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Improving project delivery in the UK
Tim Banfield
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Tim Banfield
• Internationally recognised expert in the leadership of complex projects
and programmes
• 30 years working at the heart of the UK Government
• Head of the UK Government Project Delivery profession
• Leading role in the Association for Project Management and International
Centre for Complex Project Management
• Author of over 100 peer reviewed reports and thought pieces
• Proven track record of diagnosis of complex problems and provision of
viable solutions
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About Nichols
Nichols is a unique, independent company of strategic transformation
and change specialists. We provide advice on large iconic programmes and complex
mega projects for government and private sector clients alike.
For over 43 years we have brought clients’ vision to reality, and delivered work
in a wide range of areas, including regeneration, transport, decommissioning, energy
and technology.
Our original and unrivalled expertise and our depth of experience enables us to
provide an unparalleled service, developing and delivering some of the largest
programmes in the UK and across the globe.
As an independent, leading consultancy with industry authority, we have the
imagination and capability to fulfil all complex programme and project
management needs.
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Key messages
1. Successful projects change lives for the better.
2. People deliver projects by making consistently good judgements.
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Agenda
1. The opportunity
2. The problem
3. Complicating factors
4. Developing people
5. Making good decisions
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1. The opportunity
Projects deliver change
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Perspectives on success
Components of requirements
BenefitsAchievement of strategic aims
Value added to society
Realisation of policy
OutcomesThe impact of outputs
The extent to which the outputs are used
OutputsProject performance
Examples measures
Sustainability
Satisfies needs
Economic effects
Social benefits
Stakeholder satisfaction
Relevance
Take-up
Stakeholder acceptability
Time
Cost
Quality
Scope
Safety
Source: Project Initiation Routemap
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Effectiveness vs efficiency
Outcome
Relationships Change
TimeCost
Effective projects
TimeCost
Quality
Efficient projects
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2. The Problem
The situation in 2010
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“A project that starts poorly never improves”*
Before 2010, two thirds of UK Government projects failed. The Major
Projects Review 2010 highlighted:
• A lack of central oversight
• No understanding of the scale of the undertaking such as the
number, size or complexity of Government projects
• Little accountability or responsibility for underperformance
• Little collaboration between the departments and the centre
• Lack of effective senior project leadership capability
• Previous performance no longer acceptable
* Getting a Grip: how to improve major project execution and control in government (Lord Browne)
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Diversity of the UK Government portfolio
Infrastructure
Crossrail
Geological Disposal Facility Programme
HS2
Olympic Park
Sellafield
Information Technology
Columbus (Aspire Replacement
Programme)
Crime Change Programme
Nursing Technology Fund
NHS Mail
Defence Equipment
Nuclear Warhead Capability Sustainment
Programme
Airseeker
Queen Elizabeth Carriers
Chinook
Transformation
Universal Credit
HMCTS reform
Electoral Registration Transformation
Programme
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3. Complicating factors
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Transformation is different from traditional project delivery and
takes time
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Aspects of delivery complexity
• Strategic importance
• Deliverers and influencers
• Requirements and benefit articulation
• Stability of overall context
• Financial impact and value for money
• Execution complexity (including
technology)
• Interfaces and relationships
• Range of disciplines and
skills
• Dependencies
• Extent of change
• Organisational capability,
performance to date
• Interconnectedness
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The shape of the Government project portfolio
15
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Bridging the gap
Policy developmentImplementation
planningImplementation delivery
Public
commitment
Policy
experts
Delivery
experts
Public
commitment
Policy
Future model
Announcement of
policy intent
Current model
Policy
experts
Delivery
experts
Implementation delivery
Implementation
Policy development
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Challenges to good initiation
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The delivery world is continuing to change
New ways of working
Agile
Collaboration
Global business model
New technologies
Cloud
Digital transformation
Advanced analytics
Big data
New people
Gen Y
Millennials
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4. Developing people
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Four levels of people engagement
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Why people matter
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What the profession covers
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Project leadership development
Delivered through:
Orchestrating Major Projects – Key Senior Influencers
Major Projects Leadership Academy – Senior Responsible Owners and Project Directors
Project Leadership Programme – New Project Leaders
Competency Domain Description
Leadership of Self Distinguishing the self-knowledge to allow a leader to know how to maximise their
leadership impact on the project.
