Having been
thrown into project management against my wish and totally unprepared, I found
myself struggling to deal with problems from day 1. My first big project was a
failing project, which I was expected to bring back on track. Having been
trained in the medical field I had absolutely no subject matter knowledge in
this project, a data infrastructure installation project. I had to learn on my
feet and from there I quickly picked up a few tricks on how to approach
problems in projects.
Project
managers in all levels of the company, doing all kinds of projects both
internal and client facing, do encounter problems or issues on a daily basis. As
much as we try to capture all risks and prepare for them, there will always be
an unexpected problem that no one could have predicted. These unknown-unkowns
can be anything from team members going on strike, over political fracas to
material or equipment failures and power surges that blow everything up, even
though we had “clean power”. Problem solving is an essential skill to handle
the issues project managers encounter on a daily basis.
Effective
problems solving actually circles around the people element in your project
management. How you relate and interact with people has a major impact on how
effectively and how quick you can solve problems. One of the reasons why the
new PMP exam will include 42% of questions in the people domain is that your
stakeholder management, your personal touch and how you build relationships has
a major impact on the outcome of your projects.
Build a good
foundation with your stakeholders:
- Build
trust in your team from day 1
As
you assemble and pull together your team it is of utmost importance to pay
attention to building trust. Creating an atmosphere, where the team members
feel free to voice their thoughts, concerns and ideas. This will help you in
several ways:
- The
team will inform you of issues / problems immediately
- The
team will feel free to voice concerns and help you identify risks earlier
- The
team will contribute and help you find solutions
In
my experience it always works best to create an open atmosphere, where everyone
contributes honestly and freely. For this you need to be honest and be
yourself, dare to be vulnerable and expose when you fail, or do not have a
solution yourself. For example in the above mentioned first major project I
quickly earned the trust and respect of my team, when I decided to let them
teach me about data cabling and data cable terminations. I did this out of a
need to quickly get basic subject matter knowledge, but it had the wonderful
side effect of helping me bond with the team.
- Create
an open atmosphere, where team members feel free to communicate immediately
This
is so important that it deserves its own point. Your team building needs to
evolve around creating this atmosphere. The common fear that your team will not
listen to you if you admit weakness, lack of knowledge or any other kind of
perceived failure is unfounded. In my experience, your team will accept you
faster and admire you for your honesty if you are open about these things. Getting
back to my previous example of the failing project, the many hours with spend
with the team on the construction site, learning from them paid off big time.
They loved showing me how to do data cable terminations, how to patch the
devices in the cabinet etc. This brought us so close together, that years later
we still stay in contact, even though most have most on from the company we
worked in. During this interaction the team realized quickly that they could
call me any time when a real problem occurred and we always came up with the
solutions together.
- Know
your bosses & clients – create relationships
It
is much easier to give a client or a superior bad news, if you have built a
good relationship with them. Get to know them personally, know what is going on
in their lives, share some things with them. I know some people do not believe
in getting close to clients or bosses. However during the project you will
spend a lot of time with them or communicating to them. You will need this
relationship, so that they can trust you and will take any bad news about
problems better. You will find, that they will not shut off like they would if
you have no relationship. You will be able to discuss solutions more
effectively and be able to work with them easier to find your way out of the
problem. Hence it is essential to establish yourself as a professional they can
rely on, who is honest and will communicate effectively. The personal
relationship will give this a warmer level that will make difficult discussions
easier to have.
If you build
this kind of a foundation you are one step ahead in the game to solve any
problem that will arise in your project.
Then when a
problem arises you can quickly work on a solution:
Solutions
for serious problems may not be found within the normal processes. I remember
watching a customer service training video, where the junior person sorting out
a major power cutoff in a blizzard, sorted it by hiring a helicopter. This was
unheard off and his colleagues thought he’d be sacked. However they did have
close timelines for attending to such power cutoffs and the affected area was
not reachable by road, due to roads being completely blocked by snow. The
customer service officer called his boss and asked for permission, he had all
the facts, including costing at his fingertips and argued the case. His boss
agreed and the situation was sorted as fast as possible.
