Voices on Project Management

By Conrado Morlan

When it comes to project management, Murphy’s Law often rings true: Anything that can go wrong will go wrong. So it’s up to project leaders to be ready and willing to pivot at a moment’s notice. And it’s a lesson learned that I’ve taken from a number of projects.

In this post, I’d like to share one example. During the first wave of a regional billing implementation project in the Americas, my team and I were learning the ropes of replacing the local application with a centralized regional application.

The first stop was Central America. This region was the first choice because Costa Rica was centralizing its billing operations for the area. Costa Rica already had a dedicated team to manage the billing functions for each Central American country. But this shift meant configuring and training seven countries in a single location.

The outcome was successful, and my team and I identified areas of opportunity to enhance the implementation process for the next countries in the wave.

The next country to implement the program was Chile. We started gathering customer data, cleansing the data, and configuring the training and production processes.

The audience for the training, which lasted one week, included people from finance, billing and IT. After the training, the participants were able to practice for a week in the training environment, and my team and I addressed any questions they had. The planned go-live date was slated for two weeks after the training and practice.

During the two-week break period in Chile, my team and I went to Ecuador as scheduled to begin implementation activities.

One week before the go-live date, the Chile country manager called me and delivered the news: “All the people in the billing department resigned.” The country manager wanted to throw in the towel and postpone the initiative’s launch date. His first comment was, “I will not be able to hire and get the new hires ready in a week.” I asked him to wait before making any decision and that I wanted to discuss alternatives with my team.

I shared the news with my team and asked them to come up with ideas that would keep the program on schedule or at least minimize the impact caused by an unexpected delay. We reconvened at the end of the day and discussed some potential solutions:

1. Hire and retrain team members. This would postpone the Chile implementation for at least one month.
2. Implement Ecuador and Chile in parallel.
3. Split the implementation team. Half would support Chile’s billing operation while the hiring process takes place, and the other half would support Ecuador’s implementation.
4. Ask Costa Rica to temporarily support Chile’s billing operation.

Option one and two were similar, assuming that the hiring process would be completed and the new hires would be available for the two-week training/practice. This would also double the workload for the in-country implementation team and the support team in Malaysia.

Option three was feasible but would put a heavy burden on the in-country implementation team and would require assurance that Chile would expedite the hiring and training process to release the members of the in-country implementation team.

Option four was a bizarre idea, but this option would cover all the bases, as the team in Costa Rica was already providing remote support for the billing operations.

My team and I decided on option four. I called the billing and finance head in Costa Rica, explained the situation and asked if the proposed idea would be feasible. They responded that they would need to talk with their Chilean counterparts to check to see if their team could take on the extra workload, but, in general, they found the option feasible.

I also shared the news and the alternatives with the regional CFO and CIO, and both agreed to delegate the final decision to me.

After the call between the Costa Rica and Chile counterparts, it was agreed that Costa Rica would temporarily support Chile, and Chile committed to start the hiring process right away.

This situation reminded me of a basketball player handling the ball from one side of the court to the other and encountering opponents along the way: Sometimes the player must stop to check the conditions and pivot to the left or to the right to continue with the play and be able to put the ball into the net.

While facing issues or risks, project management professionals need to be confident making informed decisions quickly and thinking on their feet to keep projects moving forward.

How have you pivoted from unforeseen occurrences to make project progress? Share your story below.

By Cyndee Miller

Climate change … heralded as the greatest and most pressing existential threat to humankind.

Or rather, it was … until COVID-19.

With the world at a virtual standstill, greenhouse gas emissions plummeted, air quality shot up and ecosystems thrived sans intervention. But we all know that these trends are temporary. When the world finally does rein in COVID-19—and it will—the need to control climate change will kick right back into high gear. Old habits die hard. Case in point: As Asian cities emerge from The Great Lockdown, the BBC reports traffic—and accompanying air pollution—are spiking.

At the same time, the world is facing an economic meltdown not seen in modern times. Against the backdrop of the raging coronavirus pandemic, the global economy is projected to shrink by 3.2 percent this year, according to a May report by the UN.  Many leaders will be understandably tempted to put the battle against climate change on the back burner.

