Managing International Projects – Part 2

This is the second in a series of nine blogs that provide insight and tips on managing international projects.  In this blog, we’ll discuss issues and solutions associated with project scope definition.

Tips for International Projects

• Test project outcome “facts” as if they were assumptions
• Surface assumptions early and often
• Look for constraints around cultural and regulatory issues
• Document success criteria and share them with the customer
• Seek “middle ground” resolution of multi-cultural issues

The information and recommendations in this blog reflect the Four Key International Variables as documented by O’Hara and Johansen in their book Global Work. 

 Cultural diversity, distances and other variables greatly increase the potential for misunderstanding within international projects.  For that reason, the team must ensure that all stakeholders in an international project, including Customers, suppliers and project team members, clearly understand and support project outcomes and their accompanying success criteria, constraints and assumptions.

Information on events leading up to the start of a project could provide valuable information for addressing measures of success, identifying constraints or examining assumptions within one or more unfamiliar cultures.  Clarity on the need, opportunity or issue addressed by a project could provide useful cultural insights.  And, of course, clear identification of the project Customer is essential regardless of the cultural setting.  

Particular attention should be paid to the following four Critical Planning Questions.  These should be tested frequently against the Four Key International Variables of Context, Power/Status, Time and Information Paths.

What criteria will be used to measure success or failure?

Supplemental International Testing Questions: 

• What cultural issues may influence project success/failure criteria?
• Do specific individuals have unusually strong influence over the success/failure criteria?  Who are they?  Why are they important?  What multi-cultural patterns do they represent?
• What cultural issues might influence successful adherence to deadlines?
• How might multi-cultural information flow issues influence project success/failure?

What constraints will affect how this project is implemented?

Supplemental International Testing Questions:

• Who around the world must be kept informed of project progress and outcomes?
• What global resources, ideas, approaches and other conditions are usable or off-limits?
• How should information be delivered to specific multi-national individuals or groups regarding project progress or outcomes?
• Are any of the constraints negotiable and if so, who should be consulted?          
• What international legal, customs, transit and other issues must be considered?
• How concrete are project time constraints and how might they be influenced by multi-cultural perspectives? 
• Who might change the deadlines and why?

What assumptions are currently being made regarding this project?

Supplemental International Testing Questions:

• What do members of different cultures on the team believe to be true about this project? 
• What is our plan to resolve differences about these beliefs?
• What would be the likely cross-cultural impact if these assumptions prove true?  False?
• How likely is our Customer to have multi-cultural assumptions about this project?  How will we test for these assumptions?  What impact might they have on team members’ multi-cultural views?
• What is our strategy to manage these multi-cultural assumptions if they prove true?  False? 

How will this project affect other people, groups or projects?

Supplemental International Testing Questions:

• Whose work around the world might be impacted by this project?
• What multi-cultural influences should be considered?
• How do I know this?

Example:  Your project team, part of a North American company, has members from Mexico,Brazil,Korea,Switzerland,Germany and Canada.  Your Customer for an electrical engineering product development project is a Chinese company.  The Customer expects Phase I of the project to be finished in 30 days.  

Deliverables include detailed production specifications.  The Customer insists that you add a nuclear physicist from his organization as an ex-officio advisor.  You test your team for assumptions and learn that:

•  The member fromSwitzerlanddoesn’t think the physicist is really necessary.
• The member from Mexico wants to check with the leadership from his home organization committing to the 30-day deadline.
• The member fromBrazildoesn’t think the Customer is deeply committed to the 30-day deadline.
• The member from Germany thinks a detailed background report should accompany the production specifications.
• The member from Canada thinks a second physicist should be added from the Customer organization.

You hold a meeting to address these and other assumptions.  You post the assumptions on the walls and discuss each one fully, being sensitive to the different cultural perspectives.  You then put the team to work finding compromise resolutions to issues raised by these assumptions.  A criteria for these compromises is determination of Customer needs.  You then bring these concerns, and their recommended resolutions, to an informal meeting with a Customer representative whose multi-cultural views you have come to value.  He provides valuable insights that you later share with the team.