Leadership of Major Projects Distinguishing those attributes of leadership which are most germane to major
projects (‘temporary organisations’), compared to the leadership of ongoing
operations.
Commercial Leadership The competency to provide commercial leadership and exert effective control over
the ‘extended delivery team’ across organisational boundaries.
Technical Leadership The competency of appropriately applying the principles, disciplines and tools to
programme and project management to support the leadership of the project.
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Project Delivery Career Pathways
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PMO Director 1
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PMO Director 1 Continued
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5. Making good decisions
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Transformation programmes need different aptitudes
Features What they mean for capital programmes What is different for transformation
Setup Clear, ‘engineered’ design signed off before
execution.
Clear vision of the outcomes and benefits but avoid
detailed solutions in the early phases. More iterative
approach, testing and learning from experience.
Leadership Maximising a defined network’s delivery of very
specific products.
Maximising a ‘loose’ network to work towards a common
aspiration.
Stakeholders Engaging stakeholders to support a defined,
detailed plan.
Engaging stakeholders as we develop ‘the what and the
why’ of the transformation.
Budgets &
Plans
Making external comparisons to ensure
commercial and funding goals can be reached.
Avoid detailed plans too early, before sufficient scoping
and experimentation and network engagement has
happened.
Risk
management
Structured management of a detailed risk
register that covers all elements of the
programme, linked to management of the
contingency.
Focus on the big issues that are likely to run through
implementation, e.g. customer behaviour, partner or
supplier support, delivery pace requirements.
Commercial
strategy
Procurement frequently in one big-bang
transaction, following a clear commercial
strategy.
Able to adopt a more experimental, incremental
approach to commercial resourcing.
Resources Reliance on very specific technical skills.
Programme management capability is crucial to
success.
Reliance on a broad skillset, including transformational
leadership, organisation design, digital leadership (not
‘doing’), communications, tailored governance and
review.
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Strategic prioritisation
What is the landscape (number, characteristics, status and level of aggregation of each project) of the
department’s current projects portfolio?
How does the projects portfolio, and each individual project, align with and support the delivery of the
department’s strategic objectives?
What is the through-life cost, funding, and resourcing profile of the department’s projects portfolio?
What are the constraints to delivering the department’s projects portfolio, and what are we doing to address
these constraints?
What are the interdependencies within the department’s projects portfolio, and how are we managing the impact
of these interdependencies?
What are the major risks against the department’s projects, at both the project and cumulative portfolio level,
and how are we managing these risks?
What is the department’s future pipeline of projects, and how will those projects be integrated into the portfolio?
What is the department’s prioritisation of projects, and how have we prioritised these projects?
How effective is the existing governance structure for both individual projects and the portfolio as a whole, and
what mechanisms exist for ongoing review and management of the portfolio?
Does the department have a culture that encourages openness about issues facing both individual projects and
the portfolio as a whole, and action on the basis of any concerns?
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The role of the Senior Responsible Owner
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Accountability and responsibility
Project leaders were not empowered to get the job done:
• Complex accountability structures
• Unclear lines of responsibility
Accountability has been clarified with formal letters of appointment, explaining:
• The role
• Accountability
• Tenure
With a full understanding of remit, SROs will be able to have more rigorous
discussions with decision makers
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A holistic view of success
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Weak signals
• Contractor relationships
• Team health
• Staff turnover
• Skills/post gaps
• Earned Value Management
• Time and cost performance
against plan
• Risk profile/contingency
• Delivery of outcomes and
benefits against plans
• Performance of dependent
projects
• Volatility of funding
• Contractor financial stability
• Changes in external risks
• Progressing without approvals
• Outcomes of independent reviews
• Length of time since last
independent review
• Acting on advice
• Compliance with the integrated
assurance plan
Performance People
Review and
scrutiny
External
factors
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Ethics
• What priorities does this decision support or work against?
• Does it reflect the values of the organisations and decision-makers?
• What are the consequences for each stakeholder?
• What qualms would the decision-makers have about public disclosure?
• What is the positive/negative symbolic potential if the decision is
understood/misunderstood?
• How would my children look back on this?
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I would be delighted to discuss further
Tim Banfield
+44 (0) 7730 814057
www.nicholsgroup.co.uk