EM660 PROJECT MANAGEMENTClass 3

Class 3 Agenda • Quiz • House II • Good Meeting/Bad Meeting• Chapter 6 Time Management• Chapter 7 Conflict Management• Chapter 8 Performance Management• Chapter 9 Variables for Success• Chapter 10 Working with Executives• MS Project Short Tutorial

Good MeetingMembers exhibited Supportive Roles

• Initiators• Information Seekers• Information Givers• Encouragers• Clarifiers• Harmonizers• Consensus• Gate Keepers

Bad Meeting• Destructive Roles

• Aggressor• Dominator• Devil’s Advocate• Topic Jumper• Recognition Seeker• Withdrawer• Blocker• Tank

House II

Chapter 6 Time ManagementProject management involves numerous meetings, report writing, conflict resolution, continuous planning and re-planning, communications with customers, and crisis management.

What do you do when an employee comes in your office with a problem?

The author says that the key to time management is delegating and learning to say NO.

Time Management Analysis Tools (p.288)

• Prioritized “To Do” List

• Ratio – Delay studyThis analysis can be

performed on yourself or used to see what your staff/team is doing.

Ratio – Delay Study• A technique for determining the proportion of time spent by workers in various defined categories of activity ,e.g.

setting up a machine, assembling two parts, idle…etc

• important as all other statistical techniques because it permits quick analysis, recognition, and enhancement of job responsibilities, tasks, performance competencies, and organizational work flows.

To Be Effective

The Project Manager needs to ask 4 questions.

Why am I doing that:1)Do I have to do it at all?2)Can it be better done by others?3)Can it be done as well by others?And finally…4) Am I prioritizing my activities properly?

Chapter 7 Conflict Management

Conflicts are inevitable in project management & are usually the result of conflicting objectives.

When project objectives are poorly written or not communicated accurately to all project personnel and organizational management, they become subject to interpretation, inviting conflict.

SMART Objectives (p. 366)S = SpecificM= MeasureableA = AttainableR =Realistic T = Time Bound or Tangible

Example: Increase the number of scholarships available to Business & Law students by introducing 3 new scholarships for students to apply in 2008. Each scholarship awarded will be a minimum $3,000 per scholarship.

SMART Objectives examples• Decrease the number of steps required to

complete an order by 30% by the end of this quarter.

• Increase the percent of children bicycling to school from 1% to 5% within 3 years.

• Reduce the average time for resolving customer service issues from [20] minutes to [15] minutes by the end of the calendar year.

Objectives That are NOT SMART

• Find a cure for cancer by 2015• Wipe out malaria world wide by 1/1/2015• Start and Finish the $6 Million building project

in 6 wks

Conflict (p. 365)1. Project conflicts are inevitable.2. Conflicts and resolutions can be planned.

Top 4 sources of project conflict:- Tight Schedules- Shifting Priorities- Scarce Resources- Technical Matters/Trade-offs

Conflict is best resolved by those involved.

Conflict Handling StylesAvoidingCompromiseCompetitionAccommodationCollaboration

• Which conflict handling style will you use?

• Which conflict handling style will you use?

• Project Managers may have a preferred style for managing conflict

• Which conflict handling style will you use?

• Project Managers may have a preferred style for managing conflict

• You should use different styles depending on the problem – and get there by using your ability to read situation

avoiding

accommodation

competition

compromise

collaboration

• Characteristics• ignoring conflicts and hoping they’ll

go away• putting problems under consideration

or on hold• use of secrecy to avoid confrontation• appeal to bureaucratic rules

Avoiding

When to use• Trivial, small/unimportant

issue• no perceived chance of

resolution• To allow a cool down period• To allow others to resolve

the situation

Characteristics• negotiation• looking for deals

and trade-offs• finding satisfactory

or acceptable solutions

When to use• goals are important, but not worth effort• opponents with equal power are

committed to mutually exclusive goals• achieve temporary settlements to issues• arrive at solutions under time pressure• back-up to collaboration or competition

Compromise

• Characteristics• create win-lose situations• use of power plays • forcing submission

When to use• quick, decisive action is vital, very

important• unpopular actions eg. cost cutting• issues are vital to company welfare• against people who take advantage of

non-competitive behavior

Competition

Characteristics• giving way • submission and

fulfillment

When to use• find you are wrong• issues more important to others than yourself• maintain cooperation• build social credits for later on• minimize loss• harmony and stability are important• allow team members to learn from their

mistakes

Accommodation

Characteristics• problem-solving carriage• tackle differences • sharing ideas and information• seeing problems and conflicts

as challenges

When to use• find an integrative solution

when both sets of concerns are important

• objective is to learn

Collaboration

• 2 Methods for Resolving Conflict in a team• Role Clarification Technique (RAT)• Intergroup Conflict Resolution

• Role Clarification Technique (RAT)• This is a systematic procedure which involves all team members

understanding the requirements of their of own and everyone else's position, duties and expectations

• You’ll need to clarify roles for team and individuals; for example via questionnaires (or for project teams - RAM matrices!)

• Intergroup Conflict Resolution

• Each group should prepare list of what they would like the other groups to start doing, stop doing, and continue to do.