That would be a massive mistake. An economic recovery plan led by green projects lets us boldly attack both issues.

As government leaders scramble to revive economies decimated by the virus, research shows that climate-friendly policies could deliver a better result for both economies and the environment. On average, the 231 experts surveyed by a cohort of world-renowned economists saw a “green route” out of the crisis as highly economically effective. Citing evidence suggesting that green projects create more jobs, deliver higher short-term returns per dollar spend and lead to increased long-term cost savings, authors called on leaders to “seize this generational opportunity.”

So are you ready to seize the opportunity and steer the world back from the point of no return? Many of you already are.

Teams from conservation group Forest Carbon, for example, are working to reduce atmospheric CO2 levels through the reforestation and restoration of Indonesia’s peaklands, which have been ravaged by fires and degraded by canal construction. The project centers around “assisted regeneration.” Rather than simply replanting trees, teams are laying the ecological groundwork for the peaklands to restore themselves.

“We want the area to return to its natural wild state rather than coming in and planting a monoculture of species,” says Devan Wardwell, Forest Carbon’s director of growth, on a recent episode of Projectified^™. “That strategy is really based off of the idea that nature can do the work itself if we give it enough time and we create the proper starting conditions.”

Reforestation teams face plenty of risks. But the biggest might be human in nature: “If people aren’t invested, concerned and engaged in the wellbeing of their land, then the trees don’t stand a chance,” says Sebastian Africano, executive director, Trees, Water & People, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA, in a special climate change issue of PM Network^®.

The fight against climate change isn’t just taking place in forests, of course. Most people live in cities, and that number is only going to grow, per UN projections. Urban areas were also some of the hardest hit by the coronavirus, forcing a fundamental rethink of how cities are designed, including that staple of city life: public transportation. Some urbanites might be wary of hopping on a packed train or bus, but everyone jumping into their cars is a traffic nightmare—and a huge setback in cutting carbon emissions. So urban planners in Italy, Greece, France and the U.K. are carving out huge swaths of their cities for areas dedicated to pedestrians and cyclists.

Even the country that brought us the famed autobahn is conjuring up an eco-friendly version: The Radbahn is a protected bike path below a portion of Berlin’s elevated metro line. To build buy-in, the team is letting residents go on a test ride.

“The idea is to experiment with the space and give our stakeholders an opportunity to participate in the project and express their views on the outcome,” Radbahn co-founder Perttu Ratilainen tells PM Network.

There’s no escaping discussion of COVID-19 right now—and that’s how it should be. But this needn't be a competition. With the right investments in the right projects led by the right people, we can conquer the coronavirus, rebuild our fragile economy and protect our planet—all at once. How’s that for an efficient project plan?

What are you seeing out there? Can projects simultaneously bring back the economy and protect the earth? Let me know in the comments.

By Marat Oyvetsky, PMP

Global companies often struggle to get international projects across the finish line because they have to mitigate risks or issues that are outside of typical budgeting and resource availability constraints. In many cases, companies must work through issues such as language barriers, cultural differences, varying time zones and international team cohesion. All of these can cause serious delays in successful project completion.

However, when a global pandemic strikes that quarantines a large portion of the planet, new risks are introduced that can completely derail or destroy a company’s international projects.

While the COVID-19 pandemic introduced challenges in completing many international projects on time and on budget, it didn’t completely eradicate the finish line for many international projects.

Here are a few tips to consider when working to successfully complete global projects during a pandemic:

1. Seek out executive sponsorship: Every project has stakeholders who will be the main champions for the project’s successful completion. During a global pandemic, it is even more vital to ensure that there are executive sponsors involved in the project. The crisis has affected global manufacturing, the global supply chain, banking and a horde of other institutions that projects and project teams depend on to complete tasks and reach milestones.

During the pandemic, executive sponsors can provide support and quick approval for additional budgets and emergency funding that can help projects stay afloat and allow the most vital projects to be funded to completion.

2. Adjust hardware lead times and balance international resources: The COVID-19 pandemic has affected nearly every business around the globe, from slowing down the supply chain to completely shutting down many factories. This has impacted hardware lead times, from computers to network systems. Instead of measuring shipping in days, companies were finding that lead times for hardware delivery had either been postponed indefinitely or been delayed by weeks or even months.

