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Build Sponsorship, Boost the Portfolio
Categories:
Portfolio Management
Categories: Portfolio Management
| We've all been there. Portfolio managers have done their job of setting long-term objectives and a clear strategy. Projects have been selected and prioritized. And yet the organization is still having trouble gleaning real benefits — i.e., results that create business value and contribute to its strategic objectives — from projects and, subsequently, its portfolio. This disconnect is often rooted in weak sponsorship, and that's often a result of project sponsors not knowing their roles. When that happens, they aren't able to support projects in a way that aligns a portfolio to the organization's grand strategic plan. Project sponsors are instrumental in a project's selection and categorization, allocating resources, and monitoring and communicating its progress to the highest rungs of an organization. As a high-level decision-maker, an effective project sponsor gives the portfolio more agility and flexibility to adapt and absorb changes. While fostering the right kind of project sponsor won't happen overnight, it can start right away. To do so, executive-level management — many of which could be sponsors — should:
Project managers can also help sponsors support projects better by communicating in the same language. Project managers should translate technical issues (such as scope and deliverables) into tangible business results (i.e., return on investment, profit, revenue and costs) for sponsors. In this manner, sponsors and project managers together can handle the internal environment (project team and processes) and the external environment (organizational structure, strategy and market demands). Do you have strong project sponsorship in your organization? In your experience, can effective sponsorship boost the entire portfolio's performance? |
When Passion Drives the Program
Categories:
Program Management
Categories: Program Management
| Mayday is a Taiwanese rock band with a massive worldwide following. In fact, two concerts promoting their 2012 album, Noah's Ark, were held in the world's largest sports venue, Beijing's National Stadium. Those two performances alone drew 200,000 fans — an astonishing feat for any band, anywhere in the world. Believe Music manages Mayday — and staged the larger-than-life concerts in Beijing last year. For the music management company, performance — and particularly, passion for performance — is the key to industry success. In fact, the company's success comes from harnessing and managing passion for live music as a program. The focus on passion as a business driver starts at the top. CEO Yung-Chi Chen believes in the power of live music, and that success comes if you just do what you're good at, and do it properly. Artists and bands that write and perform with passion will naturally attract a dedicated audience large enough to help sustain them in a career. Believe Music's head manager, Yiu-Yang Chou, has the interesting title of "Creator of Satisfaction." This reflects the company's emphasis on live performance — as long as audiences demand performances, try to satisfy them. Mr. Chou manages over 100 concerts every year. His managerial level is that of a program manager, rather than a project manager. So when asked how he balances project constraints like scope, time and cost with quality, he says: "You can tell from the sofa bed in the meeting room that our management concepts on time and cost are very weak! But the most important requirement to work in this job [and industry] is enthusiasm. With enthusiasm, you dedicate yourself to creating something that'll make an impact. Time and money will be spent, but something great will be produced." Across the board at Believe Music, passionate employees define cost control as "surviving" and risk management as "we've still got next time." And although that approach might seem like unsound business sense, the company's faith in passion for performance counts on a major stakeholder — the audience. Believe Music considers audiences not just passive viewers, but also as appreciative co-producers of the live event. Their enjoyment is a key measurement of the performance's success. It is what Believe Music, and their artists, define as a successful result with each concert (i.e., project). Such word-of-mouth and long-term audience growth cannot be bought overnight, and that is why passion — and satisfaction — is so important in Believe Music's business. Believe Music team members attribute enthusiasm over any business model for their success. When their specialized experience and passion is combined with a mature concert management system, the power of live performance becomes a money-making enterprise. How do you apply non-traditional business drivers — such as passion — in your programs and industry? Share your experiences below, and Voices on Project Management will publish the best response as a blog post. Learn more about the art of project management in the entertainment sector in "Let Us Entertain You," the cover story of the May 2013 issue of PM Network®. |
Leadership: The Mission Is Vision
Categories:
Leadership
Categories: Leadership
| As a project manager, you're a leader by default. And as a leader, your job is to inspire your team to achieve a shared vision. That means you create an "inspiring vision" of the future and then build the expectation that the vision is achievable. An "inspiring vision" is not simply finishing your project, either. A great example of this was one put forth by London's Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) responsible for building the facilities for the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The ODA set a much-publicized "zero harm" goal. The London Olympics construction program completed the work on budget, ahead of schedule, to a high standard — and with no fatalities. Not only that, but the overall accident frequency came in at 58 percent below the UK construction industry average. This is a remarkable achievement, given that a total of 40,000 people worked on the projects. After creating the inspiring vision, make sure your team can commit to and communicate it effectively. To do so, each member must:
