Successful project success criteria

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The SMART (Specific, Measurable, Agreed-to, Realistic, and Time-Boxed) model is a standard for defining effective objectives and requirements, and it can also be applied to project success criteria. Beyond SMART characteristics, effective success criteria should also:

  • Be tied to the business value used to justify the project. The project’s success criteria should reflect the project’s purpose. This alignment helps keep focus on the project’s core objectives throughout its lifecycle. This also helps ensure that the success criteria address the expectations of key stakeholders, including sponsors, customers, and end-users.

  • Reflect different perspectives. Not all major stakeholders have the same expectations of a project. Effective success criteria capture those differing perspectives. For example, the sales team expects new marketing tools produced by a project to increase market share. At the same time, the finance team is looking for the new marketing tools to meet sales goals within a given budget.

  • Describe how to achieve regulatory compliance. Project success criteria must include compliance with all applicable laws. Beyond that, success criteria can describe the way compliance will be achieved, because the method may create constraints for the project deliverables, and the processes stakeholders must follow when implementing the project’s products.

  • Allow for a stability period. Business benefits are rarely realized as soon as project deliverables are implemented. The project’s success criteria should define a stability period to set appropriate expectations. This period allows for corrections to staff training, resolving issues with new business processes, and validating the accuracy of measurement tool results.

  • Define accountability. Business benefits come from suitable project deliverables and operational personnel using new business processes. Success criteria need to reflect a clear understanding of both the project and operational teams’ responsibilities to deliver business value. That is: how do the project team and operational personnel work together to ensure the project satisfies its purpose?

Between SMART and this list, those are a lot of requirements for effective success criteria. Build a checklist for success criteria best practices. Evaluate the success criteria from a current or recent project with your checklist and see whether you would enhance them.

For more about success criteria and the SMART model, check out my Project Management Foundations course.

New Course

Project Management: Choosing the Right Online Tool. Check out my updated course on LinkedIn Learning! In this new version, I review 11 online project mgt software tools.

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This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 79,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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What Senior Leader’s Really Want

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Project management has a clear goal: to deliver business value. As a project manager, what can you do to support senior leaders on that value journey.

  • Be predictable. Project methodologies create a pathway from idea to the realization of benefits. A powerful element of a methodology is predictability — for senior leaders and the team. Everyone in a project should know what steps they’re taking and what’s expected of them. Surprising senior leaders isn’t good for your project or your career. So, establish the methodology for delivering each project and follow it. It’s OK if you need to change it. But be sure to collaborate to make the change and communicate the result to all affected stakeholders so there are no surprises.

  • Provide information proactively. Project managers need to be forward-thinking. Status reports that detail what just happened aren’t enough. Proactive reporting helps leaders stay ahead of the game instead of scrambling when things go wrong. Use risk triggers for early warnings when risks may come to fruition. Use earned value concepts to forecast project outcomes. Dive into your organization’s project history to compare past project performance to current situations.

  • Reassure leaders with tangible data. Senior managers have a lot riding on project outcomes, and a project by its unique nature might make them anxious. To reassure senior leaders, provide them with frequent, accurate, and timely status information, customized to address their concerns.

  • Discuss options with pros and cons. To determine how to deliver project outcomes, you have to explore different approaches. Most of the time, there will be more than one way to address project goals and objectives. That means researching the options, identifying their pros and cons, and making a recommendation to senior leaders. That way, management will feel confident they are making solid, well-thought-out decisions, boosting confidence in the project.

  • Represent the sponsor when necessary. Project managers must represent the sponsor in many situations (with confidence and capability). Doing this (with the sponsor’s endorsement) boosts management’s confidence that the project is in good hands.

  • Support organizational strategy. Projects are often part of an extensive portfolio intended to implement organizational strategy. It’s good practice for project managers to ensure that both the project outcomes and delivery process move the organization toward strategic goals. For example, a project may take a less than ideal approach by providing extensive technical training to team members. That training might not be vital for this project, but it is essential to the organization’s longer-term strategic goals. So, in delivering the project, the PM satisfies the project’s objectives and helps set up the successful delivery of future projects in the strategic portfolio.