• This list narrows he scope of the dispute and makes it easier to work on the core problems.

Traditional & Contemporary Views of Conflict

Traditional view Contemporary view

* caused by trouble makers

* bad

* should be avoided

* must be suppressed

* inevitable between humans

* often beneficial

* natural result of change

*can and should be managed

Antecedent Conditions Leading to Conflict

1 Ambiguous jurisdiction - two bosses2. Conflict of interest - engr & mgr3. Communication barriers - misunderstandings4. Dependence on one party - provided needed

resource

Conflict Resolution (p. 300)The author says the most effective method of conflict

resolution is:

The establishment of conflict resolution procedures during the project planning phase.Examples include:- A issue log recording issues raised & resolved.- Break-out sessions grievances are aired.- Over-communication of key decisions, changes,

constraints and project status.

Project Organization Major Source of Conflict• Associated with change• Concentration of

professionals of diverse disciplines in more or less autonomous group effort with limited life

• Conflict readily exists in traditional - even more evident in projects

• Conflict is inevitable in organizations• Limited means satisfy divergent interests

Management of Conflict (p. 303)• Conflict is beneficial because it presents

opportunities for improvement.

Conflict resolution modes:1.Confronting – problem solving face-to-face.2.Compromising – give and take.3.Accommodating – emphasize agreements.4.Forcing – impose solutions on others.5.Avoiding – ignore issues (not recommended).

Management of Conflict

• Conflict needs to be effectively managed

• especially in projects because of imminent time, cost and performance constraints imposed

• primary responsibility with project manager • critical issue of PM • uncontrolled conflict can literally tear a project

apart

Five Conflict Management Modes

1. Withdrawal temporary• 2. Smoothing fails to resolve

• 3. Compromising provides• 4. Forcing resolution• 5. Problem solving

Styles of Conflict Resolution

• Per. Goals Relation.• Force win-lose hi low• Smooth yield-lose low high• Withdraw lose-leave low low• Com-

promise comprom. med med.• Problem

solver integrative high high

Conflict Management Video

Chapter 8 Performance Management

Q: How do you motivate project team members, since they report to their functional managers?

A: Make it clear to them that if they perform well on the project, then the PM will inform their functional manager of their progress and achievements.

Recognition and RewardAnother great way to motivate is to have a recognition and reward system. Some ideas:

1.Say “thank you” more often.2.Milestone parties.3.Pay for team member skills training.4.Assign to requested activities (or removal).5.Special compensation for overtime, travel.6.Bonus pay for pre-established results.

* Bonus situations must be clearly defined or they become preferential & demoralizing.

Chapter 9 Variables for SuccessEven if projects meet their triple constraints, there still may have been out-of-tolerance conditions that should be analyzed to prevent recurrence on future projects.In this chapter we’ll review success factors & two retrospective project analysis processes.1) Lessons Learned2) Best Practices

Success FactorsSuccessful project management programs need the support of top management & a recognition that “this is a sanctioned project.”Other general factors include:1)Multi-talented project managers and a cohesive, cross-functional team.2)Good controls & change management process3)Communicate and share successes4)Keep your integrity; no bait & switch5)Plan for success; commit to excellence.

Effective Project Managers (p.370)

• Credibility – comes with experience; making sound decisions, emphasizing facts & data, and sharing the glory.

• Priority – make it clear how the project will be good for the team & the organization.

• Accessibility – be familiar with and communicate frequently w/ top management

• Visibility – professional presentations, sell your project, spread the word informally.

Lessons Learned (p. 372)Lessons can be learned from every project, even if the project is a failure.• many companies don’t document well & are prone to repeating mistakes of the past.• document successes and failures in case studies, log books, post mortems.• study past project schedules, risk analysis, and change management documents (content and volume) during the initial phases of new projects.

Best Practices (p. 373)

Use Lessons Learned to promote best practices.

The author states:

“Best practices are those actions or activities undertaken by the company or individuals that lead to a sustained competitive advantage in project management.”

• Organizations should publicize them both internally and externally generate future business.

Institutionalizing Best Practices (p.375)3 critical questions to determine best practices:

1) Who decides what a best practice is?- Committees reporting to management

2) How are best practices evaluated & validated? - Templates that measure value & application

for other projects. 3) How to gain support & spread best practices? - Quantify to convince management & create

a library.

The Project Sponsor

• Provides financial Resources

• Grants authority• Issues the charter• Provides the

preliminary scope

• Protects the project• Approves plans and

changes• Provides expert

judgment and guidance

• Resolves conflict

When to Seek Help? (p. 391)

• The project manager will provide the sponsor with status reports, often with a

“traffic light” reporting system.

Projects (or work tasks) in the “red” require the direct intervention of the sponsor.

• If the project is running out of funds or resources, or if scope creep or un-planned work is added, the sponsor acts to keep the project on track, backing up the decisions of the PM.

MS Projects Tutorial

Class Assignments

• Smart Objective Assignment Due Feb 12th• House III in MS Project Due April 2nd-add

resources and costs to House II and crash House III using techniques in section 12.9

• Manager Interview Due March 26th