Software As a project increases in size, so does the complexity in managing it.
Good software can help deal with complexity. Software might include a spreadsheet, a word processing program, or a sophisticated project management package such as Microsoft Project for Windows and Primavera Project Planner. It is important to note, however, that project software will not guarantee success but can help achieve success. Regardless of the type or size of a project, if the project manager does not know how to use the software or populates databases with bogus data, then the likelihood of success drops dramatically. Software must be applied in a manner that maximizes payback and minimizes waste.
Controlling
Regardless of the thoroughness of a plan, exercising control is absolutely necessary to bring a KM project to a successful conclusion. Controlling involves performing these four fundamental actions:
1. Status collection and assessment
2. Tracking and monitoring
3. Contingency planning
4. Replanning
Status Collection and Assessment Having a plan in place is one thing; executing it efficiently and effectively is another. Status collection is gathering data on cost, schedule, and quality and then transforming that data into information — that is, something meaningful. The information is then used to assess progress to date vis-
à-vis the plan. The key activities for assessing performance are identifying and evaluating variance. Variance is the difference between what should happen up to a point in time and what has actually occurred. A negative assessment is typically one that misses a key schedule date or cost target; a positive assessment is meeting a key schedule or cost target.
For KM projects, status and assessment are critical. The ambiguity of project goals requires keeping a pulse on performance by raising two key questions: where are we and are we going in the right direction? Answering these two questions will decrease the likelihood of having a runaway project.
Tracking and Monitoring Good status collection and assessment require looking at the past and anticipating the future. Tracking is looking at past performance; that is, what has occurred. Monitoring is looking into the future using the past. Both tracking and monitoring provide the link between the past and future to understand how well the project is progressing. Both, closely intertwined with status collection and assessment, are very important for KM projects because they help answer two more fundamental questions: where have we been and where are we heading?
Contingency Planning Good risk management requires good contingency planning; that is, developing ways to respond to specific scenarios. Contingency plans offer several advantages, to include responding in a proactive rather reactive way to a given situation, furthering progress according to plan, and instilling in team members a confidence in the eventual success of the project. Obviously, not all scenarios can be identified in advance and under certain circumstances that can require the next activity — replanning.
Replanning Sometimes, nothing can be done other than to replan the project. That requires developing a new SOW, WBS, estimates, schedules, and reorganization. A severe budget cut or a technological snafu may require overhauling everything. The best contingency planning in the world will not make a difference. Replanning, however, should not occur unless absolutely necessary because it may me an a large loss in investment of time, money, and energy. As a project moves down its life cycle, the losses become larger.
Leading
In its basic form, leading is motivating people to achieve the goals and objectives of a project by:
§ Providing a vision
§ Communicating
§ Maintaining direction
§ Motivating
§ Being supportive
§ Building a team
Leading actually occurs throughout the life cycle of a project. It is required during planning, organizing, and controlling.
Providing a Vision Without a vision, a KM project is heading for disaster. A vision is a description of what will be in the future. It gives a sense of purpose and direction.
The SOW provides the basis for generating a vision because it describes the final result of the project. The challenge for developing a vision and keeping people focused on it is a particular challenge to KM projects. Knowledge management in general is a vague concept, and the description of the elements in a KM system can be difficult due to the changing, multifaceted technology it involves and the business environment in which it finds itself.
Communicating The best vision and plans mean little if no one knows about their existence and any changes to them. Project managers are at the hub of a KM project, thereby serving as the communications center for a project. Their use of tools, such as the project manual and status review meetings, enable and enhance communicating. However, good communication must be ongoing and widespread to prove useful.
On a KM project, communication is absolutely critical. The involvement of many specialized disciplines and representatives from various organizations necessitate that communication continues. Otherwise, project failure is inevitable because the opportunities for operating “in the dark” and going in different directions increase.
Everyone must follow the same vision and plan.
Motivating People on a project must be emotionally committed to the vision of the project or they will not provide a significant contribution. It becomes even more important, especially in a matrix environment, because the project manager lacks any functional control over people. The difficulty in motivating is further complicated by the subject matter. Project managers on KM projects, therefore, must continually keep the fire burning among their team members.
Being Supportive KM projects require extensive coordination when using tools and applying knowledge. These projects face many obstacles that can impede project success — from obtaining hard-to-find software to political interference. Leadership necessitates supporting the team’
s needs to achieve success. Because KM projects
are by nature lengthy and complex undertakings, project managers must facilitate task execution.
Building a Team Atmosphere As the complexity of projects increases, so does participation in the number of disciplines and people. KM projects are no exception.
An effort is required not just to assemble specialists, but also to encourage
commitment toward cooperation in achieving the vision. Project team, sponsor, and customer must work together and have ownership in the project’
s outcome.
KM IS THE FUTURE
From reading IT literature, it is safe to predic t that interest in KM will grow. More and more companies are building KM applications that will play an integral role in their performance. As the number of KM systems increase, so will the challenges in implementing a successful KM project. Like other IT development projects of the past, KM projects will produce some great results — but also some equally great disasters.
It is because of the desire to achieve the former and avoid the latter that project management will play an important role in building KM systems.
NOTES
1. KM World, May 25, 1998.
2. Interactive Week, December 8, 1997.
3. Informationweek, March 16, 1998.
Chapter 32: Managing Development in the Era of Large Complex Systems
Hugh W. Ryan
OVERVIEW
To many of us, it appears that every move toward ma king technology simpler has been matched by a corresponding move toward increased complexity. This is a prime paradox of IT today: on the one hand, technology for the business user has become dramatically simpler as end users have become shielded from complexity; on the other hand, the actual development of systems architectures and business solutions has become far more complex.
Distributed computing environments and architectures that span the enterprise have meant that our IT work is no longer a point solution for one department or division of a company. In most cases today, a systems development effort takes place with greater expectations that it will have a significant impact on the enterprise’
s book of
business.
Where there is greater potential impact, there is also greater potential risk.
Companies are making substantial investments in their technologies; they expect to see business value from that investment quicker; and they expect that the solution that is delivered will be robust enough to serve as a transition platform as technological change continues to compress years into months.
GROWTH IN PROJECT SCOPE
The new complexity of systems development can be viewed in several ways. First, one finds that more people are now involved in development than one saw either in the mainframe development days or in the early years of client/server. Frequently, projects today may involve anywhere from 100 to 500 people, and this figure will continue to increase until thousand-person projects become common over the next several years.
Second, the number of years required to develop the more complex business solution has also increased. Enterprisewide solutions, delivered over several releases, may require three to five years, or more, to bring all aspects to fruition. This, in turn, adds additional complexities. For example, with longer development periods, the chances are good that management may go through at least one change during the course of the development project. If the project has not been careful to communicate and gain sponsorship at many different management levels, a change in management may put the investment at risk.