The real question is why is managing projects so hard? The Project Management processes are well defined, well documented, mature, and available to anyone anywhere. But we still seem to think, or at least make the claim that “managing projects” requires some type of special skill, requiring processes not found in these standard approaches.

1. Why
is
Project
Management
So
Hard?
The
real
question
is
why
is
managing
projects
so
hard?
The
…
two
sorts
of
truth:
trivialities,
Project
Management
processes
are
well
defined,
well
where
opposites
are
obviously
documented,
mature,
and
available
to
anyone
anywhere.
absurd,
and
profound
truths,
But
we
still
seem
to
think,
or
at
least
make
the
claim
that
recognized
by
the
fact
that
the
“managing
projects”
requires
some
type
of
special
skill,
opposite
is
also
a
profound
truth.
–
requiring
processes
not
found
in
these
standard
Niels
Bohr
(1885–1962)
approaches.
If
we
look
for
the
profound
truths
of
project
management
what
would
we
find?
Can
these
truths
be
successfully
discovered
and
applied
to
projects
by
a
person
called
a
“Project
Manager?”
As
well,
what
are
the
elements
of
Irreducible
Complexity
(IC)
for
managing
projects
that
can
be
found
in
these
processes?
That
is,
what
are
the
minimum
set
“things”
that
must
be
done
to
“manage”
a
project?
Irreducible
Complexity
says
that
a
complex
system
is
made
up
of
multiple
components
that
perform
functions
within
the
context
of
a
larger
system.
The
process
areas
of
project
management
being
used
to
manage
a
project
are
an
example.
If
a
project
management
process
is
removed,
then
is
the
“management
of
projects”
somehow
inhibited?
If
a
project
management
process
is
removed,
does
the
system
made
up
of
the
project
management
processes
become
useless?
This
is
clear
to
see
in
physical
systems
–
say
a
radio
or
a
piece
of
DNA
in
a
biology
system.
Remove
a
part
and
it
stops
working
–
in
most
cases
–
but
can
it
also
be
equally
of
processes
used
to
manage
projects?.
Several
processes
can
be
linked
together
and
have
value
only
as
an
integrated
set
–
each
individual
process
is
as
an
enabler
and
can
also
have
inherent
value
by
itself.
In
assessing
the
value
of
multiple
process
or
technology
changes
that
are
interrelated,
they
should
be
valued
as
an
integrated
set.
First,
a
Look
at
the
Core
Problem
The
next
step
is
the
obligatory
presentation
of
how
bad
the
industry
is
in
managing
projects.
KPMG’s
Global
IT
Project
Management
survey
found:
! Corporate
benchmarking
study
identified
serious
deficiencies
in
senior
executive
management
skills
with
IT
projects.
Lack
of
PM
skills
cut
benefits
of
IT
projects
by
25%.
! “Project
governance
practices
today
focus
on
making
commitments,
not
keeping
them.
Executives
are
involved
in
selecting
and
approving
projects,
but
rarely
delivering
them.”
49%
experienced
one
project
failure
in
past
12
months.
This
is
certainly
not
new
information
for
anyone
working
in
the
IT
business
or
any
business
related
to
IT.
But
how
can
these
types
of
issues
be
addressed.
It’s
easy
to
point
out
the
problems.
It’s
much
harder
to
identify
solutions
that
provide
measureable
benefit
–
not
just
a
restatement
of
the
obvious.
Niwot
Ridge
Consulting,
L.L.C
Copyright
2014
1

2. What
is
it
about
Project
Management
that
We
Don’t
“Get?”
The
problems
abound
in
the
market
place;
the
solutions
–
or
at
least
the
supposed
solutions
–
flood
the
book
stores,
academic
halls,
web
pages,
and
conference
proceedings.
Professional
certificates,
commercial
and
government
standards,
whole
departments
are
dedicated
in
large
corporations
to
the
“management
of
projects.”
Some
speak
of
the
minimum
set
of
processes,
or
the
lightest
weight
processes,
or
the
most
agile
processes.
What
actually
does
this
mean?
What
are
these
processes?
How
can
it
be
shown
that
they
are
in
fact
the
minimal
processes?
And
if
they
are
the
minimal
processes,
how
can
it
be
shown
they
are
the
right
minimal
set?
“Dieu
a
choisi
celuy
qui
est...
le
plus
simple
en
hypotheses
et
le
plus
riche
en
phenomenes”
«God
has
chosen
that
which
is
the
most
simple
in
hypotheses
and
the
most
rich
in
phenomena»
—
Leibniz,
in
Discours
de
métaphysique,
VI.
