Hello everyone, posted this anonymously so that I don't expose any organizations. I have just recently taken over a team of project managers to discover that none of their projects have any real KPI's to monitor projects, and the individual project managers have no KPI's either.
I was a little stunned and I am wondering from the community. If you had to start with just a single KPI at the project level and one at the PM level, to get the team starting on a proper path, what might it be?
This is a relatively immature organization with not a lot of knowledge or discipline on the project side.
Senior Projects Manager | Field & Marten AssociatesNew Westminster, British Columbia, Canada
There should be a set of KPIs and metrics established on an organizational level and then each project should have their own KPIs which do feed as some point into the Organizational KPIs but not all projects will have the same KPIs and metrics as it depends on so many factors, like nature of the project, requirements, risks, and so on. My recommendation would be to work with project managers on establishing project level KPIs and in parallel work with the organization on establishing Enterprise wide KPIs and also establish tarceability matrix to track them all!
I agree with Rami. KPIs really come down to what is important to managing the organization and not all orgs have the same focus. In some places, profitability is the biggest factor. At others planned vs. actual costs is the focus of how well we are estimating and performing, and at yet others the PM doesn't even know the cost. My current critical metric is first pass quality as my projects are focused on error reduction.
The basic formula for developing KPIs is define a few key qualities you wish to manage and then how you might measure that. For project KPIs, I would ask what does your program think is most important to running the core business?
For individual PMs, there are often no KPIs, but you may be able to develop metrics for the accuracy of the original plan, the ability to perform to plan like average SPI or CPI, or perhaps the capacity of the PM such as how many projects in work with a weighting system for difficulty. What behaviors do you wish to change?
Don't use metrics you can't control though. If Sales vastly oversells the customer on how fast the project can be completed you can't blame the PM who wasn't onboard until after the contract was signed. Saving Changes...
I agree with both Rami & Keith's feedback and would add that a single measure is rarely sufficient for projects as it might incent the wrong type of behaviors (e.g. business value trumps "how" the value was achieved, schedule performance trumps quality).
I'd also recommend having the PMs contribute to the discussions and determination of one or more KPIs for measuring their success. Keith's point about having the PM KPI(s) be ones they have control over is key - project delivery success within realistic constraints is one thing, but business value realization might not be as that depends on a lot of non-project actions after the project ends.
Financial Management Specialist | US Peace CorpsYaounde, Centre, Cameroon
Feb 26, 2024 7:07 PM
Replying to Rami Kaibni
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There should be a set of KPIs and metrics established on an organizational level and then each project should have their own KPIs which do feed as some point into the Organizational KPIs but not all projects will have the same KPIs and metrics as it depends on so many factors, like nature of the project, requirements, risks, and so on. My recommendation would be to work with project managers on establishing project level KPIs and in parallel work with the organization on establishing Enterprise wide KPIs and also establish tarceability matrix to track them all!
Thanks Rami.... Experience has spoken Saving Changes...
Does company leadership want or care about KPIs for projects and project managers?
What meaningful action will the KPIs allow you to take? Will salary increases or bonuses be based, in whole or in part, on meeting or exceeding the KPIs selected?
My point with the above questions is to have a clear understanding of why you're using KPIs and what you will do with them. Don't establish KPIs just for the sake of having KPIs.
The traditional measures - within budget, schedule, and scope, taking into account effective change management - can help you identify patterns, but don't necessarily make it obvious whether problems are due to the project manager or the organization. Done poorly, it can feel like you're holding someone accountable for perfectly precise ROM estimates that can actually vary from -25% to +75% and should get refined and communicated as more is learned over the course of the project.
Here are some considerations. It's not an exhaustive list, but are things to think about when establishing KPIs for PMs and projects.
What can you know about project managers?
- Did they follow established processes and protocols for managing their projects? (Do you have established processes and protocols for managing their projects?)
- Did they communicate effectively, appropriately, and in a timely manner?
- Were project activities coordinated with other PMs to avoid schedule conflicts between projects, such as testing, training, or launch?
- How did they manage major issues and stressful situations?
- How do team members and stakeholders feel about working with them? Are they willing to work with them again? (I'm not a fan of net promoter scores, but they can be helpful. You just have to be mindful of bad actors; sometimes the PM is the problem, and sometimes it's somebody else with an agenda or somebody who has unrealistic expectations of the PM or doesn't understand the role.)
What can you know about a project or its deliverable(s) that a PM can affect? (emphasis on 'that a PM can affect')
- Was it delivered within budget, schedule, and scope? (If it's not, you need to look at both the PM and organizational factors to determine why. If the PM did everything they were supposed to do, what was the root cause?)
- Did the appropriate people receive applicable training?
What is beyond the control of a PM?
- Were project deliverables adopted/used effectively? Was the business able to use the project deliverable(s) to produce business value? (assuming project deliverable(s) were produced within budget, schedule, and scope)
- Was the project started in time for it to be possible to produce usable product, given market conditions?
One last thought - KPIs are lagging indicators; they tell you about the past. This is helpful, but it is also helpful to establish KRIs/OKRs and have a forward-looking mentality.
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1 reply by Lisa Stanley
Feb 28, 2024 7:55 PM
Lisa Stanley
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I really appreciate the insight posted here, Aaron and your last thought is especially poignant. We need a full picture of operations for measuring success and planning future delivery. Great call out!
Does company leadership want or care about KPIs for projects and project managers?
What meaningful action will the KPIs allow you to take? Will salary increases or bonuses be based, in whole or in part, on meeting or exceeding the KPIs selected?
My point with the above questions is to have a clear understanding of why you're using KPIs and what you will do with them. Don't establish KPIs just for the sake of having KPIs.
The traditional measures - within budget, schedule, and scope, taking into account effective change management - can help you identify patterns, but don't necessarily make it obvious whether problems are due to the project manager or the organization. Done poorly, it can feel like you're holding someone accountable for perfectly precise ROM estimates that can actually vary from -25% to +75% and should get refined and communicated as more is learned over the course of the project.
Here are some considerations. It's not an exhaustive list, but are things to think about when establishing KPIs for PMs and projects.
What can you know about project managers?
- Did they follow established processes and protocols for managing their projects? (Do you have established processes and protocols for managing their projects?)
- Did they communicate effectively, appropriately, and in a timely manner?
- Were project activities coordinated with other PMs to avoid schedule conflicts between projects, such as testing, training, or launch?
- How did they manage major issues and stressful situations?
- How do team members and stakeholders feel about working with them? Are they willing to work with them again? (I'm not a fan of net promoter scores, but they can be helpful. You just have to be mindful of bad actors; sometimes the PM is the problem, and sometimes it's somebody else with an agenda or somebody who has unrealistic expectations of the PM or doesn't understand the role.)
What can you know about a project or its deliverable(s) that a PM can affect? (emphasis on 'that a PM can affect')
- Was it delivered within budget, schedule, and scope? (If it's not, you need to look at both the PM and organizational factors to determine why. If the PM did everything they were supposed to do, what was the root cause?)
- Did the appropriate people receive applicable training?
What is beyond the control of a PM?
- Were project deliverables adopted/used effectively? Was the business able to use the project deliverable(s) to produce business value? (assuming project deliverable(s) were produced within budget, schedule, and scope)
- Was the project started in time for it to be possible to produce usable product, given market conditions?
One last thought - KPIs are lagging indicators; they tell you about the past. This is helpful, but it is also helpful to establish KRIs/OKRs and have a forward-looking mentality.
I really appreciate the insight posted here, Aaron and your last thought is especially poignant. We need a full picture of operations for measuring success and planning future delivery. Great call out! Saving Changes...
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