Who Needs to Know?

Have you ever had someone say, "You don’t need to know that; leave that part to me," when working on a project?

After your first reaction ("Huh?"), if you are like me, you would be thinking, "Hmm, I asked because I needed to know."

What happened here? It seems as though clear roles and responsibilities have not been defined. One person thought it was their responsibility to do that part of the work and didn’t realize another person also needed to know.

What could have helped? A RACI chart would have been useful. RACI stands for responsible, accountable, consulted and informed. It would show who is:

• (R)esponsible for the work (to get the job done)
• (A)ccountable for the work (to report on it)
• Needs to be (C)onsulted on the work (their input gotten)
• Needs to be (I)nformed about the work (perhaps their part of the project depends on it)

Typically, a RACI chart is drawn with activities down the left-hand column, and roles or people’s names along the top row.

Here is an example of a RACI chart from raci.org:

It's a very handy tool indeed to prevent some conflicts from occurring.

Breaking It Down

Sometimes when I look at an important project I am about to start, I get overwhelmed with the idea of it. It feels like, "It's just too much." Then I remember there is an easy way around this - break it down!

When I was in school, I won some contests for writing. One key to writing is the same principle - breaking the idea down into smaller parts. Even though we didn’t use the term 'mind map' then, as my kids do all the time in school now, that's what I did. I took the idea and broke it into its subcomponents and then further subdivided. Working on each part was much easier than trying to throw ideas willy-nilly at the whole.

When creating a training course, it’s the same principle - break it down. Looking at the topic of project management as a whole can be a bit daunting because there is a lot of information. The key, again, is to break the main idea into parts. What are we doing on Day One, Day Two, and so on? We want to make sure each topic is covered in the right amount.

So, if you have a big idea that's confusing you (I know when this happens to me, it's when I ignore the idea, pushing it to the side because it's "just too big" to think about), try this: take a quiet moment and write down the 'parts' of the idea. Then, put them in order as to the weight to be given to each part.

I hope this makes you feel better and breathe a sigh of relief because you are on your way to achieving your goal!

This breaking down process is really what the work breakdown structure (WBS) is all about. The WBS has been reported to be the most valuable tool by 74% of project managers.

Too Busy?

I work on a few volunteer committees. This week, one of my committee colleagues called to prompt me to answer an email I had overlooked. Feeling bad about not having replied, I heard myself say, "I was very busy this week..." As I was saying it, I was thinking, "Oh, oh."

I know 'too busy' to me means it wasn’t as high on my priority list as other things which I did do on time. Or maybe I didn’t have time to think about the answer, so I left it.

My biggest and best time management tool is my Harvard Planner. Someone recently said to me, "It's unusual to see someone still using a paper-based system." But it works for me. My planner tracks all of my to-do's and lets me see them all at once. I put the activities in their place and check them off as I go. (It's not infallible, though, since I still missed that email response. Having the right tool only works if you use it properly!)

Why Project Management?

Applying project management techniques and skills benefits both individuals and organizations.

If you know how to manage your projects well, you will gain many benefits, such as:

• Career advancement
• Competence in project delivery
• Confidence in working with project stakeholders and applying management techniques
• Greater opportunities for yourself and your organization
• Improved results at work: less stress, better time efficiency, fewer sidetracked projects - all resulting in a better run organization.

Project Management is one of the most in-demand careers and methodologies today. Whether you are in the business of information technology, retail, construction, oil and gas, or other, you will find that using project management tools and methods will lead to greater success.

Work Breakdown: Structure!

Last week was a busy one for me. Programs to design, questions to answer, and preparing for a project that I just couldn't get my mind around. It was too big. There were too many risks. I didn't want to face it.

So, there I was, ignoring what I have to do and feeling the subconscious strain from that. I pride myself on not being a worrier but I think this ignoring strategy got the better of me. I got a head cold - a great excuse not to use my brain.

And then it dawned on me. I was not using the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)... and my structure was breaking down. The overload on the brain of looking at the work in one big chunk was terrifying me. It was overwhelming.

I broke down the areas of the project and it was amazingly simple. As soon as I saw the work and what had to be done - and figured out the time - I breathed a sigh of relief. This was going to be easy.

Even though I teach and preach about WBS’s all the time, I sometimes lose sight of the basics. They work!