wright-time and budget criteria
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P e r g a m o n
International Journal of Project ManagementVol. 15, No. 3, pp. 181-186, 1997© 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd and IPMA. All rights reserved
Printed in Grea t Britain0263-7863/97 $17.00 + 0.00
PII: S0263-7863(96)00059-2
Time and budget: the twinimperat ives of a project sponsor
J Nevan WrightAuckland Institute of Technology, Auckland, New Zealand
T hi s pa per i s wr i t t en by a ma n who ha s nev er ma na g ed a pro ject , but who ha s f requent l y
empl o y ed pro ject ma na g ers . He ha s the t emeri ty to d i scuss wha t c l i en t s rea l l y wa nt . Ma ny
pro ject ma na g ers mi g ht be surpr i sed to l ea rn tha t t i me a nd co s t a re the tw i n i mpera t i v es o f
c l i en ts . ( It i s a s sum ed tha t pro ject s w i l l be co mpl eted mo r e o r l ess t o spec if i ca t i o n .) T he rea so n s
why pro ject s a re se l do m co mpl eted o n t i me a nd wi th i n budg et a re ex p l o red a nd sug g es t i o ns a re
ma de a s to ho w a pro ject ma na g er ca n mi n i mi ze the fa l l -o ut when these tw i n i mpera t i v es a re
no t met . I t is co nc l uded tha t the pro b l em l i es pa rt ly w i th a l a ck o f unders ta ndi ng o f the
co mpl ex i t i es o f a pro ject by spo nso rs a nd pa rt l y i n the ma nner i n whi ch pro ject ma na g ers
po s i t i o n themse l v es . I t i s reco mmended tha t pro ject ma na g ers sho u l d no t co ns i der tha t they a re
wo rk i ng fo r a ' c l i en t ', but ra ther tha t they sho u l d po s i t i o n themse l v es a s a mem ber o f the c li en t
g ro up , wo rk i ng f ro m wi th i n ra ther tha n f ro m wi tho ut . I t i s co ntended tha t i n th i s ma nner a
pro ject ma n a g er w i l l be in a bet t er po s i t i o n to g a in the a ccepta nce a nd unders ta ndi ng o f a ll the
s ta keho l ders o f a pro ject . Wi tho u t a ccepta nc e a nd the co o pera t i o n o f s ta keho l ders i t i s
co ns i dered un l i ke l y tha t a ny pro ject w i l l be co mpl eted nea r t i me o r do se to budg et . F i na l l y ,
i t i s co nc l ude d tha t fo r a v a r i e ty o f rea so ns se l do m wi l l a ny pro ject co me i n o n t i me a nd budg et .
I t i s sug g es t ed tha t i f co mmuni ca t i o n between the pro ject ma na g er a nd the o ther s ta keho l dersi s f ree a nd o pen then the pro ject ma n a g er ' s reputa t i o n , i ns t ea d o f su f f er i ng when the tw i n
i mpera t i v es o f t i me a nd budg et a re no t a ch i ev ed , mi g ht ev en be enha nced . © 1 9 9 7 El sev i er
S c i e n c e L t d a n d I P M A
Keywords: sponsor, tea m, tea m building, commun ication, stakeholder, time, bu dget
"Men, my brothers, men the workersever reaping something new:
That which they have done
but earnest of the things
that they shall do."Tennyson
I am no t a p ro j ec t mana ger , no r have I ever been one . O ver
t he year s , ho wever , I have emp l oye d p ro j ec t manage r s , and
as a ' c l i en t ' I know what I wan t . I wan t t he p ro j ec t com-
pleted to speci f icat ion , on t ime and wi th in budget .
F rom my exper i ence mos t p ro j ec t s a r e even t ua l l y com-
p l e t ed m ore o r l es s t o spec if i ca ti on , bu t se l dom on t i me and
wi t h i n budge t . Fo r me , and fo r every o t her ' c l i en t ' I have
spoken t o , t i me and budge t a r e t he t w in i mpera t i ves . Wh en
I made t h i s po i n t i n a paper p r esen t ed t o a C onference o f
t he P ro j ec t Managemen t In s t i t u t e , New Zea l and C hap t e r i n
Nov em ber 1995 t severa l de l ega t es exp ressed su rp r ise .
The genera l f ee l i ng was t ha t t i me and cos t were no t t heonly , or overr id ing , cr i ter ia . Indeed, th is i s so , but my
point i s that i t i s not for the pro ject manager to decide.
