By Mike Holka

As I reflect on my projects in 2018, I find myself thinking about project communications.  In the Project Managers arsenal there are numerous tools that are used for communication.  We have email, dashboards, instant messenger, video conferencing, phone conference, and project websites that house pages and pages of project documentation.  There are also numerous meetings on a weekly basis where project status, metrics, issues and risks are brought to the table and deliberated.  With so many types of communication, how is it possible that “miscommunication” is still one of the main reasons projects fail?

We are all bombarded with an endless stream of “data” from counts, assessments, audits, schedule variances, budget variance, hallway conversations and meetings.  Unfortunately, much of the “data” is flawed.  Our job is to make sense of it, and develop a story that takes everything in and articulates it in a clear, concise and candid manner.

Miscommunication usually starts with misinformation.   “Information” is usually represented by metrics, counts, status or opinion.  Misinformation is the start of miscommunication because it is presented as if it were factual, even when there is no clear understanding of the definition, or the definition has been corrupted over time.  Misinformation is then published via status reports…misinformation now has become miscommunication, all the way up the executive level.

What happens next is what I refer to as “The Deadly Embrace”:  Misinformation, Miscommunication, and Misdirection.  I’ve put them in a specific order to illustrate that they build on each other in the severity of missteps that can be caused as information is passed up the organization to the executive committees responsible for providing oversight of scope, schedule and budget.

Executive Committees are asked to make a decision (a corrective action) based on the information that has been supplied.  My experience with Executive Committees is that they are willing and able to make decisions for the benefit of the organization and project.  However, in some cases they are asked to make decisions based on faulty information.  The end result is misdirection.  Misdirection is usually met with resistance by the project team, but they are told this is a management decision and they need to support it.  At this point the project team changes their work flow to accommodate the new direction.  This sometimes puts the Development Team in a scenario where they cannot possibly deliver.  They are asked to change direction, and not given the opportunity to re-estimate or re-plan the new approach.  The misdirection now creates technical debt that will require rework down the line, more time and more money.  The reality here is, the rework is really the end result of misinformation, miscommunication and misdirection, “The Deadly Embrace.”  

Symptoms of “The Deadly Embrace” include:  disagreements on terminology, disagreements on the way a metric is calculated, changing the definition of a metric, conflicting status, inability to make decisions, and questions like what does “done” mean.  The list goes on, we have all seen these symptoms in our project meetings.  What is a Project Manager to do?   We get asked questions like “How many show stopper defects do we have”?  This can be a loaded question as there may only be two show stopper defects…but they take 10,000 hours to remedy.  Obviously, an extreme example to prove a point.  Similarly, the percent complete can also be misleading.  This calculation is only accurate if estimates are accurate and actuals on individual tasks are meticulously tracked.  Progress on tasks is only made when the Team is actually working on it.  Time passing does not mean that progress is being made.  “Progressing the Schedule” can very quickly lead to a “deadly embrace”.  I use a very simple approach for depicting the status of a particular task.  When the task is started and there is evidence of a deliverable being created, the percent complete goes to 50%.  It does NOT go to 100% until the deliverable is completed and everyone agrees that it is completed.  Many times, deliverables are passed to the next Team, a design document passed to the software developers as example.  The design document is not completed until the developers say they understand the design and can code it. 

Project managers must be specific and provide context.  It is not good enough to make generalizations like “it’s going fine”, “trust me” or “its never been closer”.  I will be the first one to admit that I’ve used these phrases at all levels of the organization, including executives.  The problem here is that these phrases can give a perception that everything is going according to plan, when in actuality, they are not saying anything.  When communicating, do not hide your passion.  If you feel strongly about your perspective, say it with passion.  Body language and inflection in your voice can be powerful tools when communicating.  Be advised that there are political pitfalls in communicating a message that is contrary to popular belief or what management wants to hear.  This will test your courage.  You will have to assess how far you want to cross the political line.  I say “want”, as I truly do believe that we are all capable of “crossing the line”, that is not the question.  It truly does boil down to how confident you are in your story; how courageous you are and how confident you are in your ability to sometimes find another job.  This reminds me of a scene in the movie “A Few Good Men”, with Jack Nicholson and Tom Cruise.  The phrase is “You Can’t Handle the Truth”.  It takes courage and conviction to communicate the truth.  Remember, your Team is trusting that you are communicating an accurate picture.  

Resolve this year to be clear, concise and candid in your communications. Leave no doubt in anyone’s mind what you are saying.  Stakeholders will appreciate the honesty.  Make bold statements, then back them up with facts, context and perspective.  That is our job.  This will help you and your projects avoid “The Deadly Embrace”.  

Good Luck in 2019!