Search Expertbase
Hire Richard
Virtually
Hybrid
In-Person
Stop Conducting Project Progress Meetings
50 Claps
320 Words
2 min
When I'm running a Project, I want people to continually remember that we are on this project to achieve.
I want you to stop conducting Project Progress Meetings, Project Highlight Meetings, and Project Status Meetings and stop producing Project Progress Reports, Project Status Reports and Project Highlight Reports. Instead, start conducting Project Achievement Meetings and start producing Project Achievement Reports. When I'm running a Project, I want people to continually remember that we are on this project to achieve.
I remember being called in to provide consultancy support on a major financial systems project that was in a little bit of trouble. The project manager was in the process of putting together a Project Status Report for the Board. I suggested that he rename it Project Achievement Report. He told me that would be fine but that they really hadn't achieved anything since the last report.
My comment to him was, "Well, shouldn't that tell you something?" It does and it is not something that, as a project manager or as the project managers boss, you want to hear. He made the change in title. He told the project team that we were going to make the change and in the future we were going to be focused on achievement and not on update or status. Things got better.
I know that certain words have a different psychological effect than other words. For instance, I feel very much different when I say the word achievement versus the word progress or update. Achievement seems much more positive. Achievement is high energy. It's successful completion. It's 'we've done it'. At any rate, it provides an all round view of why the project team is there.
Try it. See if it makes a different on your project. Let me know what happens. The least it will do will give the project Manager a chance to explain why she is using the word and will lay the foundation for another project pep talk.
This Article is authored / contributed by ▸ Richard M. who travels from Leasburg, United States. Richard is available for Professional Speaking Work both Virtually and In-Person. ▸ Enquire Now.
Comments
What's your opinion?
10 more Articles by Richard
Identify And Track Unknowns
2 min. "Knowing what we don't know and tracking it is the only way to ensure that eventually we know what we don't know. Understand?"Use Workshops To Save Time And Energy On Your Project
2 min. What is the one thing that most Projects lack? An abundance of time. Most Projects have a very tight schedule and anything that can be done to save time ...Independent Test Or Validation On It Projects
3 min. I believe that a Project Manager should establish an Independent Test Team or an individual on your Project Team with the responsibility of ensuring, through ...The Ideal Project Manager Specification
4 min. The Project Manager must be able to have the helicopter view and understand the big picture and how his/her project fits into the overall scheme of things.A Killer Idea For Delivering Successful Information Technology Projects
4 min. Why do IT Teams start building before they have it locked down as to what it is they must build? Let’s take a look at a number of reasons why I think they do.Co-Locate The Project Team To Help Ensure Success
3 min. "I believe that managing a project without the team co-located , especially if part of the team is working at home, is about as difficult as herding cats."Directing The Project With A Project Board
3 min. As a Project Manager, I feel it is important to have someone or some group you can turn to when you need help to get something done either in the client’s, ...50