Tailoring Project Management
Processes
Increasing The Efficiency Of Projects
7/14/2008
On Target Program Management
Solutions
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Overview
•
•
•
•
Background
The Problem
The Journey to Tailored PM Processes
Tailored PM Processes
– Classification
– Process Selection
– Example
• Suggested Implementation Steps
• Questions/Discussion
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Background
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My Background
• Education/Training:
– MS Systems Management, USC
– Defense Systems Management College
– Many other PM short courses
• USAF Program Manager
– EW/reconnaissance/intelligence program
– Staff in Pentagon HQ USAF R&D
– Acquisition consultant to senior AF leadership
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My Background, cont’d
– USAF PMO Director
• Unmanned Air Vehicle Program
• F-16 R&D & logistics
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My Background, cont’d
• For-Profit Project Management
– PM for electronics test systems (RF
Integrated Chip, transmitter/receiver,
satellites, avionics, national spectrum
monitoring, etc.)
– PM for wireless base station mfg test systems
– Wireless test system business manager/PMO
director
– Aerospace/defense systems PMO Director
– PM Consultant
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The Problem
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The Problem
• Consistent, common process issue
encountered in every one of my PM
organizations:
How do you reasonably provide a PM with
process flexibility that allows him/her to
effectively and efficiently run a project while
maintaining reasonable:
- Management oversight
- Functional responsibility & accountability
- Executive decision-making prerogatives
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The Journey
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Journey to the Solution
• PMO basic PM processes and training
• Reorganization #1 result: best practices
menu, “multiple processes” approach
• Reorganization #2 result: worst case
cookbook, “single process” approach
• Reorganization #3 result: limited, flexible
menu, “tailored processes” approach
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PMO Situation (1999)
• Project teams develop and deliver unique
systems to a wide range of customers
– US and foreign government agency contracts
– DOD prime contractors & subcontractors
– Commercial vendors in a wide variety of
different industries
– None are “off-the-shelf”, all require some
design and customization
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PMO & Projects, cont’d
• Projects range widely in size and
complexity ($100K - $12M)
• Some customers are concerned about
cutting edge technical performance, others
with schedule and/or price
• Essential PM processes and skills
documented and training provided
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Reorganization #1
• Company reorganization in 2000
– Resulted in world-wide geographically
dispersed organization with variety of system
products, PM processes and maturity levels
– Results of historical “fiefdom” organizational
style
• 35 product lines within 8 organizations located at
10 different locations
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Reorganization #1
• Senior management understood the need
for process improvements
• Tiger Team formed to address PM
processes
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Tiger Team Results (2001)
• Year-long tiger team completed
documentation of “best practices” PM and
associated processes
– Full “cookbook” of processes and techniques
successfully used within the organization’s 35
system product lines
– Significant training for PMs and team
members developed & delivered to ensure the
organization understood alternative PM
processes available
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Process Journey
M
A
T
U
R
I
T
Y
MULTIPLE
PROCESSES
TIME
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Reorganization #2 (2002)
• Another reorganization was put in place to
simplify range of products and reduce
geographic dispersion
• Chance to fix major complaints of
stakeholders and team members:
– Inconsistent PM process applications
– Project results (cost, schedule, performance)
weren’t improving as a result of initial process
improvements
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Reorg #2 PM Processes
• Single set of PM processes developed
– Menu of the best practices with associated
tools and techniques
– “Worst case” approach—documented
processes applicable to largest, most complex
projects
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Process Journey
M
A
T
U
R
I
T
Y
SINGLE
PROCESS
MULTIPLE
PROCESSES
TIME
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Benefits of a Single Set of
Processes
• One set may be considered a real win in
some organizations
• The organization is aligned with a set of
known processes and expectations for
their use
• Training is minimized
• Basically, life is predictable!
• But…
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Drawbacks of a Single Set
of Processes
• If there are widely different size and
complexity in projects:
– Small, less complex projects may be saddled
with processes that impede the completion
and waste the organization’s resources
– Larger, more complex projects may not have
the oversight appropriate to the criticality to
the organization and the risk to the
organization if it isn’t successful
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Symptoms
• Team members on a low complexity project
grumble about wasting their time with non valueadded activities that are mandated by the
organization, and/or…
• Pressure to “cut costs to the bone” and eliminate
important processes on a risky, highly complex
project that is critical to the organization
THE ORGANIZATION CAN ENABLE OR
IMPEDE – THIS IS IMPEDING!