No surprises, relevant information, crises avoided, and organizational goals supported. All things that make senior leaders happy!

New Course Available

Project Management: Choosing the Right Online Too. Check out my updated course on LinkedIn Learning! In this new version, I review 11 online project mgt software tools.

_______________________________________

This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 78,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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Top Diagnostics for Team Peer Reviews

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A team peer review helps ensure project integrity and provides learning moments for project managers and reviewers. After confirming the existence of critical control documents like a schedule, risk management plan, and resource plan, the reviewers can search for these points. If they are missing, project management improvements might be needed.

  • All risks describe the event that will cause the risk to come to fruition. In addition, risk triggers (early indicators of a risk occurring) should be documented. For example, stating that a product delivery might be late isn’t specific enough. If the delivery is due to a truck breakdown, that could be addressed. But the truck drivers going on strike is a different event with a different response. Ensure events and responses are appropriately detailed. An example of an early risk indicator is a stakeholder group not attending meetings, which indicates they might withdraw their support for the project.

  • Task lengths in the project schedule are appropriate based on where the tasks occur in the timeline. For example, early in a year-long project, tasks with 2-week duration are reasonable. However, during the last month of a project, 2-week tasks are problematic, because an issue with one of these tasks could delay the project by 2 weeks when these is little time to recover.

  • Resource availability is built into the schedule. Operational personnel rarely dedicate 100% of their time to a project. Resources should have allocations built into the schedule. For example, if Resource A is available to the project 25% of the time, the allocation of time to tasks is 25% so task duration is calculated correctly.

  • Stakeholder meetings reflect the communication requirements stated in the stakeholder management plan. As a project progresses, the focus on stakeholder updates can wane. Ensure stakeholder meetings are being held as recommended in the project’s plans.

  • Decision logs are included in the project documentation. A decision register is a good idea. Understanding the rationale and data used to make decisions during the project can avoid later debates about why a specific direction was taken, especially if the results of that decision were undesirable.

  • Project plans include both quality control and quality assurance tasks. Quality assurance tasks are project activities to ensure the product quality will meet standards. Quality control refers to inspection or testing tasks to ensure the project’s products are suitable before being turned over to stakeholders. Many projects focus only on quality control tasks and discover errors that could have been avoided if quality assurance tasks were included in project plans.

  • Lessons learned documentation are captured throughout the project. Many projects don’t capture lessons learned, while others do only as a close-of-project exercise. Capturing lessons learned at the end of a project inevitably results in many forgotten lessons forgotten. Capture and document lessons learned regularly during the project.

This is not a comprehensive list! But these shortcomings are common and easy to discover and rectify. Be sure to include them in every team peer review.

Let’s make the comment section a reference for what to look for in team peer reviews! Add your favorite diagnostic to the list.

For more about peer review, search the LinkedIn Learning library using keywords “peer review.”

 

New Course Available

Project Management: Choosing the Right Online Too. Check out my updated course on LinkedIn Learning! In this new version, I review 11 online project mgt software tools.

_______________________________________

This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 78,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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What About Timeboxing a Waterfall Project?

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Timeboxing is a powerful feature of agile. Rather than make scope static, you fix time and resources and modify scope to get the maximum value in the minimum amount of time and cost. Instead of estimating task duration, you use fixed time periods and adjust the scope accordingly. Here are the principles you can follow to achieve benefits of timeboxing in waterfall projects:

