The 3’C’s of Project and Program Management … Managing Crisis, Change and Conflict

Project and Program Managers used to be judged by how well they responded to a crisis – now they are judged by how well they anticipate one. In a world with increasing uncertainty lies a dire need to re-frame leadership competencies. There is a need for a resilient and positive mindset in the world of project and program management. Change is even more difficult in this environment where conflict within the organisation is almost inevitable. So the current-day project and program manager challenges often rely on the development and management of the 3C’s: -

 

1.    Anticipation and Reaction to Crisis

2.    The Management and Approach to Change

3.    The Dealing and Expectation of Conflict

 

Crisis, change and conflict can happen at any time, in any situation.  Even if you think you have all your bases covered, guess again. It can come in all shapes, sizes, degrees and from many angles – from natural disasters, technical problems, internal corporate issues and non-compliance with contract. They can happen at the drop of a hat and be very devastating to any project and / or program manager if not managed properly.

 

Regardless of the type or size of crisis, change and conflict, it is important to effectively plan and manage for them in the event of one happening and also for during one. This minimises the shock and stress of the situation and effectively shows the true qualities of any project manage.

 

If you agree, why not step back and be accepting that the plan is the non-essential, it is dealing with the change within it. Moving forward means a positive attitude and acceptance of what lies ahead. Embrace and be-friend the 3’C’s and you will have made a friend for life.

How to transition from Project to Program Management

The world of project management is becoming all too familiar. Yes, there are still challenges and learning to be had but when project management is discussed it is known on how to develop and mature. As a project manager, the biggest driver is being able to deliver under the pressures of time, cost and scope constraints and can be considered to be a balance of project management skills, leadership skills and process management skills.

 

One of the items that gains continual attention now … is how to transition from project to program. If you are in a PMO, you may have heard the following question, which of the project managers is ready to take on the program of work? This is now the easiest question to answer because first we ask ourselves, what is exactly Program Management and what do we mean by it.

 

In projects, we talk about planning, team development and process management. Whereas in programs we talk about business delivery, team dependencies and strategic management. They are two different sets of skills and to assume that a project manager can develop these without guidance / structure is a lot to ask. The first step in transitioning from project to program manager is to develop the mind-set for program management. For example, moving from the world of project / timeline delivery to program strategic execution.

 

My 10-steps or factors that are essential is developing professionals from a project manager’s role into a program management role are: -

 

1.       Think Business instead of Delivery

2.       Think Dependencies instead of Schedule

3.       Think Escalation instead of Reporting

4.       Think Strategy instead of Scope

5.       Think conflict instead of Crisis

6.       Think Governance instead of Teams

7.       Think Transition instead of Transfer

8.       Think Challenge instead of Salary

9.       Think Relaxation instead of Stress

10.   Think Program Triple Constraints (Benefit, Customer, cost)

 

Why are these different from project management? To answer this question, they are all business related and not one of them are focused on the task mindset that is often evident in project management. This is the subject matter of the paper I will be presenting at PMI^® Global Congress 2014—North America on the 27^th October in Phoenix, AZ

 

To Serve or not to Serve?

Should we or should we not serve ... that is the question ... well, it is one of many questions that should be asked. The idea of servant leadership is to serve those they lead. So why don't we do this more and serve those that we lead rather than manage those that we lead? There are a few factors that we, as project practitioners, need to take on board to make this a reality

Become a transformational leader

Rather than act in a certain way in order to gain the trust and avoid the pitfalls of human nature, why don't we tap into the needs and values of people and inspire them with new possibilities that raises confidence, conviction and desire to achieve a common, moral, motivating purpose. This is commonly referred to as a 'transformational leader' and is an core element of servant leadership

Is this a risky method of leadership ... of course it is but the value and result is one of empowerment rather than management. Is this worth doing ... well, that is based on the 3 characteristics of leadership: -

• Your Environment will support transformational leadership?
• Your People will respond to transformational leadership?
• You will Embrace transformational leadership?

One of the key objectives in the workshop titled ‘The NEW Skills of a Project and Programme Manager’ is to focus on the servant leadership and develop these skills to become a leader within projects.

Create the Vision for Others

To be a servant leader, there must be a direction for people to follow.  Does lack of vision mean lack of leadership? Is it because we lack vision? The reason is not because we don’t have a vision, it is because the vision is cosmetic and not focused on those we lead. The vision needs to be exciting, adapted and most importantly it can be connected with. If not, we become a ‘transactional transformational leader’ in a management world. Yes this is a sentence full of words, but what it means is that we may talk the talk but not walk it.

Hear about the other factors that constitute Servant Leadership for Project and Programme managers in my new workshop titled  The NEW Skills of a Project and Programme Manager.

 

What are the Hidden Skills of a Project Manager?

With the increased attention given to leadership in today's business community, one could argue for the simple substitution of the expression project management with project leadership. You are right to think this but we must also understand there are so many other hidden skills to a project manager. Turlon & Associates (www.turlon.com) conduct a workshop titled ‘The Hidden Skills of a Project Manager’ to understand this

Truth be told, not everyone is a leader. It’s just not meant for everyone but we can all work on the hidden skills of for a project manager. Here are some of them … but look at them as you read, tell me if you agree or not?  

• Lead By Example … lend a helping hand, and making sure that the work you do is clearly understood by your team.
• Be Organised … if you’re messy, those around you will be too. When you’re organised you’ll be much more productive and so will everyone else.
• Focus on Priorities … don’t get sucked into the detail when you do not need to, a good expression is to focus on you top 3 priorities rather than the bottom 30
• Delegate … you think you can do everything but you can’t. Make sure people feel as if they own the project.
• Be Responsible … stand up and be counted for your actions and also other to do the same
• Communicate Effectively … be concise and considerate in communication … communicate what people need to know … do not communicate what people do not need to know
• Listen, Listen and Listen more … a huge part of being a great communicator is being a great listener. If all you want to do is talk, you’re not going to understand what is going on …
• Know Your People. You have to know your people. You don’t have to be

There are many more that we could add but for now that give you a sense of what some of the Hidden Skills of a Project Manager are. These are more will be demonstrated through examples and studies shown in our workshop

The start of my blogging career comes at an age where the acceptance of the power of information is now paramount to us all. So why come along here and hangout ... no other reason than to say hi I would hope!

I have three passions in life ... and in no particular order
1. My Work ... I would like to challenge myself and would consider myself driven and determined I what I do
2. My Health ... I like to stay as healthy as I can and I like that those that I care for remain the same
3. Who am I / What is Happiness ... I shall never profess to be a philosopher of any description but I like to understand life and what makes me work and not work ...

This is a Blog with no intentions of giving me an insight in the WHH (Work Health and Happiness) of life ... stay tuned ... be vocal and most importantly lets do it

Namaste,

Liam