Throwing People Under the Bus

Holding someone accountable is very different than exposing them and putting them under the microscope.

As a third party observer, if this happened in my presence, I would translate as if you are trying to justify that this was not your mistake but his or hers which is definitely throwing them under the bus.

Instead, you should take advantage of the situation to hold the personal responsible accountable and at the same time have your team have more trust in you. Mistakes happen, and it’s a learning curve for everyone and you as a PM, in front of leadership, are accountable for the delivery of the milestones so having your team member explain to leadership what happens would mean two things for leadership:

1- You are not having your team’s back and did throw him or her under the bus.

2- You have no control over your team if they moved the date without consulting with you.

The way I would deal with a similar situation is to hold the person responsible accountable but at the same time, take responsiblity in front of leadership as you are the PM and try to explain to them what happened without exposing the team member. This way, you will be looked at as a great leader and the person responsible will learn from their mistakes and the team will trust you more. Hope this makes sense.

Great feedback here. And kudos to you, Erikka, for coming into the forum to share your experience and elicit feedback from the community. Really super.

We do need to remain cautious about thinking individually. Being in a leadership role, it is our responsibility to think of the team as a cohesive unit, as in we, not you and not I.

Not worth repeating other advice here, but I will cast my vote of agreement in the overall sentiment given here.

I completely agree with Rami. In my organization, it is known that the PM is the main point of contact between leadership, vendors, the team. It is our responsibility to communicate all issues, changes, and risks about the project, not our team members, so I would have to agree, as it seems like you are throwing them under the bus, without meaning to.

My suggestion is similar to above. You need to gather your team and discuss this issue with them. Find the root cause of why this was delayed. Yes, the person did not do their job, but is there a reason behind it? Were they overworked and did not have the time to complete all things assigned, were there missed days of work, etc?

Once you determine the route cause, you may want to evaluate with them if pushing the date is the best answer to this delay, maybe there is another way. Then, you should take all that information to leadership and discuss this issue/risk at hand.

I would avoid saying that so and so did not do his job, and in turn we are now delayed, but maybe saying that a task is passed due, give the root cause, and lay out the plan your team has to accommodate this and complete the project.

Not trying to sound mean or demeaning, but this is your project and in situations like this it is best to take ownership of the team, and show your leadership skills to the organization. Not only will you gain the respect of your team, but also of the leadership group as to how you handled and resolved the situation.

Good luck! It is always a difficult thing when this happens, but know your skills will lead you to success in many situations.

Dear Erikka
Interesting question for reflection
Thanks for sharing

Do you know the reasons why the marketing department changed the distribution date?

For this to happen would they have to accept the explanation given by the person who did not do the work, or am I mistaken?

Could you have agreed with the marketing department about the new date and the steps that could be taken together to minimize the damage done?

What would be the consequences if you had acted together?

Together with the marketing department could you meet with your leadership presenting the solution found?

Was there collateral damage to your team from the initiative you took?

And in the company as a whole?

How did your leadership react?

How was your trustworthy asset?

What lessons can you learn from this situation?

I will answer on the situation you stated which could not be the answer you are searching for. Changes are all welcome if and only if everybody understand two critical things: 1-changes will follow the defined project change management process. 2-as project manager my duty is not decide about the change. My duty is to have everything needed to take the decision on hands of people that must take the decision. So, I never say no. Just I put the rules clear at the very begining of the project. And I am not dictating the rules.

I agree with Rami and Kimberly and add:

What you are showing to your team, even if this person is from another team, that you will sacrifice people because not being able to take a blame. This will destroy the trust in you and create a CYA mentality. Protecting people will create a feeling of trust and community.

There is no merit in blaming at all.

There are situations when you have to disclose a root cause of failure immediately, and fully, e.g. if lives are endangered or reputation is at stake (see 737Max problem). But even this should avoid NOT blaming people and focus on the root cause analysis. This includes finding out why this person made the mistake and how YOU can make your project more resilient.