Managing International Projects – Part 1

This is the first in a series of nine blogs that provide insight and tips on managing international projects.  In this blog, we’ll discuss issues and solutions associated with cultural and related international project issues.

Tips for International Projects

•  Test everything – appearances can be deceiving
• Seek the “middle ground” in resolving multi-cultural differences
• Listen to the people who have “been there”
• Research cultures relevant to your project
• Ask the Supplemental International Testing Questions/Create  your own testing questions

The Challenges

International projects increase the need for a systems approach to project management.  Members of international project teams must overcome the usual project management challenges, along with additional risks posed by such factors as:

Cultural diversity:  Representatives of two or more differing cultural systems must work together on a project team.  In addition, Customers or suppliers may be members of cultures different from those of team members.

Distance:  Team members must respond effectively to each other’s needs, or Customer/supplier needs, across continents or oceans.

Language:  Speakers of a variety of languages must find effective ways to understand each other.

Diverse laws, trade conditions and business operating requirements:   In planning and implementing their project, team members must consider such issues as multiple import or tax regulations, differing currency values, and a variety of multi-national operating procedures.

Logistics:  Team members must consider differing transportation systems, terrain or climate conditions.

Supplemental International Testing Questions

These supplemental international testing questions are fashioned around four Key Variables of International Projects.  The variables, based on the findings of Mary O’Hara-Devereaux and Robert Johansen in their book GlobalWork, David Victor, in his book International Business Communication, and other recent global-business scholarship, are discussed here in broad terms to provide a sense of prevailing cultural conditions.  Variations can be expected within specific cultural groups. 

The Four Key Variables of International Projects are:

Context:  Context represents the filters by which members of a cultural system give meaning to events and information around them.  Members of high-context cultures, often representing Asian or Latin countries, may tend to view as important, the conditions surrounding events or communication experiences and the status or position of individuals involved in these events or activities.  In a high-context environment, the conditions surrounding such experiences may have more meaning than their actual content.  Members of low-context cultures, often representing North American or Northern European countries, may attach more meaning to the facts of an event or communication activity than to the surrounding people or conditions.  The value of an event or communication will be determined more by what occurred or was said than by who was involved. 

Example:  A project team must request resources needed to achieve a desired Customer outcome.  In a high-context culture, considerable time would be spent determining whom the most appropriate person would be to convey and receive the request and how its submission should be coordinated with other events, in and outside of the organization.  Issues such as status, formal and informal power relationships, gender and longevity with the organization would be carefully assessed.  The actual wording of the request itself might be relatively vague.  In a low-context culture, planning for acquisition of resources would likely emphasize a well-reasoned, effectively worded case for a favorable decision.  The request itself might be delivered rather informally through office e-mail or through a presentation by a junior team member. 

Power/Status:  Asian and Latin cultures tend to have more rigid power structures, often influenced by family connections, longevity, wealth or other factors beyond actual job performance.  Decision making and other organizational events may be hierarchical.  In North American and Northern European cultures, power may be assigned more on the basis of earned position, professional credentials or distinguished performance.  In these regions, organizations are likely to be flatter, with more decision-making at the daily operating levels. 

Example:  A project team needs someone with electrical engineering expertise.  In a culture where deference is made to rigid, hierarchical power structures, final selection of such a new team member may take extra time as compromises are worked out among a variety of individuals and power centers.  In a culture valuing flatter, less hierarchical decision-making, the team may determine who it needs, request services directly from the appropriate individual and inform various supervisors after the fact.

Time:  Members of Asian and Latin cultures tend to view time as a long-term continuum extending from the distant past through the present and into the distant future.  The nature of relationships within this sweep of time are often more important that the precise unfolding of events according to a rigid schedule.  A number of activities may be scheduled simultaneously in such culture groups, with completion deadlines often weighted against such context considerations as power, long-term benefits to the individual or the perceived value of a relationship with a key project stakeholder.  Members of North American and Northern European culture groups may put more emphasis on completing a single task before beginning a new one.  Focus may be on successful meeting of a specific deadline or commitment for the sake of the deadline. 

