Executives like finish date scheduling because it’s fast and decisive. Then the PM produces a schedule to hit that date by backing into a finish date for every assignment in the project. Easy! Everybody leaves this astoundingly fast process with the illusion that they're in control of the project. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
Because people are afraid of losing their jobs they usually can turn out some “piece-o-crap” deliverable by the finish date that the PM imposed on them [or close to it]. Then they spend months trying to clean it up and usually fail. No wonder 70% of the projects that organizations start are late, over-budget and produce little business value.
Aside from the above small flaw that comes from this scheduling approach, there is also the issue of how it cripples our problem solving.
How long can this overly optimistic status reporting continue? Up until January 19 at 4:30 p.m. Only then will I be forced to admit that the task is going to run a little late. The PM has no chance of recovery…it’s too late and that is the real curse of finish date scheduling.
Setting task finish dates with no consideration of the assigned resource’s availability or the amount of work in the task dooms project's manager to failure. The estimates are unrealistic and the team members know they will fail before they start; a poor basis for commitment. The PMs loses all ability to solve problems because they find out about them when it's too late to do anything. They have a thankless chore of solving big problems when it's too late.
That's why, consistently successful project managers schedule with work estimates usually made with the person who will do the work (so we can get a little commitment) and realistic assessments of the person's availability. But that'll be the subject of another discussion.
Best regards,
Dick Billows, PMP, GCA
CEO 4pm.com
The illusion comes from one blindingly stupid assumption…that people will work themselves to death to turn out high quality work by the dates that the sponsor and PM have plucked out of the sky.
Because people are afraid of losing their jobs they usually can turn out some “piece-o-crap” deliverable by the finish date that the PM imposed on them [or close to it]. Then they spend months trying to clean it up and usually fail. No wonder 70% of the projects that organizations start are late, over-budget and produce little business value.
Aside from the above small flaw that comes from this scheduling approach, there is also the issue of how it cripples our problem solving.
If a PM assigns me task #523 on a project and tells me I have to be done by the 19th of January, two things happen. First, I will start work when I have time between my real job and the other four projects I’m on. Second, every time the PM walks past my cubicle and wants to know how I'm doing on #523, I will give the PM the thumbs-up sign and a 50-tooth smile. I do this despite the fact that I've forgotten the name of the project, the PM and what #523 actually involves. This status reporting works because the PM has no way to measure my progress.
How long can this overly optimistic status reporting continue? Up until January 19 at 4:30 p.m. Only then will I be forced to admit that the task is going to run a little late. The PM has no chance of recovery…it’s too late and that is the real curse of finish date scheduling.
Setting task finish dates with no consideration of the assigned resource’s availability or the amount of work in the task dooms project's manager to failure. The estimates are unrealistic and the team members know they will fail before they start; a poor basis for commitment. The PMs loses all ability to solve problems because they find out about them when it's too late to do anything. They have a thankless chore of solving big problems when it's too late.
That's why, consistently successful project managers schedule with work estimates usually made with the person who will do the work (so we can get a little commitment) and realistic assessments of the person's availability. But that'll be the subject of another discussion.
Best regards,
Dick Billows, PMP, GCA
CEO 4pm.com
