This is the third part in our series on successful program management in an era of sequestration. Read ‘Project Management and Your Talent Management Strategy and Project Cost, Program Management and Your Talent Strategy.
Projects rarely fail due to big problems that occur overnight. Rather, projects wind up in the failure category due to all the little changes made over the project lifecycle. In the project management world, we call that scope creep…and it can be deadly. Defining your project scope (goals, objectives, and requirements) at the project onset is critical to delivering on time and within budget.
While government continues to operate under a continuing resolution (CR) and sequestration impacts government budgets, it is even more imperative to draw the line in the sand and define what is in and out of project scope. It’s easier said than done – especially in the government-contracting world.
Management often loves to have a Statement of Work (SOW) that is so broad and undefined that you can drive a Mack truck right through it. For contracts that have high ceilings to allow for more follow-on work, a broad SOW can be helpful for company revenue projections, but for the program manager, it can be a challenge to deliver within scope. Sequestration or no sequestration, if you have a broad SOW, it’s really important to have very detailed requirements documentation that has your contracting officer’s (CO) signature and agreement.
Don’t Try to Make Everyone Happy
Typically, a project manager can have a Contracting Officer Technical Representative (COTR), a Contracting Officers Representative (COR), a Contracting Officer (CO), an end user and/or subject matter expert (SME), as well as company management and employees to answer. It is impossible for all of the “players” in this equation to be happy, so don’t try to make everyone happy. For sure, treat your team well and respect your bosses’ opinions. However, you have to stick to your game plan – your requirements document and your schedule. Any changes to the requirements will change the scope, schedule, and cost.
It’s hard to know who to listen to with the long list of project “players”, but contractually, it’s simple. Take direction from your CO. Period. The end user may have some great ideas, and the project definitely needs to benefit the end user. The CO is there for a reason, and contractually s/he is the only individual in this cast of characters that you should respond to when asked to make changes. Any changes to the requirements need to be worked through the project’s CO. In these odd budget times, it’s essential to work closely with the CO so that work does not begin on a requirement that will not be paid for…no one is happy in that situation. Protect your end user and help them work well with the project CO.
Go for Small Wins
Without an actual federal budget in sight, funding can get slashed without notice. Projects that have a chance of survival are ones that can quickly meet the end user needs within a short schedule. Better to cost more in a short term, than invest work into something that has to be left incomplete due to budget constraints. Don’t allow the project to become long and drawn out due to requirement change after requirement change. Team schedules will begin to impact the ability to complete within schedule the more the project is delayed due to scope creep. Schedule small wins throughout the life of the project that work towards the end goal.
Communication is Key
Every aspect of project management requires communication, but for some reason, this component is often overlooked. Usually, the wrong people are talking to each other…or the right people aren’t talking enough. Part of the PM’s job is to manage team, end user, management, and CO communications. Requirements can get added when a company executive has a bright idea about a cool feature or when an end user pines about a need-to-have feature that wasn’t added during the requirements sessions. Over communication can be annoying and no one really wants to work for a micro-manager, but finding the right communication balance with all parties can help keep everyone on the same page…and project scope managed.
What do all of these things mean when it comes to your talent-management strategy? Here are a few take-aways:
1. Hire good communicators. The professional contractors working on site need to be able to communicate your company’s vision, as well as navigate the murky waters of who is really in charge. Hire the wrong people and you’ll quickly find a project that’s out of scope.
2. Hire versatile talent. You often think long-term when it comes to new hires, but today’s safe-bet contract may be gone tomorrow. Ideally, hire professionals that fit within multiple program areas.
3. Hire loyal employees. Project scope often boils down directly to the boots on the ground you have working a contract. Make sure they want to keep the customer happy – but make sure they want to keep their program manager happier.
That’s just a few ways to think of your scope during these leaner and ever-changing times. How do you keep projects in-scope with the dismal fiscal forecast in view?
