Talk the Talk & Walk the Walk How Effective Conversation Improves Project Management Success

Today’s Conversation Show you new ways to approach conversations that will: Help you be more effective personally improve the performance of your project teams

Show you new ways to approach conversations that will:

Help you be more effective personally

improve the performance of your project teams

Project Issues Today Issue 1: Work has changed from mass production to knowledge work Issue 2: Projects are important, increasing in frequency and complexity…and hard to do well Issue 3: Our common sense methods of managing work has its roots in mass production and process theories of management Issue 4: Projects are done by humans. Humans are different than machines and must be managed differently Issue 5: On human projects, it is more important to manage learning and commitment than process

Issue 1: Work has changed from mass production to knowledge work

Issue 2: Projects are important, increasing in frequency and complexity…and hard to do well

Issue 3: Our common sense methods of managing work has its roots in mass production and process theories of management

Issue 4: Projects are done by humans. Humans are different than machines and must be managed differently

Issue 5: On human projects, it is more important to manage learning and commitment than process

Projects Idea Actionable Request Functional Deliverable Production Capability Conversation is the basic technology for business improvement Historically about improving business process Today they are the business – when people are involved every instance is unique

Historically about improving business process

Today they are the business

– when people are involved every instance is unique

What is a conversation?  The use of language to exchange thoughts, ideas or information Conversation  One of the continual challenges we face in projects is being able to generate meaning in others that ensures we get the responses we want

Projects are conversations What are the business rules? What is needed to achieve our business goals? Whose job will this be? What is the right process? Where should we put the servers? How will we validate everything? What do the customers and end-users want? How will we account for this? How does this interact with the other parts of the system? Technology Process People Customers Business Conversation

Where do we intervene to improve? Manage the Transfer of Knowledge Formalize process and standards to address all possibilities Conversation

Private Conversations – How We Participate in Making Meaning Private Conversations, or Narratives, form Personal Meaning I wouldn’t do things this way. He doesn’t know what he’s talking about! This project is a waste of time!! I’m not sure I want to help with this. Nobody understands my story. My wife and kids are mad at me. The Other Participant The Project Ourselves Our Mood and Other Concerns How things “ought to be”

Conversation Theory – the real conversation Private Conversations from Personal Meaning Private Conversations from Personal Meaning Shared Meaning and Distinctions (Mental Models) Background of Obviousness Content Conversation

Conversation Theory Applied Private Conversations from Personal Meaning Private Conversations from Personal Meaning Shared Meaning and Distinctions (Mental Models) Background of Obviousness Change our personal narratives about conversations (meta conversation)

Does this work? Establishing new ways to converse allows methods of interaction to emerge that are more effective than trying to formalize the process Responsibility elevates when both participants have understanding and accountability for the success of the conversations

Establishing new ways to converse allows methods of interaction to emerge that are more effective than trying to formalize the process

Responsibility elevates when both participants have understanding and accountability for the success of the conversations

Lean: Eliminate Conversations Rework Idea Actionable Request Functional Deliverable Production Capability Is this what you wanted? Rework  Rework kills the pace of delivery and compromise reduces business value delivered and feels like broken promises  Having conversations for understanding to early or too late creates rework and compromise No, you must have misunderstood

Lean: Improve Conversation Flow Idea Actionable Request Functional Deliverable Production Capability What are the business rules again? Waiting Delays kill the productivity of resources by increasing the number of open issues and increasing confusion Increases stress, moves big chunks of delivery to the end of the project, and dramatically slows down delivery  Not having clear conversations, early enough, leads to delays

Delays kill the productivity of resources by increasing the number of open issues and increasing confusion

Increases stress, moves big chunks of delivery to the end of the project, and dramatically slows down delivery

Conversation Theory Applied Three areas where this theory achieves tremendous results Common Understanding Competing Concerns Coordination of Action (Promising)

Three areas where this theory achieves tremendous results

Common Understanding

Competing Concerns

Coordination of Action (Promising)

