By Art Petty
Management & Leadership Expert
Project Managers have a difficult job. By nature of
their role they assume responsibility for forming an effective team to
pursue and succeed with new initiatives. Because projects are by
definition, all of the work done once in a firm-temporary and unique
initiatives-in contrast to the routine of daily operations, every project is a new adventure.
Add
in the reality that projects are how we innovate; how we execute on
strategy and how we build-out our organization’s infrastructure and
capabilities, it is apparent that senior leaders must do everything in
their power to support their firm’s project managers.
One
of the most important factors promoting project success is the presence
of an effective, engaged executive sponsor. This position has long been
associated with project success in industry studies, yet a review of
the literature describing actual practices around sponsorship suggest we
have a long way to go to institutionalize the presence and practices of
the sponsor role in our organizations.
A bit of context is appropriate. First, let's review the primary responsibilities of the sponsor.
Primary Responsibilities of a Project’s Executive Sponsor:
- Assume responsibility for the outcome of a project. (This point is often described as a shared responsibility with the project manager.)
- Charter the project and confer authority on the project manager and core team members.
- Support the project team for resources and visibility.
- Ensure the presence of and support of effective team values, including accountability and transparency.
- Support the team in the face of extraordinary difficulties.
- Coach the project manager.
- Defend the project team against organizational interference.
What Happens When the Executive Sponsor is Out of the Picture:
In
the absence of a supportive executive sponsor, all of the above
responsibilities fall to the already over-burdened project manager, who
typically lacks the bandwidth and political heft to fulfill these tasks. The
lack of an effective sponsor increases the risk of project problems,
including but not limited to: failure, suboptimal performance against
time, cost and quality targets and increased team turmoil.
Simply
stated, the presence of an effective executive sponsor is a positive
difference-maker for the complex work of bringing our most important
temporary and unique initiatives to successful conclusion. Given the
obvious importance of the role, it might be reasonable to assume that
most organizations take their work with executive sponsors seriously.
Sadly, a bit of time spent in the real world suggests otherwise.
A Glimpse into How Our Organizations Treat the Role of Executive Sponsor
As
a graduate management instructor in project management, I have the good
fortune to regularly learn about the project management practices of my
students’ employers in a major metropolitan area. From Fortune 100
firms to small, entrepreneurial startups and not-for-profits, the
organizations represented are a cross section of our economy.
While it would be reasonable to expect in this era where project
management practices are well established that most firms would display
mature practices around the role of the executive sponsor, in reality,
the situation is exactly the opposite.
A few non-scientific findings from my annual informal survey of MBA students about the role of executive sponsor in their firms:
- On average, more than fifty-percent of the students describe their firm as having no formal practices around executive sponsorship.
- Few firms have any formalized training or standardized description for the role and responsibilities of the sponsor.
- I have not yet had one student report that his/her firm provides training for their executive sponsors.
- There is little consistent agreement on the accountability of the sponsor for project success.
- When the students interview project managers in their firms about their satisfaction with the performance and support of their sponsors, a majority of those surveyed expressed frustration.
A review of more formalized surveys from industry associations and
private consulting firms reinforces the general validity of the input
from my students. And while the current state of the practice of
executive sponsorship may leave room for improvement, project managers
have no choice but to keep on moving forward with their initiatives.
However, there are some steps a project managers can take to recruit
much needed executive support.
Five Tips to Gain Executive Support for Your Project:
1. Recruit a sponsor. If your project has strategic implications for
your firm, either directly for customers or indirectly by enabling more
efficient and effective internal activities in support of customers,
you should recruit a sponsor. Work directly with your report-to-manager
or the head of your Project Management Office to reinforce the project’s
importance and ask for help. Emphasize the role and responsibilities
of the sponsor as identified above, and point to industry research that
correlates project success and effective sponsorship.
2. Train your sponsor.
Emphasize the role as strategic, not tactical or as figurehead. Most
executives come to the role of sponsor with no formal training or even
context for their responsibilities. While you are in the somewhat
awkward role of training an executive, most of these individuals will
appreciate your context and guidance. The issues of accountability,
values reinforcement and protection of the team should be your primary
focus when on-boarding your executive sponsor.
3. Actively engage and involve your sponsor.
The best project manager/executive sponsor relationships are highly
interactive. It is important for the two parties to establish a clear
communication protocol for updating on project activities as well as
flagging and responding to emergencies. The project manager should
encourage the executive sponsor to attend status or team meetings from
time-to-time to show genuine interest, and to serve as an active
cheerleader to the organization for team successes.
4. Ask for coaching support from your sponsor. It is always helpful to have someone with more experience than you observing and offering constructive and positive feedback
and coaching on your performance. Let your sponsor know you welcome
this input in your drive to improve, and when it is received, accept it
gracefully.
5. Leverage the sponsor carefully for the big issues.
Be careful not to view or treat your sponsor too much on tactical
issues. Your sponsor’s highest and best use is for helping secure
resources; serving as a spokesperson for the project team to the broader
management group and helping you reinforce essential team values. There
is a balancing act that the project manager must respect when
considering drawing the sponsor into team activities.
The Bottom Line for Now:
The
role of executive sponsor is one of the important pieces of the puzzle
to success for project initiatives. Successful project managers
understand how important this role is and work to gain executive support
at the right level and intensity. If the role of the sponsor is absent
or vague, take it upon yourself to recruit and train your executive
sponsors to support you, your team and your firm for success.
source: about.com
