Listening to some of the coverage of the BRIT music awards and the problems that delays caused for star of the show Adele – and her reaction, reminded me of a conversation I had about project scheduling at the start of a major capital project.
The conversation involved me, experienced Project Manager Barry Ryan and our mutual client. In reality, I was a bit of a bystander but the message was valid. The conversation when a bit like this:
Barry: How does a project get to be six months behind schedule?
Client: I’ve done lots of projects but never got to the bottom of that one.
Barry: Well, its one day at a time.
Wise words!
So, what’s the message from this for project management [and time management and event planning for that matter]:
- You need to be vigilant from the start – especially if things slow down
- You need to understand what is important to all of the stakeholders
- You have to be clear about your objectives and
- You have to know what you can cut and what you can’t – understand the landscape of the project
If you don’t you’ll get no choice and will end up having to cut what comes towards the end – which may be the most important part.
