Finding The Right Question

Agile: Which comes first, the method or the culture?

There is a lot being written these days about agile projects and agile organizations, and it got me to thinking about the intersection of culture and project management.

Here’s the difficult circularity: organizations that are trying to become more agile need projects that are executed using agile principles which need organizations to support agile behavior and thinking which need…

Then it dawned on me that perhaps it was ever thus, and we were too lost in PM best practices to focus on the impact of organizational culture.

I have spent the better part of my career on deepening our understanding of methods and practices, determining “root cause” problems for failures, and best practices to avoid failures. But I never bothered to articulate “best cultures” to support project success, or cultural dimensions that doomed some projects to failure.

For example, here are some cultural aspects (and you or I could list many more) that can negatively affect a healthy outcome in terms of the framework of the Seven Keys To Success:

Success Key	Negative Culture Indicators
Stakeholders Are Committed	Stovepipe mentality
Business Benefits Will Be Realized	Competitive complacency
Work And Schedule Are Predicted	We love fire drills
Scope Is Realistic And Managed	Shoot the messenger
Team Is High Performing	Lack of trust
Technical Risks Are Mitigated	Hero mentality
Delivery Organization Benefits Will Be Realized	IT organizations and contractors are suppliers, not partners

My perspective on culture is influenced by the notion that culture is what people feel when they observe the behavior of their leaders. So my question now is not what culture does it take, but what role does the Project Manager play in shifting organizational behaviors toward supportive cultures.

“Wait, that goes way above my pay grade,” you say? Well, if the Project Manager is not ready to stand before a Steering Committee and tell them what they need to hear, not simply what they want to hear, then he or she is in the wrong profession. Expert level project managers lead with vision, develop trusted advisor relationships, embrace difficult conversations, and create a high-performing team based on mutual trust. They are effectively shifting organizational culture around them in directions that will support success.

I have always felt that Project Managers are in the business of managing change.

With respect to agile organizations and agile project methods, I now believe that the highest calling for Project Managers is to be agents of cultural change.

Are C-level executives ready to ask that of their Project Managers? Are Project Managers willing to take that mission on?

The answer is “yes” in organizations that are becoming more agile.

What is your moral compass for navigating corporate life?

Here’s a scenario:  your company is counting on you to profitably deliver an outcome for which your client has agreed to pay a great deal, and upon which your client’s business performance is heavily dependent.  If you perform well, you will be rewarded with a significant promotion.  Your team, and especially the key players who have been working overtime for the last 6 months, have advised that a 2-month delay in the schedule will be necessary.  This will delay the client’s business benefit and will negatively affect the profitability of the contract.

Whose interests are paramount?   To whom do you owe the greatest loyalty:  your client, your company, your people, or yourself?  How do you make that decision?

At any level of management, including the executive levels, and in almost any kind of business, we are tasked to do four things:

• Bring value to our clients or customers
• Bring value to our company
• Bring value to the people we lead and influence
• Bring value to ourselves and our career.

Indeed, what differentiates the role of a manager versus a director versus an entry-level executive versus a senior executive is defined by the scope of responsibilities in each of those four areas. 

And moral dilemmas are defined and created by the potential conflict between two or more of those areas.  In fact, the scenario described above has all four in play.  So what would you do?  More interestingly, how would you decide?

I don’t claim to have all the answers, or even to have always behaved over the course of my career to the highest moral standards.  Here is what I do believe. 

First, you must do your best to decide what is “truth” in any given circumstance.  In the above example, you would need to realistically assess the feasibility of adhering to the original schedule.  Can it be done at all by anyone?  Can it be done by this team?  What will be the human cost, if it is in fact feasible?  What will the business cost be to the client if there is a planned 2-month delay?  What will the business cost be to the client, the company, and the people if there is an unplanned 2-month delay?  I am reminded of a line from the recent movie, “Margin Call” when, as the investment company’s world begins to crumble, and the executive in charge of risk management is recalling a key decision of the previous year, she reflects, “It seemed like the only choice at the time.”  The truth, if it were to be analyzed dispassionately, invariably suggests multiple choices.  

Next, I believe our professional obligations generally should be prioritized in the order of client over company over people over oneself.  Why?  Clients come first because we, as individuals and as enterprises, cannot endure if we do otherwise.  The company comes second, because we have an employment contract to honor, based upon which we are being paid to help the company achieve its goals.  And our people come before us, because we cannot sustain a leadership role if people believe we will put our self interests before theirs.