Shou l d t here be any h i n t o f a dev i a ti on f ro m t he ag reed t i me
f r ame o r budge t t hen it i s ve ry mu ch t he ' c l i en t ' s ' concern ;
rather than the pro ject manager , albei t wi th good in tent ions,
t r y i ng t o r emedy t he s i t ua t i on a l one , any concerns shou l d
be commun i ca t ed as soon as poss i b l e t o t he c l i en t .
To a genera l manager p ro j ec t managemen t appear s t o be
s t r a i gh t fo rward . The ve ry na t u re o f a p ro j ec t means t ha tthere i s a def in i te goal , a budge t and a time f ram e. Likew ise
when t he p ro jec t i s compl e t ed everyone kn ows t he ou t come.
We can a l l measu re i f t he j ob i s compl e t ed t o spec i f i ca t i on ,
t he cos t can be com pu t ed and i t i s ve ry obv i ous i f t he t a rge t
da t e has been met . I f on l y genera l manag emen t was t ha t
c l ea r cu t ! Wi t h genera l managemen t t her e i s a l ways more
t han one goa l and o f t en goa l s a r e compet i ng fo r r esou rces .
L i kewi se wi t h genera l managemen t t her e i s no se t t i me
f r ame. The bus i ness does no t f i n ish a t the end o f t he
f i nanc i a l year , t he show goes on year a f t e r year .
Up unt i l recent ly I put the b lame fai r ly and squarely on
p ro j ec t manage r s fo r no t keep i ng wi t h i n budge t and fo r no t
per fo rmi ng wi t h i n t he a l l o t t ed t i me f r ame. My argumen t
was t ha t t he p ro j ec t manager i n accep t i ng t he b r i e f , t ookresponsib i l i ty for the pro ject being completed to speci f ica-
t ion , on t ime and wi th in budget . Al l the essent ial elements
o f t he p ro j ec t were wel l known i n advance and had been
agreed by both par t ies : the so s ty led ' c l ien t ' and the pro ject
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Time and budget: J N Wright
manager . Fa i lure to comple te a pro jec t on t ime and to
budge t could sure ly only be the pro jec t manager ' s fau l t ?
After a l l , is not the cl ient a lways r ight?
Positioning the project manager
I suggest that a contribut ing factor as to why project managers
ca r ry the b lame when the twin impera t ives of t ime and
budge t a re over -expended, begins wi th the way in which
they pos i t ion themse lves . P ro jec t managers t end to t ake a
subserv ient ro le to the pe rson or organi sa t ion employing
them. This i s c lea r ly demons t ra ted by the pro jec t manager
re fe r r ing to the sponsor o f the pro jec t a s the ' c l i en t . '
Admi t t ed ly , i f the pro jec t manager i s h i red f rom wi thout
the organisat ion , then th ere is some jus t i f icat ion in con-
s idering the sponsor as the cl ient , but even this can be
chal lenged. I would suggest that once the project begins
then an exte rna l ly appoin ted pro jec t manager should seek
to becom e in te rnal i sed , i . e. to becom e par t of the organi sa -
t ion for the dura t ion of the pro jec t . I f the pro jec t man ager
is appointed from within the organisat ion there is no val idreason why the pro jec t manag er should cons ider the sponsor
as a client.
The term cl ient suggests that one party in a t ransact ion is
in the posi t ion of having to be sat is fied or even placated,
' t he c l ien t is a lways r ight syndro me ' . The o ther pa r ty to the
t ransac t ion , the provider of a produc t or s e rv ice , has the
subservien t role of s t r iving to sat is fy. If a project ma nag er
refers to the sponsor as the cl ient then by implicat ion the
projec t manag er has accepted the subserv ient ro le of having
to s t r ive to sat is fy the cl ient .
Cons ider the provider and c l i en t re la t ionship in any o ther
type of commerc ia l t ransac t ion . In a manufac tur ing ente r -
prise the cl ient or end user is not normally in day to day
contac t wi th the fac tory manag er . T rue , wi th the concept ofin terna l cus tomers , fac tory pe rsonne l wi l l be encouraged to
th ink of the next pe rson in the process as the i r cus tomer o r
cl ient. 2 I t is not expected, how ever, that internal cus tom ers
wil l busy themselves with how the preceding s tep is being
carried out , they are only interes ted in receiving a product
which meets specificat ion. The same is t rue with a service
industry. With a service t ransact ion the cl ient is the
rec ip ient of the se rv ice and does not become involved in
te ll ing the pro vider of the se rv ice how to do the job , and
in mos t cases much of the work i s done in the ' back of f i ce '
away f rom the c l i en t . 3 But no mat te r w he ther a manufac-
turing or service organisat ion or whether cl ients are
in te rna l or ex te rna l , for mo s t comm erc ia l t ransac tions the re
is only one immediate cl ient to be sat is fied and Carlzon's
mom ents of t ru th (poin ts of contac t be tween pro vider and
cl ient) are few and short l ived. 4
The d i f fe rences be tween pro jec t manage ment and norm al
c o m m e r c i a l m a n a g e m e n t a r e s e v e r a l.