Example:  A project team has scheduled a meeting for 1 p.m. Tuesday.  Members from more schedule-focused cultures can be expected to arrive early or apologize profusely if they are a few minutes late.  Members from less time-focused cultures may arrive half an hour or more after the designated start time and make no effort to justify their tardiness.  They assume the others appreciate their need to conduct several hallway discussions with long-time colleagues on the way to the meeting room.

Information Paths:  O’Hara-Devereaux and Johansen describe information flow in cultures as “both the path and the speed of communication…How fast does a message travel from one part of the organization to another.”  In many high-context cultures with their heavy emphasis on relationships, information is likely to travel via complex, time-consuming routes, with connections made to many individuals with little or no evident involvement in the project.  By contrast, information in lower-context cultures may be delivered with emphasis on efficiency and involvement of the least number of people to get the job done effectively. 

Example:  A change in a project plan activity has been agreed upon with the Customer.  In a more relationship-driven culture, information about the change would be widely communicated.  Depending on power considerations, the change might also have to be approved by several people along this information path.  In a lower-context, more event-oriented culture, information about the change is likely to be sent only to those directly involved in its successful completion.  Others might be informed on an FYI basis at best.

Relationship Building Tips and Reminders – Part 5

1. Have the client verify (in writing) that final deliverables have been received and that the deliverables meet outcome specifications.
2. Communicate formal close-out of the project to all stakeholders.
3. Plan an organized effort to document, store, and distribute (if appropriate) lessons learned during the project.
4. Using the Client Feedback Summary as a guide, encourage the client to offer candid feedback on the interpersonal aspects of the project experience.
5. Follow up with management to acknowledge and resolve problematic systemic issues that surfaced during the project.
6. Schedule a review meeting to assess team effectiveness, focusing on Best Practices that contributed to project success.
7. Commit the client to a post project interview for preparation of a Relationship Extension Plan.
8. Use measurement strategies that the client has pre-approved and understands.
9. Use a company communication vehicle (newsletter, e-mail distribution, staff meeting announcements, etc.) to announce successful project completion and appreciation for project stakeholders.
10. Seek out other individuals or groups in the client organization who may have interest in your (or the team’s) services.

Relationship Building Tips and Reminders – Part 4

1. Accurately define all hand-offs, make sure they take place on or ahead of schedule, and verify their successful completion.
2. Deliver client hand-offs in person whenever possible.
3. Help project team members manage their time and activities as planned commitments turn into actual tasks and obligations.
4. When briefing customers, discuss particular contributions by individual team members.
5. When hand-offs are missed or errors occur, pursue the root cause and appropriate corrective action rather than assigning blame.
6. Respond immediately when clients call with problems. Have contingent actions ready before calling whenever possible.
7. Notify all stakeholders as soon as a problem arises, solicit input on how to address it, and notify them upon resolution.
8. Maintain a personal connection with all stakeholders, and remain receptive to their suggestions.
9. Be sure everyone contributes during team meetings and encourage a balance between facts and opinions.
10. Encourage informal communication among stakeholders, and make people accountable for informing each other of ‘off line’ discussions that affect them.

Relationship Building Tips and Reminders – Part 3

1. Make sure all stakeholders agree on the planning process, have input (or defer their participation), and take ownership in the plan.
2. Set aside time early in the planning process to develop a risk management plan with the client, including preventive and contingent actions.
3. Provide each team member and customer with a folder of background information about the project and team members.
4. Consider potential “people problems” as well as project problems.
5. Elicit input and ideas from decision makers before committing to a plan, and schedule their time (well in advance) to review it once it’s done.
6. Always acknowledge requests, questions, or suggestions by stakeholders, and commit to a time when you will respond to or incorporate them in the plan.
7. Allow time in a schedule for client review, sign-offs, holidays and personal time.
8. Clarify why everyone on the team was selected, his or her role, and their ability to bring added value to the project.
9. Learn all relevant client acronyms associated with the project, and explain all planning terms and budgeting calculations before delivering planning documents.
10. Ensure the client is clear on their deadlines and hand-offs, and knows the liabilities associated with missing them.