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Organizational ”Aha” Insight
• Senior management either enables the
PMO which enables the PM who enables
the project team or impedes ….
– Enabling is exercising oversight appropriate to
the project importance and risk to the
organization
– Enabling isn’t carte blanche approval or
disinterest and it isn’t micromanagement…. ,
but it exists on various points on the
continuum between them
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The Solution
• For PMOs with a diversity of projects, develop a
flexible set of PM processes that are tailored for
projects based on;
– Project complexity
– Project size
• Align the organization around these processes
• Train and reinforce with the entire organization
on these processes, not just the project teams
SENIOR MANAGEMENT AND THE PMO CAN
ENABLE!
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Process Journey
TAILORED
PROCESSES
M
A
T
U
R
I
T
Y
SINGLE
PROCESS
MULTIPLE
PROCESSES
TIME
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Tailored Processes
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Tailored Process Needs
• Need a way to classify each project to
know which set of alternative processes to
use
• Need to clearly identify the processes to
tailor, i.e., start out tailoring those that
have a high payoff in terms of efficiency or
effectiveness
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Project Complexity
Project Complexity vs Project Process Complexity
Ideal
Tailored
Single Process
Project Processes
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Don’t Try This At Home Warning
• This example is to illustrate a methodology
that can be applied to other organizations
• IT IS NOT A SOLUTION THAT CAN BE
COPIED DIRECTLY AND APPLIED IN
ANY OTHER SITUATION
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Classification Development
• The organization analyzed the types of
projects and products and came up with a
simple test of 4 characteristics to
determine if a project was low, medium or
high on the complexity scale
• The complexity scale determined which
set of processes the project would use
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Classification Factors
•
•
•
•
Price
Engineering Effort
Contract Characteristics
Customer Interaction
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Classification
Evaluation Factors Low Complexity
Medium Complexity High Complexity
Scale Project
Scale Project
Scale Project
Characteristics
Characteristics
Characteristics
Estimated Price
<$500K
Design Effort (full
time equiv)
<2 design engineers 2-4 design engineers
>4 design engineers
Contract
characteristics
Std terms and
Limited unique terms
conditions, std
and requirements
technical effort
(testing,
support,
documents, etc.)
Significant unique
terms, technical
reqts or support
reqts
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$500K - $1.5M
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>$1.5M
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Classification, cont’d
Evaluation
Factors
Customer
Interaction
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Low Complexity
Scale Project
Characteristics
Medium
High Complexity
Complexity Scale Scale Project
Project
Characteristics
Characteristics
Teleconference
reqts and design
reviews, informal
progress and
interaction on
technical issues.
Formal acceptance
tests
Face-to-face,
formal reqts and
design review.
Weekly written
status summaries,
formally
documented
technical
interchange
meetings. Formal
acceptance tests
On Target Program Management
Solutions
Face-to-face, formal
requirements
review, preliminary
and critical design
reviews. Formal
face-to-face mgt.
reviews. Formal
acceptance tests.
Training/support on
customer site.
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Classification Rules
• Use the highest complexity characteristic
to classify project processes to be used
• Determine classification before doing the
work breakdown structure for the proposal
basis of estimate and have sponsor buy-in
• If the characteristics change later, reevaluate the project processes to be used,
as well as the cost, schedule and risk
assessment
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Tailored Processes
• Goal: provide a clear set of standard
processes and expectations documented
for each of the three levels of complexity
– Provide summaries of expected project team
actions as well as templates and tools to
accomplish
– Forerunner of “lean” concept—eliminate nonvalue added activities
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Inputs to Selecting the Initial
Processes for Tailoring
• Team members and stakeholders
recommendations
• Resources required for different functions
• Organization’s core strengths and
competitive advantages
• Results from retrospectives from previous
projects
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Initial PMO Processes Tailored
• Number of formal decision points and
associated decision-maker level
• Internal project information and
documentation
• Product documentation
• Project external interfaces
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Decision-Making
• Non-negotiable: each project phase has a
formal review before proceeding to next
phase
• The effort and time for a review can vary
widely, depending upon the formality and
decision-making level
• Goal: tailor reviews and decision-makers
appropriate to the project complexity
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Tailored Decision Making
Project Phase
Investigation
Decision Point
Low Complexity
Medium
Complexity
High
Complexity
Resource Commitment.
BM
BM
BM
Proceed to Proposal.
BM
BM
BM
Proposal
Offer & Pricing.
BM
BM
VP
Execution
Project Start Up.