  • Principle 1: Break down phases into smaller chunks. Instead of treating each waterfall phase as one large block, divide it into smaller, manageable timeboxed chunks. For example, collect requirements for one area of the business in a two-week timebox, a second area in the next two-week timebox, etc. Within each timebox, prioritize areas for requirements collection using parameters such as importance and complexity. 
  • Principle 2: Add a buffer between timeboxes. Include small buffer timeboxes in the project schedule. This provides time to reflect, learn, and plan the scope to address in upcoming timeboxes. In addition, focusing on smaller task areas and taking time to learn and prioritize between them ensures you are working on the most important phase elements. (In this example, the most important requirements.)
  • Principle 3: Adjust scope, not time. If a task or set of tasks isn’t completed within their timebox, adjust the scope or move lower-priority items to a later timebox instead of extending the time. For example, during detailed planning, focus first on the areas deemed most important by project stakeholders and shift detailed planning for less important items to later timeboxes. If the planning phase schedule gets too long, stop planning and move forward with the project with a reduced scope (the most important ones).
  • Principle 4:Multiple sub teams work in parallel, each with a pre-determined timebox duration. Once team members get accustomed to working in timeboxes, multiple teams can work in parallel on their own tasks until the waterfall phase is considered complete. This is where timeboxes differ from sprints in agile. Timeboxes don’t have to yield a usable product, like sprints. Because waterfall projects often involve bigger scope than agile, many project sub teams can work in parallel. The need for frequent validation from management, vital for agile, might not be needed. In a waterfall environment, multiple teams can progress without that constraint, because they aren’t making frequent business-vital decisions. Yet, they still take advantage of the focused scope and periodic short reflection and learning buffer periods.

Take advantage of the timebox approach through each waterfall phase. Requirements and planning can be broken down and allocated to sub teams working within timeboxes. The build stage is also ideal for this concept: working on business processes, various tools, and documentation can be assigned to teams working in parallel. Testing can work the same way, with sub teams testing various areas or sub-products before a final testing session to validate the entire project deliverable set.

Look at one of your past projects or your current one and think about how you could handle it with timeboxes. Consider how you might need to change other processes like communication and reporting when you have sub teams working simultaneously,

For more about timeboxing, check out Doug Rose’s Agile Foundations course.

Coming Up

Office Hours Live – What’s wrong with project management these days? October 3, 2024  5PM MT Several aspects of project management don’t get much attention from management, project managers, and project teams. In turn, project management software sometimes ignores those areas as well. Bob McGannon and Bonnie Biafore will discuss these topics, so you don’t skip important duties. And they will talk about what to do if your software doesn’t cover them. Topics include: The 40-hour work breakdown rule (myth?) Estimating Cost management Project management versus work management Choosing the correct project management methodology Scheduling in waterfall and iterative projects Prioritizing project work versus operational work. To sign up, here

Office Hours Live – Learning Microsoft Project: Ask Me Anything October 8, 2024 1PM MT My updated version of Learning Microsoft Project is now available in the LinkedIn Learning library. To celebrate, I’m holding an Ask Me Anything (AMA) Office Hours on October 8, 2024, at 1pm MT. Whether you take this updated course now or you’re an experienced Project user, this hour is for getting answers to questions you have about MS Project. (If there is a wild outpouring of questions, I will host another event in November.) To sign up, click here.

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This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 78,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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When To Deviate from Project Methodology

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Following a project methodology ensures that your project team, customers, and sponsor know what to expect and makes the project team’s efforts predictable. However, there are times when diverging from your methodology may be the best thing to do to ensure project success.

  • Unexpected challenges occur. When market conditions or technological disruptions change suddenly, the methodology might decrease your team’s ability to respond. For example, a competitor releases an update to their product earlier than expected, and it’s better than your organization’s product. Expediting a project to stay competitive could be more important than methodology. For example, could the project team switch to agile practices even if the original plan was waterfall-based? Or you might consider shortening deliverable review periods and other time savers.
  • Constraints impact the project. Tight budgets or limited personnel might require a shift away from methodologies that require specific resources or timelines. Simplifying processes or adopting lean principles could be more effective in these situations. By eliminating non-essential tasks to focus on what’s essential, the project might progress despite constraints. Note: Reevaluate the risks associated with eliminated activities to make sure the project’s risk level is still acceptable before you proceed.
  • Team dynamics make the methodology cumbersome. The dynamics of the project team can influence a methodology’s effectiveness. If the team thrives on spontaneity and creativity, a rigid structure may stifle innovation. For example, asking a team in research and development (R&D) to follow the same methodology as other project teams could be counterproductive. That’s because R&D work needs more flexibility and creative problem-solving approaches to deliver better project results.
  • Partnerships are involved. When a project involves novel solutions requiring extensive collaboration with an external organization, deviation from the standard methodology may be needed. First, the partner organization may use a different project methodology because of the products they create. Second, the teams may be concerned about confidentiality that the methodology would expose, such as sharing test data. (Test data often derives from customer production data, which might reveal information that shouldn’t be shared.) 

