Know the audience
IT managers often struggle to effectively communicate complex details about projects to elected officials and executive managers. The top city and county officials must be apprised of the IT department’s activities — particularly large, newsworthy projects — but their time constraints and limited technical knowledge require that project managers tailor their messages appropriately. If elected officials do not understand the IT projects, they may fail to martial forces or dedicate resources to complete them, or refuse to defend them if they encounter problems.
IT project managers constantly monitor four factors on every project: scope, schedule, cost and risks. And, while project managers need to know all of the details of each factor, elected officials only need a compressed version of that information. Keeping officials informed of projects often comes down to one goal: providing the appropriate details without forcing them to read lengthy reports or devote attention to long presentations.
IT managers should develop a system for brief communication that summarizes first whether projects are on schedule and on budget, and then only the highest priority risks and issues. Traditionally, those facts might have been presented in written reports, PowerPoint presentations, e-mail updates, voice mail messages or formal meetings, but as people have grown more comfortable with online formats, executive dashboards and Web portals have become popular reporting tools because they can show the real-time status of projects at any time.
Many IT departments are developing and maintaining project report Web pages on their city’s or county’s intranet, and some software vendors participating in local government projects offer executive dashboard Web sites as part of their implementation services. Maintaining a central location for project information helps IT managers and vendors collaboratively communicate project status to executive managers and officials.
Color-coded symbols (red, yellow, green) that describe a project’s status without forcing the viewer to interpret many details about the project also are increasingly popular. A color-coded document that depicts the overall health of the project is easier for elected officials and executive management to digest than a lengthy report.
Ensuring accountability during an IT project begins by communicating the health of the project from beginning to end to minimize the likelihood that public officials will be surprised if the project begins to struggle. Often, project managers are unwilling to communicate that a project is failing and will continue to try and address critical risks without the support or knowledge of executives. But, if executive managers are kept apprised of the project’s status, they will be more willing and able to help address problems at the right time, either by providing additional resources or working with a vendor to mitigate critical risks, thereby increasing the likelihood of project success.
The author is a senior consultant for Portland, Maine-based Berry, Dunn, McNeil and Parker.