August 2009
Beginner
252 pages
6h 2m
English
Content preview from 97 Things Every Project Manager Should Know
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Chapter 95. True Success Comes with a Supporting Organization
IF ORGANIZATIONS AVOID RISK PLANNING, aggressive problem seeking, and timely issue resolutions, it could be due to a problem with the culture. Those on a project team who play the devil's advocate are often labeled as troublemakers. If the organization is quick to "shoot the messenger," team members will avoid sharing troublesome issues and there may be an inclination to hide project problems.
This type of cultural setting encourages blaming behaviors that work to the detriment of the entire organization, individual employees, and the customers. The role of the software project manager is to provide a predictable project delivery, with as few unexpected events as possible. With no one pointing out pitfalls early, there are often "surprises." Seldom are they good surprises, but rather, ugly ones showing that foresight and planning were impossible as developers hid issues from exposure.
Wise executives will make sure the company is supporting the attitudes and behaviors that allow developers to be effective. This includes evaluating human resource policies and incentive plans to make sure that they are aligned with behaviors that lead to the development of strong products and services.
A classic example of misalignment is an organization that officially "preaches" teamwork, but then consistently ...