RICS APM Project Leadership Conference Feb 2016

Copyright © 2016 Team Animation and Business Evolution Slide: 1
Leadership and the project
Donnie MacNicol and Sarah Coleman

The Project Leadership Compass™
What individuals and organisations need to know about developing
their project leadership capacity and capability to deliver in challenging
times.
The Project
Leadership
Compass™
The role
of the project
leader during the
key phases of
the project
lifecycle
Project
leadership and
the project
leader
The 3 key
competencies
of a project
leader
Building
personal and
organisational
capability
© Sarah Coleman and Donnie MacNicol

Part 1: Project leadership
and the project leader
The concept of leadership
How research, models,
techniques and ideas about
mainstream organizational
leadership are helping to
shape current thoughts about
effective project leadership
Focus away from a technical
skill base to focus more on
people and results.
Part 2: The role of the
project leader during
the key phases of the
project lifecycle
How the focus of the
project leader changes
through various stages of
the project lifecycle.
Part 3: The 3 key
competencies of a
project leader
Those things over and
above technical abilities
that make the
difference: business
acumen, interpersonal
skills and organizational
intelligence.
Part 4: Building
personal and
organizational
capability
Becoming an effective
project leader, exhibiting
effective project
leadership
Taking control of your
development and the
course of your career
How your organization
can assist your
An idealised project
leadership development
programme.

“Ifyoudowhatyou
alwaysdid,youget
whatyoualways
got.“

1. Insights you have from the materials
2. Particular questions you have about
the materials
3. Issues or challenges you have which
are reflected in the materials
4. Any solutions which the materials may
provide to your issues.

1. Insights you have from the materials
2. Particular questions you have about the materials
3. Issues or challenges you have which are reflected in the
materials
4. Any solutions which the materials may provide to your
issues.

Helping you to get the best out of the session
Description Tips on how to engage with me
… are warm, supportive and nurturing individuals
who develop strong networks of people who are
willing to be mutually supportive and reliable. They
are excellent team players, courteous, friendly,
good planners; persistent workers and good with
follow through.
 Be pleasant
 Be non assertive
 Be sincere
 Be consistent
 Be selfless
 Be supportive of my feelings
… are serious, analytical, persistent, systematic and
task oriented people who enjoy problem solving,
perfecting processes and working towards tangible
results. They do research, make comparisons,
determine risk, calculate margins of error and then
take action.
 Be logical and prepared
 Be precise
 Be supportive of my thoughts
 Be time disciplined
 Be respectful of rules
 Be structured and well organised
… are goal oriented go-getters who are most
comfortable when they are in charge of people and
situations. They focus on a no-nonsense approach
to bottom-line results. They are fast-paced; task
oriented and work quickly by themselves.
 Be brief
 Be assertive
 Be to the point
 Be practical
 Be supportive of my goals
 Be respectful of my time
… are outgoing, friendly and enthusiastic idea
people who excel in getting others excited about
their vision. They are fast paced, high energy and
deal with people in a positive upbeat way; eternal
optimists that can influence people and build
alliances to accomplish their goals.
 Be quick paced
 Be positive
 Be open
 Be flexible
 Be generous with your praise
 Be supportive of my idea
Copyright © 2016 Team Animation

Eight
Lookings
Part 1: Project leadership and the project leader. The concept of leadership
How research, models, techniques and ideas about mainstream organizational leadership are helping
to shape current thoughts about effective project leadership. Focus away from a technical skill base to
focus more on people and results
Questions:
1. Where are you currently focusing your attention and energy?
2. Do you have a natural tendency to focus on some aspects and not others? If so, why? Where do you believe
you should be focusing more and what impact do you believe that this change could make?
3. How aligned are you with those you work with? Do you need to be?

Questions:
1. What type of culture do
you work in? Is it the
same across the
organisation?
2. What type of culture do
thrive in? What are the
challenges of working
in other cultures?
3. What types of culture
do the organisations
you are currently
working with have e.g.
client or supplier? What
are the implications?
Project
Culture
Matrix™

Distinction between
three project types
Questions:
1. Do you believe that the style of project
leadership should depend on the nature
and circumstances of the project?
2. What do you believe are the defining
characteristics of the three types of
project shown?
3. What type of project leader is best
suited to each type?
4. What kind of project do you typically
work on? What type are you best suited
to?
Precise, clear concrete
outputs or deliverables
from the outset.
Are typically used as
vehicles for organizational
change or to tackle one-off
projects.
Are not clear in the early
stages about what outputs
are to be obtained. There
are many possibilities that
need to be investigated.