Common Understanding - Applied Gain agreement that the end result is a shared understanding of meaning Each participant articulates their understanding of the situation Each participant listens to the understanding of others Bring distinctions from the private conversations to the content conversation. Generate shared understanding of meaning and distinction Keys: Structure this purposefully Listen Ask questions Hold other participants as legitimate Over time, new ways of participating arise, creating more effective conversations

Gain agreement that the end result is a shared understanding of meaning

Each participant articulates their understanding of the situation

Each participant listens to the understanding of others

Bring distinctions from the private conversations to the content conversation.

Generate shared understanding of meaning and distinction

Keys:

Structure this purposefully

Listen

Ask questions

Hold other participants as legitimate

Over time, new ways of participating arise, creating more effective conversations

Competing Concerns - Applied Reasonable People Don’t Do Unreasonable Things People always participate, consciously or unconsciously, with a background commitment to take care of what matters to them. This is why crisis brings people together The objective is to articulate the consequences, relevant experiences, compromises, and fears that obstruct a course of action. Listening is not compromise, don’t sacrifice anything, find ways to identify and address both participants real concerns

Reasonable People Don’t Do Unreasonable Things

People always participate, consciously or unconsciously, with a background commitment to take care of what matters to them.

This is why crisis brings people together

The objective is to articulate the consequences, relevant experiences, compromises, and fears that obstruct a course of action.

Listening is not compromise, don’t sacrifice anything, find ways to identify and address both participants real concerns

Coordination of Action Making a promise Assessment Setting the Context Performance

Making a Promise – Applied Both participants are responsible for making a reliable promise. Five elements of a responsible promise Sincere Intention Accountable Competence Course of Action Shared Meaning Ask both parties to specifically articulate agreement on all five points. When promises become slippery, figure out where the breakdown occurred and address it

Both participants are responsible for making a reliable promise.

Five elements of a responsible promise

Sincere Intention

Accountable

Competence

Course of Action

Shared Meaning

Ask both parties to specifically articulate agreement on all five points.

When promises become slippery, figure out where the breakdown occurred and address it

Flow View the conversations of projects as the work being performed. Apply Lean and TOC concepts to the flow of conversations through the organization. Reducing the WIP, or the number of things that have to be talked about, will greatly increase understanding and flow Look to improve quality in Look to reduce rework and waste Is work ready? Do I understand done? Do I an the next person in the flow have a common understanding of how to do this best? What is the next most important thing for me to work on in the context of the project? How do we account for uncertainty in estimates and understanding?

View the conversations of projects as the work being performed.

Apply Lean and TOC concepts to the flow of conversations through the organization.

Reducing the WIP, or the number of things that have to be talked about, will greatly increase understanding and flow

Look to improve quality in

Look to reduce rework and waste

Is work ready?

Do I understand done?

Do I an the next person in the flow have a common understanding of how to do this best?

What is the next most important thing for me to work on in the context of the project?

How do we account for uncertainty in estimates and understanding?

Getting Conversations Right Although each conversation seems to take longer, at the end of the day, reducing rework, delays, and conflict will greatly accelerate the pace of delivery of the project while reducing the personal and business costs Learning to listen to our private conversations, and taking responsibility for the success of the conversations we participate in, are keys to successful projects

Although each conversation seems to take longer, at the end of the day, reducing rework, delays, and conflict will greatly accelerate the pace of delivery of the project while reducing the personal and business costs

Learning to listen to our private conversations, and taking responsibility for the success of the conversations we participate in, are keys to successful projects

Contact Information Dennis Stevens Founder & Managing Partner Synaptus A New Way of Thinking, A New Way of Doing 770-851-8025 [email_address] www.synaptus.com

Dennis Stevens

Founder & Managing Partner

Synaptus

A New Way of Thinking, A New Way of Doing

770-851-8025

[email_address]

www.synaptus.com