Improving Project Performance: Eight Habits of Successful Project Teams

333 Pages·2011·1.941 MB·English

by  Jerry L. Wellman (auth.)

Improving Project Performance
Also by Jerry L. Wellman
Organizational Learning (2009)
Improving Project Performance
Eight Habits of Successful
Project Teams
Jerry L. Wellman
IMPROVING PROJECT PERFORMANCE
Copyright © Jerry L. Wellman, 2011.
All rights reserved.
First published in 2011 by
PALGRAVE MACMILLAN®
in the United States— a division of St. Martin’s Press LLC,
175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
Where this book is distributed in the UK, Europe and the rest of the world,
this is by Palgrave Macmillan, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited,
registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills,
Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS.
Palgrave Macmillan is the global academic imprint of the above companies
and has companies and representatives throughout the world.
Palgrave® and Macmillan® are registered trademarks in the United States,
the United Kingdom, Europe and other countries.
ISBN 978-0-230-11217-9 ISBN 978-1-137-51237-6 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-1-137-51237-6
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Wellman, Jerry L.
Improving project performance : eight habits of successful project
teams / by Jerry L. Wellman.
p. cm.
1. Project management. 2. Teams in the workplace. I. Title.
HD69.P75W463 2011
658.4(cid:2)04—dc23 2011018693
A catalogue record of the book is available from the British Library.
Design by Newgen Imaging Systems (P) Ltd., Chennai, India.
First edition: November 2011
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
CONTENTS
List of Figures and Tables vii
Preface ix
Acknowledgements xvii
Chapter 1 Project Management 1
Chapter 2 Habit # 1—Foster and Nurture a Shared
Project Vision 37
Chapter 3 Habit # 2—Translate the Project Vision
into Coherent Requirements 69
Chapter 4 Habit # 3—Build an Integrated Plan for
Accomplishing the Vision 99
Chapter 5 Habit # 4—Continually Monitor
Performance against the Plan 151
Chapter 6 Habit # 5—Acknowledge and Accommodate
Both Uncertainty and Ignorance 201
Chapter 7 Habit # 6—Embrace but Control Change 235
Chapter 8 Habit # 7—Continually Act to Infl uence
the Future 261
Chapter 9 Habit # 8—Continually Communicate 283
Epilogue 303
Appendix I 309
Appendix II 311
Notes 315
Index 321
FIGURES AND TABLES
FIGURES
1.1 Leadership Involvement in Projects 10
2.1 Project Visions 46
2.2 Visual Mapping of Project Vision 56
2.3 Vision Management Arena 64
3.1 Signal Corps Specifi cation No. 486 71
4.1 The Project Management Triple Constraint 109
4.2 Integrated Planning Has a Sequence 117
4.3 WBS and RAM 123
6.1 Earned Value Measurement and Management
(Financial) Reserve 206
6.2 Baseline Schedule and Schedule Reserve 211
6.3a Critical Path 213
6.3b Revised Critical Path to Create Schedule Reserve 213
6.4 Predictive versus Adaptive (Agile) Project
Management Arena 226
7.1 Requirements Change 243
7.2 A Better Approach to Change Control 249
9.1 The Communication Process 285
9.2 How We Communicate 288
9.3 Project Communications Paths 292
9.4 Customer Communications 293
TABLES
2.1 Project Vision Attributes 38
2.2 Project Vision Enables Success 39
3.1 Key Requirements Margin 95
4.1 Project Management Plan Checklist 136
viii IMPROVING PROJECT PERFORMANCE
5.1 EVMS Progress Metrics 1 85
5.2 Same Words but Different Meanings 1 98
6.1 Requirements Margin 217
7.1 Big Dig Cost Growth 236
7.2 Were the Projects Managed Well? 2 39
7.3 Industry Project Performance Data 2 40
7.4 Several Sources of Project Change 2 41
8.1 Risk Example 267
8.2 Response Alternatives 268
8.3 Response Alternative Analysis 271
8.4 Funded Actions Equal More Dollars 2 74
9.1 Kent’s Words of Estimative Probability 2 86
9.2 What Does That Mean? 287
PREFACE
WHOM THIS BOOK IS FOR
This book is for those with some practical experience
with projects and project environments. The principles,
examples, and recommendations herein will resonate with
those who have engaged in project management activities
and have no doubt been frustrated by that engagement.
The intent is to help the journeyman and the craftsman
better make sense of and have more influence over their
environment, one that is both complex and challenging.
The project environment is often not well understood,
even by its practitioners. Many of the executives and man-
agers overseeing, supporting, or leading project activities
do not appreciate the fundamental differences between
projects and other sorts of work activity. This book
offers some insight into those differences, and into their
consequences.
The primary audience for this book is threefold. First,
it is intended primarily for current project managers who
will recognize situations and experiences that may be frus-
trating them today. Project managers are often chosen
from among the cadre of individuals who have successfully
demonstrated technical skills (e.g., engineering, science, or
computer programming) then thrust into project leader-
ship roles with little or no training, coaching, or mentoring.
This book may help you make sense of some of the dynamics
and pressures that impede project success. It will also sug-
gest techniques that may help you influence the likelihood
of project success. Second, it is intended for organizational
leaders who will recognize herein cultural, environmental,
x IMPROVING PROJECT PERFORMANCE
and procedural challenges that are inhibiting the success of
their project initiatives. This book points out factors within
the organization and within the project teams that can be
managed to facilitate, rather than impede, project success.
Although it is written more from the perspective of the proj-
ect manager than that of the organizational leader, it does
address systemwide impediments to project success and
offer insights about dealing effectively with them. Third,
it is intended for other key project stakeholders, including
customers who will use the results of the project activity
and functional managers whose departments interact with
project teams. These stakeholders will better appreciate
the challenges faced by project teams and understand how
stakeholders can exaggerate or minimize those challenges.
Those who lack direct project management experience
may find it difficult to internalize some of the specifics in
this book, but the broader principles and perspectives may
nonetheless prove enlightening and useful.
This book does not attempt to be all things to all
people, which would dilute its value to anyone. The book
will likely not be useful for individuals who have no direct
experience with projects or project management because
it presumes some hands-on experience with projects
and the organizational environment in which they are
executed. Those who have found themselves thrust into
a position of project management without direct experi-
ence or training should wait a year or two before read-
ing this book. If you are a new project manager, you may
find Successful Project Management by Milton Rosenau and
Gregory Githens (2005) useful. 1 It is a straightforward
classical description of the fundamental principles of
engineering project management and a direct and specific
how-to description rooted in sound principles. Leaders
who find themselves suddenly responsible for overseeing
a multiproject environment may find it useful to read the
Rosenau/Githens book referenced above. Afterwards, you