I would like to share a summary of what should now conclude to be another project brought in under budget and ahead of an aggressive schedule. The technical details on this occasion are less important than the elements that have contributed to the success.
Team - I’ll use player’s initials although they should have nothing but pride for the way they’ve contributed. Overall we have applied some of the principles of action inquiry, throwing the challenge of new product introduction to anyone in the business who was “up for” the task.
This developed a team who equally matched skill and will. The outcome has been a radically improved time to completion as we have not had to push people (in the main) to meet / exceed their promises. We have also challenged some long held assumptions that will save ten of thousands of pounds and untold project hours in the months and years to come.
individuals:
- SB has provided direct but light touch sponsorship from the top – allowing us to move forward quickly, escalate a few decisions and expedite answers. He also excels in “managing by walking about”
- OB has provided unswerving clarity from board level on the financial case for speeding up
- CAM has managed his first NPI project. He has succeeded by keeping on top of all activity areas (note- not micro managing) all of the time using personal contact and a simple “tracker” tool. He has also learned to communicate assertively with the big chiefs to clarify requirements and encourage suppliers to exceed their previous levels of performance whilst simultaneously building stronger relations.
- JB has played a crucial role as technical critique for all proposed changes and ensuring we have considered options and consequences. One flip side of rapid development is gaining too much momentum such that decisions are sometimes made too quickly. JB has helped us avoid at least 2 major bear traps, without slowing the overall process. He too has helped manage supplier input and worked relentlessy to test new ideas and sub components as they have come through the project.
- AET has led the way on testing and shown that work can be acted upon quickly and progress made in a matter of minutes rather than days/ weeks with the right mindset.
- GS has remained positive and relentlessly pursued progress from third parties to fulfil his part of the project. He embodies the whole team’s ethos that more than 24 hours without a meaningful progress report is unacceptable. He regularly seeks the Project Manager to proactively update on where his task areas is.
- SE has taken a tough step to resume some of his former work in order to get this project forced through as quickly as possible. He has shown that all players in the team must be flexible and not too proud or hierarchy conscious to do whatever job is required to accomplish the project.
- DK has also thrown hierarchy to the wind and, despite being one of the most senior and key members of the company, was one of the first to volunteer for this challenging project with he words “I will do whatever you need me to do” and has stuck by those dangerous
words. - RJR has given top-level technical stewardship and stakeholder alignment.
There have been other contributors but the key learning points are these:
- Cross functional working has enabled the team to learn across silos and ask questions the experts may not have thought or dared to ask
- Letting people volunteer for the team has made it easy to keep interest levels high
- Effective senior sponsorship has cut through the usual political interference
- Relentless attention to task progress and holding each member responsible for clearly defined parts of the project has bred a culture of accountability
- Nipping issues in the bud and recognising contribution has allowed us to keep the tone focused but also fun..
- Involving suppliers in positive competition, sharing information with them generously, and pushing them for their best response has had remarkable outputs
- Having a process but not being a slave to it has kept momentum up
Clarifying the commercial imperative of fast production has helped us make the best decisions quickly – hence being ahead of schedule- Being clear about the critical path and sharing daily updates on its progress has been vital
- (both the last points described brilliantly in: http://www.newproductdynamics.com/book.htm )
- Encouraging difference of opinion whilst always keeping one eye on the clock has helped us avoid some major post-release problems
What do we need to get better at? (not exclusive to this project by any means)
- Clarifying requirements quicker
- Applying positive intolerance with colleagues and 3rd parties
- Increased knowledge share across departments
- Pushing for best performance
Not a very long list, all things considered. I was tempted to conclude that, for an inexperienced project team this has to be considered a great success, but the reality is that, because of their lack of pre-conceived concepts and barriers, they have set a very new standard for project management in their business.
Nothing you won’t see in the text books I guess, but to see it diligently applied in the workplace has been inspiring
The firm in question is:
and you should keep an eye on them. Proof positive, supporting recent FT bulletins, that manufacturing and technology in this country has a bright future.