Consider carefully before you make a decision like this. Do you have a valid reason to make this change? Don’t make it unilaterally. Talk to your teammates and management first.

For more about project management methodologies, check out my Project Management Foundations course.

Coming Up

Office Hours Live – What’s wrong with project management these days? October 3, 2024  5PM MT Several aspects of project management don’t get much attention from management, project managers, and project teams. In turn, project management software sometimes ignores those areas as well. Bob McGannon and Bonnie Biafore will discuss these topics, so you don’t skip important duties. And they will talk about what to do if your software doesn’t cover them. Topics include: The 40-hour work breakdown rule (myth?) Estimating Cost management Project management versus work management Choosing the correct project management methodology Scheduling in waterfall and iterative projects Prioritizing project work versus operational work. To sign up, here

Office Hours Live – Learning Microsoft Project: Ask Me Anything October 8, 2024 1PM MT My updated version of Learning Microsoft Project is now available in the LinkedIn Learning library. To celebrate, I’m holding an Ask Me Anything (AMA) Office Hours on October 8, 2024, at 1pm MT. Whether you take this updated course now or you’re an experienced Project user, this hour is for getting answers to questions you have about MS Project. (If there is a wild outpouring of questions, I will host another event in November.) To sign up, click here.

_______________________________________

This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 77,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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Key Qualitative Values in Project Management

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The Project Management Institute (PMI) defines value as “the worth, importance, or usefulness of something.” To stakeholders, usefulness is more than quantitative measures of how deliverables satisfy a business case. Qualitative value comes in many forms. Here are several key qualitative values to consider for your projects. 

  • Deliverables must work with existing processes. Project deliverables might work well in isolation, but things can get awkward when deliverables need to work with current business processes. Qualitative value can be the consistency of data formatting, how it’s passed from process to process, how it’s displayed onscreen, or how a new deliverable facilitates decision-making. A new business process should be easy to understand and use not only by people whose job focuses on only that business process, but also by other users who focus on the bigger picture, like end-to-end cash flow, which spans multiple processes.
  • Using deliverables should be intuitive. Deliverables should be easy to use and provide a seamless customer experience. This includes intuitive design, ease of navigation, and accessibility, which all contribute to the overall user experience. A significant indicator of intuitiveness is the time and effort it takes to train project customers to use the deliverable. Early versions of a deliverable should be shared with customers, while the team documents any questions the customers ask as they learn to use the deliverable. These questions can guide how to improve the deliverable and increase its intuitive nature.
  • Deliverables, particularly physical deliverables, should generate an emotional connection. With a physical deliverable that customers use, a deliverable that resonates emotionally can increase its success. For example, the value of clothing and toys increases dramatically when they generate emotion. The desire to use a product and feeling good when doing so makes the difference between moderate and exemplary success. This emotional connection can be developed through storytelling, brand values, the ability to join or create a trend, and comfort.
  • The deliverable has aesthetic appeal. A deliverable’s visuals and aesthetics can enhance its value. A computer system with easy-to-use screens that are also attractive generates greater value. A well-designed product that is visually appealing also attracts customers and improves overall satisfaction. Imagine standing in front of a mirror with new clothes and thinking, “I’m looking good!” Aesthetics, alongside usability and comfort, offers significant qualitative value.
  • Customization. Deliverables that offer customization or personalization options provide significant value to customers. This allows project stakeholders to tailor the product or service to their needs and preferences, increasing its relevance and utility. For example, in mobile phones, the ability to add, delete and arrange icons allows these devices to suit individual needs. The perceived value of a mobile phone would significantly diminish if everyone was stuck with the same set of icons and settings.

