Does anyone have any advice on how to mitigate the risk associated with having no project sponsor or losing one in the middle of a project? Saving Changes...
I would have several questions: are you getting a new sponsor or will you have no sponsor?
If you are getting a new sponsor, it is critical to conduct an alignment meeting to set all project expectations and clearly communicate the status of the project. Do not trust a new sponsor to read available project plans and historical status reports. You must meet face to face if possible to align expectations.
If you have no new sponsor: use the business case and project documentation to leverage support from a new sponsor; find out if another group or person can benefit from the project work. If a new sponsor cannot be found, the project may be a candidate for cancelation. It is better to cancel a project than try and implement without Executive Management support.
I hope this helps. Saving Changes...
Michael WoodProject Manager / Business Analyst / Business Process Improvement Guru| Independent ContractorGig Harbor, Wa, United States
There could be big risk or no risk. Who approved the project? What is the level of grass roots support for the project? What are the politics like? Is there a strong business case? Is the ROI compelling?
The answer to these questions will frame the risk for you. If there is a good business case and strong grass roots support, you probably are better without a specific sponsor. But if you need one, find the one with the biggest dog in the fight Saving Changes...
The project sponsor is the department/person funding the project. If the physical person (sponsor) has left the company, as the project manager delegate sponsor's roles and responsibilites to the person assuming his/her duties.
If this doesn't get any action then the lack of a sponsor should be identified as a major project risk, the risk quantified (probability and consequence), and mitigated accordingly.
Let the process decide. Saving Changes...
Mark Price PerryBusiness Driven PMO Evangelist| BOT InternationalOrlando, Fl, United States
Dear John, good post and good replies! The reply from Mr. Wood is very much the way we mitigate the risk associated with losing a sponsor. At a previous company that I worked for, we had a policy of not starting any project without a sponsor. And if the project lost its sponsor or funder, we would immediately stop the project at the completion of the current deliverable until the client named a new sponsor or confirmed the new funder. This policy had been put in place after experiencing difficulties. This "stoppage" policy was more of a communciation vehicle with the client to quickly name and get agreement on the new project sponsor/funder. Always, this was accomplished prior to the start of the next deliverable set, hence no projects had to be actually stopped. Hope this helps. -- Mark Perry, VP of Customer Care, BOT International Saving Changes...
Richard HowProgramme Management Consultant| How Associates LtdHarthill, South Yorkshire, United Kingdom
In very simplistic terms , no sponsor = no project after all the sponsor is the person paying for it, so no money = no work.
Most times the sponsor tells the company "I can give you X benefit if I have Y" and as long as the cost of Y is less than X then the company will allow the sponsor to spend the cost of Y.
The sponsor then engages a PM to deliver Y and once it is delivered the sponsor uses why to produce X. if you have no sponsor who will deliver X , if that responsibilty has been passed to another person they are now your sponsor, if it has passed to no one then you need to call an emergency steering group meeting and re evaluate the business case of your project, the case will now not work as it has no benefit so the project should be stopped. If the company dont want to stop the roject then they have to appoint a new sponsor. Saving Changes...
Agree with Mr. Woods, find who has the biggest stake in the project and you might have your answer there.
I suggest to write down the requirements. If there are no sponsors and hence no one is obligated to the project, you have to find a way to tie things up a little tighter than where you started. A good requirements list will give you a good idea whose interest you're fulfilling the most and a solid understanding of exactly what is expected of the project, which in turn will help mitigate the risk. Saving Changes...
Bernard GorePortfolio, Programme & Project Professional| NZ PoliceWellington, New Zealand
Simple - there HAS to be some form of sponsor, and if there isn't, if there is no-one in the whole business who is interested enopugh and recognises the value fo the project to step into the role at least as an interim - then you would have to ask why you are doing the project at all, and STOP until you get a good enough answer that drives the appointment of a replacement.
In extreme circumstances the PM can step into the role of sponsor - I've had to do that myself, although it only really works if the PM is also a good enough "business-side' person, and is also adept at wearing multiple hats and switching them as necessary! Saving Changes...
HEMAM RANJIT KUMAR SINGHFounder & Director| TechSure Global Consultancy LLPGuwahati, Assam, India
Great question as well as logical and informative replies too !!! Thanks Saving Changes...
Peter TaylorVP Global PMO and Keynote Speaker/Author| DayforceNewent, United Kingdom
Is it perhaps possible, in an organization that has weak or limited project sponsor capability, that the PMO could act as the supporter of sponsors on one hand and on the other perhaps the actual sponsor for the smaller project? It is surely better to have this rather than act with no sponsor representation at all. If the project is in direct support of the organization’s project practices (e.g., implementing a project management information system) then this will be definitely be a good match and if not then still a good PMO could offer a degree of objectivity and guidance.
The PMO might be a politically acceptable body to provide discrete support for project sponsors should this be required, that is if the PMO is well respected and acknowledged by the project sponsors themselves, as well as the business in general.
As the governance for the project methodology and standards it is natural that this would incorporate sponsorship tasks and deliverables and as such coaching and advice could be easily and sensitively provided upon request.
It would also be the PMOs role to garner and disseminate lessons learned to the project community and, if issues with previous sponsorship capability are raised then this brings the subject under the wing of the PMO anyway.
I am not arguing here that PMO is the answer to a void in project sponsorship inside an organisation, certainly not. And I fully recognize that any role a PMO does play in this area should only be an interim solution whilst a proper and mature sponsorship practice is developed. Indeed not even the best willed PMO can offer everything that a sponsor should provide but that said there would be a very strong argument that, in the absence of a ‘good’ project sponsor, the PMO can fill a void.
Something is definitely better than nothing in this case.
Saving Changes...
