People in daily project work

6. October 2020

Reading time: 5 minutes

The word “complexity” comes from Latin and means “to entwine around”, or “to embrace”. For us at Qudits it means a entwined factors that interact with each other and may also occur unpredictably. One of the factors that can promote complexity in a project is the human being, which we focus on in this article. In doing so, we show how to manage the human factor this in the tension field between people, organization, technology and other external factors, such as regulations.

Let us first take a closer look at the area of conflict between people, organization, technology and external factors in connection with complexity. An organization usually does not develop abruptly; even if people change jobs, this is more or less predictable. Even new technology does not enter the market overnight but is developed. The same applies to regulations and laws. However, when different people, opinions, experiences and situations collide, anything or nothing can happen. This can lead to unforeseeable dependencies and consequences.

Qudits approach - from conception to implementation

Tension field: People, organization, technology and external factors

At the same time, it is the people who make projects exciting and move them forward. So how is it possible to control or take this complexity-promoting factor into account in projects? In the following, we would like to introduce you to one of our projects to show how Qudits approaches and manages this area of tension.

First of all, the general setting: The project takes place in a regulated environment. This specifies the requirements for the documentation. Due to changed regulations, an update of the system is necessary; the time period is limited accordingly, and the business criticality is high. The organization is a medium-sized company with few changes. The technology is well known, and so are the activities necessary for an update, as these take place on a regular basis. The project goal is therefore easy to define: Update the system (technically and on the validation level) from version X to version Y by the end of next month (hard deadline due to regulatory requirements).

For now, this sounds like a well manageable project. Let’s talk about why it is, however, more complex than it may seem. We all know that people are essentially the sum of their experiences, situations and feelings, but in a professional setting this often gets lost. Thus, a person who has to meet a lot of different requirements and may feel under pressure can have a big impact on the project. Which activities can support this circumstance in order to better control the human factor and thus the project itself? This leads to questions like:

How do we ensure that the new solution is accepted by the people?
How will we succeed in working together towards the same goal?
How can the solution be integrated into everyday business and processes?

We meet these on two levels with:

On a group level:

Target formation processes that bring stakeholders with different interests together

Communication processes that ensure acceptance among affected employees

Agile organizational structures to react flexibly to change

On an individual level:

Managing complex project situations and especially employees who find it difficult to deal with change

Create clarity regarding objectives and appropriate actions

Developing individual solution strategies

With regard to our specific project, these points mainly concern the processes of the initialization and planning phase as well as the monitoring and controlling phase. However, the other project phases such as implementation and project completion may benefit as well. Furthermore, the measures support the change in the broad sense of the ADKAR model: Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability and Reinforcement. In the further course of this article, the previously mentioned points will be elaborated. However, the agile structures and dedicated leadership will not be considered.

Group level

Target formation processes

In the initialization phase, a precise stakeholder analysis is carried out. This not only supports the project manager in the project setup itself, but also ensures that contacts are formed early on. This creates an initial understanding of the project goal and the stakeholder’s input for this goal, while at the same time establishing the communication channels and, in the further course of the project, the requirements for them.

In the next step, representatives of all stakeholder groups (whether directly or indirectly affected) are invited to the kick-off. This ensures the definition of the goal (based on the input from the stakeholder analysis) and the clarity of the goal (using the SMART formulation: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound), thus giving everyone the opportunity to discuss the objective and related questions.

Deliverables: Project charter including stakeholder register
Change: Awareness

Communication processes

Communication during the project is done regularly, tailored to the stakeholder groups and consists of the following building blocks: Project team meeting with focus on status and risks, technical and validation related working sessions, status reports and communication to the users of the system. We strongly recommend not to underestimate the short conversations in the hallway or in the coffee kitchen, as personal exchange combined with attentive listening can also promote acceptance of the project and the change (keyword: feeling understood and taken seriously). In times of Corona these discussions can also take place in the chat or by telephone. Why don’t you for example arrange an online coffee meet-up independently of the project meetings?

The coordinated communication supports the acceptance of the project, as it is kept alive through relevant information which shows that progress is being made.

Deliverables: Communications plan, project status reports
Change: Reinforcement

Individual level

Creating clarity

This includes, above all, that the kick-off meeting already shows which work packages and their responsibilities are necessary to achieve the project goal. It is important that these are formulated and recorded in as much detail as possible and in a way that is easy to understand. Additionally, there should be room to clarify open questions, dependencies and absences.

Deliverables: Roles and responsibilities, project plan, work breakdown structure
Change: Knowledge

Solution strategies

With regard to the solution strategies in a project, it is important to keep in mind that solutions do not only refer to the implementation, but also to the handling of unforeseen situations.

In our project this is the case with an external supplier. Their priorities and dependencies have changed, so that the technician is no longer available on short notice. The solution strategy includes a replacement for the absentee in combination with the onboarding process. This clarifies which technician – on the side of the external supplier – will take over the further activities and this his start into the project can proceed quickly.

In the initialization phase of the project, absentee rules are defined, trainings are conducted, access rights are set up, the onboarding process is prepared and the communication channels for changes of project team members are set up.

Deliverables: Risk log including mitigation actions
Change: Ability

With the examples of the points mentioned above, the complexity of the human factor in projects can be controlled and the risk minimized. You will find out whether these have been effective or not at the latest in the Lessons Learned: If the team mainly talks about the fact that vertical formats for project documentation are better than horizontal formats, then you as project manager have done everything right.

Memo:
Good project management consists of the right tools in combination with the right degree of empathy.

Author
Julia Heumos
Julia's consultancy focus lies on establishing effective organizations, developing high-performance teams and strengthening their results orientation. In doing so, she leads programs and projects to success and drives the digital transformation of her clients.

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