F i r s t , t he pro jec t manager wi l l no t be making a produc t
for , or interact ing with, jus t one cl ient . For a project
manager the re wi l l a lways be severa l s t akeholders , and inmany cases the outcome of the pro jec t , e spec ia l ly where
change m anagem ent i s involved , wi l l of t en a f fec t the whole
organisat ion. Certainly there wil l be a sponsor who is
somet imes known as the pro jec t d i rec tor . But th i s one
person cannot be said to be the cl ient . The sponsor wil l be
only on e of the s takeholders in the project .Secondly , the re wi l l no t be jus t a few shor t mo ments o f
t ru th . The pro jec t man ager wi l l , for the dura t ion of the pro-
ject , be cont inuously interact ing with several s takeholders .
Thi rd ly , w hen the pro jec t i s over , i f the pro jec t mana ger
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was appoin ted f ro m wi th in the organi sa t ion , he / she i s going
to have to l ive with the end users and, ind eed, be one of the
end users . In short , the project manager in this sense,
becomes h i s or he r own c l i en t .
The advantages of working f rom w i th in and as pa r t of an
organi sa t ion as aga ins t working f rom wi thout ( in a sub-
servient role fo r the cl ient who has to be sat isfied), must be
obviou s . Ins tead o f being an outs ider l imited to sat is fyingone person the pro jec t manager can now be pos i t ioned as
be ing par t of the organi sa tion , w orking wi th mem bers of
the organisat ion to achieve a goal beneficial to al l . Once
accepted as pa r t of the organi sa t ion com munica t ion bar r i e rs
wi l l b reak down and i t wi l l become eas ie r for the pro jec t
mana ger to expla in the purpose and benef i ts of the pro jec t.
The s p o n s o r
Cer ta in ly the re has to be one foca l pe rson for the pro jec t
manager to repor t and look to for suppor t and as s i s t ance .
P ro jec t managers do not work in a vacuum. They ma y have
been re l i eved of o the r dut i es to manage a pro jec t and to ldto concentrate on the project to the exclus ion of al l e lse .
How ever , l ike any fi e ld of human endeav our they wi l l no t
be able to do i t a l l by themselves . They wil l need resources
and s t rong and vis ible support . Therefore, le t us cal l that
foca l pe rson the pro jec t champion o r the sponsor but not the
client.
P ro jec t managers draw the i r human resources f rom
various departments and discipl ines within the organisat ion
and of t en a l so f rom wi thout the organi sa t ion . I f a manager
of a depar tment who i s ca l led upon to ' l en d ' re sources for
a project is not ful ly support ive of the project , then
resources may only be made ava i l ab le grudgingly and a t a
t ime sui table to the lending department . Likewise the
ca l ibre of the loaned resource may b e suspec t. Then too theperson be ing ' l en t ' may be more concerned wi th the i r
pr im ary job , and consequent ly p lace more impor tance on
looking a fter that job (and incidental ly their own interes ts)
ra the r than the requi rements of the pro jec t . Thi s l ack of
com mi tm ent to a pro jec t wi l l be mo re l ike ly to ex i st i f the
percept ion i s that the i r ' r ea l ' boss (not the pro jec t manager )
is less than vi tal ly interes ted in the outcome of the project .
Lack of suppor t by personne l f rom other d iv i s ions does
not a lways mean tha t people a re de l ibe ra te ly , or even
maliciously, creat ing difficul t ies . Often lack of support
de r ives f rom pres sures in the i r own d iv i s ion and a pre -
occupa t ion wi th o ther 'more impor tant ' p r ior i t i e s . In
addi t ion, Eddie Obe ng 5 found that there w il l be ins tances
where some people wil l have a ves ted interes t in the fai lure
of a pro jec t . T he reasons for th is can inc lude j ea lousy ,
r iva l ry , l ack of apprec ia t ion of the a ims of the pro jec t , o r
s imply an avers ion to change . Turner 6 al so d i scusses
individual personal object ives , including hidden agendas
and covert object ives . Such agendas and object ives include
manag ers us ing a pro jec t to widen the i r sphere of inf luence ,
people res i s t an t to change and people wishing to pro tec t
the i r jobs .Whatever the os tens ib le reason for l ack of in te res t or
support for a project , the real reason wil l be t raceable back
to a l ack of s t rong and v i s ib le suppor t by senior manage-
ment . I t is , therefore, essent ial that senior management
promotes the pro jec t and i s s een to be ac t ive ly doing so .Forem an and M oney 7 desc r ibe th is a s ' i n t e rna l mar ke t ing ' .
