Failure is not a topic we usually highlight on our blog.  But the biggest failures can be the most valuable learning experiences.  The other day, Michael Cervino chatted with our CEO, Lynn Labieniec, to find out what she’s learned from projects gone wrong.  Take a look.

As web sites get bigger and more sophisticated, it seems like more and more of our build work involves working and collaborating with multiple parties, rather than just working directly with a few folks on the client team. Now projects frequently require bringing other vendors and stakeholders to the table – design firms, brand agencies, technology vendors, you name it. From a project management perspective, this adds a layer of complexity to the project, and requires adapting some of our standard practices and tactics.

Communications. This is the Project Management equivalent of “location, location, location” to real estate. In successful project management, too much communication is rarely the problem (ok, so maybe it’s possible). When partnering with multiple parties, this is absolutely critical for success. At Beaconfire this means:

• Clearly identifying and understanding the makeup of each of the project teams. Who are your peer PMs? Who are the decision makers that need to signoff for approval? If possible, gather all the key players around a table for a real meet and greet. You’ll be spending a lot of time together, and it’s great to put names with faces, especially in today’s virtual world.
• Out of the gate everyone is invited to our project extranet. We use a tool called Central Desktop , but Basecamp or other collaboration tools will work. The bottom line is that using only email to communicate just won’t cut it. By having all documents and exchanges in one place, people can more easily map in and out of the project.
• Create a clear project schedule and definition of tasks. Sometimes we find it worthwhile to create a separate Roles and Responsibilities matrix. This lists the major project tasks, and identifies the specific person responsible for the task as well as those who also need to weigh in.
• Schedule meetings and calls in advance. Scheduling is always a challenge, but can be nightmare as teams get bigger and more diverse. Creating a Workshop Guide at the onset, listing all the upcoming meetings, a brief description and required attendees can go a long way to help with this.
• Extra meetings. I know, I know. No more meetings. As a PM, sometimes I avoid having a team meeting by sending a detailed Project Update / Recap email to everyone. However, it is really important to meet frequently as a group to talk through the latest issues and make sure everyone is on the same page. To respect people’s time, I do try to make sure only the necessary people are invited to the meeting. Or, I start the meeting with a topic relevant to a person, and then let them go while we continue the rest of the meeting.
• For team meetings, it is critical that the PM prepares an agenda IN ADVANCE. Meeting notes are also important to make sure there is a record of decisions and next steps. As a time saver, I’ve also learned to take rough meeting notes right into our project extranet. They may not be pretty, but they do the trick.
• Finally, it is worth taking extra time to document the basics. This includes developing a Project Charter that contains all the key information about the project, creating high-level systems diagrams, API documentation, etc. Taking a few extra hours to define key information will save hours of miscommunication and frustration in the end.

This isn’t rocket science, but taking the time to follow some of these steps will go a long way in ensuring a happy project team and successful project delivery.

For as long as I can remember, our PM team has debated internally the value of the PMP certification for project managers. For many big corporations and the government, it is a key qualification for project managers. As a comparatively small company, this is not a prerequisite for our PMs. In fact, we generally prefer our PMs to have evolved into the position organically over time.

Why you ask?

From my experience, good project management is more a function of personality type and experience than a taught skill set. Sure, there are tactics and techniques that can be learned from a classroom and in books – but those are not what make a project manager successful. A good project manager has those skills, but more importantly, is detail oriented; able to keep a handle on a nearly unlimited set of discrete tasks; can manage diverse groups of people, ranging from internal teams to clients to vendors; and have the intestinal fortitude to tackle tough issues immediately head on.

None of that can be taught. It is a product of going through the meat grinder and having a personality that fits the job. My bias is routed in experience with other organizations’ PMP certified project managers – PMs who routinely struggle to make all of the pieces work together while simultaneously massaging the egos and personalities of the various parties involved to make them work in unison. Don’t get me wrong – I see value in the knowledge required for the PMP certification. I just think it is a toolset that needs to be employed by someone with a specific set of skills – otherwise it is ineffective.

We all know that testing your wireframes to make sure your priority audiences can complete key tasks on your website-in-progress is a good idea – but is there an inexpensive way to do it? I was alerted to an online tool yesterday that can help you conduct tests quickly, easily and inexpensively, too.

