio initiatives simply lost true relevance and  project leaders  lost their ability to be fully effective. An enormous number of projects are still initiated annually with staggeringly high failure rates. This drives home the need to fortify the strategy and PM thought leadership link, as well as other interrelated factors. While this book covers various topics including strategy, thought leadership, project leadership, HR, methodologies, tools and KPIs, the key overlay throughout is thought leadership and strategy.

You identify long-term strategy in particular.  As you know, PMI recently released a Pulse of the Profession report on this topic.  So it’s in play at the moment.  Yet, many, many project managers I’ve talked with think that benefits realization is actually an example of “role inflation” for project managers, that we should really look at our projects as endeavors with a start and a finish and a budget and scope and schedule, manage the treats to project objectives, and get our work done – and anything beyond that is ‘fluff’.  What do you say to them?

The true value of project managers is not in the mechanics of their role, but rather in the high-level knowledge and abilities as strategic thought leaders. Implementing strategic leadership shouldn’t be considered “role inflation”, project leaders are and will continually be tasked with executing projects that offer relevance to future value.  Due to increasing pressure on project leaders to show evidence of initiatives on business objectives, EPMOs are being created with a primary goal of aligning project undertakings with company-wide objectives, and as such all activities should ensure project success is not just possible but likely. To do this a PM has to do so much more than “manage”, we need to “lead” in every aspect of the role. Project, portfolio and programme managers should continually work with leadership teams as a partner in success to achieve overall strategic goals and vision. To do anything else means a project leader’s efforts as well as company efforts, resources and opportunities are squandered. 

Do you cover any aspects of sustainability, in particular – or it least sustainability-oriented thinking in your book?  Does it talk about the elements of the triple bottom line (economic, ecological, and social outcomes)?

In my book I cover future PM trends and the increasing global visibility that’s forging the need for improved transparency, accountability, and social responsibility. The pressure on project professionals to demonstrate how their efforts address these rising concerns will continue to be a significant factor in measuring project, portfolio, and programme success.

That's excellent, Moira, and very insightful.  Thanks.

The days of meeting just project specific goals without sufficient regard for economic, ecological or social impact is gone. Much more is at stake than ever before in terms of business, profit and project impact on people and the planet. The bar has been raised on company, executive and project leadership performance, accountability, transparency and social responsibility, with no signs of letting up.

That's very reassuring to hear.  Here's a related question: 

How do you react to this statement: “Project Managers – by definition – are change agents; therefore they can – and should - be the leader that makes a strong connection between organizational mission, vision, and values to their projects’ objectives” ?

I agree fully with this statement. As mentioned, project manager is a misleading term to some extent as it creates the impression that simply managing project mechanics is all that’s required for success to become inevitable. A PM must be a change agent if they’re to deliver the desired value organizations expect in order to realize full benefits potential. Absent alignment with organizational mission, vision and overall objectives, a project leader simply can’t be agents of change nor effective as project partners.

 What other coaching do you have for an audience of project managers who, by virtue of their reading this particular blog, do (at least potentially)  believe in a PM taking on a larger, triple-bottom-line focus in leading their projects?

In my book I discuss why many C-Suites may no longer be focusing solely on the bottom-line, and instead choosing to also recognize the intangible and tangible benefits of factoring in the triple-bottom-line in their decisions and actions. I’ve included insights from other experts who say leaders should be open to incorporating other factors into their business practices if they aim to competitive and even possibly viable. The triple-bottom-line is no longer an optional factor; it now has the power to significantly impact the bottom line at some stage in an organization’s growth, whether easily recognizable or not.

At the end of the day the PM profession is here to stay, but each project leader at some point will need to decide if they are willing to elevate their role and responsibilities in this high profile profession and truly “lead” or simply “manage” projects, and by default lag.

Thanks, Moira - excellent points and we heartily recommend your book.  Good luck, and thanks again for being on People, Planet, Profits & Projects.

Here's a link to the book - check it out!

LEAD or LAG: Linking Strategic Project Management & Thought Leadership

Moira Alexander, PMP, I.S.P., ITCP/IP3P