Relationship Building Tips and Reminders – Part 2

1. Schedule all key stakeholders for an individual interview (in person if possible) before a solution is defined.
2. Learn all you can about your client’s cultural history, outlining key events that led up to their present situation and needs.
3. Determine the client’s preferred form and style for proposals (media, level of formality, level of detail, etc.) before documenting the solution.
4. Differentiate stakeholders as decision makers, influencers, and implementors and identify what each one expects from the project.
5. Determine which decisions and approvals require consensus and which do not.
6. Gain agreement from suppliers and clients on what will be measured and the measurement tools to be used.
7. Define a solution that will meet the customer’s needs, then plan to over-deliver by adding value.
8. Use clear benefits statements in addition to tangible outcomes when defining the project solution.
9. Use terms and units of measure with which the client is familiar.
10. Know (in advance) the specific criteria that will be used in the approval process (by both decision makers and influencers), and address them in the definition.

Relationship Building Tips and Reminders – Part 1

1. Deliver communications using media that is client friendly (i.e., find out if hard copy, fax, e-mail, etc. is best for them).

2. Know your client’s first choices for meeting locations and communication media.

3. Encourage all team members to adopt high standards of professionalism while remaining authentic and natural toward clients.

4.  Know when to employ control, influence, or adherence in managing customer relationships.

5.  Be sure the client knows all the ways to reach you (phone, fax. e-mail, etc.).

6.  Respond immediately to a client’s message if you have the answer, but never take more than one business day to get back to them.

7.  Be aware of your own style and preferences so you can comfortably adjust to the style and preferences of your client.

8.  Treat internal clients with exactly the same service standards as external clients.

9.  Keep the implicit dimensions of service performance on a par with the explicit dimensions of technical performance.

10.  Ensure that all clients are addressed appropriately (first or surnames, titles, etc.).

Project Management Governance Model – Step 8: Environmental Stewardship

The project environment includes all the policies, procedures, precedents and past practices that impact how projects are carried out within an organization.  It encompasses project governance as a whole along with many other considerations that are essential to project performance.  It includes:

1. Project management process phases, elements and steps:  inputs, actions, outputs, hand-offs
2. Documentation process and requirements: inputs, outputs, responsibilities, frequency, format
3. Project reporting: frequency, format, responsibilities
4. Project personnel: awareness, ability, team management, selection
5. Process application measurement: measures, timing, reporting
6. Project results measurement: project outcomes, customer satisfaction, team effectiveness
7. Project budgeting: methods, responsibilities, planned vs. actual
8. Project communication: formal, informal and review meetings
9. Project consequence system: incentives and penalties
10. Project management infrastructure: systems, equipment and facilities
11. Project capacity and prioritization: resource utilization and prioritization criteria
12. Project knowledge management: how it is captured, shared and used

In most companies, some of these factors will actually promote project success, while others (unintentionally) have the opposite effect.  For example, some organizations have clearly defined project management processes and protocols that help to ensure that projects are carried out in an orderly and predictable fashion.  Conversely, many of these same organizations do not require or even encourage people to use the protocols, and there is little incentive to do so.

In order to effectively manage the project environment, it is essential to know what is happening inside it.  Equally important is a commitment by senior management to resolve the issues that are impacting project success.  This involves the following:

• Review of project management protocols, procedures and documentation
• Interviews with project system users, oversight groups and project customers
• Review of project performance data
• Summarize and prioritize systemic barriers:
• Detailed picture of “what’s really happening”
• Recommendations for ongoing enhancement of the project environment
• Tools for conducting ongoing assessments
• Identify actions needed to remove the most significant systemic barriers to project effectiveness

The effective project stewardship involves ongoing assessment of the environment to ensure that is in fact promoting rather than impeding project success.  This is the responsibility of senior management with the help of project professionals within the organization.

