Managing Projects at Work

Gordon Webster

• Publisher: Taylor & Francis
• Year: 2017
• eBook ISBN: 9781351920384
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Business General
• Index: Business

This book is written for all managers, in any function, who are tasked with delivering projects at work. It is of particular interest to those managers who have to deal with small- to medium-sized projects in addition to their usual responsibilities. Straightforward and user friendly, this book takes the reader through a series of steps which results in the effective delivery of a project. Managing Projects at Work breaks down into two stages. By the end of stage one the reader will know how to build a 'Defensible Plan' for successful project implementation. This process, which follows a step-by-step sequence, draws out in a unique way all the resources and support needed for an effective project delivery. The outcome is a confident project manager who can justify and secure what is needed for the stress-free implementation of the project. Stage two deals with implementing the 'Defensible Plan' under proper control, through motivated and well-led people. Gordon Webster's approach suits projects as diverse as introducing new systems or procedures, launching a new product, opening a new branch, factory or department; even organizing a conference or moving offices. Its practical methodology has been developed as a result of working over many years with managers whose projects had gone off track, usually for the same reasons. From these observations the unique and entirely effective 'Defensible Plan' and its implementation were born. By adopting this approach readers can build in success from the beginning and see consistent project delivery, along with control of their working life.

Part I
Building the Defensible Plan

CHAPTER
1
The Defensible Plan

Plans are the tangible evidence of the thinking of managers.

J. O. McKinsey

McKinsey tells us to look at a plan to see the management thinking behind it. He is also telling us that the very existence of a plan indicates that some thinking must have taken place. In our management lives plans are not always written down but with projects only the smallest tasks do not have a written plan. The production of a plan requires the application of reasoning and logic to ensure that others understand what should happen according to the plan. A plan is a form of communication that ensures that all concerned are ‘singing from the same song sheet’—the plan is the song sheet.

The structure of the Defensible Plan

The Defensible Plan is so called because when correctly built it can be presented confidently and then defended. The process involved in its production covers all aspects of a project. Each part of the plan leads logically to the next until it is complete. It results in a plan which is thorough, justifiable, workable and visible. This approach has been developed over a 20-year period and is used as the preferred method of many leading organisations from a number of industry sectors in many parts of the world. It consists of eight distinct but overlapping steps.

1. Defining the project

2. Scheduling the work

3. Estimating and allocating resources

4. Managing risk

5. Delivering quality

6. Building a budget

7. Selling the plan

8. Setting up controls

If all of these steps are in the plan, the planning is sound. If one of the steps is missing it is unlikely to be a Defensible Plan. It follows a logical planning flow with each step following on in sequence from the previous. If a step is missed out the following steps cannot be done fully and the result is an indefensible plan, as there will be questions that cannot be answered.

Why plan?

On being given an additional task, the temptation is to get on with it as soon as possible. There is already too much work and not enough time so there is pressure to do everything quickly, and to implement as soon as possible. There is nothing wrong with getting off to a flying start provided we start at the right place. The right place is the beginning and the beginning is the plan.

The plan defines the role of the project manager and allocates responsibilities and roles to those involved in the project’s delivery. Planning brings out options for actions which allows choice and proactivity, rather than reaction to circumstances as they occur. The process allows for planned coordination of effort which reduces the amount of resources needed. When projects are delivered by crisis management they will use more resources as people are taken on to catch up and then let go until the next crisis.

For all the above reasons, planning reduces stress on the manager. As a result of producing a plan he or she will have a good mental picture of the whole task and where and how it should be at any given point of time.

What happens if there is no plan?

Without a plan it is easy to work very hard to end up in a different place from the desired end. Poor planning produces:

■ confusion

■ lack of common understanding

■higher costs

■ stress and discontent

■ missed deadlines

■ lack of resource

■ duplication of effort

■ rework.

Ultimately disaster happens. There are many cliches to support this thinking. ‘Failing to plan is planning to fail’ and the 5 P’s: Poor Planning Produces Pathetic Performance and so on. If planning is so important why is it avoided?

Why is planning avoided?

There are many reasons for not planning, most of them emotional:

■ Planning is a mentally demanding exercise, it hurts!

■ Planning is a ‘self starting’ process, it needs an effort of will to get it going.

■ Planning is not reactive, it needs decisions to be made about what will happen in advance. In our busy working lives we can become skilled at reacting to circumstances rather than creating them: ‘I’m good at fire fighting so I enjoy having fires to put out.’

■ It takes courage to publicly commit to a specific course of action; when plans are written personal risk is involved because at some stage commitment to that plan will be needed.

■ ‘Projects are never delivered to plan so what’s the point?’ The production of the plan brings intimate knowledge of the project. When the plan needs to flex (as it must) this in-depth knowledge gives a better chance of the correct action.

■ Planning is boring. It is for most people but project planning can be interesting.

Making planning interesting

Planning is seen as dry and dusty but project planning is ‘planning for real’. It is not some remote strategic exercise looking way into the future, or an annual repetitious procedure that produces plans that are never referred to. Project planning is done very close to the implementation of that plan; it soon will be put to the test—it is ‘active planning’. Project planning is akin to completing a well constructed cryptic crossword or putting together a particularly complex jigsaw puzzle. It is challenging, real and a ‘living process’ which can be enjoyed if approached with a positive mental attitude.

In comparison with other types of business planning, project planning is paradoxical. With sales planning it is not known what the outcome will be, it can only be planned for and then skills and experience applied to drive for it. With project planning the exact end is known from the beginning. But it has never been done before. So with sales planning what we will eventually get isn’t known—but we know how to go about getting it; with project planning we do know what we will get but we are not sure how we will get it.

How long to produce a Defensible Plan?

Experience of project management indicates that thorough planning takes between 8 and 10 per cent of total project time. So a task that will take about a month to do (20 working days) should have two days set aside for planning. If enough time is not allocated for planning at the beginning of the project then a lot more time will be required later when trying to implement; not just in resources but in personal stress. So set up to succeed—from the beginning.

In the following chapters each of the steps in a Defensible Plan is addressed separately.

The structure of the book allows for working on a ‘live’ project, applying the techniques being taught as you go. If you do not have a live project then you can either follow the examples given or plan an imaginary project that may become ‘live’ in future.

Although, by definition, all projects are different, the structure of one successful project plan can act as a very effective template when planning another.

CHAPTER
2
Defining your project

I keep six honest serving men
(They taught me all I knew)
Their names are What and Why and When
And How and Where and Who.

Poem The Elephant’s Child by Rudyard Kipling (by kind permission of A P Watt Ltd, Literary Agents on behalf of The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty).

What are you being asked to do?

In operational work when you are asked to keep an existing process going, it is in most cases repetitive. Constantly trying to improve the process, make it faster, better quality, use less resources and so on. It is seldom that you are given the opportunity of setting up a process from the beginning. You are more often in the position of taking over what already exists.

Project working is different; it deals with a finite quantity of work. You are able (in most...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Dedication
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Table of Contents
• List of figures
• Acknowledgements
• Introduction
• Part I Building the Defensible Plan
• Part II Implementing the Defensible Plan
• Glossary
• Index