Think about a deliverable from your current (or a previous) project. Create lists for how the deliverable might provide value both quantitatively and qualitatively. Can you think of other factors beyond the above list that increase qualitative value? How would you determine whether the deliverable successfully produces that value?

Coming Up

Office Hours Live – October 3, 2024  5PM MT –  What’s wrong with project management these days?

Several aspects of project management don’t get much attention from management, project managers, and project teams. In turn, project management software sometimes ignores those areas as well. Bob McGannon and Bonnie Biafore will discuss these topics, so you don’t skip important duties. And they will talk about what to do if your software doesn’t cover them. Topics include: The 40-hour work breakdown rule (myth?) Estimating Cost management Project management versus work management Choosing the correct project management methodology Scheduling in waterfall and iterative projects Prioritizing project work versus operational work. To sign up, here

Office Hours Live – October 8, 2024 1PM MT –  Learning Microsoft Project: Ask Me Anything

My updated version of Learning Microsoft Project is now available in the LinkedIn Learning library. To celebrate, I’m holding an Ask Me Anything (AMA) Office Hours on October 8, 2024, at 1pm MT. Whether you take this updated course now or you’re an experienced Project user, this hour is for getting answers to questions you have about MS Project. (If there is a wild outpouring of questions, I will host another event in November.) To sign up, click here.

_______________________________________

This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 77,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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Skills and Knowledge that Agile Team Members Need

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Agile projects rely on different skills than those of traditional waterfall projects. The required skills vary based on team members’ roles. Here are vital skills and knowledge the people on your agile team need. 

  • Communication, especially listening skills. Agile involves the constant exchange and implementation of ideas. As a result, agile team members need refined communication skills. Balancing business needs with technical constraints is important so the team can manage the product backlog. Specifically, the product owner must be able to discuss overall business processes and the implications of process changes needed for accommodating technical tool improvements. The SCRUM master must have good coaching and facilitation skills. At the same time, testers and designers must be able to listen to and translate requirements and user preferences so that designs and implementations meet project goals.
  • Breadth of knowledge about the business. Beyond business processes, the agile team must understand the implications of their solutions to the business as a whole. For example, improving processes for the finance organization might change procedures for marketing, sales, and manufacturing. In this case, it’s crucial to ensure the changes the agile team makes for the finance organization don’t negatively impact other business functions. So, the product owner and other business representatives on the team need a broad understanding of procedures and policies across the business. Of course, this knowledge is essential for all projects, but agile’s focus on speed of implementation requires this knowledge to be embedded in the team itself rather than verified through others.
  • Breadth of technical knowledge. Agile projects often create standalone applications that can be built quickly. This requires knowledge of current tools, coding practices, and the data stores from which information is extracted. With legacy systems, to ensure technical and business processes aren’t inadvertently altered , teams need in-depth knowledge of those systems, as well as the states of data as it passes through the systems. For example, suppose you extract profit information from existing systems. In that case, you need to know where to get the specific profit state data you want (like before taxes, after taxes, or other versions of profit) in the databases. The agile team must know this to avoid delays arising from quality assurance issues.
  • Creative (and in-the-moment) problem-solving skills. One of the benefits of agile is…..it’s agility! Although the project’s intent is understood, how that intent will be satisfied isn’t always known. Customers learn as features are produced, which means what they ask for can and will change during the project. Those changes can present problems to solve, often quite spontaneously! As a result, all team members need keen problem-solving skills, because new requirements can mean challenges for business team members, technical team members, or both! 

What other skills do you think are needed from agile team members? Share with us in the comments section.

For more about agile projects, check out Doug Rose’s Agile Foundations course.

Coming Up

My updated version of Learning Microsoft Project is now available in the LinkedIn Learning library. To celebrate, I’m holding an Ask Me Anything (AMA) Office Hours on October 8, 2024, at 1pm MT. Whether you take this updated course now or you’re an experienced Project user, this hour is for getting answers to questions you have about MS Project. (If there is a wild outpouring of questions, I will host another event in November.) To sign up, click here.