And finally, no matter which area is given preference in any specific circumstance, it should never be at the total expense of any one of the parties.  Any such decision tends to suggest coercion or bullying, in my experience.  While a “win-win” solution may not be possible in every case, there is almost always a way forward that does not involve totally “throwing under the bus” any one area of interest.

One final point:  I do believe that client interests come first, but if one is confident they will be reasonably addressed, then one can go to the next perspective down the chain, and so forth.  Of course, thinking typically is not as sequential as that – it often is quite iterative.  But the notion of the hierarchy still seems to me like a good approach to navigating the waters. 

So the next time you feel at risk of getting lost in the murky morality of corporate life, I suggest you start with the truth, and then decide whose interests should come in what order, while finding some way to acknowledge all the perspectives.

It won’t make your days simpler, but it might make your nights a lot more restful.

How can you take advantage of organizational change?

Oh, no.  Yet another org change!  Just when you finally got comfortable with your position/role/boss/colleagues.

How can you turn this from threat to opportunity?

By accepting the fact that it probably means you need to change as well.

“In what way should I change?” you ask.  “And what will it mean to my career?”  “What’s going on in this organization anyway?”

Good questions, wrong sequence.

The way to deal with organizational change is to first understand why the organization is changing.  Odds are that your organization is responding to changes in its environment.  Clients are asking for different services and solutions.  Competitors are changing.  Technology is changing (duh!).  And of course, everyone is being affected by the economy.

So answer these questions, in this order:

· Why is my organization changing?  (at the Business Unit level)

· What does my organization need to succeed? (at the profit center level)

· Where would my organization benefit from some leadership and vision?  (at the group level)

· How do I need to change and grow to provide that leadership and vision?

The way to change this personal threat into a personal opportunity is to start with the big picture first, and make the personal decisions within that context.

Then go for it!

What would happen if we changed the conversation from cost/price to value?

Many of my former colleagues are feeling tremendous pressure from their clients (both internal and external to their companies) to reduce their costs/prices during this difficult economic climate.  In its most problematic form, this conversation comes down to an issue of hourly rates or annual salaries, in comparison to some other competitors.

My view is that this is the wrong discussion.  Yes, clients need to trim expenditures wherever possible.  And this is forcing service providers (both internal and external) to face up to the issue of value.  Can the case for value be made so compellingly that the best course for the buyer is to not reduce expenditures?  Can the price or cost be reduced but in a way that a (tolerable) reduction in value is clearly evident?

If no good answers can be found to these questions, the service provider will not survive in this economic climate.  Conversely, those who do, on the basis of strong value propositions, will emerge from this period in a position to win big.

Remaining Agile in Uncertain Times

"Cognitive agility is a particular ability to rapidly revise behaviors, intuitions, and basic beliefs systems as a situation unfolds, continually meeting the demands of the larger goal while keeping in touch with the nuances of a changing environment."

So says WTRI, a company using the latest research in cognitive science to find ways to boost corproate performance.  Here is a link to the full article on their web site:  http://www.wtri.com/futureviews_march2009.html

What are the competitive advantages for those companies who do not cut training spend in a recession?

The Brefi Group quotes this answer from the Institute of Directors:

1. To ensure that your business is well-positioned when the economy starts to recover. Those businesses that do not survive will open up market share to those who do.
2. To remain competitive. If your employees are knowledgeable and motivated, they will find new ways of generating revenue.
3. To understand your customers’ buying habits and how to build on their loyalty. You need to maintain repeat business in a recession.
4. To enable your employees to stand back from the day-to-day operations and understand the strategic implications of their work.
5. It sends one of the most powerful messages to your employees - that they are valued. When your employees are anxious about job security, it is more important than ever to demonstrate a commitment to them.
6. To avoid a long term skills shortage among your employees. UK businesses are still recovering from skills lost during the 1990s recession due to poor investment.
7. Training increases productivity in the short term, as well as the long term. The sooner you engage your staff, the earlier you can address and deal with the impact of the recession.

What readings change your view of the future?

I read this post about a new book, "Threats in the Age of Obama" (http://www.typepad.com/services/trackback/6a00d83451b06369e2010536fae90f970c)

One of the authors writes:  " Whatever you may have thought the next decade may bring before reading this, I guarantee you will be challenged to think about it differently, more holistically and in more depth afterward."

How can you get ready for an unforeseen future?

This is a link to an internet radio show in which I discuss two case studies in creating agility and leading change.  :  http://www.modavox.com/VoiceAmericaBusiness/

Click on “Interests” then select “Business Management/Leadership/Coaching” then select “LeadNotes:  The Right Priorities for Today’s Leaders, with Jenness Hall”.

 

Listen to (or download) “Is your senior management team ready for the future?”