Sharpen your translation skills.
“As a program manager, I’ve taken responsibility for projects that span di;erent
regions, and I’ve learned that cultural biases can impact the perception of a project’s status. We often use the RAG (red-amber-green) method, but when you
are part of a global initiative, it can become di;cult to present a consistent view.
One program I was involved in deployed a transcontinental strategic business
change. I found that in certain countries, people refuse to present a ‘red’ status
even if a project is in terrible condition because senior managers forbid it. In
other regions, team members sometimes say that a project is proceeding poorly
because they want management’s attention.
When I was head of release management for a Swiss bank, as part of the
software delivery team, the ‘watermelon’ status—green on the surface, but red
in reality—was the most dangerous, as one missed deliverable could endanger
a whole release weekend. I have learned to coach all project managers to provide evidence that their reported status is in line with reality and is done in a
consistent manner.”
—Marc Burlereaux, PMI-ACP, PMI-RMP, PMP, PgMP, is a member of the change
delivery team at HSBC Private Bank in Geneva, Switzerland.
UNREALISTIC TIMELINE
“On one program, I worked for an outsourcing
company to implement a banking software
package. It was difficult to gain a shared view
about the program status and which features
to implement because of different understandings between the bank client, the banking
software provider, and my company leading
the program and the project teams in charge
of the implementation. In spite of trying to
reconcile the program status among all these
groups, we were forced to accept a challenging
delivery timeline.
We had to delay the go-live date more than
four times, which meant a costly project review
each time. During the assessment status and
rescheduling, we stopped all the work and the
team sat idle. When you ask a program team
four times to walk the extra mile to achieve a
deadline, you have to make sure the last time is
a good one. The final rollout went very well, but
a more sustainable pace and approach would
have been better and less costly to implement.”
—Marc Burlereaux, PMI-ACP, PMI-RMP, PMP, PgMP
DISCONNECT BETWEEN PROMISES
AND REALITY
“Conflict between what the sales team
promises and what the project team is able to
achieve is one of the most common complaints I hear, project after project. I have to
explain the scope of the project, as defined
in the contract or statement of work. I try
to understand the differences between the
contracted scope and the assurances of the
sales team, and I review internally what it
would take to meet the client’s expectations,
if feasible. A collaborative approach helps the
client understand that the scope of the project
is something they have reviewed and agreed
to in the contract.
As a program manager, I spend time with
each of the key members on the program or
project side and on the customer side as well.
If there is any disconnect, I try to explain how
it has to be modified, if required, to align to
the program objective. This kind of discussion
brings everyone on the same page.”
—Duraideivamani Sankararajan, PMP
vide evidence that their reported status is in line with reality and is done in a
“A
collaborative
approach helps
the client
understand
that the scope
of the project
is something
they have
reviewed and
agreed to in the
contract.”
—Duraideivamani
Sankararajan, PMP
