Project Management

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how the complexity of the project when 3 parties are involved , a real situation in my project and i have doubts on how to solve this situation ? need more sharing thoughts

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Anonymous
as a project manager from subcontractor side (third party) , your contract with the vendor only , and vendor have contract with the buyer .
you inform the vendor that you deliver the first phase of the project to the buyer its a software product , you got some change request from buyer and you got the approval and implement it , after you ask for a meeting with the buyer to move on next phase of the project its about software system integration and 70% of work will be implemented by technical team from the buyer side , and start point of next phase will be made by buyer team also to create a production environment , you face a delay from the buyer team also resistance from the buyer key stakeholders and there is no reason for there situation ,the more you ask the pm from the buyer side for a clear answer about starting date of next phase and inform him about the impact of such delay on your project plan , and project now behind schedule , he try to avoid the clear answer and keep promise you that he will ask his team to start there work immediately .
day after day there is no clear answer for exact date for the meeting with buyer team , and no updates from buyer team when they will start their work
suddenly you got complain from the vendor that the buyer inform him to stop the payment process to you because you stop the project activities and this is not correct , next phase is not starting because the buyer team didn't start their work .
.in this case what should you do as a project manager from the subcontractor side(third party) to solve this critical issue ?

a) inform your senior manager with the problem and conduct a meeting with the vendor and vendor will convey this issue to buyer to solve it .

b) continue ask the pm from the buyer again and again to solve this issue ,and wait since he is the buyer and because he will pay to the vendor and vendor will pay to you ..wait and dont take any action .

c) since you face a lot of resistance from buyer stakeholders in the first phase and no support ,a lot of effort by you and your team done to avoid failure in deliver the first phase , you need to report it to your senior manager and vendor that the buyer pm is not cooperating with you and not interested to support you , and if it goes like that advice your senior manager to use his right to terminate the contract from his side with the vendor .

d) another answer none of the above .
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Scott Theus Senior Project Manager and Agilist| BWX Technologies Euclid, Oh, United States
Hi Anon,

I have a couple of suggestions for you. Apologies if they seem harsh, that is not my intention.

1) Stop pointing fingers and placing blame on other parties.
2) As the project manager it is your responsibility to work with the other PMs to resolve these problems before they come to a head.
3) If your senior management is not already aware of these issues you are in for some rough conversations. When it comes to senior managers, surprises are always bad.

So..what to do?

4) give an update to your senior manager, if he is not already up to speed.
5) Call a meeting between you, the vendor PM, and the buyer PM. Identify all the roadblocks to moving the project forward. (Do not talk about what caused the roadblocks; the past is in the past, so leave it there.)
6) Work together to figure out who can clear the roadblocks and identify what tasks are needed to do so. Assign those tasks to the right people and set a due date on each.
7) Send an update to the senior leadership in all three groups; describe the problem, outline the impact to the project, the steps taken to resolve the problem, and the steps you will all take to reduce the impact.

Good luck, I hope this helps.

-Scott
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1 reply by shady fawzy
Feb 05, 2020 3:50 AM
shady fawzy
...
thank you scott for your advice
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Peter Rapin Subject Matter Expect; Project Delivery| Independent Consultant Ontario, Canada
At the same time you have to set up some lines of informal communications. Formalities - emails, meetings and such - can and frequently do end up in confrontations and conflict. Buy someone a coffee, have one-on-one discussions. Being the third party there are no doubt issues and situations you are not aware of, see if you can drill down a bit. Offer ways to solve problems in the interest of advancing the project. Be prepared to recognize the buyers concerns and constraints.
...
1 reply by shady fawzy
Feb 05, 2020 3:53 AM
shady fawzy
...
thanks Peter
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shady fawzy It Project Manager | the Golden Element Riyadh, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Feb 03, 2020 11:38 AM
Replying to Scott Theus
...
Hi Anon,

I have a couple of suggestions for you. Apologies if they seem harsh, that is not my intention.

1) Stop pointing fingers and placing blame on other parties.
2) As the project manager it is your responsibility to work with the other PMs to resolve these problems before they come to a head.
3) If your senior management is not already aware of these issues you are in for some rough conversations. When it comes to senior managers, surprises are always bad.

So..what to do?

4) give an update to your senior manager, if he is not already up to speed.
5) Call a meeting between you, the vendor PM, and the buyer PM. Identify all the roadblocks to moving the project forward. (Do not talk about what caused the roadblocks; the past is in the past, so leave it there.)
6) Work together to figure out who can clear the roadblocks and identify what tasks are needed to do so. Assign those tasks to the right people and set a due date on each.
7) Send an update to the senior leadership in all three groups; describe the problem, outline the impact to the project, the steps taken to resolve the problem, and the steps you will all take to reduce the impact.

Good luck, I hope this helps.

-Scott
thank you scott for your advice
avatar
shady fawzy It Project Manager | the Golden Element Riyadh, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Feb 03, 2020 12:40 PM
Replying to Peter Rapin
...
At the same time you have to set up some lines of informal communications. Formalities - emails, meetings and such - can and frequently do end up in confrontations and conflict. Buy someone a coffee, have one-on-one discussions. Being the third party there are no doubt issues and situations you are not aware of, see if you can drill down a bit. Offer ways to solve problems in the interest of advancing the project. Be prepared to recognize the buyers concerns and constraints.
thanks Peter

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