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Strategy is Not a Project
Senior Vice President
Do you remember, not
too many years ago, that a hot topic in the industry was the high
failure rate of major projects? Blown budgets and timelines, missed
requirements and functionality, and failure to deliver the expected
results had become the norm.
We think the
industry, in general, has responded quite well to this challenge.
First came an enhanced discipline around project management
methodology. That was followed for many with a formalized
organizational approach to managing change, which typically carried
the name Program Management Office (PMO). In many of our clients, we
can see that this disciplined process and organizational approach
has yielded the intended results. Projects in these organizations
routinely get done and delivered successfully—as planned and
expected.
As with many human
endeavors, success can have unintended results. There may be early
warning signs on the horizon that the focus on improving project
success rates is creating some unintended consequences and, in fact,
some of us are noticing emerging warning signs as organizations move
into the early planning season for 2010.
The current global
economic crisis has had major impacts on financial services
organizations. For most, the path to success they had been pursuing
has shifted. Where planning in prior years had a heavy emphasis on
singling out the right projects that moved the organization toward
its strategic goals, this year is different. Management teams are
finding that they need to reset their strategic direction. What are
the early warning signs that we are seeing from the unintended
consequences of improved project execution?
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The next generation
of leadership talent in many organizations is the key resource in
PMOs. They have been in it long enough that they are developing a
language, perspective, and approach that is obviously project
oriented. Previously, this same talent was often developing in
general management positions and building broader perspectives. |
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When it comes to
thinking broadly about the business, its markets, and its
operations, planning teams have a lack of experience, vocabulary,
and framework. |
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Planning teams have
a deeply engrained mindset, vocabulary, and framework for talking
about projects. |
We are not
suggesting that all PMOs should be dismantled. They are adding an
important capability that needs to be maintained and strengthened
further. If you think that you are seeing some of the early warning
signs mentioned, you might want to consider doing the following:
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Be sure that your talent development
path includes your PMO as an important point but one that it is
not an endpoint; and |
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Take a look at your planning process
to see if it needs to be re-shaped and re-populated this year to
better handle your business strategy. |
Getting your strategy
right for 2010 will be more important than ever. Success won’t be
about what projects get approved and funded. And remember, strategy
is not a project. |
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