_______________________________________

This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 76,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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As Agile as Possible: Advanced Techniques for Agile Project Success

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Agility goes beyond the basic principles of Scrum and Kanban. To excel with Agile, teams must adopt behaviors and techniques that enhance flexibility, collaboration, and responsiveness. Here are strategies to improve the success of Agile projects: 

  • Allow extra time for learning. Resist the temptation to rush to the next sprint. Give your agile team some time to learn from each iteration and adapt. Support team members’ ability to regularly review their processes and outcomes, identify areas for improvement, and implement changes. Doing so provides benefits like increased efficiency, innovation, and creativity.
  • Expand stakeholder feedback processes. Actively engage in processes to collect and incorporate feedback from stakeholders outside the agile team. Go beyond only end-of-sprint reviews. Initiate ongoing dialogue with customers to ensure deliverables evolve with stakeholder expectations. Not only does this create better products, but it minimizes end-user-related risks and ensures that deliverables align with business objectives.
  • Implement collaboration tools (even if you feel they aren’t necessary). Many good collaboration tools on the market facilitate seamless communication and coordination among team members. These help both co-located and virtual teams. Tools that support real-time updates, integrated task management, and virtual meetings can significantly improve the team’s ability to work cohesively and respond to changes quickly. They also provide easy-to-understand status information for all stakeholders. Check the comments section for several popular collaboration tools.
  • Increase the use of cross-functional team members. The heart of agile methodologies is expanding capabilities and freedom of thought for team members. The broader the skills and experiences those team members possess, the more contributions they make to the project. Look to expand your agile teams with as wide a reach as possible. This reduces dependencies on external teams and accelerates problem-solving. Also, this allows team members to broaden their skill sets and business knowledge to take on multiple roles in future projects. 
  • Use a broad set of senior stakeholders to prioritize the backlog. Considering many viewpoints in prioritization ensures the highest-value features are delivered first. Also, don’t skip scheduled re-evaluations of the product backlog. Thar way, the team will always be tackling features that significantly impact tactical and strategic goals.

If you’re working on agile projects, evaluate how your environment handles these strategies. Can you spot ways to improve?

For more about agile strategies, check out Doug Rose’s Agile Foundations course.

Coming Up

My updated version of Learning Microsoft Project is now available in the LinkedIn Learning library. To celebrate, I’m holding an Ask Me Anything (AMA) Office Hours on October 8, 2024, at 1pm MT. Whether you take this updated course now or you’re an experienced Project user, this hour is for getting answers to questions you have about MS Project. (If there is a wild outpouring of questions, I will host another event in November.) To sign up, click here.

_______________________________________

This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 76,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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Dealing with a Micro-Managing Customer

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I was recently asked how to deal with a micro-managing customer, especially when the sponsor isn’t standing up to them. Here are a few tips for handling this challenge whether you’re a project manager or team member.

