power of saying no (by kw3 consulting)
TRANSCRIPT
www.kw3consulting.com
The Power of Saying No
December 11, 2014
Kirk Williams
How many times do we know when projects are going to FAIL?
The Challenge – How do we say NO when we need to and still make the right impact?
Today, we will talk about 4 strategies to help you with this.
2
The Challenge
Only 9% of organizations successfully execute
initiatives to deliver strategic results*
Consequently, only 56% of strategic initiatives meet
their original goals and business intent*
* Source: PMI’s The High Cost of Low Performance 2014 Report
Logistics For Today’s Call
• The call is being recorded
• The recording and copies of slides will be made available at the
conclusion of the call
• We will have two poll questions, so be ready to answer
• Please enter your questions in the chat box at any time
• Tweet your comments during the call - #projectleadership
3
Kirk Williams
• Founder & CEO - KW3 Consulting
• Management Consultant for 18 years
• Worked for Accenture Consulting for 13 years
• Started KW3 Consulting 5 years ago
• Managed multi-million dollar business and technology transformation initiatives
• Consulted with small, large and Fortune 500 companies. Some include Wells Fargo, Cisco, JPMorgan Chase, Callaway Golf
4
Today’s Discussion
Why Projects
Fail
Why Aren’t We Saying No
Strategies For Saying
No
Case Studies
Key Takeaways
& Wrap-Up
5
Poll #1
Why Do Most Projects Fail?
6
Why Most Projects Fail?
7
Senior Leadership Expectations Are Less Reasonable
Lack of Program Planning
Hard to decipher "reality" vs. perception
Lack of critical decision making
Too focused on managing the
“Gantt chart” vs. “Forest Thru Trees”
“Shiny Objects” are distracting
8
Shiny Objects Are Distracting
Why Aren’t We Saying No?
9
• Job Security
• Fear of going “against the norm”
• We don’t have all the facts
• Concerned about reputation
• Distracted by “shiny objects”
Strategies For Saying “No”
10
InstinctSoft Skills
& Facts
It is a BALANCING ACT!!
BE CONFIDENT
• You have to say NO with confidence
• Have to build REPPORT and TRUST
• Folks have to believe that your primary objective is the success of the
project
11
Instinct
FOLLOW YOUR GUT
• We all have it – the “internal” barometer
• We know what does and doesn’t feel right
• Follow it!
• There are times where we have to show leadership and “break the norm”
to get your point across.
• Don’t get blind sided by the shiny objects
12
Instinct
BUILD RAPPORT WITH SENIOR LEADERS
• You have to build “great” rapport with Senior Leadership in
order for them to listen to you.
• When it comes time for the “tough” conversations, they are
willing to listen and “take it all in”
• Have to understand what’s important to them
• Senior Leaders want to feel like you hear and understand them
13
Soft Skills and Facts
14
• Interview Senior Leaders
• Understand what’s important to them and their concerns
• Get a clear understanding of their current disposition
• A way to build rapport and trust!
Soft Skills and Facts
BUILD RAPPORT WITH SENIOR LEADERSTechnique – Stakeholder Commitment Process
15
Soft Skills and Facts
• Stakeholder Commitment Curve Details Summary
• Detail Notes and Actions Required
BUILD RAPPORT WITH SENIOR LEADERSTechnique – Stakeholder Commitment Process
16
• People will listen to you when you build good rapport and present the facts
• Begin with the end in mind - Know What Leadership Wants
• Putting status in terms that Executives understand
• Easily identify issues and risk areas
• Be consistent
Soft Skills and Facts
LEAD WITH FACTS
17
Soft Skills and Facts
LEAD WITH FACTSTechnique – Executive Status Dashboard
18
Soft Skills and Facts
LEAD WITH FACTSTechnique – Executive Status Dashboard
USE TRADE-OFF SCENARIOS
19
• Timeline is tough to meet
• Need alternatives to keep the schedule and still deliver
• Helps with consensus building
Soft Skills and Facts
• 3 Options
• Various scope options
• Pros and cons for each option
• Dependencies
# Option Revised Delivery Date Pros Cons Dependencies Recommend (Y/N)
Soft Skills
USE TRADE-OFF SCENARIOSTechnique – Trade-off Scenario Template
11
• Visual Option
• Resource Implications
• Proposed timeline
• Scope adjustments
Soft Skills
USE TRADE-OFF SCENARIOSTechnique – Trade-Off Scenario Template
Strategies For Saying “No”
22
InstinctSoft Skills
& Facts
It is a BALANCING ACT!!
Poll #2
Based on what we talked about, what strategy do you think is most helpful for
you in your situation?
23
Case Study #1 – Didn’t Say NO
Client and Project
A national banking institution
Multi-year cross-line of business and technology
transformation project
Challenges Faced
Client spent $100M+ and minimal results
to show
Team came in to get project on track
Said what they wanted to hear and kept the
project moving
Lessons Learned and Conclusion
In retrospect, needed to say “NO”, stop and re-
baseline
Project continued to cripple along and team
was eventually downsized
24
Case Study #2 – Did Say No
Client and Project
A regional financial services company
A business intelligence project CFO reporting
CEO was very bullish to get this done on time
Put “shiny object” in front of us to incent us
Challenges Faced
Tight deadlines with dependencies on other
projects
Dependencies were causing project to slip
CEO would “blow a gasket” for project
slippage
Lessons Learned and Conclusion
Did the right thing and said No
Built trust with Senior Leaders
Always led with facts
Used trade-off scenarios to make project successful
25
Key Takeaways
26
Be Confident
Follow Your “Gut”
Use Tradeoff
Scenarios
Keep Leaders engaged
Lead With Facts
27
Off The Gantt Training Series:Improving Executive Level Status Reporting Workshop
28
During this workshop, we will cover the
following:
• Elements of an effective executive status
report
• Key areas that Senior Leadership care about
• Hands-on review of status reporting templates
• Hands-on review of stakeholder commitment
techniques
• How to effectively deliver status
Friday, December 19th
8:30am – 12:00pm PST
Downtown Los Angeles
Email [email protected]
FOR MORE DETAILS AND CHECK OUT OUR WEBSITE
Next Webinar
• Thursday, January 29th
• Topic: Innovation – Moving From Strategy to Execution
• Stay tuned for more details….
29
Thank You For Joining Today!
30
www.kw3consulting.com
Follow Us on Social Media!