From To
From communication planning
To expert engagement of disparate
stakeholder groups
From delivering outputs and
outcomes
To delivering value, both explicit such as
defined benefits but also implicit such as
enhanced relationships and trust
From focusing on time, cost and
quality as the definitive success
criteria
To identifying the range of “hard” and “soft”
success criteria, recognizing the life-time value
From focusing on the control of
change
To actively seeking ways of improving value by
identifying opportunities and actively
advocating their acceptance
From viewing projects as stand-alone
entities and trying to manage as such
To accepting their place within organisations
and therefore the complex relationships that
exist with the many stakeholders critical to
ensure success including other functions and
networks, informal as well as formal
From rigorously applying standardised
P3M (project, programme and
portfolio management) approaches
To applying in a flexible and agile way to deal
with an increasingly fast moving world where
customer requirements are expected to
change
From working in static hierarchical
organizations
To delivering change continuously in dynamic
and innovative organizational frameworks
From being a master of process
To a reflective practitioner with the
capabilities and emotional intelligence to
learn and apply what is most appropriate from
the arsenal of materials available.
The capabilities of
the future project
leader
Questions:
1. Do you agree with our
assessment of the changes in
capability From what they are
now To what a future project
leader will require?
2. Are there any missing? What are
they? What are they important?
3. How many of these capabilities
do you have? What are you
doing to close the gap?
4. What capabilities do you believe
are most important? What
capabilities does the organisation
you work for value?

Part 2: The role of the project leader during the key phases of the project lifecycle
How the focus of the project leader changes through various stages of the project lifecycle.
A generic version of the project lifecycle:

Questions:
1. Which questions does your organization typically ask to sanity check their initiatives?
2. What other questions should be asked?
Five Critical Questions

Not all project leaders have the opportunity to get engaged at this early stage. Where they do, typically they
need to:
• Understand how the project is being shaped, scoped and designed given the hopes and ambitions of those
who want to benefit from it
• Understand the organization’s Vision and Big Picture and how the project fits with the organizational strategy
• Lead the development of a project vision to provide focus, clarity and alignment
• Support the development and presentation of the business case, ensuring the investment decision is sound so
that it will deliver the proposed value
• Support the development of relevant success criteria for the project for performance monitoring during delivery
and handover to the client at closure
• Ensure an appropriate definition and scope is put around the project
• Understand the constraints, assumptions and the various ideas of “success”
• Begin to plan the project and estimate what kinds of capabilities the project requires for successful completion
• Start to assess the risks of, and the quality required for, the project
• Develop a change control process: managing change to scope is an inevitable part of every project.
Stakeholder mapping techniques and dialogue are especially useful to the project leader at this early stage.
What’s the focus of the project leader during the shaping and scoping phase?
Question: What else should the project leader be focusing in on during this phase?

Here the project leader needs to:
• Identify and develop strong durable links with key stakeholders to gain support & commitment: the sponsor,
the client, the project team
• Assemble the project team: visible and invisible.
• Accelerate team development and cohesion through forming, storming, and norming to develop a high
performing team.
• Define the way you and the project team will work cross-functionally, multi-located, cross-culturally
• Develop the project plans: “what” needs to be done (understanding the activities and tasks) and “how” it
needs to be done (ownership & responsibility, quality, project culture)
• Develop appropriate communication plans and feedback mechanisms
• Assess project risks in detail
• Formulate the approach to the project
• Create the project culture that will deliver the project performance needed and to align effort
• Anticipate change to scope, market context, project success criteria and personnel
• Launch the project formally.
What’s the focus of the project leader during the start-up phase?

As the project progresses the focus shifts to keeping your finger on the pulse of the project and reviewing,
checking and anticipating:
• Remain aware of insidious and unanticipated ways in which slippage can occur
• Use appropriate monitoring tools and processes to provide rapid feedback on progress
• Provide regular opportunities for the team not only to review progress, but even more important, to anticipate
problems
• Control, monitor and report
• Maintain momentum
• Keep delivery on track and in line with the plans derived from the start-up phase
• Regularly review the health and performance of the project
• Respond to uncertainty and change
• Continue to communicate and invite feedback
• Actively market the project to build support and commitment
• Take the time simply to think, plan and reflect
• Celebrate success along the way
• Challenge underperformance.
What’s the focus of the project leader during the delivery phase?