In shor t , i t cannot be over emphas i sed tha t a l l involved
wi th in the organi sa t ion have to be aware of the objec t ives
and the impor tance of the pro jec t. In today ' s c l imate of
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open management th i s would not s eem to be a s t a r t l ing
suggest ion, but in real i ty projects are often not given s t rong
and v i s ib le suppor t by senior manag ement . I f suppor t f rom
the top i s made obvious then the doubte rs and re luc tant
providers of resources wi l l become les s doubt fu l and l es srelucta nt. 5,s
I t is genera l ly accepted tha t no pro jec t m anager i s going
to succeed i f they a re not openly suppor ted by senior
manag ement . 5'6 Likewise no pro jec t m anager i s going to
succeed wi thout the en thus ias t i c and mot iva ted suppor t of
the mem bers o f the pro jec t t eam.
Team building
The re are two levels of team in a project . Firs t , there is the
projec t t eam i t s e l f which has to be welded toge ther and
enthused w ith the objects of the project , and secondly , there
is the wider total organisat ion team which has to be
convinced of the va l id i ty of the pro jec t .
When senior management commi tment i s ev ident the
motiv at ion and the enthusing o f the f i rst team , the pro-jec t t eam, would seem to be a re la t ive ly s t ra ight forward
task. Ini t ia l ly each individual in the project team can be
expec ted to fee l some sense of an ti c ipa tion and mot iva-
t ion because they have been s ingled out for the pro jec t .
Mot iva t ing the whole organi sa t ion i s a fa r grea te r cha l l enge
and may inc lude a s epara te change management pro jec t
i f the va lues and cul ture o f the organi sa t ion a re be ing
chal lenged.
To m aintain the ini tia l sense of enthusia sm within the
projec t t eam, the pro jec t man ager in the ro le of t eam leader
wi l l have to be en thusias ti c , comm unica te goa l s and objec -
t ives c lea r ly and genera l ly show leadership . Tampoe 9
descr ibes an approach ca l ledaction-centred leadership,
th e
bas i s of which i s tha t i f p ro jec t manag ers a re to com ple te
a pro jec t success fu lly they mus t be able to man age the t eam
as a whole and mana ge the indiv idua l s of the t eam. Ac t ion-
centred leadership ident i f ies three overlapping object ives of
t e a m m a n a g e m e n t :
• achieving the task;
• group maintenance needs ;
• mee t ing individual object ives .
The impo r tance of in te rac t ion among t eam mem bers ,
" to l ea rn how each t eam m emb er th inks and ac t s ' ' ° i s
genera l ly accepted by behavioura l i s t s a s a requi s i t e for
t eam bui ld ing . L ikewise Turner a l so addres ses the i s sue
of pro jec t t eam build ing , and adds tha t " the pro jec t
manager should encourage people to work in t eams , and
to interact with others in the organizat ion. This is not
jus t confined to the project team, but should cover al l
depar tments and groups involved in the ch ang e" . 6 Turn er
sees f rank communica t ion as be ing the mos t e f fec t ive
way to s t imula te t eam deve lopment and in te r -group
coopera t ion .
In pract ice, however, i t is important that enthusias t ic
members do not communica te mixed s igna l s out s ide the
team. Thus the t eam leader mus t be ca re fu l to ensure tha t
mem bers of the t eam a re fu l ly br ie fed and unders tand and
accept that for important issues the team leader fulfi ls
Mintzberg ' s negot ia tor and spokesperson ro les . " In shor t ,wi th in the t eam open and f rank comm unica t ion i s c ruc ia l i f
the t eam i s to becom e uni f ied , but i t is of equa l imp or tance
that external ly the team leader is the representat ive of the
team as spokesperson and negot ia tor .
Time and budget: J N Wright
Communicat ion with sponsor
Idea l ly the sponsor (or champion) should be moni tor ing the
progres s of the pro jec t so that any devia t ion of t ime or cos t
can be ident i f ied early and correct ive act ion taken. This
means tha t the sponsor needs regula r repor t s by the pro jec t
manager . Weekly repor t s would seem to be sens ib le .
