The Art of Simple in Project Management

Project management is simple. That doesn’t imply it is easy to do nor does it minimize the value it brings. Keeping project management simple is what brings the most value to any organization. When a project requires complex project management processes to keep it on track it may be too large. The project management processes should remain simple and projects should be framed to be managed as simply as possible. Organizations are filled with processes that have been built to take into account everything that can go wrong with a project. The processes are built for the exception rather than for the average or norm. Building processes based on what could be called the “happy path” will maintain simplicity. Teaching project managers a standard way to handle exceptions is far more valuable than building a process to handle all the possible exceptions that can occur.

The driver behind all the reams of paper, checklists, processes and complexity is fear. Fear is understandable in the world of project management. More projects fail than succeed so why wouldn’t you ensure you have all the “I”’s dotted and “T”’s crossed? The only thing that all the “I” dotting and “T” crossing requires is time, so why not spend the time? The problem is that time costs companies a large amount of money. The litmus test for creating documentation of any kind is whether or not it will be used for any reason (formally or informally), and whether it adds value to the organization. It is true that we don’t always know ahead of time what information will be needed a few days, weeks, months or years down the road. Is the possibility that information may be needed any reason to create documentation that may never be viewed again? Are we creating all of this paper to prove that we are doing our job or because the project will be more successful because the paper exists?

Traditional project management for software development has always struggled to prove that work is getting done and value is being created throughout the project life cycle. Questions such as “What do you have to show for all these weeks of work?”, “When will I see something concrete?”, and “How much more time and money is it going to cost before I get some results?” from clients are valid. Project managers must challenge themselves to see project management from the client perspective. Project management must be kept simple. Having project management activities appear complex does not create respect nor does it increase the value. Project management is respected when it can make project delivery easier for teams and organizations and that is only possible when it is simple.

The primary driver in keeping project management simple is trust. Developing the level of trust necessary requires rampant communication. Creating rampant communication is possible when project managers embrace the value from the Agile Manifesto, “Individuals and interactions over processes and tools”. This value is for all types of project delivery and should not be relegated to agile delivery. Project management communication must be transparent. It must provide a window into the true performance of the project. The project manager must be fully accountable for all aspects of delivery, not sort of accountable. The good, the bad, and the ugly must be visible to the entire team, from the sponsor to the client, from the analyst to the tester, from business to IT. The simplicity of project management is found when the degree of project team work is in direct proportion to the business benefit the project provides.

Ride On, Manage On.