Best Practices_ Managing People_ Secrets to Leading for New Managers - Barry Silverstein [22]
Do estimate the time and money it might take to achieve a quality-improvement objective.
Don’t accept an inadequate timeline or budget in a quality-improvement project without negotiating for a modified objective or an increase in the timeline and budget.
If a project goal is to improve quality, then the manager must gain some guidance as to how to quantify the improvement. If it can be quantified, then a specific quality improvement objective can be set.
The next question is what kind of time and money it takes to achieve this improvement. Although you can strive to meet the defined objective, it may not ultimately be attainable if the schedule and budget are inadequate. If you have the knowledge and experience to foresee the shortfall at the outset, you can collaborate with your own managers to redefine the scope of the project.
Red Flags
POOR PROJECT PLANNING
When there is a breakdown in planning, project objectives are less likely to be achieved. Watch out for:
A poorly defined scope–This starts a project off on the wrong foot.
Scope creep–Unwanted surprises pop up if you disregard small scope changes, and a project can spin out of control.
Inadequate resource allocation–A project can run aground if the manpower, funds, and time alloted are insufficient.
DEFINING THE PROCESS
Projects in today’s business world are increasingly complex. In addition, expectations for completing projects have become more and more aggressive. Businesses need to accomplish more in less time and within tighter budgets.
Although some managers believe in managing projects informally, there is a growing awareness that most projects require a certain discipline to bring together the necessary project elements and execute the project within budget and on time. This process is fairly standard and extends across many types of projects, varying only with the complexity of the project and its components.
CASE FILE
A LAW FIRM TAKES CONTROL
With more than 1,000 attorneys, Foley & Lardner LLP needed a system to schedule, track, and report on projects—one that was easy to implement and maintain.
Rather than adopt software already available in the marketplace, the firm decided to develop a brand new system for project management. It has dramatically changed the way the firm manages projects.
Throughout the firm, project managers create and track projects using a single methodology, and executives can check project status online and obtain detailed information about how the project is progressing. The result? Project managers are more productive, the firm has reduced costs for itself and its clients, and up-to-date information about any project in any office is now readily available to all authorized users.
Developing the new system “forced us to come up with a unified project management process,” says a project manager at Foley & Lardner. “This has made us more productive. Where it used to take 20 hours to create a project schedule, now, with the new project templates, I can do it in four or five hours.”
SOURCE: “Foley & Lardner LLP: Law Firm Improves Project Management Processes, Boosts Productivity,” www.microsoft.com (June 19, 2005).
Scope. Determine the precise scope of the project. You need to spell out ahead of time what you need to accomplish with the resources, money, and time you have available.
Resource allocation. Determine what inside staff, outside resources, physical material, equipment, and other items will be needed to execute the project.
Organization. Plan how you will work on the project and choose the right people for each task. Explain the project objective to your group, and get everyone pointed in the right direction.
Outside the Box
CONSIDER FLEXIBLE DEVELOPMENT
When you create a process to manage a project, structure without constraint is always a goal. You need a structure so that everyone knows what comes next and your progress can be measured. But you can’t underestimate the impact of changes along the way. Change is fairly likely in many situations, sometimes because the