1686
The
primary
question
for
Project
Management
is
–
“what
is
the
minimal
set
of
processes
needed
to
successfully
delivery
the
project?”
“What
is
the
Irreducible
Complexity
of
Project
Management?”
Start
at
the
Beginning
The
Eisenhower
quote
begs
the
question
–
“what
do
I
have
This
operation
is
being
planned
as
a
to
do
as
a
project
manager
to
not
fail?”
“What
actions
do
I
success;
we
cannot
afford
to
fail
–
need
to
take
every
day?”
“What
processes
do
I
have
to
put
Eisenhower
referring
to
Operation
into
place
and
use?”
“What
staff
skills
do
I
need
to
be
Overlord
successful?”
“How
should
I
engage
the
stakeholders
in
order
to
discover
what
their
needs
are?”
These
are
questions
every
project
manager
should
be
asking.
The
answers
need
to
be
supportive
of
the
project
in
terms
that
are
measurable
and
meaningful
to
the
customer
and
the
project
management
team.
Here’s
three
simple
examples
of
the
processes
used
to
“manage
a
project.”
Project
Management
Institute
Heavy
Construction
Aerospace
and
Defense
Scope
Management
Charter
the
Team
Program
Authorization
Time
Management
Plan
the
Project
Prime
and
subcontractor
organization
Cost
Management
Endorse
the
Project
Program
Planning
Integration
Management
Manage
Change
Authorize
Work
Quality
Management
Close
Project
Define
and
Control
Budget
Human
Resources
Management
Control
Account
Management
Communications
Management
Control
Change
Risk
Management
Analyze
Performance
Procurement
Management
Management
Risk
and
Opportunity
Niwot
Ridge
Consulting,
L.L.C
Copyright
2014
2

3. Let’s
address
the
typical
“red
herring”
of
the
counter–“project
manager”
crowd.
Those
who
are
convinced
that
the
role
of
professional
project
management
and
the
processes
used
by
these
project
managers
should
be
replaced.
Of
course
replaced
by
their
own
processes.
When
you
see
a
term
like
“control,”
“manage,”
or
“plan”
these
terms
are
verbs
applied
to
nouns.
The
nouns
are
“objects”
to
be
controlled,
managed,
or
planned.
These
nouns
are
always
random
variables.
Variables
like
cost,
schedule,
and
technical
performance.
So
this
brings
us
to
the
first
of
the
core
or
irreducible
complexities
of
managing
a
project.
The
things
trying
to
be
managed
are
not
manageable
in
a
definitized
way.
The
things
that
are
being
managed,
controlled,
or
planned
have
natural
and
unnatural
variances.
Trying
to
manage,
control,
or
plan
variances
of
the
nouns
below
their
bounds
of
natural
variance
is
a
waste
of
time
and
money.
This
is
the
level
below
which
the
process
should
not
be
taken.
Back
to
the
Question
–
Why
is
Project
Management
So
Hard?
When
the
processes
from
above
are
applied
to
a
project,
why
does
the
project
still
get
in
trouble?
There
has
to
be
more
to
it
than
just
not
applying
the
processes
correctly.
Or
not
applying
the
right
processes
to
the
right
problem.
Or
even
not
applying
the
processes
all
together.
The
concept
of
a
competency
based
skill
set
required
to
manage
a
project
is
well
understood
in
other
business
domains.
Petrochemical
plants,
pulp
and
paper,
electric
utilities,
aerospace
and
defense,
heavy
construction.
All
these
domains
have
Project
Management
processes
that
are
successful
(in
most
cases).
But
they
also
have
domain
competency
“as
encompassing
knowledge,
skills,
attitudes,
and
behaviors
that
are
causally
related
to
superior
job
performance,”
(Boyatzis
1982)
So
why
is
this
concept
so
hard
to
get
across
in
the
softer
project
world
–
like
IT?
I
would
suggest
project
management
is
hard
because
when
we
fail
to
start
with
principles,
the
project
manager
doesn’t
know
what
he
doesn’t
know
and
proceeds
to
manage
the
project
on
“gut
instinct”
alone.
Worse,
manage
the
project
with
an
inappropriate
set
of
principles.
The
principles
of
project
management
and
the
application
of
these
principles
to
managing
projects
is
rarely
something
that
comes
about
on
their
own.
These
principles
have
been
developed
over
time
and
tested
in
a
variety
of
business
domains.
What
are
the
Irreducible
Principles
of
Project
Management?
So
now,
we
get
to
the
end.
