Читать книгу The Red Pill Executive - Tony Gruebl - Страница 23

How does a company accurately measure the Business Value of a project with fidelity in the true value potential? While the movie metaphor is a quick and easy way to paint the picture, real world project success is not as simple as blowing up the Omega. Business endeavors are complex, often with dozens of factors and many stakeholders.

Taking this question to the bare bones, we would have to say a win happens when the benefit of a project is more than the cost. This might seem oversimplified, yet without clarity on the cost and the benefit, the question of success or failure becomes so cloudy, the answer is impossible to identify.

You won’t find the answer to the Business Value equation on a dashboard because some elements are subjective. Some elements are hanging in the air after a meeting’s over. Some are in the movements of people in and around your organization. Despite the best intentions of those involved or the level of PMO maturity, the culture of your company and the biases of its constituents heavily influence whether an endeavor comes out as a win or a loss.

To get an accurate evaluation, the executive in charge must first find clarity as to whether the objective is worth the cost. When the Business Value is high enough, sometimes it’s okay to blow the time-cost-scope triangle on purpose. That’s when the Iron Triangle becomes a constructive tool.

Sometimes, project failure can be an advantage. The highest order of business for an Operations Executive is to quickly kill a detrimental project before it funnels resources, time, money, and focus away from other activities that have more Business Value potential. Saving time and money before it’s wasted constitutes a win for the organization. Sometimes this is a massive win, depending on how much time and money you are about to squander on something that makes no sense. Imagine how much money and time could be saved by canceling a medium-sized IT project, for instance.

“Sometimes, project failure can be an advantage.”

When does an otherwise good project make no sense? When the Business Value doesn’t merit the amount of time, money, and focus required to complete it. That comes down to Strategic Alignment. If the project is in Strategic Alignment with the purpose of the organization and its short-and long-term goals, then it is worth doing—as long as the Operations Executive has an accurate read on the Business Value potential.

If the project is not in Strategic Alignment, then it should be left on the white board. The same is true at any point during execution. If at any time the initiative veers out of Strategic Alignment, stop immediately. That’s the back lot, bare knuckle approach we’ve been talking about. We know when to slam on the brakes, and we’re not afraid to do it. We’ve saved our clients millions, and that’s money already in the bank.