Optimal Workshop’s Chalkmark (http://www.optimalworkshop.com/chalkmark_alt.htm) makes usability testing a snap. First identify the tasks you would like your audience to complete. Next, upload the image of your wireframe. Invite your audience(s) to participate and then wait for the results to roll in. The test results are returned in the form of a heat map (see image). You can immediately see where people chose to click on your wireframe to complete the task you put forward. Of course Chalkmark can’t give you all of the information you would get from true wireframe prototype testing, but if budget is a concern, some information is better than no information. And feedback directly from the audience your site is trying to reach? Priceless.

chalkmark heat map

Scheduling a group of people for a meeting or workshop is not a big deal if everyone works at the same place and their calendars are up to date in Outlook.  But what if that isn’t the case?  I recently had to schedule a 2 hour workshop with 10 people who work in different places and in different time zones.  The thought of trying to coordinate over email was making my head spin…. one email goes out, several come back at different times with various windows of availability.  All needing to be compiled and compared, double checked and followed up on – there had to be an easier way – and I found it.

www.doodle.com is a free application that allows you to set up various date and time options for your workshop (or any other meeting or event – beach weekend anyone?).  The service generates a link which you can send out to your participants.  The participants indicate online the time blocks they are available (via checkboxes) and you have one place to check to see what time works best for all.  Doodle.com is a simple application but it makes this PMs life a little bit easier.

Communication is a tricky thing, for most people and in most contexts. In the context of a project, communication is a critical factor in its success and the satisfaction of all of the parties involved. For a project manager, communication is fundamental to our job. The biggest communication problem we face is that we often think we have been clear about something when in reality the other person did not really understand the key point. This is a byproduct of a number of things, two of which I see all of the time: 1) The project manager’s desire to explain things in terms that are not too jarring; and 2) the limited time both parties have to transmit, receive, and comprehend a message.

Take for example a client request for something that is critical and requires an immediate turnaround, but which was not included within the project scope and will have a definite impact the on budget. The first instinct for the project manager may be to say, “This request is out of scope and you will need to approve it before we can address it.”  The client may then reply quickly, “Yes, I understand. You have our approval to move forward on this time sensitive issue.”

At the end of the month, when an invoice is sent with the additional cost, the client asks why the invoice is higher than expected.  Just saying that something is not in scope does not imply that there is a monetary cost associated with it in everyone’s mind. It is always best to be direct. In this example, the project manager should have said, “This request is not in scope, and will have an additional cost above and beyond what we are currently contracted to do. I know that this is a time critical issue – we can provide you with an estimate for you to approve, which could take some time. However, If you are comfortable with knowing there is an additional cost, we can address the issue without an estimate. If you choose the latter, is there a threshold of cost that you do not want us to cross?” By explaining everything in detail, the client has a clear picture of the implications and has the choice of how to proceed.

From this single example, you see both factors at play. The client was in a rush to address a critical problem, and the project manager was in a hurry to get resources set up to meet the need. You can also see how it is less harsh to say that something is out of scope and will require approval than it is to say that it will cost more money. This is why good project managers often seem to over-articulate everything. It is better to slow down, be clear, and reinforce what you are saying. In the long run, it will be better for everyone.

The science of project management is commonly defined by the Iron Triangle: a triangle whose sides represent project scope, time, and resources (or cost). The concept is analogous to Newton’s Third Law of Motion which states that any time a force acts from one object to another, there is an equal force acting back on the original object. Whenever you add something to one of the sides of the triangle, for example, scope, there must be a corresponding expansion that occurs to one or both of the other sides of the triangle such as increased time or cost. (Of course the inverse applies too when you reduce the scope, but that’s not a scenario we see too often). Project managers are trained to tell their clients: “Pick any two.”  For instance, if time and cost are your most important factors, your scope may have to adjust to align with those priorities.

So that’s how the triangle works. How beautifully logical and scientific you say! Many a project manager instinctively latches on to this concept as the quintessential answer to keeping projects under control, expecting the client will see it the same way. Isn’t it obvious?! (more…)