Chapter 8: Closing Thoughts Companies are beginning to realize that they have to get a better return on their project management investment. Many have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars and thousands of hours of employee time building a project management methodology for their organization. They expect to get business value in the way of a higher success rate on the projects they undertake and a more effective and efficient execution of projects. When it does not happen, which is often the case, they need to aggressively develop a strategy to get that return. A continuous quality improvement program centered on project. | 8 Closing Thoughts Companies are beginning to realize that they have to get a better return on their project management investment. Many have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars and thousands of hours of employee time building a project management methodology for their organization. They expect to get business value in the way of a higher success rate on the projects they undertake and a more effective and efficient execution of projects. When it does not happen which is often the case they need to aggressively develop a strategy to get that return. A continuous quality improvement program centered on project management is their best strategy. Some turn to a portfolio management approach while others establish a PMO to support projects. Even others invest heavily in a six-sigma program. All of these are admirable initiatives and should be done but in the end all of these organizations will find that a continuous quality improvement program for project management is still a necessity. Implementation Challenges A continuous quality improvement program for project management represents a significant change project. Change is always a challenge as it strikes at the very heart of the organization s culture and business processes. Managers and staff have become comfortable in their environment and resist anything that threatens their territory. They are OK with change as long as it does not impact their work patterns or threaten their authority. For project managers it is not any different except that they have the added burden of risk. Any change in procedures 165 166 Project Management Process Improvement brings with it the possibility of increased risk and project managers tend not to like increased project risk. Perceived Value It is WIIFM what s in it for me . Those who are responsible for establishing and monitoring the project management methodology have a big selling job to do. They have to convince project managers and their teams that what they are