X
X
BM
Preliminary Design.
X
X
BM
Critical Design.
BM
BM
BM
Production Readiness.
PRM
PRM
PRM
X
X
X
N/A
X
BM
X
X
BM
Requirements Capture
Factory Acceptance.
Implementation
Warranty & Support
X = PM
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On-Site Installation & Acceptance Test.
Retrospective.
BM = Business Manager
PRM = Production Manager
VP = Vice President
On Target Program Management
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N/A = No decision
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Project Information &
Process Documentation
• Internal, stakeholders and external info
• Internal team documentation used to
communicate, manage, document
– E-mail
– Share drives, company data bases
– Working papers
• Content important, format less important
• Coordination, sign off, communication etc
is informal
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Project Information & Process
Documentation, cont’d
• Formal team documentation used to
communicate status, issues, etc. to
stakeholders
– E-mail or presentations
• Content and format both important
• Coordination, sign off, communication
within the team is formal
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Project Information & Process
Documentation, cont’d
• Formal team documentation used to
communicate status, issues, etc. to
external entities
– E-mail, contracts letters or presentations
– Content and format both important
• Coordination, sign off, communication
within the team and with stakeholders is
formal
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Example Process
Information & Documentation Type
Low Complexity
Medium Complexity
High Complexity
Decision Point Minutes
X
F
F
Project Team Meeting Minutes
X
X
X
Customer Meetings and Reviews
E
E
E
Issues Tracking
X
X
E
Action Item Status
X
X
E
Project Plan
X
X
E
Requirements Specifications
X
E
E
Work Breakdown Structure
X
X
E
Project Schedule
X
X
E
Risk Assessments
X
X
E
Support Strategy
E
E
E
Resource Plan
X
X
X
Project Contract, Terms & Conditions
E
E
E
Partner Agreements
E
X = Informal team information & documentation
F = Formal team information & documentation to internal stakeholders
E = formal team information & documentation to external entities
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Example Process, cont’d
Information & Documentation Type
Low Complexity
Medium
Complexity
High Complexity
Cost & Pricing Model
F
F
F
Change Tracking (cost/schedule/ performance
impacts)
E
E
E
Order
F
F
F
Material List
X
X
X
Project Budget
X
X
X
Payment/Billings
E
E
E
Acceptance Test Procedure
X
X
E
Material Status Reporting
X
X
X
X = Informal team information & documentation
F = Formal team information & documentation to internal stakeholders
E = formal team information & documentation to external entities
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Product Information
• Problem:
– Engineering effort to required to document
new design features was very high
– Drove project complexity, costs, schedules &
customer satisfaction issues
• Solution:
– Standard product information format
developed that greatly streamlined the
process for less complex projects
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External Interfaces
• Includes customers, subcontractors,
consultants, partner organizations,
standards/verification entities,
governmental or funding bodies
• When the number of external interfaces is
more than 3-4, need to consider using a
variety of tools to manage complex
interfaces
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Interface Management
Tools
• Formal contractual/partner agreement documentation
• Integrated project work breakdown structure and
schedule
• Integrated risk management, issues management and
action item tracking processes
• Integrated communication plan
• Integrated project plan
• Integrated change logs/control processes
• Regular extended team meetings
• Regular technical exchange meetings
• Integrated management level project reviews
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Results
• PMs, team members AND Stakeholders
have a good understanding of
expectations re PM processes
• Processes are appropriate for project
complexity and increases effectiveness
and efficiency
• Schedule and budget performance metrics
improved continuously for 2 years as
measured in retrospectives
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Implementation
• Evaluate projects and decide on the
evaluation criteria and number of levels of
the complexity scale
• Determine which processes have the
highest payoff when tailored—don’t tackle
the entire world of processes
– Implies beginning with a set of processes that
are reasonably well understood and used
– If no standard set of processes, more difficult
to decide what areas need to be tailored
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Implementation, cont’d
• Let the stakeholders, project team
members and PMs critique it and
incorporate their ideas
• Train everyone on the use and roll it out
for use–then use it!
• Make usage part of the PM, team member
and stakeholder performance evaluations
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Implementation, cont’d
• After 2 years of increasingly better project
results, start tailoring the next set of
processes and implement in the same way
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Summary
• Tailoring PM processes can yield greater
efficiency and effectiveness in executing
projects of varying complexity
• Tailored processes compliment project
portfolio management theory that stresses
having projects of varying size and
importance to the organization
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