complex - how hard can it be, wednesday 21st january 2015
TRANSCRIPT
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How hard can it be? Dr Harvey Maylor
CARBS Event
University of Warwick
January, 2015
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Rethinking organisational design for the business of projects
Complexity response:
disciplines, behaviours,
processes
Complexity
portfolio
Capability and
capacity
Competitive
Strategy
Pro
ject-
leve
l O
rga
nis
ati
on
al-le
vel
Advanced Project Thinking:
Constraints + Lean + Visual
Management
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The complexity crisis
Time
Complexity / Capability
Complexity
Capability
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Identify
managerial
complexities
Actively
manage
complexities
Working framework
Complexity
assessment
tool
Resolve, reduce,
run with
Determine
managerial
response
Processes,
people,
paradoxes
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Academic Background
Grounded study (Maylor, Vidgen and Carver, 2008)
Systematic Literature Review (Geraldi, Maylor and Williams, 2011)
Proof of concept and complexity assessment tool (Maylor, Turner and Murray-Webster, 2013)
Can be summarised into 3 key dimensions:
Structural complexities
Socio-political complexities
Emergent complexities
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Managing Complexities
How to actively manage the complexities being
faced?
How many complexities are self-inflicted?
Three ways of addressing each:
Resolve – make it go away
Reduce – make less severe
Run with it – work out response
Q. In 43 workshops with a total of 1100 managers, what % of the identified
complexities were they able to plan to resolve or reduce?
A. 22% B. 52% C.82%
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Responding to complexities: The MLE approach
Influencer: relationship-builder
• What style of project leader do we need?
Strategist: Proactive, adaptive
S
E S-P
Manager / Operations deconstruct and solve
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Responding to complexities: Personal development
We asked a group of 246 PMs these questions
“In your work, which of the 3
complexities is the most difficult to
manage?”
“In your own formal training and
development, which of the 3
complexities has received the most
attention?”
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Teaching using complexity as a lens
• Done research and seen impact in practice
• Teaching using complexity lens
• Look at how to respond to complexities
• e.g. Leading Project Success – BAE Systems
Leader: relationship-builder
Entrepreneur: adaptive, flexible
S
E S-P
Manager: deconstruct and solve
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For future research
Complexity
of Response
Structural
complexities
Socio-political
complexities
Emergent
complexities
4. Build on 3. Iterative not linear
complexity response
1. Research AND Development 2. Standing on the shoulders…
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So what?
Complexities of projects
RRR
Complexity response
References:
Maylor, H., Turner, N. and Murray-Webster, R. (2013), ‘How Hard Can It Be? Actively Managing the Complexity of
Technology Projects,’ Research-Technology Management, (3*), Vol. 56, No. 4, pp. 45-51.
Geraldi, J., Maylor, H. & Williams, T. (2011), “Now Let’s Make It Really Complex (Complicated): a systematic review of
the complexities of projects,” International Journal of Operations and Production Management, (3*) Vol. 31, No. 9, pp.
966-990.
Maylor, H., Vidgen, R. and Carver, S. (2008), “Managerial Complexity in Project-Based Operations: A Grounded Model
and Its Implications for Practice,” Project Management Journal, (2*) Vol. 39 No.S1, pp. 15-26.
The future – linking research, teaching and practice
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This presentation was delivered at
an APM event
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events please visit our website
www.apm.org.uk/events