Project Management Governance Model – Step 7: Learning

Every organization can be thought of as a laboratory, and each project can be thought of as an experiment within the lab.  In all organizations, some of the “experiments” are successful while others fail at meeting their goals.  In all cases, however, there is much to be learned from the good as well as the bad experiences.

When we think of the word “experience”, we think of knowledge gained from having been through a situation many times.  This knowledge helps us to anticipate what might happen next so we can take appropriate action.  The most effective organizations have realized that knowledge sharing has become critical to their success for several reasons:

• As businesses become more knowledge-intensive and complex, being able to get people up to speed on all aspects of their work very quickly becomes important
• As people enter and then leave organizations, it becomes essential to capture what people know so that if they leave, all of what they have learned doesn’t leave with them
• Since most projects have tight deadlines, there is less time to learn through trial and error; so knowledge sharing becomes essential to meeting schedule and cost requirements

Every organization should be able to clearly answer the following questions:

• How do we capture lessons learned on projects?
• How do we share those lessons?
• How do we ensure and measure the deployment of those lessons?

The answers to these questions define an organization’s knowledge management capability as it relates to project management.  Since knowledge management represents an investment, the third question above (deployment) becomes the “money” question.  A knowledge management system that does not address this question may result in a lot of information being moved around with little tangible benefit.

One key characteristic of the effective knowledge management system is the way that deployment is recognized and reinforced.  There must be a clear and compelling answer to the question “What’s in it for me?” in order to sustain the system over the long run.  In the world of sports, players who make other players better are considered essential assets to the team.  Likewise in the project environment, players who make others more effective through sharing and deployment of their knowledge should be recognized accordingly.

Project Governance Model – Step 6: Ending

Most project management methodologies refer to some form of project close out as the last phase of the project.  It can cover several items, among them:

• Contractual closure with the project customer or funding agency (verification of deliverables and payment)
• Administrative closure (e.g., filing relevant documentation, closing time charges, etc.)
• Securing measures of planned vs. actual project performance against schedule, budget, specifications, project customer satisfaction, team/leader effectiveness and project management process application
• Closure with the project customer (e.g., final meeting, obtaining customer feedback, etc.)
• Lessons learned meeting(s) (e.g., with project team, sponsor, customer, etc.)
• Celebration with project stakeholders to recognize a job well done (often done in conjunction with a lessons learned meeting)
• Relationship extension activities (e.g., identification and planning of additional/related services to be performed)

What actually occurs during project close out varies significantly across organizations. Indeed, it often varies widely within organizations.  In some organizations, project close out is ignored altogether for a variety of reasons.  In organizations where project time is billable, the pressure to move on to the next billable engagement outweighs the perceived value of the time required to perform close out activities. In other cases, the project may have been a disaster, and there is little desire to spend any additional time thinking about it (or pointing fingers).

Project termination is one of the most critical aspects of close out for many organizations.  When precious resources are expended on “lost” projects, the negative effects can be substantial:

• More strategically relevant and viable projects may suffer due to lack of resources.
• When a sense of fairness and logic seems to be absent, motivation and commitment on the part of project personnel can suffer.
• Windows of opportunity for new initiatives, products, etc. may be missed or compromised due to resources being expended on unproductive projects.

In organizations with crowded project pipelines (e.g. many projects with proof-of-concept and prototype phases), it becomes critical to build in relevant go/no go gates with specific criteria that make it easy to separate the potential winners from the losers.  The faster that resources can be moved from losers to winners, the more likely it is that the organization as a whole will end up as the winner.

The effective project organization develops guidelines (if not requirements) for project close out.  At a minimum, the project should meet the customer’s expectations regarding close out activities.  It should also include obtaining relevant measures of project performance and lessons learned that would allow the organization to compare initiatives across the organization.

Just as with the other elements within the governance process, project close out needs to be considered in the context of “discipline with flexibility”.  This means that requirements are minimized and value-added guidelines are used and promoted from the top.