Early Warning Signs of a Project in Trouble
By Christopher Scordo PMP, ITIL
Ever had a favorite football jersey which was starting to come apart after years
of wear and tear? You picked at the seam occasionally; only to find that one day,
your jersey has unraveled completely. This is what it feels like to have a project
you are in charge of spin out of control. Of course, if you had just taken a few
minutes to stitch the seam that was coming undone, you’d have been in a much better
position (and you’d still have that favorite football jersey).
Project management
is much the same. As a project manager it is your duty to keep
an eye on warning signs that your project might be hitting a snag which could result
in full on combustion.
Luckily, there are a few warning signs which are common in project management; and
knowing what they are can save you a massive headache down the road. Below are some
early warning signs of your project being in trouble.
Team Members are Working Too Much Overtime Simply put: when a project
is running on schedule, there will be little or no overtime required from team members.
Overtime is a band aid to cover poor scheduling or scope management, and too much
team member over time is a tell-tale sign that there are project management issues
that need to be addressed. The impact to team members can also be more negative
than expected; late nights of sedentary work, too much junk food to placate appetites,
and too much caffeine to keep team members works. All of these indirect attributes
of excessive overtime will result in poor team morale, and high turnover. Of course,
occasional overtime is perfectly fine, especially ahead of critical delivery periods.
But when overtime progresses to multiple hours on a daily basis, it is time to revisit
your project schedule and calibrate client expectations to ensure a health project
environment.
Project Goals are Misunderstood by Team and/or Client Stakeholders
Most projects have an overarching business goal, or two, or three. The problem is
that corporate leaders, project managers or even client stakeholders may assume
the business goals of a given project are obvious to everyone. So obvious that nobody
ever mentions exactly what they are. These types of assumptions can lead to a slew
of project issues as team members are never quite clear on task priorities or “the
big picture”. Simply assuming that the overall business objectives of a project
are obvious to all may lead to dangerous presumptions; and ultimately is a simple
communication issue to resolve.
Poor Communication within Your Team If your team members frequent
have personality issues with you or each other, or are just not getting along well,
then as the project manager you need to better manage communication. While it is
impossible for everybody to get along magnificently all the time, it is imperative
that people put their differences aside and forge a business relationship. As a
project manager, it’s up to you to make sure the business relationship between people
who don’t get along on a personal level is put in place, and that communication
channels are kept open and flowing. You might need to call upon the conflict resolution
cavalry, but that’s what project managers are there for. By not addressing let inter-term
communication issues at the start, a project can experience massive productivity
issues. This goes for the project manager as well; it is important to understand
that you are a team member, and not an emperor. Condescending communication will
lead to similar issues.
Project Direction is Missing or Inconsistent If there is no direction
from project managers or task leads, and communication channels aren’t kept open,
your project might be in a bit of trouble. When team members are not privy to the
overall schedule of a project, or are micro-managed with small finite tasks, it
is akin to removing the compass from the crew of a ship. Nobody but the captain
knows where the boat is headed, leading to poor team morale, and a misunderstanding
of project priorities. What’s worse than the absence of direction, though, is contradicting
direction. Constantly flip flopping between stated goals and objectives is a huge,
red warning sign; and can indicate poor scope management on behalf of the project
manager.
Corporate Leadership and Project Goals Conflict with Each Other
No matter how on schedule your project is, if there is conflict with the corporate
leadership objectives, there could be a pending project disaster. When corporate
leadership decides to shift their business focus away from the needs of your client
stakeholder, this is a red flag for your project. For example, when an IT consulting
organization decides it will no longer support a technology your client has invested
in; the confidence and trust bestowed in your project leadership may plummet, ultimately
leading to a whole slew of issues. Recognizing the overall goals of your enterprise,
and ensuring they align with your project is a simple way to ensure your project
is not taken by surprise. If you do notice a project conflict with regard to corporate
communication, address it immediately by communicating directly with corporate management.
Assuming “No News is Good News” Ever had a client that simply doesn’t
return calls, either because they are so overwhelmed or because they simply don’t
have the knowledge to provide feedback? Communication among client stakeholders
is absolutely critical to the success of a project, and when you find your client
becoming unresponsive, it is easy for project managers to assume “no news is good
news”. This can be a slippery slope, especially as critical decisions are made regarding
business objectives and project direction. One way to counteract this issue without
becoming an annoyance is to schedule a weekly status call with your client which
can be as brief as five minutes. Secondly, be sure to send weekly status updates
that show exactly what your team is working on, upcoming deadlines, and any action
items you require of them. This type of proactive communication ensures your client
remains engaged in a project and decreases the risk associated with an unresponsive
client. By moving along a project path with no input from your client (even if you
prod them), you put your project and yourself at extreme risk.