Reviewing all lead times across every global project, project leaders can work to prioritize projects that are vital to the company as well as those that have workable lead times and can still be completed, even with an extended deadline. Working with executive leadership, project leaders can also prioritize which projects need the most resources globally and help refocus attention to those projects to help drive them to completion.

3. Increase team meeting frequency: When running international projects, many project leaders manage resources in a matrix environment globally. This means that there are resources on the project team that are internal company resources as well as external customer and consulting resources. Communication is vital to ensure that all tasks and milestones are coordinated and completed efficiently within the planned time and budget.

The COVID-19 pandemic has thrown extreme chaos into project timelines and budgets. Project leaders can communicate more effectively with the global team by planning shorter but more frequent meetings. Increasing the recurrence but decreasing the meeting duration can improve communications between all company resources. Tasks and milestone assignments can be reviewed quickly, assigned or reassigned, as well as updated and forecasted to ensure that the entire team is not only in lockstep daily and weekly, but is also prepared for the extended lead time durations, project timeline baselines and changing budgets.

4. Balance the portfolio: COVID-19 has impacted nearly all global project timelines due to its effect on the global workforce. Project leaders will need to work with executive leadership to identify projects that fit into two categories: projects that are vital to the business and projects that can still be completed, even with increased timelines and dependency lead times. Once these projects are identified, project leaders will need to work with their teams to ensure that resources are balanced appropriately across the portfolio, targeting the most strategic projects with the most realistic completable timelines.

While the pandemic has crippled the global workforce and economy, project leaders are still leading international programs and projects to successful completion with global teams working together through extended timelines, adjusted budgets and augmented requirements.

Share below: What are your lessons learned from leading international project teams during the pandemic?

By Yasmina Khelifi, PMP

As the world works to return to some sense of normalcy, you, like many others, may find yourself spending more time on your digital devices than ever before. Whether it’s completing work tasks, communicating virtually with project teams or staying in touch with family and friends, we’re all relying on technology more than ever to stay connected.

But are you making the most of it?

If you find yourself with gaps of free time throughout the week, now is the time to consider taking an online course. Not only is it important to boost your project skillset during this crisis, but many organizations—including PMI—are now offering a number of courses and learning resources at no cost.

I know from personal experience how beneficial it can be. A few years ago, a friend of mine became a data scientist thanks to online lectures. I decided to try out online learning for myself, and it changed my life. I enjoyed the freedom of taking the helm of my professional development and the flexibility of having my learning at my fingertips. I also enjoyed challenging myself to learn something new, interacting with international cohorts and gaining a fresh perspective through peer reviews while developing my critical skills.

Online learning is a convenient way to build your knowledge and skills, but it’s not a cakewalk—you only get out what you put in.

Here are some lessons learned that I have gleaned from the experience:

1. Define your objectives

First, consider your goals. Are you dreaming of:

• earning a project management certification?
• acquiring or improving technical skills?
• mastering project management software?
• learning a foreign language or another key asset to help build stronger global bonds?

Setting clear and reasonable objectives will help guide you through the labyrinth of online learning choices. Think about what skills you want to learn and how they can be applied to your work in the future.

2. Choose your methodologies

The formats, length and duration of courses—as well as the personal and financial investment—vary across platforms. Before taking the plunge, ask yourself these crucial questions:

• How do you learn?
• How many hours can you dedicate per week to learning?
• Are you ready to enroll in a four-week course, or would you prefer to gain insights about a topic during a two-hour webinar?
• Do you prefer on-demand, self-paced courses over live courses?

The answers to these questions will guide you to the most appropriate courses—and help avoid wasting time and money.

3. Stay the course

Now that you’ve enrolled, the real work begins. Here are some tips to keep you moving forward:

• Write your learning goals on a sticky note, and keep it somewhere you’ll see it often.
• Create a study plan.
• Dedicate time in your schedule to completing homework.
• Evaluate the progress you’ve made, rather than what remains.
• Exchange notes and commentary with your classmates to amplify learning.