  • Trigger a debate. A stakeholder might micro-manage the project team when they feel that’s the only way to get what they need. They press their needs upon the project team without consideration for other areas of the business. In that situation, call a meeting with key stakeholders to debate the prioritization of project requirements. If other stakeholders choose not to defend their needs, the project can proceed with the micromanager’s priorities. Note: The project manager’s responsibility is to point out when a prioritization imbalance might exist. It is not to decide prioritization on behalf of the business. So, even if stakeholders are being passive, follow the outcome of any prioritization meeting where the key stakeholders are present.
  • Understand the micro-manager’s fears. Micro-management has a root cause. In addition to a perceived need for prioritized requirements, that cause could be past project failures or bad experiences with delegation. Micro-management might also be considered a way to circumvent organizational politics regarding the project.  Identifying the fear that created the micro-management helps you negotiate processes for a more productive relationship. Be understanding and flexible, and you might be able to reduce the level of micro-management.
  • Follow the money. In many organizations, the stakeholder who provides funding is the “final arbiter” for project scope and requirements. If the funding provider is neither the passive or micro-managing stakeholder, brief the funding stakeholder about the micromanager’s behavior. Understand the funding stakeholder’s priorities. If they don’t align with your micro-managing stakeholder’s priorities, tell the micromanager that you’re following the funding provider’s direction. If they protest, tell them to talk to the funding stakeholder and alert the sponsor as well.
  • Point out any conflicting directions and stop the project. As a project manager, if you receive inconsistent or conflicting direction, even after trying to trigger proper debates, you have only one viable recourse. Stop the project. This might seem risky. But moving forward while stakeholder conflicts are outstanding is irresponsible and conflicts with the ethical standards promoted by the Project Management Institute and other industry bodies. Stopping the project is proactive and less expensive than going forward with unresolved issues. So, stop working, document the conflicting directions you have received, and share them with the stakeholders in conflict. Only move the project forward after a debate is complete and the direction for the project is aligned.
  • If you are a team member… Focus on the information the micro-manager shares when they give you direction. That way, you can get insight to their motivations. Ask them questions about what they are trying to accomplish and what they are concerned about. Look for trends or patterns in the direction they give you. With this background, you might be able to anticipate future requests and proactively predict the bigger picture of what they are trying to achieve. That can help you establish trust and reduce their micro-management.
  • Running an agile project? Embrace the involvement! Agile works best when you customers are heavily involved. If a customer micro-manages, follow the agile spirit to address it. Call a meeting, talk as a team about what is and is not working with your customer, and strive to improve. Consistent and successful feature delivery will probably calm your micro-managing customer.

Have any experience with a micromanager? Share with us in the comments section. 

Coming Up

Check out my updated Learning Microsoft Project course! My updated version of Learning Microsoft Project teaches the absolute basics of Microsoft Project desktop in just over an hour. This revision includes more exercises to practice what you learn as well as a quick intro to Microsoft’s AI features for project management.

Also, I’m holding an Ask Me Anything Office Hours in October to answer your Project questions. Check my LinkedIn feed for a post about that event.

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This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 75,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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The Project Goal is NOT to Complete Tasks!

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It’s important to remember that completing the project Gantt chart tasks or agile backlog items is not the ultimate project goal. Here are the true objectives project managers and their teams must achieve for successful projects.

  • Build capable stakeholders. All products or services a project provides should be easy to use, fit for purpose, and work with existing business processes. Stakeholders should be educated so the transition to those new products or services runs smoothly. They should be able to use them without help, and, if needed, help should be easy to obtain. efficiently get help needed.
  • Be a catalyst for learning and improvement. Projects always provide learning opportunities, such as risks that arise or relationships to establish with new vendors. In addition, every project involves estimation. Enabling learning and improving estimation accuracy by capturing the necessary information are valuable objectives that should be incorporated into every project.
  • Achieve the business goals. Projects are launched with a specific business outcome in mind: to deliver business value! That value might not be measurable immediately upon project completion. In fact, it could take several months to realize value. Project managers should consider their projects a success only when that value is achieved and recognized by stakeholders. Note: Establishing targets and processes to measure success should be part of every project!
  • Set the table for future projects. Projects are rarely standalone endeavors. They are part of a series of improvement steps or pieces of a long-term strategy to change a business. The completion of every project should facilitate the launch of future projects to expand the benefits delivered to the business. 

Think through the activities you perform as a project manager. Does your approach to project management help achieve these objectives? If not, what steps can you take to include them?

For more about objectives, check out my Project Management Foundations course.

Coming Up

Be on the lookout for the updated version of my course, Learning Microsoft Project. Get up to speed quickly with Microsoft Project. Learn just the essentials you need to know to create projects, add tasks, assign resources, and run reports.

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This article belongs to the Bonnie’s Project Pointers newsletter series, which has more than 74,000 subscribers. This newsletter is 100% written by a human (no aliens or AIs involved). If you like this article, you can subscribe to receive notifications when a new article posts.

Want to learn more about the topics I talk about in these newsletters? Watch my courses in the LinkedIn Learning Library and tune into my LinkedIn Office Hours live broadcasts.

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Be on the lookout for the updated version of my course, Learning Microsoft Project. Get up to speed quickly with Microsoft Project. Learn just the essentials you need to know to create projects, add tasks, assign resources, and run reports.