Archive for the 'project' Category

We do not need a business case.

Published
by
admin
on August 26, 2010
in project, project management, project risks and return on investment
. 4 Comments

Project Manager (PM) - I have looked at the ideas around the project you mentioned recently and wanted to talk about it.

Project Sponsor (PS) - What, you haven’t started the project yet?

PM - I have, but not in the way you are referring to. I have developed a business case which I want to talk through.

PS - What’s a business case?

PM - It is a process that among other things analyses;

• the business benefits of carrying out the project
• it looks at rates of return
• looks at initial risks
• looks at the priority of the project

There are some interesting things coming out of the business case study you should be aware of

PS - Such as?

PM -

• the business benefits - as I see it (others agree with me) there is one key benefit - improving throughput on processing by around 12%. The key question is this; is that benefit worth the 9 months of project management time, client time and the £55,000 training and software costs

• risks - this software you have suggested is untried. No one has used it before and I believe this is a big risk for us to take on. We are guinea pigs for the software company. Because it is so new, the software may need customising which will cost extra and take more time

• priority of this project - the southern team are undergoing a big re-organisation. There is already training scheduled for everyone on the new telephone system in place. Plus we are losing 4 staff in the next 3 months and recruitment freeze will mean extra pressure on the teams. I am unsure as to the priority of this project

• return on investment - this is more complex however finance have calculated that the return on this investment will take nearly 2 years. It is not a fixed estimate - more a quick look however it is something we should consider and look at in more detail

• the project team - we already have 4 major projects under way. With this and all of the above I do not think we should tackle this one.

Having heard all of this, what are your thoughts?

Where’s my whistle?

Published
by
Ron
on August 10, 2010
in governance, project, project management and project risks
. 0 Comments

I was talking to my good friend Mike Clayton today talking about holidays and suddenly said; “hold it, where’s my whistle?” Of course, Mike could not answer, it was my whistle?

Why do I need a whistle? Mike and I were talking about management of risks and I suddenly realised that my risk analysis for our forthcoming holiday was suspect! You see, my wife Sue and I are going walking along the coastal path from Penzance around past Lands End, Porthcurno and back to Penzance. The bags are (almost) packed and the discussion with Mike reminded me that we did not have a whistle….just in case we get lost, fall or befall some ‘other problem.’

There are many instances where “where’s my whistle questions” would have been very useful. Why? I suggested to Mike that companies do not appear to be as systematic as they ought to be in identifying and managing risks in projects.

During project management training courses we have had people giving real examples of risks that have failed to be identified. The result, huge amounts of time and hard cash to rectify the risk once it has struck or in a few cases the project languishing and ultimately dying.

So, where is your whistle? Have you got a systematic company project risk process? Do you really identify all of the risks in your projects and if so, are they being effectively managed?

I thought I had been very thorough with my risk analysis. No formal project management training course for me! But I was wrong.

I’m away walking along the coastal path from Wednesday. I did my risk analysis and realised it could be better. What about yours?

You can follow my progress on Twitter @ronrosenhead (if the phone signal permits!)

We’re only brought in at the project planning stage

Published
by
Ron
on August 4, 2010
in project, project management, project managers and projects
. 0 Comments

That was the plaintiff cry from some of a group on a recent project management course  

Those who made the comment suggested that looking at aspects such as developing a business case or identifying and managing stakeholders and risks was not relevant to them. As you can imagine, this caused quite a stir; from other course members and especially from me! 

I asked the 4 people who said this to try and look at things slightly differently. I suggested that even though they were only brought in to put together the project plan, they should know about the whole of the project management lifecycle. After a brief discussion, they reluctantly agreed! 

I then suggested that as managers in the business they should be managing projects rather than simply putting together the project plan. A similar discussion and another agreement reached. I then said that they would not know enough about the project to put the plan together without the business case, risks and stakeholders and of courser the project initiation document (PID). 

This discussion took slightly longer! They finally agreed. 

The interesting issue is that senior managers who commissioned the course definitely saw the target group running projects - all the way from idea to delivery. But not the group on the course! 

As a tutor on project management courses I often have to challenge people - sometimes like this I can convince them. However, it does not bode well for projects. Why not? If senior managers cannot brief people sufficiently well about attendance on courses then how well will they brief them on projects? 

How do you set project roles? Leeds Rhinos show the way

Published
by
Ron
on June 16, 2010
in project, project leadership, project management, project management strategy and project teams
. 0 Comments

Life is not all project management - or at least I try and make it that way.

Saturday saw me drive all of 15 miles across London (which took me 2 hours!) to see my favourite rugby league team the current champions Leeds Rhinos. They were playing Harlequins and had a much changed side with 8 players out (international calls and injuries).

It was a great day out with Leeds winning 42-22 - a wonderful result with so many regular 1st teamers out. The reserve players played really well.

At the press conference afterwards the Leeds Coach Brian McClennan was asked:

“How did you approach this game? Did you see it as a potential opportunity or a banana skin with all the reserves?”

McClennan reply is interesting. Look at some of the things he said:

“I turned it over to the players”

“I said, this is your baby, you work it out”

“The players took a lot of ownership on their roles; they took a lot of ownership on how they would play.”

So how does this link with project team roles? I have written many times about problems with roles in project management. Only last week on a project management training course I ran a project manager suggested he did not know who his sponsor was and this was having a negative impact on the project. Link this with a survey by Project Agency. We have asked project managers whether their roles, responsibilities, and levels of authority are clear in our projects. Almost 60% who have answered suggest this is not the case.

Here is a shining example of a situation where personnel changes demanded clear roles and a coach who though giving them their head, ensured that all bases were covered. Oh for the same in projects!

Well done the Rhinos -  the players, and the coach. A great victory and a great example.

See post match comments from Brian McClennan here

http://www.therhinos.co.uk/news/11164.php

Do you keep records of project estimates?

Published
by
Ron
on June 3, 2010
in project, project closure, project estimates, project management and project management training
. 4 Comments

People attending a recent project management workshop suggested that they needed some help estimating. I probed just that bit deeper and discovered that many people were working on what I would call ‘repeat projects.’ They are repeating a project that was done say last year or an element of a project.

This led me to ask (knowing the answer) whether the organisation kept a list or directory of times that tasks take. The body language of those on our project management courses was very interesting….it screamed “of course we don’t.”

I also asked whether at project closure estimates of times within the project plan are reviewed for accuracy. I got the same reaction

If companies want to deliver projects effectively then they need to be able to take as many short cuts as possible. By this I mean having to hand a list of agreed estimates (or ranges of estimates) that will help those who have little or no project management experience or even the experienced project manager.

Now I am not suggesting that these become the minimum times more a range that can be used in putting the plan together. As someone suggested, “project management is like a game of golf - be realistic and reconsider your plan after every shot.” Estimates are no different.

Finally, yes we do include how to estimate on our project management training courses however a lot of anxieties could be allayed if companies kept records of times for projects or stages or activities.