Project Decision Matrix

I spoke to a global group within my organisation this past week. One of the questions they asked is how we were able to make decisions with such speed for our CMP¹ development.

The answer is counterintuitive for some.

We achieve speed through having clear layers with delegation, ownership responsibility, and escalation paths well understood.

It is tempting to view lack of project structure as faster and more organic, but it is more effective to do the work up front to allow the team to work at speed.

Examples in practice:

• An organisation in the meeting complained CMP design was reviewed at every organisational layer, causing delays, escalating cost, and frustration. Every manager was once a specialist and will always be tempted to give input. Their collective wisdom should go into design principles so they can delegate everything else to the team. It is the role of the steering chairperson to stop the rest of steering if they step across their boundaries into micromanagement.
  

• Large organisations often have parallel bodies whose approval is needed. While the on the ground work is managed by the project team, the responsibility to resolve conflicts should sit with steering. Any conflict with one of these bodies should be promptly lifted to steering. Top down conflicts cannot be managed from the ground up. Otherwise this can cause substantial delays. Examples may include design approval boards, legal, InfoSec, etc.
  

• If steering does not agree principles before the project begins, the project often suffers from hidden disagreements which drive delay. The steering group must be aligned for a project to succeed, and principles ensure that alignment. If you do not have principles or alignment, differences get fought out in the project team, with generally poor results.

Good boundaries and project management principles are not overhead. They are essential for speed.

1. Customer Meeting Points