I
had
intended
to
speak
to
my
version
of
the
Irreducible
Principles
of
Project
Management.
In
a
very
timely
manner,
an
article
in
the
Jan/Feb
2008
issue
of
Defense
AT&L,
“Good
Project
Management
Top
20,”
http://www.dau.mil/pubs/dam/2008_01_02/tur_jf08.pdf
arrived.
Wayne
Turk
makes
the
case
for
a
set
of
project
management
processes.
I
will
not
list
the
details
here,
but
his
list
is
all
you
need
to
get
started:
Niwot
Ridge
Consulting,
L.L.C
Copyright
2014
3

4. 1. Requirements
are
the
underpinnings
of
project
success
–
if
you
don’t
know
what
the
project
is
supposed
to
do,
then
it’s
be
hard
delivering
the
solution.
2. Planning
is
the
project’s
roadmap
and
is
ongoing
–
a
plan
is
a
strategy
for
successfully
delivering
the
project.
3. Communication—up,
down,
and
sideways—is
a
must
–
plans
change,
requirements
change,
everything
changes.
Change
is
natural.
Communication
makes
the
change
visible.
4. User
/
customer
involvements
can
prevent
misunderstandings
–
the
project
must
provide
value
for
the
customer.
Progress
must
be
measured
in
units
meaningful
to
the
customer.
5. The
three
primary
dimensions—cost,
schedule,
and
technical
performance
—must
be
top
concerns.
6. Leadership
and
management
go
together
–
both
are
needed.
One
cannot
be
successful
without
the
other.
7. Responsibility
with
the
appropriate
authority
is
necessary
for
the
Project
Manager,
the
task
leads,
and
the
customer
–
defining
the
responsibilities
and
the
authorities
in
a
clear,
concise,
and
public
manner
is
a
critical
success
factor.
8. Set
priorities;
then
re-­‐examine
them
periodically
–
priorities
drive
decisions.
9. Gather
the
right
metrics
for
the
right
reasons
–
measure
progress
through
increasing
maturity
and
physical
percent
complete.
Never
through
the
consumption
of
resources
and
the
passage
of
time.
10. Having
good
people
makes
being
a
successful
Project
Manager
much
easier
–
this
is
a
universal
law
of
nature.
Good
means
experienced,
trained,
capable,
motivated,
and
willing
to
work
on
the
team
for
the
better
good
of
the
project.
11. Give
people
the
right
tools
so
that
they
can
do
their
jobs
–
tools
amplify
skills.
12. Selling
the
project
can
garner
support
from
above
–
“keeping
the
project
sold”
is
critical
to
being
able
to
successfully
deliver.
13. Manage
risk—but
take
risks
when
you
have
to
–
“Risk
Management
is
how
Adults
Manage
Projects.”
14. Use
good
people
skills,
and
people
will
respond
with
good
work
–
this
requires
both
leadership
and
management
skills.
15. Adequate,
thorough,
and
timely
testing
with
good
test
plans
makes
for
good
products
–
“Testing
retires
risk.”
16. Transmitting
the
appropriate
urgency
is
the
right
kind
of
motivation
–
deciding
what
activities
produce
what
value
is
the
starting
point
of
“urgency
based”
motivation.
17. Monitor,
but
do
not
micromanage
–
measure
physical
progress
to
plan.
Determine
how
to
move
the
project’s
maturity
forward
at
the
“value
delivery”
level.
Let
those
tasked
with
delivering
this
value
determine
the
details.
18. Using
“outsiders”
correctly
is
a
team
multiplier
–
focus
on
core
competencies,
outsource
the
rest.
19. Focus
on
the
important
areas,
but
do
not
ignore
the
rest
–
define
“important”
in
terms
of
value
delivery
to
the
customer.
20. Expectations
should
be
high
for
yourself
and
your
people,
and
realistic
for
the
stakeholders
–
push
beyond
the
limit
of
cost
and
schedule
performance.
It
puts
money
and
time
in
the
bank.
21. Do
not
lose
your
sense
of
humor
–
laugh
at
yourself
first.
Conclusion
The
principles
above
are
not
project
management
process
areas.
Project
Management
process
can
be
derived
from
these
principles.
These
principles
can
be
supported
by
all
the
process
areas
in
the
table
above.
There
possibly
are
other
processes
and
process
areas
that
can
be
derived
from
these
principles.
But
the
principles
are
likely
candidates
for
the
Irreducible
set.
Failing
to
employ
one
or
more
of
these
principles
will
lead
to
disappointment.
Niwot
Ridge
Consulting,
L.L.C
Copyright
2014
4