Methodologies

When it comes to project management methodologies, every company is implementing a new methodology or trying to salvage an existing, imperfect implementation. A poorly executed project management methodology roll-out causes confusion, erodes morale, and puts your project at risk.  Companies big and small cling to Agile, Waterfall, TOGAF, or a mashup of multiple approaches.  Some verticals are now being mandated to follow industry standards.  With so much at stake, it is critical that an organization optimize for success, but organizations are complex systems so that can be harder than it sounds.

A poorly executed roll-out of a new project management methodology causes confusion,

erodes morale, and puts your project at risk.

Discussions about embracing a particular methodology often happen at such an academic level it leaves a massive gap between idea and execution.  The people who have chosen the methodology need to connect the dots for the broader organization and clearly communicate how to use it.

An organization of any size can have multiple groups that all have their own favorite process.  Analysis needs to happen to make sure each process is knit together sensibly.

Use this litmus test when assessing the success of a methodology or process implementation:

Roles

Roles on the project are easily differentiated.  If a debate breaks out on lines of duties than the org may have gone too fine-grained.  I’ve seen RACI matrices that would take several days to roll out in training only to get ignored… this is not going to work.  This may seem counter intuitive… why would you not define something further if there is ambiguity?  The issue here is that the matrix becomes over populated and too complex.

Every participant on a project knows what to do from end to end.  Even understanding with a guide is fine, but every team member needs to understand their role and responsibilities to make sure project success.

Ready to roll out a project management methodology?

The process is defined and rolled out completely BEFORE the project starts.  Starting a project when the procedures are not nailed down is too risky.

There is fast and valuable training readily available to ramp up a new hire into the model.

Starting a project when the procedures are not nailed down is too risky.

If a company’s processes have devolved or fragmented to the point that understanding the “correct” way to run the project is harder than actually building the end deliverable, the organization will be unproductive and dysfunctional.

Less complex projects do not need a full blown process

I applaud companies that will have a stream-lined process for low complexity small projects that do not need the rigor of a larger more complex project.  They have given some consideration to the fact that the process does not add enough value on a small, straight-forward effort.

Communication is key

Any organization transitioning to a new process model needs to focus on regular communication in which all sides are being heard.  Clear and prompt communication is more important than the specific process. The smartest thing any organization can do in rolling out a process is force ongoing communication:

• give project teams time to engage the process group.  The process team needs to transition out of academia in this exercise.
• assign process team members on project teams.  The project team needs to try to understand the direction of the process group in this exercise.
• setup governance boards that are action-driven with mandate to address roadblocks and add clarity.

Clear and prompt communication is more important

than the specific process.

Be careful to make sure the discussion around the process tasks does not take so much time that it negatively impacts projects and causes issues.

Use the comment section below to share your criteria for assessing the health of a project management process implementation.

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Ron is a Project Manager and occasional blogger with Chalder Consulting Inc. www.chalder.ca

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/rondsmith

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