Project Lessons Learned Recipes

There is no denying in the truth of the saying, “Time is precious.”

You never seem to get enough of time. Even if you are given thirty hours in a day, you still won’t be able to get enough of it. Somehow, some things will come up and you will end up wanting more time. Time is a precious commodity. Once it’s gone, it cannot be recovered.

The fact is: when you are busy, time flies swiftly. But when you are not, time seems to be at a standstill. This is true when you are killing time because there is nothing else to do under the circumstances.

How do you maximize the use of your time? It would be worth your time to consider the following strategies:

1. Check your schedule at the start of the day. Review it in its entirety. You may notice that portions of your day may be hectic, while some may not be too frenzied. Distribute your activities evenly throughout the day.
2. Keep note pads handy so you can keep track of your schedule. It also helps to remind you of your tasks and commitments. Note pads and schedule notebooks help you avoid overlapping of activities. In case of overlaps, determine which one is priority.
3. After spreading your schedule for the day and you still feel overwhelmed by the number of tasks to be accomplished, you may have to forgo some of them. Re-schedule other tasks for another day.
4. What you are actually doing is very much like cleaning a closet. When your closet is in order, you avoid being accidentally hit on the head by falling objects upon opening its door. Also, if it is in order, you will likely find spare spaces available.

Leaders don’t stay at the top. They go down with the people below and trying to bring his team up. If you are just staying at the top, arm folded and looked down at the team. You are not a good leader. Leaders should always add value to the team. You may be a good manager because you know your job well.

You are not a good leader because you cannot lead a team. So what if you can manage, your team is not following you. You can escalate the matter to the higher management. As a person, you are not able to lead the team, simple as that. Your leadership skill in business world is not the same as in military. You can’t raise your voice and the team will follow. Business world requires soft skill.

Needs to climb the mountain of obstacles together. Not alone. TEAM work is required.

TEAM – Together Everyone Achieves More

There is a project coordinator, Jenny (Not real name) was one typical example for lacking leadership. When she first came on board to the organization, there was no proper process, no procedures. She hit many walls by asking many departments how to do the job properly.

As the project management team grew, the boss would like to set up a proper Project Management Office.

Her boss would like to give her a more high profile Project Management Office duty, thus had recruited an assistant, Gina (Not real name) to help her in the normal administration work.

In a logical sense, Jenny should be passing all the knowledge to Gina, so that Jenny can focus on her high profile administrative duties. Unfortunately, the knowledge was not passed totally. It was handed over partially instead. Jenny just gave Gina high level steps, understanding and expected Gina to explore or find out how to do the work herself. This caused Gina to be very lost. When Gina approached Jenny for queries, Jenny will raise her voice and replied. Gina was hurt.

Nothing was done, but relationship soured.

This simple scenario showed that Jenny’s poor leadership skill. She had not showed her team the proper guidance to do the job. When Gina approached Jenny for assistance; that means Jenny had not passed the knowledge fully to Gina and that is why Gina is not able to proceed with the work. Jenny should pass all information, knowledge to Gina and check with her that she is informed of all things.

If Gina is not comfortable with the knowledge. She should ask. And Jenny, being the superior should be more patient to the team member and not throw temper at her team.

Lessons Learned: If you want to delegate duties to others, ensure the recipient are well-equipped with relevant tools and knowledge. Or else when the team member leaves the organization, you will have to recruit someone else and start the training all over again. The cycle will repeats. That is not fruitful and unproductive.

In a typical organization, who is having a slightly better role, the Sales or the technical folks?

For a salesperson, his objective is to get more revenue for the company. Thus he will find more potential clients to sell his products. The salesperson keeps on finding potential clients. Network with people and start to sell to WHO he meets. However, once he gotten the sales deal. His job is more or less settled. He will hand over the sales deal for his back-end team to deliver, either a product or service. It’s the Who you know to clinch more deals. The sales person needs not to know the mechanics on how to build the product or how to deliver the service.

This technical team, on the other hand, is the team that receives the order and has to deliver the service, product on time and meeting the client’s requirement. Thus the technical team is good at what they are supposed to deliver. They know the WHAT very well and can customize to the client’s needs fast and efficient.

To have more WHO factor will get you to know more people. Rich Social skill tends to get things done easily. You can be a well business person and focus on higher level. Look on things farther and further.

To know the WHAT factor well, will only ends up to be a JOB for you because you know the mechanics well. People will come to you for the techniques / tactics.

Simple scenarios:

If the sales person can clinch the deal, he could outsource to another team that offers a more competitive pricing to deliver his products or services. Thus the WHAT is not so critical because he can always find someone to deliver for him.

Let’s say you are in your late 40s or early 50s, and you are retrenched in corporate world. What are you going to do? Your income stopped suddenly, is it easy for you to get another job? Organizations will tend to look for staffs that are more energetic, with drive and more important, cheaper than you. It’s a true business fact, that by the time you are in your mid 40s or early 50s, your pay is almost in the high range category. It is difficult for you to get another job that pays the same salary.

It is not what technical skills or management skills that you know that enables to get the next job. It is your constant networking that the WHO factor can assist in getting you another job in the corporate organization.

Lessons Learned: Be more social savvy as you progress along the career and social path. It’s not what you know to get things done. It is WHO you know to get things accomplished.