Framing your vision in the right context is a big part of communicating it effectively to your team and to all that touch the project. The London Olympics construction program knew that "on time and on budget" was not an exciting rallying cry to many people. (Project managers notwithstanding.) So it framed the project around the idea of looking after workmates, which was an easier concept for securing widespread buy-in. Looking after co-workers meant achieving a safer worksite. And for that, construction had to be well-planned, well-managed, clean and tidy — coincidentally, all the same facets for achieving a high-quality, on-time, on-budget outcome. After framing your vision, preferably working with team members so they own it, the hard work starts. The vision needs to be communicated and reinforced at all times. No compromises. As soon as you stop living the vision, it will fade. In London, for instance, safety was always the first agenda item at meetings. It was continuously policed, communicated and enforced. But more importantly, safety success was celebrated. Major milestones — such as 1,000,000 hours worked with no accidents — were big occasions. There were also smaller, more personal celebrations of people contributing to the vision. Enforcing and celebrating the vision created a culture focused on safety and achieving the vision of an accident-free project daily. What is the inspiring vision you can create for your team to help achieve your project objectives? How will you communicate and maintain that vision? |
Conquering the Us Versus Them Mentality
Categories:
PMI Global Congress 2013 - EMEA
Categories: PMI Global Congress 2013 - EMEA
| "Culture eats process for lunch," keynote speaker Avinash Chandarana of MCI Group told attendees at PMI® Global Congress 2013 -- EMEA in Istanbul, Turkey. And as organizations continue to expand into emerging markets, the pressure is on project professionals to build a keen understanding of how different cultures operate. For starters, they must get past the "us versus them mentality," said Mr. Chandarana. "We consider our culture to be normal and others to be abnormal." Instead, project professionals should acknowledge the values and even the stereotypes of other cultures, which he broke into three categories:
This is powerful knowledge as linear-active U.S. and European organizations launch more projects in emerging markets, which tend to fall into the multi-active and reactive categories. Only those countries and companies that bridge cultures and geographies will succeed, Mr. Chandarana said. "What measure are you going to take to go beyond just having surface-level knowledge of other cultures?" he said. "This is the question you must ask to hone relationships in a multicultural environment." The three panelists on the "Project Management in Emerging Economies" panel tackled a different kind of cultural challenge. "In the Middle East, there is a lack of awareness of the value of project management," said panelist Imran Malik of du Telecom in Dubai. "Practitioners need to educate decision-makers by translating the tangible benefits of using best practices in the context of business." Organizations view project management as a "magic pill" and temporary fix, added panelist Puian Masudifar of VIRA Co. in Iran. "They don't look at the long term." Still, the project management cultural revolution can start with baby steps. "Bring upper management and executives to the kitchen and teach them what projects are," said panelist Adnan Metin of Turkish Airlines in Turkey. As a growing regional power, Turkey needs project managers, particularly in the defense sector, said Murad Bayar, Turkey's Undersecretary for Defence Industry. In his long tenure in the sector, Mr. Bayar says he's rarely seen a project completed that met the original plan, mostly due to the long timelines. "A combat aircraft takes 15 to 20 years to complete," Mr. Bayar said. "By the time the project is finished, the requirements have changed. We have to be better at managing projects." To that end, the department encourages its project professionals to go through training, including earning the Project Management Professional (PMP)® credential. But Mr. Bayar also acknowledged his country could use a little help. "We need people with a deep understanding of strategic organizational, commercial, industrial and political environments. Is there someone in the room that I can hire today?" What advice would you give on bridging cultural differences? If you attended PMI® Global Congress 2013 -- EMEA, what were your top takeaways of doing business in emerging markets? |
Leadership in the Brave New World
Categories:
PMI Global Congress 2013 - EMEA
Categories: PMI Global Congress 2013 - EMEA
| The ancient city of Istanbul, Turkey, made a fitting backdrop to discuss the massive social, economic and political shifts roiling across the business landscape -- and what it all means for project and program managers. Free market capitalism no longer dominates, said Nader Mousavizadeh, CEO, Oxford Analytica, keynote speaker at PMI® Global Congress 2013 -- EMEA. Emerging markets such as Nigeria, China and Turkey are redefining power on their own terms. By combining capitalism with strong state support, they are experiencing economic growth and stability while many developed markets struggle. Just as emerging economies are breaking from traditional business models, consumers too are redefining their expectations. "Consumers expect legitimacy and accountability from those in power ... whether it's government or a corporation," said Mr. Mousavizadeh. Consumers are also becoming more global, while demanding goods and services that feel authentic and local. Those countries and companies that bridge cultures and geographies are the ones that will succeed, Mr. Mousavizadeh said. And they will succeed in great part by planning for the long term and setting an agenda that helps others. "Look at where leadership is making decisions that benefit the broader population," he said. "China, for example, has 200,000 Chinese citizens studying in the United States. That's a country focused on developing a high-end talent pool." PMI president and CEO Mark A. Langley shared a similar message on leadership and talent management. "Organizations are not looking for individuals to manage projects; they're looking for project managers to lead projects," said Mr. Langley during the opening remarks. What's clear is that organizations are embracing project management. The EMEA region is expected to create approximately 3 million new project management jobs between now and 2020. The question is whether project professionals are prepared to meet the demands of a new business landscape. "Organizations are not waiting for you to step up -- they're going to expect you to," said Mr. Langley. What are your experiences with leadership as defined during the keynote address at PMI® Global Congress 2013 -- EMEA? If you aren't at congress, how do you define leadership? |