Declare the ‘Game’ of the Project
July 14th, 2003 by Hal
Projects are always about people and therefore about language. In an earlier posting I mentioned the five basic speech-acts in use on projects: declarations, assessments, assertions, requests, and promises. In today's posting I introduce one way declarations are used on projects.
We've all had the experience of introducing someone to a new game. At first the newbie doesn't play well. The rules, even if s/he can recite them, are not familiar. Even if the person makes no mistakes of play, the game is slower than playing with people all familiar and experienced at the game. When we bring people together to play the game of the project we find the same phenomenon.
The special case of project management is the one where the same people have been performing the same kinds of projects for quite some time. Not only do the people know the game and the rules, but they have become familiar working with each other. The project leader's role is to keep the game of the project from sliding into the background by restating the promise to the customer, reminding people of the role they are playing, and re-telling the story of the project.
A tougher scenario for a project manager involves bringing strangers together on a project. The project leader has to explain the game to everyone: why you are doing the project, the expectations and standards the customer has for how the work will be performed, the practices for staying in touch with each other, etc.
The tough case is the project team that the membership is in flux. When people come and go the leader can't take for granted that new individuals will understand how this particular project is being played.
Six Key Declarations for the Project Game
- Point of the project (game). How will this game be won? Is completion by a specific date crucial? How about budget? Is it worth paying more to get done early? You want the team members to understand the point of the project in the terms of the value derived by the customer.
- What are the roles (positions) on the project. What promises are people making in those roles?
- Who is assigned to which roles? On what basis are you assigning people to roles?
- What is the playing field of the project? Is work done in one central area? Can team members work separate from each other? What actions (play) is allowed both on the project setting and off the project setting?
- What are the rules of behavior on the project? Must people check-in on a regular basis? Can they choose to attend or not attend meetings? Must they report how they spend their time to the tenth of an hour? Or, are you only concerned with knowing when tasks start and when they finish?
- What is the strategy for winning the game? Will you change strategies during the game? Can it evolve? Who (what roles) will be involved in modifying the strategy?
Projects, just like games, are constituted by the declarations of some one — a person with the authority to do so. Just like games, the declarations can make the project interesting and attractive for the team members, or not. It all depends on how the project was constituted? Is there room in the rules (declarations) for team members to improvise? Or are they forced to run the play that is called in to them? Are they involved in strategy and planning? Or, is that left to a few people? Do they have the opportunity to shine? to learn? and to pursue their interests on the project? Or, is the project defined in a way that people are there just to perform tasks?
Project managers will get more great projects and great project teams by attending to the declarations that constitute the project.
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