Managing Projects in High Governance Environments

Project Governance is a management framework which allows leadership visibility and decisioning authority within the project structure. It aids management in tracking and managing multiple projects and programs simultaneously, aligning project teams to a set of standards and mitigating risk. Governance processes can range widely from organization to organization. It can be as simple as a weekly status report and as complex as a system of multiple, inter-related templates, on-line program tools and a series of project management process assessments and tollgates.

More robust governance can create tremendous value to leadership, but this value can come at a cost to project teams. Added deliverables and additional documentation and meetings could potentially cause roadblocks and timing delays if the project manager is not prepared. To be successful in this type of environment, a PM needs to understand their organization’s governance process and plan ahead for the steps and actions required to move beyond the next tollgate.

 7 Tips on effectively managing projects in a heavy-governance environment:

 

1.       Understand the requirements: In a high governance environment, it isn’t enough to know what documents the governance committee wants to see, PMs need to know why. What specific elements or key points are they asking the team to satisfy? Is it a question of budget? Scope? Resources? Timeline? It may be different depending on the tollgate, but knowing the drivers to each conversation will help the team prepare the appropriate information.

2.       Get in front of it: Plan ahead in your project routines and include your governance activities early in the effort. Governance activity usually requires a good bit of project work to be done before it can be completed, but oftentimes much of the progress on the governance deliverables themselves can be made up front. There are typically templates to fill out and systems to log project information. Knowing that completing the governance templates are a requirement to getting through the tollgate, the best approach is to start early and ensure that you have time to deal with what would be an avoidable delay.

3.       Put the Governance SME’s to work: Most organizations with heavy governance processes typically have an SME that can guide you through the process. It may be part of someone’s job description, like a PMO analyst or manager, or it may just be a seasoned Project/Program Manager that’s familiar with the process and knows how to best navigate. Either way, find that person and ask for help. Most often, it’s uncertainty in how to get through the process, not the project information itself which is lacking. 

4.       Leverage your champion: A best practice in project management is a project champion – a high ranking manager in the organization that has ultimate accountability for the project’s success. The project champion may sit on the governance committee, or may simply attend to represent the project. Request that your champion communicate with their peers on the governance committee in advance of the meeting. Find out what is being asked for, any specific leadership concerns, what leaders may need additional information before approving the project. The champion’s role is critical to pushing projects through multiple layers of governance in a complex process. 

5.       Communicate ahead of time: Keep the project team, key stakeholders and management informed on upcoming governance activities and requirements. Communicate expectations to team resources as early as it makes sense to do so, and clearly as possible. If the team lacks clarity on what is being requested, why and when its needed, chances are that they will focus on other priority items until they understand how to fulfill the deliverable.  

6.       Shield project team when possible: Project teams rarely have full visibility to project governance deliverables. It can be perceived as something that is a PM’s responsibility, or gets in the way of their regular work. As a PM, understanding this perception and working to minimize as much of the administrative governance as possible from the team will help project members maintain focus on the most critical tasks and make a vigorous process seem less burdensome. 

7.       Project Governance is not Project Discipline: Many PMs fall into the trap of thinking that, if all the deliverables are completed, the project is in good shape. Governance processes may require that a team identifies risks, documents a resource plan, provides budget estimates, etc. but do not always audit the quality. If the team is simply filing out the document to satisfy the process rather than drilling into the issue, the exercise is wasted. Haphazardly documentation to check that deliverable off the “to-do” list creates confusion and additional risk. Be wary of short-cuts and work to identify, confirm and communicate where value is and is not being added. 

Leadership implements project governance because it is an invaluable tool in maintaining control over project functions. Although managing projects effectively in these types of environments can require more administrative effort from PMs, with proper planning, effective use of SME resources and a focus on disciplined project management, both project teams and leadership can recognize the benefits of strong governance without undue stress.