How to pre-frame a team member's role in your team
Hi Everyone,
This is one I've seen PMs suffer with over many projects and wanted to discuss for years.
IT systems projects often have change managers the boss pushes on the Project Manager (for a number of reasons that help the boss but probably not you). The change manager (who is often paid more than the PM) is meant to be the voice of the customer, and organise the training and make sure the business is ready to use the system.
This presents some challenges to the PM's authority:
- The change manager will want change analysts and trainers and want to run them as their patch.
- The business is where power comes from in modern IT projects. The business live in detail. The CM will often use that to book up the business talking about what the business loves and wants. Leaving the PM to talk about project mechanics the business doesn't like or care about (i.e. lessening their leadership)
- The change manager often cares more about staying close to the business (their power base) than the project objectives. So they will fight for work they know we can't do so they look like heroes to the business.
- Change managers are extremely power aware and hungry people - natural and skilled power movers.
- The CM is often a spy in the camp for your boss so they can easily do an end run on you.
And yes of course I have worked with some great Change Managers as well, team players who were pivotal in helping us help the business.
I know we like to work from specifics normally. This one is more strategic. Its relevant to the PU modules on leadership and dealing with difficult personalities although in this case its a difficult role.
What do you guys think is a good strategy going in to pre-frame this person as part of the team so that there is some WIIFM?
Not easy to give high-level effective strategies beyond the stock "make friends", high-power / high-warmth, collaborative frames", etc. without having direct experience on this.
How would you do it, Kevin, or how have you done it so far?
Yea it is a tough one. I think it's like in The Hunt for red October. You have the party commissar who is on the surface meant to be there to help you but really is keeping an eye on you and the interests of the party.
The great change managers give me intelligence on the business and make sure we understand our key political messages and that our voice is heard in the right forum at the right time. So I know what good looks like I just have to work out how to motivate them to give good.
It's not a situation I have to solve right now so I will ask it a little less frankly on some project manager type forums and do a bit of thinking and report back.
Yeah, curious to hear what they have to say.
I'd personally approach it with a "we're in it together frame", try to frame it win-win early on, and see if he's open to lunch break, and develop some rapport / goodwill (that would be the ideal scenario).
Agree. Unfortunately the nice ones will probably be open to that. The nasty ones are professional courtiers - the old kiss up kick down to a high degree. If they think they are at your level or above (and they normally think above) they will try and cuckoo your team and feed you a series of perfectly calibrated social snubs.
My spidey sense must have been tingling. And so it begins.... I thought we were getting change analysts so this thread was just a self improvement exercise. And then 3 CMs arrived at program level last week :-O
They want me to do a change assessment with the CM. All good. Given my previous scars I was tempted to sand trap. Knowing he would try and take over, feed him slightly wrong info and correct in the big public meeting with friendly and supportive tone. After this thread I thought no try the way of the eagle first.
I took a couple of deep breaths and played nice. Full transparency and info sharing everything he needed. I offered the hand some more. Mentioned how I'd gone about supporting CMs in the past and asked him how he'd like to handle the preso. Got motherhood words and the brushoff. All I wanted was - Transitioned, you do the intro and the wrap-up and I'll talk to the stickies. Spot light shared, alignment shown, everyone happy 🙂
So in the Preso this guys starts talking to the stickies and tells people how my project is going to run. And then says so now we'll move onto... i.e. evidently Project Manager input isn't required 🙁
F&%# no not on my watch. I jumped up and said great work Steve thanks for the background. (Jab, cross - thank you PU 😉 Now let's just quickly tell the story of the project. And gave them the game plan and a couple of key decision and fall back points.
So hopefully this was just over keen new guy wanting to kick goals.
I'm still very interested in how to befriend this guy if anyone has any tips. My problem is now I've already offered the hand so much any more friendly gesture might be over chasing.
Maybe I'll just go do the beginning of the change planning in my project and then when he sees I have a clue he might calm down and work together.
Great going Kevin, play it great in my opinion.
Played it straight first and set it up for win-win.
And when he tried to damage you, you stepped in and effectively re-asserted your boundaries and authority.
as you say, in the immediate I'd also wait for him to make a step in your direction first.
So the good news was I schmoozed the 2-up while I was working with her on my project commercial agreements and got a less toxic CM to play with. Not official yet but I'm going to assume the sale and keep going to him.
And the saga continues. I found CMs a bit like sharks they sniff around a bit but if they don't smell blood in the water they swim off. So my objective was to avoid the normal carpet bagging/cherry picking from the new guy. So I grabbed all my old decks whipped up a change workstream in my plan backed by all those generic change slides the CMs trot out every time. Booked my new CM showed him change was already integrated and that had been socialised. I.e. he can't ride in on a white horse to fill this critical gap. Showed him I could do the change dance too and I wanted him to have a regular slot at my SteerCo where he can present to the links to Program Change which I told him is what really matters. I don't care how much he talks himself up as above as long as he doesn't interfere with us delivering. He had his spotlight I was doing all the work so he was happy and I could tell my Boss that my change workstream had got the tick.
Nice, great stuff Kevin, glad to hear!