I once had a boss who told me I needed to be Switzerland. It resonated so much with me; I stuck a post-it to my computer which I used to remind myself every day: “I am Switzerland!”
What did she mean, calling me Switzerland?
It meant that my role as the project manager was to always remain neutral and focus on the facts.
The key facts in any project are:
(1) The project schedule (and how the team is performing against it)
(2) The project risks, their potential effects, and how the team plans to address them
(3) The project results (is the project within budget, were key performance indicators (KPIs) achieved, etc.).
So, why is it so important for the project manager to keep this Switzerland persona?
Projects are messy!
The reality is projects NEVER go exactly as planned. When the inevitable happens and a project is thrown off-course, team members can find their emotions running high. There is often a lot riding on project success, especially in the life sciences industry. When an activity or milestone is missed, team members will most certainly be concerned about the outcomes and impact on project success. In the worst circumstances, missed deadlines can lead to finger pointing. The project manager’s role is vitally important during these times to stabilize emotions, maintain morale, and ensure the team gets back on track. By keeping the team focused on the end goal, the project manager can provide the team with the headspace to be flexible and creative in identifying solutions.
Below are a few tried and true tools to leverage to remain a neutral force during a project –especially when things don’t go as planned!
State only the facts. What milestones missed (or are about to miss) the designated timeline? Are there any upstream activities that caused the missed milestones? Do those activities still need to be completed or addressed during this review?
Do not hypothesize. Focusing on what could have been done differently to avoid the current situation is a waste of energy! Instead, keep yourself and the team focused on understanding what activities need to be completed to move the project forward. Discussion of what went wrong can be reserved for a future lessons learned review, when emotions are less high, and the immediate problems have been solved.
Determine next steps. Review and leverage the risk register. If the risk was previously identified, what next steps did the team agree to take if the risk was realized? If the risk was not identified in the register, the team will need to work through those next steps now. Is there an updated understanding of when the activity will be complete? Are any downstream effects anticipated, given the new timeline?
Maintain accurate dashboard reporting. Numbers don’t lie and have no emotions. KPI progress should be updated regularly. The team should know where they stand when something doesn’t go according to plan. How did the issue and subsequent changes to the project plan affect our targets? The dashboard can also demonstrate how project changes impact costs and the likelihood of completing the project within budget.
Communicate, communicate, communicate. After working through the above steps, it is time to ensure that all stakeholders understand their next actions and the current state of the budget and KPIs. No one should feel like they didn’t get the memo. A lack of communication can lead to more emotion.
A PM’s role is to keep everyone focused on project goals and the next milestones ahead. Maintaining neutrality mitigates the risk of the project team falling into the negative habits of blame and finger-pointing. PM neutrality can help keep the team’s spirits up, while also fostering cohesion and focus on the end goal. Our team of experienced project management professionals at MustardSeed live by this “Remain Neutral” mantra each day as we work to ensure the success of our clients’ projects.