Repor t s do not have to be long and de ta il ed , norm al ly a one
page summ ary of progres s should be suf fi c ien t . Ins i st ence
by the spon sor on week ly repor t s does not sugges t tha t the
sponsor should in te r fe re in the pro jec t or t ry to t ake over
the pro jec t . S imply put , a l though the pro jec t manager has
been charged with the responsibi l i ty for the project , the
spon sor obviou sly has a ves ted interes t . If nothing else it
is the sponsor who is paying for the project , so surely
the sponsor has a r ight to know i f th ings a re proceeding
according to p lan? (See Figure 1.)Converse ly , i f the sponsor does not want a weekly repor t
then i t i s in the pro jec t manager ' s own in te res t to make
certain that a report is furnished. A weekly report is for the
benef i t o f both pa r ti e s . Th e need for a weekly feedb ackshould be inc luded in the t e rms of re fe rence so tha t both
par t i e s know a t the out se t wha t i s expec ted and wha t to
expec t .
The benef i t s of a weekly feedback a re severa l :
• Firs t , i f the sponso r is eage r for the reports then i t wil l
show to the pro jec t manager tha t the sponsor i s s e r ious
and concerned wi th the progres s of the pro jec t . A sense
of urgency wi l l , t he re fore , be fos te red .
• Secondly , i t wi l l enable the pro jec t mana ger to ask ea r ly
for ex t ra resource .
• Thi rd ly , i f p roblem s a re know n and shared by both
par t i e s as they happen, or a s they begin to emerg e , then
there wil l be no late or nas ty surprises and no need forrec r imina t ions .
• Four th ly , the pro jec t mana ger wi ll feel encouraged to be
up-front and wil l feel less alone. Frequency and the
accus tomed regula r i ty of communica t ion wi l l in i t s e l f
he lp to break down bar r i e rs and to c rea te a sp i r i t o f
toge therness .
Figure 1 PROJE CT MANAGER: D on' t worry , everything is
going to plan. SPONSOR: Great! Your plan or mine?
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Time and budget: J N Wright
T i m e o r m o n e y ?
It is at the stage when problems become apparent that the
project manager has to seek a ruling from the sponsor as to
what is more important: time or money.
It could be questioned why the relative importance of
time or money was not established at the outset. Indeed, it
is helpful if the project manager can determine the relativeimportance of either before the project begins. Perhaps not
unfairly, a sponsor will usually counter such a question (if
asked before the project begins) along the lines that the
project has to be achieved by a certain date and that the
resource, and the cost of resource, has been established so
as to achieve the target date. At this stage, before the
project has commenced, the sponsor is not likely to take
kindly to a suggestion that the project might take longer
than projected or that more money might be needed than
budgeted. In any event, even if the relative importance of
time and money could be established at the outset, circum-
stances change and where previously time may not have
been crucial or perhaps there was no shortage of funds, this
may not be the case at a later date. Project managers
cannot, therefore, assume that an overrun of time rather
than an overrun in cost, will be acceptable or vice versa.
Only the sponsor can rule on such issues.
If the sponsor determines that it is essential for the project
to be completed by a set date and there is no flexibility or
slack in the project, then extra resource and extra costmight have to be accepted. It is the project manager's
responsibility to find alternative methods and courses of
action in an endeavour to keep the extra cost to a minimum.
But by establishing that time is the crucial element the
project manager will be able to focus on how to remedy the
situation so that the project will be completed on time.
If on the other hand, the sponsor rules that cost is theoverriding factor then the project manager must point out
the problems and delays that will occur if no extra funds are
available. It is the project manager's responsibility to make
certain that the sponsor clearly understands the situation
and the ramifications of not making extra funds and resource
available.
Notification of projected delays or overruns in cost
should be reported before they occur. Such reports should
be in writing and should be receipted by the sponsor. Any
significant variation to the brief should be confirmed in
writing by both the sponsor and the project manager.
Because there is a weekly update of information the
sponsor will gain an appreciation as to what is happening.
As problems and delays become apparent the projectmanager will not feel a reluctance to discuss the need for
additional resource or for extra time. Indeed, if it becomes
apparent in the weekly reports that extra resource is going
to be necessary it could well be the sponsor who makes the
offer of help before the project manager has to ask.
In the above, terms of reference and the brief are alluded
to. The initial drafts of the terms of reference are the
sponsor's responsibility. It is up to the sponsor to define the
objectives of the project. The brief should be a jointresponsibility of the sponsor and the project manager.