Organization and perseverance will help guide you to successful outcomes.

4. Practice what you’ve learned

As you progress through your coursework, jot down learnings you can apply to your projects. Take the time to consider how to turn new knowledge into actions.

Exploit any opportunity! For instance, I completed an online communications course from a business school on how to craft messages for presentations. I now rehearse more for any project presentation, taking into account that new knowledge.

Online learning can provide stunning benefits—if you’re willing to put in the work.

Leave a comment below sharing your experiences with online learning and how you’re taking charge of your professional development.

By Dave Wakeman

As you may have noticed, my attention during the pandemic has been largely focused on the lessons we can all learn about leadership. 

Why mess with a good thing? So, I’ll continue to focus on leadership this month, since the lessons are still popping up fast and furious. 

Let’s look at what we’ve learned so far about project leadership through the COVID-19 crisis and then turn those into a few actionable ideas we can all put into practice. 

First, we’ve found that folks who led with science are the ones who have done a better job of fighting the disease. I’m looking at you Taiwan, New Zealand and Germany, to name three. 

Second, we’ve seen that communication is crucial and that honest, consistent communication is the most important thing we can have. And, leaders who provide a vision, a plan and consistent updates are able to gather more support, achieve better outcomes and build more trust. 

Third, we’ve seen that expertise matters and that it is impossible for one person to know everything about everything. 

So, how do we continue to put these practices to use in our own project careers? Here are a few more ideas for all the leaders out there: 

Trust the experts: The first and third points highlight an overarching theme of modern project management and modern leadership: No one knows everything—and I’d go one step further. One of the best things that an expert does is curate the overwhelming amount of knowledge out there in the world. 

Again, in viewing the coronavirus press briefings around the world, you see countries toying with herd immunity and countries actually following that theory; then, you have countries with leaders who are offering up wildly unproven medical solutions; and you have other countries that have had stricter shutdown protocols. 

What does this show us?

It shows us that there are going to be hundreds of solutions to every situation. Some of them have value and some of them are total quackery. This is why experts matter. 

An expert can look at all of the tested options, all of the potential options and all of the long shots, and think through whether or not they are feasible, likely or improbable. 

This matters, because as a project manager, you are likely always going to deal with a certain amount of risk—and just because something isn’t likely doesn’t mean it isn’t worth testing. 

What it does mean is that you need to make sure that when you test an idea or a solution, you understand it might not work and are able to recognize success or failure through a lens of knowledge and trust in your team’s expertise. 

Or, if you have a crazy idea that you might want to test due to the nature of the situation you are dealing with, you can try that as well—with the knowledge that the idea may have a low probability of success.

Leadership matters most during the tough times: It was recently May 4, the day when Star Wars is celebrated around the world. In Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, there is a scene in which Darth Vader confronts Orson Krennic about how he is handling the rebel alliance. Krennic makes a bunch of excuses and claims about the efficiency of his leadership and tries to win over Vader’s support for him to command the Death Star just as it was becoming a powerful weapon to terrorize the galaxy. 

With his back to Krennic, Vader uses the force to put a choke hold on Krennic and tells him, “Be careful not to choke on your aspirations, Director.” 

I like to think that this is a great analogy for the kind of leaders who love to be leaders in the good times, but try to pass the buck when things go wrong. 

The reality of leadership is that you have to take the good with the bad, and I think history has proven that the leaders who lead courageously through times of trouble are the ones who are remembered the most. 

As an example, Abraham Lincoln is remembered for holding the United States together as the Civil War worked to tear it apart. Winston Churchill is remembered more for his leadership in World War II than he is remembered for any of his other accomplishments. And everyone remembers Mel Gibson’s speech in Braveheart before sending his army off to fight. Am I right? 

The point I’m making is that leading is often about how you deal with challenging situations, change or turmoil—and not how you navigate the easy moments. 

Why? Because it isn’t easy to make decisions in troubling times. There likely isn’t one answer, but many—all of which likely carry a certain amount of risk. How you deal with these situations defines you and determines whether you are a success or a failure as a leader. 

How have challenging situations made you a better project leader?