At closure of the project the focus again shifts:
• Close down the project in a controlled manner regardless of a natural
or forced closure
• Understand this new version of the relationship with the client
• Ensure the client organization is linked into the project so that they
can use outputs and deliverables confidently
• Handover to the client
• Provide feedback, appraisals, references for project team members
• Formally adjourn the project team
• Review the project life cycle and processes
• Identify lessons learnt and ensure they are fed back into the
organization
• Celebrate and enjoy the success of the project
• Ensure the project Vision and success criteria have been met, or
handed over for further benefits tracking
• Consider your own future.
What’s the focus of the project leader during project closure?

Part 3: The 3 key competencies of a project leader
Those things over and above technical abilities that make the difference:
business acumen, interpersonal skills and organizational intelligence.
Questions:
1. How does your project help support your organizational strategy and the client’s strategy?
2. What is your project’s vision and how was it developed?
3. Looking to the future, when your project has successfully completed, how will the client make use of it?
4. How do you define “success” for your projects?
1. Vision and the Big Picture
Understanding how the project fits with the strategic direction of the organization,
developing the vision for the project and aligning key players and other stakeholders
• Project vision provides clarity and understanding about the
project aims and outcomes
• The Big Picture provides the context of market, economy, etc
• Understanding “success”: visible, implicit, latent

Questions:
1. How would you describe your relationships with your key stakeholders?
2. How would they describe their relationship with you?
3. On a scale of 1(low)-10(high), how would you rate your organizational intelligence?
4. How do you regard organizational politics? Are you a Shark, a Political Sensible or a Naïve?
2. Building Key Relationships
Identifying, developing and maintaining relationships with key players
• Identify the range of stakeholders and their particular
attributes
• Key players: sponsor, client, project team
• Develop and maintain relationships
• Dynamic not static: active and continued review, reappraisal
and renegotiation throughout the project
• Organizational intelligence
• Recognizing the political dynamics
• Improving your power base and influence.

3. Communication and Engagement
different facets of communication, including branding and marketing, which
help to build engagement with and commitment to the project
• Building credibility and support
• Strategic or tactical?
• Essential or nice to have if time and budget permit?
• Facilitating feedback
• Traditional and non-traditional channels
• Branding and marketing
• Framing appropriate communication
Questions:
1. Does your project communication benefit your project? How could it work better for you?
2. How will you brand and market your project to help build support and commitment from your stakeholders?
3. Do your project team members understand how they informally communicate and market the project to their
own networks and contacts?
4. As the project leader, how are you developing your own image and profile? What do you hope to achieve with
this?

Part 4: Building personal and organizational capability
Becoming an effective project leader, exhibiting effective project leadership. Taking control of your
development and the course of your career. How your organization can assist your personal
development. An idealised project leadership development programme
Honeycomb Project
Leadership Development
Framework™ and
Diagnostic™
Questions:
1. Looking at the 20 elements that we have
identified as fully supporting the development
and sustained success of project leaders,
what does your organisation have in place?
2. What is the most important gap? How can
this be best filled?
3. What elements can you actively support the
development or delivery of to help the
broader community?
4. Have you made the transition from project
manager to project leader? Are you clear on
the difference?