T e r m s o f r e f e r e n c e
The terms of reference contain the objectives of the project.Ideally the terms of reference should begin with a tightly
worded, almost terse statement such as: 'To shift premises,
to build a bridge at XYZ, to gain ISO 9000 accreditation,
184
to introduce Total Quality Management'. Unless the aim
can be precisely identified in a few short words it would
suggest that the sponsor or the sponsor's organisation is
not clear as to exactly what they want achieved. As Turner
says, "The development of the project's definition is vital
to its s u cces s . ' ' 6 The terms of reference should also
include a background, give the scope, identify key steps for
the completion of the project, suggest dates for each stage,define the overall target completion date and the total
budget amount. It is vital that the terms of reference should
also state to whom the project manager is responsible. Andas stated above the terms of reference should specify
weekly reporting by the project manager.
Finally, the terms of reference should be dated and
signed off by both the sponsor and the project manager. The
importance of sound terms of reference is such that no
project manager should ever sign them until fully satisfied
that all the points as listed above are adequately covered.
Michael and Burton8 stress that terms of reference must
always be signed off, formally approved on paper, "a nod
is not good enough." If the sponsor does not providewritten terms of reference then it is incumbent on the
project manager to draft up terms of reference and to get
them signed off. Few sponsors are likely to take exception
to this as such action denotes a professional approach and
right from the start will set the tone and show that the
project manager means business.
T h e b r i e f
The brief follows on from the terms of reference. The terms
of reference establish the overall scope, budget and time
frame; in short the three key elements of the project. The
brief requires greater depth than the terms of reference.
The brief identifies what has to be done to make theproject happen. The brief is done in at least two stages. The
aim is to get reasonably accurate estimate of resources and
details of key steps or tasks and the skills required for each.
The brief will also endeavour to establish for each step
costs, time and precedence. It is likely that the brief will
also consider responsibilities and authorities for the supply
of resources. The brief should not be limited to the above
but should include any issue that will affect the successful
outcome of the project. One of the key issues is likely to
be communication and education of the internal market.
Establishing the brief is usually considered to be the pro-
ject manager's job. However, seldom will a project manager
be able to amass all the information needed without thegoodwill of various managers and departments of the
organisation. If a project manager can establish early who
are the real stakeholders in the project then those people,
plus the sponsor, should be involved in contributing to the
brief. Knowing who the stakeholders are is of primary
importance to the project manager.
E stab l i sh i n g s tak e h o l d e r s
Who are the stakeholders? Stakeholders are any individuals
who have an interest in the outcome of the project. Obeng5
says that a typical project will have some stakeholders who
will support it and some who oppose it. He recommends
asking "who is impacted by what this project is trying toachieve?" Once stakeholders are identified, especially
those who are less than enthusiastic concerning the outcomeof the project, then it would be a wise move to target those
people and to find out in a non-confrontational way their
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concerns . I f these people can be pe rsuaded to see the
benef i ts and encouraged to as s is t in f raming the wording of
the br ie f, then fu ture t rouble might be aver ted . Somet im es
conce rns ar e val id and i t is as wel l to know o f these
problems a t the out se t . But usua l ly suspic ion of a pro jec t
wi ll a r i s e f rom a l ack of unders tanding of the t rue purpose ,
or then aga in i t might jus t be a re luc tance to change . A s
Mach iavel l i said in 1513, ~2 "I t m ust be consid ered that
the re i s noth ing more d i f f i cu l t to ca r ry out , nor more
doubt fu l to success , nor m ore dangerou s to handle , than to
in it i at e a new order o f th ings ." For m anagem ent of changesee Sche in 13 and Carn all. ~4
Som e pro jec t manage rs might f ind wr it ing a br ie f and
involv ing o thers in the f ramin g of the br ie f t ime consuming
and onerous . But as every so ld ie r knows the t ime spent in
reconna i s sance i s never was ted .
One mus t not look upon those who a re doubt fu l of thep r o j e c t a s ' t h e e n e m y ' . T h e p r o j e c t m a n a g e r m u s t b e
a t t empt ing to pos i t ion her o r h im se l f a s pa r t of the organi s -
a t ion and b e a iming for the suppor t of a l l s t akeholders . In
the long run the pro jec t ma nager wi l l need a l l the he lp andgoodwi l l tha t can be mus te red . Everyone spoken to in the
course of a p ro jec t should be con s idered a potent i a l a l ly . I f ,
howev er , the re a re so me who can not be won o ver , i t is jus t
as impor tant to know who they a re and wha t resu l t ing
problems a re l ike ly to occur .
