At some point in your career, you are likely to be in charge of a project or initiative that is - how shall we say it politely? – underperforming. I was once asked to take over an ERP implementation that was going very poorly indeed. In fact, the client said that if the previous project manager ever stepped foot on the client’s property again, they were going to call the police. Since, as the African proverb says, “smooth seas do not make skillful sailors,” I volunteered to take the project over. I knew that if I could get the situation back on track, the learning would be tremendous and personally rewarding. Besides, there was no place to go but up! This article shares how to turn tough situations like this one around.
Looking back on it, the key was disciplined execution and its flipside: integrity. The first step in the process was to build a realistic understanding of the business, project and people. This meant the first few weeks were spent moving very emotional meetings to productive ones. It is a balancing act to get to the heart of a challenge through persistent and constructive probing, and then productively acting on it.
I have several detailed methodologies I use to right derailed projects, and good questioning is at the heart of all of them. Below are specific diagnostic questions you can use if you find yourself in a similar situation. It can be as simple as the “Start-Stop-Continue” approach. Think about the activities and deliverables in terms of “start, stop, continue.” Think:
For those situations that require a more rigorous examination, such as the ERP project discussed above, more is needed. Questions need to probe deeper in to project processes, problems, people and overall strategic alignment. If available, consider reviewing detailed operating plans, performance and personnel data. Raw data, however, rarely tells the whole story. Meet with one-on-one with key personnel with prepared questions such as:
- What are the biggest challenges the project is facing, and why is the project facing them?
- What is the organization doing about these challenges now?
- What are the most promising unexploited opportunities for positive change, and how could we exploit them? What would need to happen to realize their potential?
- How is the project perceived as performing by internal and external parties?
- How were goals set? Were they insufficiently or overly ambitious? What happened if they were not met?
- What measures were employed? What behaviors did they encourage and discourage?
- Do the primary issues reside in the organization’s strategy, structure, technical capabilities, culture and/or politics
- What are the most formidable barriers to making needed changes? Are they technical? Cultural? Political?
- Are there islands of excellence or other high-quality resources that you can leverage?
- What new capabilities need to be developed or acquired?
- If you were me, what would you focus attention on?
- Are all the deliverables and their quality check points included as milestones?
- Is time for rework in the schedule should it be required
- Are the chunks of work too big? Can you go down another level with the work breakdown structure (WBS)?
- Are there milestones at least once every 2 weeks?
- Are all dependencies in place?
- How reliant is the timing on everything going exactly as planned? Is there a buffer when something doesn’t go to plan? I frequently put in a 15% risk buffer.
- Are qualified resources assigned to all tasks and milestones? Are the resources receiving the support and training they need?
To get the project back on track, the desired outcomes were translated into concrete steps for action. Goals and priorities were set, and structures put in place to make order out of chaos. Measurable milestones and accountabilities were established and reported on regularly. The right people became focused on the right details at the right time. By concentrating on a high level of responsiveness and communication, the relationship healing began and the project moved forward.