I
myself, during my Nursing career, often did things, my colleagues thought would
cost me my job. I took the risks to save lives and get essential decisions
made. In one case we needed a Senior Management decision for a patient
admission at 2am in the morning. All others were scare to call the Senior
Manager on duty, but I called him, apologized for the disturbance of his sleep,
stated my case and the solution and approval was given. The next morning, we
took all the relevant paperwork and a full report to the Senior Manager and he
gave his approval now in writing.
In
another case I had a patient with a medical emergency stuck in South Sudan in a
war zone, during the rainy season. The patient was able to sit, but the
situation was deteriorating and we needed her in a medical facility. Since the
whole area was flooded it was impossible to either fly in or go by road to
evacuate the patient. During such situations we would get UN Security to liaise
with all the warring factions to ensure safe evacuation of the patient. Now all
our discussions with the rebel armies, the Sudanese Government and the UN Staff
on the ground stated that the only way in is per helicopter. The HMO I worked
for did not cover evacuation by helicopter. However I got the air evacuation
provider to get me quotations for hiring a helicopter, discussed this with my
Head Office in Nairobi and got permission. The next morning I had a helicopter
in the UN airstrip in Lokichokio! We briefed the pilot together with the UN
Security Agents and, while in constant contact with the Kenyan and Sudanese
Military as well as the Rebel Armies we guided the helicopter pilot over active
war zones into the little village where the patient was. Since it was only a
little 3 seater helicopter, I was unable to go with him, because the patient
was being evacuated with her partner. The team on the ground had the patient
ready and waiting and she was transferred from the car that transported her,
directly into the helicopter and was brought to my clinic. Even the Doctor I
worked with did not believe I managed to get the approvals for this evacuation.
However my Senior Managers in Nairobi knew me well, and knew if I asked for a
helicopter there was no other way to get the patient out. My relationships with
other stakeholders, have often helped me get things arranged much faster and
more efficiently with many hands helping. Several of the more adventurous
evacuations I have arranged, were only possible due to the help of friends in
my network. Whether it was getting cars to illuminate bush air strips at night,
or having people help us hold torches to dress wounds in a camp in the middle
of nowhere, when other light options were not available. Unless you have made
your stakeholders your friends, they will not willingly come and go out of
their way to – literally – hold the torch for you.
- Ask
your team for input – have a crisis meeting
You
do not need to figure all situations out on your own. Use your team, they have
creative ideas and can help you decide if your own ideas are flawed or useful.
The old German saying “many hands make light work” also applies for situations
where you need to find a solution to your problem.
- Ask
your Network for tips and / or help
Build
a Network of other project managers and professionals, or join an existing one,
they will be your advisors when you need them. Among the PMI Leadership
Institute Master Class Alumni we have a very active whatsapp group with alumni
from around the world. We constantly exchange ideas and ask for input and have
a very close bond. Since the group has members from around the globe, there is
always someone there, awake and ready to answer. Often someone has encountered
a similar situation before and will share how they approached it.
Of
course you share any information with outsiders in a confidential manner, just
stating the issue, not mentioning names and numbers or any other confidential
content.
- Calmly
evaluate the alternatives
There
will be different options, so you need to analyze them and find a way of
elimination, so that you can whittle down to the best solution for your
situation. Use your normal decision making tools, like decision tree, SWOT
analysis, what-if scenario, Monte Carlo simulation or any other that is
suitable in the situation. That way you avoid making emotionally charged
decisions you might regret later. Also do not underrate the power of running
things by a colleague or Senior Manager to help you figure it out. Often when
you say things out loud, it helps you put them in order and make a decision
easier. What sounds good on paper or in
your brain, may not sound so good when you explain it to someone else. I have
often also found that explaining the situation to someone else helps me find
the missing link.
Problem solving
requires you to really think quickly and come up with solutions, even if they
sound like “rogue monkey” ideas (has never been done, can not work….) But the
basis for effective problem solving lies firmly in building good relationships,
honesty, effective communication and team spirit. Build this foundation from
day one and you will be a step ahead when problems occur.