Establishing parameters
Often a sponsor is not ful ly aware as to exact ly what i t is
they want . T here a re two ext remes o f pro jec t : one i s the
very tangible , such as bui lding a bridge; and at the other
end of the cont inuum the pro jec t might be as in tangib le as
' ins ta l l to ta l qua l i ty management ' . Of ten the reason tha t a
pro jec t manag er i s appoin ted i s because the sponsor knowstha t something has to be done but does not hav e e i the r the
exper t i s e or pe rhaps the t ime to do i t .
Not m any sp onsors wi l l be prepare d to admi t tha t they do
not know exact ly what i t is they are asking or that they
themse lves do not have the exper t i s e to do the job . Faced
wi th a problem and by s imp ly appoin ting a pro jec t manager
might mean the spo nsor wi l l cons ider the problem has been
solved even before the pro jec t begins . The mere ac t of
appoin t ing a pro jec t manag er wi l l mean a dec i s ion has been
made and i t i s now someon e e l se ' s concern . Such a sponsor
does not want to know o f problem s . But even when the
sponsor does not wish to abdica te respons ib i l i ty for a
pro jec t , hum an na ture i s such tha t the t endency o f thespon sor is to min imise the t ime, effort and difficul ty of the
projec t . Thus , i f le f t en t i re ly to the sponsor , the t e rms o f
re fe rence and the br ie f a re unl ike ly to g ive suf f ic ient we ight
to the level of diff icul ty and, thus , unless the project m anag er
is careful insufficient t ime and resource wil l be al located.
The pro jec t ma nager , in theory a t l east , does not have to
accept the brief as i t is wri t ten. But seldom wil l the project
mana ger , when agree ing to the brie f , be in posses s ion of al l
the fac t s. Indeed , pa r t of the pro jec t should a lways be to
es t imate wha t i s needed to make the pro jec t happen. Idea l ly
the a im should be to de te rmine exac t ly wha t wi l l be needed,but i t is not unt i l the project actual ly begins that special
requirements and prob lems wil l emerg e. E ven with a tangible
prob lem such as ' bu i ld a br idge ' where i t could be expec tedthat the quant i ties of materials , ma chinery and p eople needed
could be accura te ly de te rmined in advance , problems wi l l
arise . I t is only when there is a f lash flood and the foun-
da t ions a re washed away, or when i t i s found tha t the road
Time and budget: J N Wright
for t rucking in the supplies needs rebui lding, or when
anyth ing e l se tha t can go wrong does go wrong, tha t i t i s
real ised that with projects there is no such thing as
ce r t a in ty . I t fo l lows tha t any cos t budge t can only be an
est imate. Both part ies , the sponsor and the project manager,
should accept this a t the outset . This is why, once the
projec t i s underw ay, weekly mee t ings wi l l be so impor tant .
When problems a r i s e they should be repor ted a t the out se t
and not a l lowed to accumula te .
Any exper ienced pro jec t manager wi l l know tha t no
projec t wi l l ever be f ree o f problems and wi l l thus bui ld in to
the br ie f a s much s lack as possib le for each s t ep . I sugges t
tha t a good ru le of thumb i s to add a minimum of 50% to
every t ime es t imate , and 50% to the f ir s t e s t imate of the
budge t . Af te r a l l no one has ever been c r i t i c i s ed for
f in i sh ing ahead of t ime and be low budge t .
When I made my 50% sugges t ion a t the P ro jec t Manage-
ment Ins ti tu te Confe rence , New Zea land Chapte r I one
de lega te was heard to remark tha t obvious ly I had never
been concerned wi th compet i t ive t ender ing . The answer i s
no and yes ! No, I have never t endered for a pro jec t , and yesI have been involved many a t ime as the sponsor for a
pro jec t . I t would seem to me tha t to underes timate cos t s and
t ime when t ender ing , jus t to 'w in ' a pro jec t i s not in
anyone 's interes ts , certainly not the cl ient ' s , and certainly
it is not ethical.
Recommendations
To minimise over runs in t ime and budge t i t is recomm ended
that:
1 . every pro jec t should have a br ie f spec i fy ing t ime and
budge t ;
2 . the pro jec t manager i s involved in obtain ing da ta forthe brief , a cont ingency al lowance should always be
included.
To faci l i ta te the smooth running of the project i t is recom-
mended tha t :
1. s t rong and vis ible support is given by the sponso r to the
project ;
2 . the pro jec t mana ger i s pos it ioned as pa r t of the organi s -
at ion, working from within and not as a provider work ing
from out s ide the organi sa t ion;
3. the project manager ident i f ies al l the internal s take-
holders and gains suppo rt of those s takeholders .
