Project Corps - Strategic, Program, and Project Management Consulting

To begin, the city established project sponsorship by identifying key managers holding a vested interest in the new system. Recognizing a lack of management time and project management expertise, the city hired an external consulting firm to manage the project and represent the city's best interests. The city's project team was made up of city staff supported by software vendor implementation staff. As in most organizations, assignment of staff was decided based upon availability and subject matter expertise, not by evaluation of teamwork and or interpersonal skills. This is the reality of most project teams, members are not recruited based upon a wide range of skills as in general employment efforts, but rather based upon availability and specific expertise. Although organizations have greater experience of both the general and specific skills of internal staff being considered for project work than that of recruits considered in general hiring situations, we continue to be forced by expediency to defer to primary work expertise in staffing projects. (Current efforts to develop sophisticated skill profiles in establishing matrix organizations may well shift this deficiency in coming years.) So, the project team was organized.

The project manager moved immediately to engage with the software vendor and establish a project launch, development and implementation plan. In addition, the project manager sought to identify and coordinate with the key project sponsor or city business manager who could operate as the city's business project leader. This is when the project began to develop typical symptoms of troubled projects. Recent management staff turnover had resulted in the key project sponsor leaving the organization. The city's project sponsor was no longer a manager with the responsibility and authority to lead, but rather, a staff person with long-term knowledge of city operations and systems who had assumed the lead role by default. Thus, team dynamic challenge number one: A key leadership role is established at staff level by default.

With the high level development and implementation plan developed, the project manager called a meeting of the project team and sponsors to launch the project. The goal, to insure a shared understanding of the road ahead, develop a detailed project schedule, and verify availability of staff for specifically timed project development needs. Sponsor attendance was limited and project staff was overwhelmed by the demands of project tasks in addition to their standing responsibilities. Team dynamic challenge number two: Sponsor inattention leaving staff without the support to establish work priorities and integrate project and process work.

As team members attempted to problem solve the work demand conflicts, many established interpersonal issues became apparent. Team members began to posture either offensively or defensively, dictating other's roles and level of responsibility, or declining participation in the dialogue or commitment to tasks. The default project sponsor or lead attempted to exercise authority over others without having any real authority or power. Team dynamic challenge number three: Established team dynamics do not support a staff level leadership role, shared responsibility-taking or group problem solving.

The project manager was faced with a specific delivery timeline based upon calendar year-end system cut-over requirements. The project schedule was reasonable. The problem was team and group dynamics.