Effective
developmental
activities for
different
learning styles
Questions:
1. What is your preferred
learning style? What
impact does this have on
your learning?
2. Are there other
development activities,
apart from those
identified, that you use?
3. Have you tried other
styles of learning?
Learning Style Description Effective project leader developmental activities
Activists -
learn by doing.
Activists need to get their hands dirty
on projects and get direct experience.
They typically have an open-minded
approach to learning, involving
themselves fully and trying new
experiences.
 Problem solving wth project team members, possibly using
brainstorming or similar techniques
 Role-plays where learning points can be experienced
 All forms of interactive learning
 Group work opportunities.
Theorists -
like to
understand
the theory
behind the
actions.
Theorists need models, concepts and
facts in order to engage in their
particular learning process. They prefer
to analyse new information and
experiences, develop a theory which
they then test and then apply in new
project situations.
 Concentrate on concepts and theories presented in a variety
of ways
 Opportunity to apply the theories and then discuss in
Implementation Groups or as part of the community
 Like to debate and consider different angles to test their
theory
 Models backed up by objective data
 Hearing stories and having the opportunity to discuss
Pragmatists
- need to be
able to see
how to put the
learning into
practice in the
real world.
Applying on projects is critical since
abstract concepts are of limited use
unless the individual can see a way to
put the ideas into action on their
projects. Enjoy trying out new ideas,
theories and techniques to see if they
work in practice.
 Intense and comprehensive briefings on a topic can be
provided as long as they are interactive
 Case studies, building on these and solving problems can be
very effective
 Application on live projects is the most important
mechanism
 Need time to think about how to apply the learning on the
project.
Reflectors –
learn by
observing and
thinking about
what has
happened.
Prefer to stand back, initially watch
from the sidelines and view
experiences from a number of different
perspectives. Collect data and take the
time to work towards a conclusion
which they can then apply on their
projects.
 Content should be presented from a variety of perspectives
 Develop through problem-based learning and paired
discussions
 Benefit from self-analysis / personality questionnaires
 Require time-out to process and reflect after observing
activities
 Implementation Groups can be an effective means of
learning
 Welcome feedback from others and can gain considerable
value from coaching / mentoring.

Copyright © 2016 Team Animation
Questions:
• What is your preference re the involvement of others and use of materials in respect of your own
development?
• What are the most effective ways you have found for continuing professional development?
• What preferences do you have? Would you benefit from considering other options?
• For each type of intervention ask yourself: Is this readily available to me? Is this of interest to me? Will it
benefit me directly? Will it benefit the project I work on and the organization?
Personal
Development
Preferences

Participant
Training/facilitation
Mentor/Coach
Project Member
© Donnie MacNicol and Sarah Coleman
Time Year 1 Year 2
Personal
life
Personal
reflection
Project
execution
Local
implementation
groups
Experiential
learning
modules
Community
investment, sharing
and collaboration
Mentoring/Coaching
Key personal milestones
to take account of
Pre work Post work Pre work Post work
Key project milestones
to plan for
An idealized
project leader
development
programme
Questions:
• Is there a comparable
development programme
in place in your
organization? What
elements are in place?
• What would the benefits
be if there was such a
comprehensive
programme?
• Do you have a mentor or
coach? If you do, what are
the benefits? If you don’t,
who can you ask?

“As a major projects director, with experience in the
infrastructure and technology sectors, I believe the
skills critical to success are three-fold: the ability to
drive decision-making in the ‘fog’ of project complexity;
high emotional intelligence and cognitive aptitude; and
to have fun. If any are missing, it is time to call a taxi!”
Paul Mansell, Major Projects Advisor, Impaqt
Consulting
"At CH2M, the outstanding project leaders all exhibit
three characteristics… they exemplify the firm's
values, they instil loyalty and courage into our team
and they develop trusting but challenging relationships
with the client. It's being able to do all of these things
every day that makes them what they are". Mark
Thurston, Regional Managing Director, Europe,
CH2M
"Major energy projects by their very nature require a
multitude of complex elements to be aligned. From my
experience, leaders who can engage a range of
stakeholders and align expectations of success are
critical to major project delivery." Djan Suphi,
International Oil and Gas Business Development
Executive
“I’m often asked that if I could recommend only one
thing to secure more success in major projects, what
would it be? My answer is to hire a project leader who
has done it before, that is, who has a documented track
record of being able to deliver major projects
successfully. At Oxford we call such leaders Master
Builders.” Bent Flyvbjerg, Chair of Major Programme
Management at Oxford University's Saïd Business
School

To celebrate the publication of “Project
Leadership” 3rd Edition we are offering
a 35% discount using the code in the
leaflet.

Contacts
Donnie MacNicol
Team Animation
+44 (0)7799 766238
donnie@teamanimation.co.uk
www.teamanimation.co.uk
http://uk.linkedin.com/in/donniemacnicol
@donniemacnicol
http://www.facebook.com/pages/
Team-Animation-Ltd/160769337303100
Sarah Coleman
Business Evolution
+44 (0)7999 879870
sarah.coleman@businessevolution.co
www.businessevolution.co
http://uk.linkedin.com/in/sjcoleman
@business_evolve

RICS APM Project Leadership Conference Feb 2016

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