To improve communica t ion wi th the sponsor i t i s recom-mended tha t :
1 . the pro jec t man ager repor t s w eekly to the sponsor ;
2 . the pro jec t manager i s up f ront and keeps the sponsor
advi sed of problems and potent i a l problems ;
3. sponso rs show a l ively interes t in the progre ss of the
projec t and a re v i s ib ly suppor t ive of pro jec t managers ;
4 . pro jec t managers do not make as sumpt ions where t ime
or money i s involved;
5 . any major va r ia t ions to the br ie f a re s igned of f by the
sponsor and the pro jec t manager .
Conclusions
Projec t s range f rom the s imple s ingle exerc i se to a number
of complex in te r - l inked problems . P ro jec t s can l as t for
days , months or even years . Managing a pro jec t i s s e ldom
straightforward and requires special skil ls in com municat ion,
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Time and budget: J N Wright
planning and motivation of others. Since projects are nearly
always one- off endeavours, seldom w ill there be a fit of past
experience or established procedures to guide project
managers. This paper has discussed the need for a close
working relationship between the project manager and
the sponsor and the other stakeholders of the sponsoring
organisation. However, equally important will be the need
for the project manager to generate enthusiasm within the
project team. People from various departments and from
different disciplines will often be required to work together,
and often individuals will see their first priority as being
with their parent department. Clearly commun ication with,
and motivation of, project team members will be a key
issue for the project manager.
Overall the way in which any project manager will be
judged by the sponsor is if the project is completed to
specification, on time and within budget. For a variety of
reasons, often beyond the control of the project manager,
seldom does a project come in on time and within budget.
This paper has been written with the aim of minimising the
fall out and, indeed, enhancing the reputation for profes-sionalism of the project manager when the imperatives of
time and money are not achieved.
R e f e r e n c e s
1. Wright, J N, 'Time and budget: the twin imperatives for a projectmanager ' Proceedings of the Inaugural Conference 1995 ProjectManagement Institute New Zealand Chapter Wellington, New Zealand
(1995)2. Bank, J, The Essence of Total Quality Management Prentice Hall,
New York (1992)3. Dale, B G, Managing Quality Prentice Hall, New York (1994)4. Carlzon, J, Moments of Truth Ballinger, Cambridge, MA (1987)5. Obeng, E, All Change! The Project Leaders Secret Handbook Pitman,
London (1994)6. Turner, J R, The Handbook of Project-Based Management McGraw-
Hill, Maidenhead (1993) 62, 867. Foreman, S K and Money, A H , International Marketing--Co ncepts,
Measurement and Application, Unpublished paper, The M anagementCollege, Henley-on-Thames, Oxon (1995)
8. Michael, N and Burton, C, Basic Project Management Reed Books,Auckland (1991)
9. Tampoe, M , 'Teams: the essence of successful project management'
International Journal of Project Management 7 (1989) 12-1710. Robbins, S and Mukerji, D, Managing Organisations New Challenges
and Perspectives Prentice Hall, New York (1994)11. Mintzberg, H, The Nature of Managerial Work Harper & Row,
London (1973)
12. Machiavelli, N, The Prince (Trans. Luigi Ricci, revised by E R PVincent 1952) New American Library of World Literature, NewYork (1513)
13. Schein, E H, Organizational Culture: A Dynamic View Josey Bass,San Francisco (1991)
14. Carnall, C, Managing Change Routledge, London (1993)
J Nevan Wright is a Master ofBusiness Studies (Massey), B Comm.(Victoria University Wellington),
Associate Fellow NZ Institute ofManagement. Nevan is currently aSenior Lecturer with the Auckland
Institute of Technology in New
Zealand. He is also a tutor for theHenley MBA Programme in NewZealand and for the last 3 years he
has spent several months of eachyear as a visiting member of Faculty ;at Henley, The Management College,
UK, tutoring in Management ofOperations. Prior to joining academia ....
5 years ago Nevan was a general manager and a director of severalmulti-national manufacturing companies based in New Zealand.Before this he served 9 years with the Royal New Zealand Air Force.Nevan is the co-author, with Ron Basu, of Total ManufacturingSolutions published by Butterworth and Heinemann, November 1996.Total Manufacturing Solutions discusses a project managementapproach to benchmarking to enable a manufacturer to achieveworM-class manufacturing status. Nevan has had several articles
and papers published in recent years on the subjects of corporate
culture, operations management and quality management. He is aJustice of the Peace, and an Associate Fellow of the New ZealandInstitute of Management. Spare time interests are golf, gardening and
family.
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