Improve project success rate using three lenses Many projects become important mechanisms of change that can transform organizations. For project managers caught up in such projects, however, they can be filled with unanticipated strategic, political and cultural difficulties that lead to disappointing project results. Researcher Luis Rabelo, of the department of Industrial Engineering and Management Systems at the University of Central Florida, suggests that project managers can avoid some of these pitfalls by applying a Three Lenses framework as they design and pursue their projects. “The three lenses framework examines different organizational processes through three different lenses that reveal the complex interactions between the project and the different organizational elements,” explains Rabelo. “The strategic design lens focuses on project design and strategy, the political lens focuses on relationships between the project team and stakeholders as well as between stakeholders, and the cultural lens focuses on organizational culture, including conceptual models and subcultures.” In a recent study, Rabelo applied the three lenses framework to two global enterprises, each involved in implementing a large knowledge‐management project. He used informal interviews, experience and direct observation to apply the framework and verify its value. Strategic Design Lens Using the strategic design lens, says Rabelo, helps project managers to stay within the main guidelines of the organizational design, support the project’s structure with its strategy, and achieve a synergy between the strategy and the organizational design — all within the constraints of the project environment. To use the strategic design lens, project managers must first address the strategy behind the project: a) What is the project trying to accomplish? b) How can the project be differentiated from others that have similar goals? c) What is this project trying to do better? Second, says Rabelo, the project manager must map out the project’s design by addressing the following questions: a) What are the project’s strategic grouping structures (e.g. matrix organization, hybrid structure)? b) What are the principal linking mechanisms (e.g. liaison roles, integrator roles, temporary cross‐units)? c) What are the major alignment challenges (individual rewards and incentives, informal systems and processes) and how are they addressed (e.g. via resource allocation policies, training)? © 2012 PM Perspectives Research Group Page 1 of 3
d) Are performance measures used to influence and/or inform resource‐allocation decisions? e) Is there any relationship between organizational performance and individual or group incentives to contribute to organizational performance? f) What are the strengths and weaknesses of this project/organizational design? Political Lens Project managers can use the political lens to map out the different relationships among a project’s stakeholders. To discover their interests and sources of power, ask the following questions: 1) Whose cooperation and support is needed? 2) Whose opposition could delay or derail the project? • What are the reasons for their opposition? • What is the magnitude of the effects of their opposition on the project’s success or failure? 3) Who will be affected (in terms of power status, influences, and rewards)? 4) What/where are the networks of potential supporters and blockers? 5) How much power does the project team have in influencing situations and outcomes, and how would moving project team‐members to another position increase the project’s success? 6) What are the power bases? Once the project manager understands these relationships, says Rabelo, it’s important to persuade the key players and stakeholders to commit resources to the project, which ensures their continued commitment. The project manager can also use the political lens to identify potential allies whose interests will benefit from the project. This is useful in forming a project coalition, and in building networks of influence. “Negotiation skills are also very important for obtaining project resources,” he adds. Cultural Lens The cultural lens reveals the reinforcement mechanisms and symbols that are important to an organization. “An organization’s culture is revealed through its artifacts, stories, symbols and observed behaviours,” says Rabelo. “Understanding an organization’s culture, and aligning the project to suit it, can be critical for success.” To determine any subcultures and conceptual models within the organization, ask the following questions: a) How is the project portrayed to the larger organization? b) How do people ‘see’ the project? © 2012 PM Perspectives Research Group Page 2 of 3
c) Does the language used to discuss the project vary depending on who is speaking or who is listening? d) What are the basic assumptions about the organizational culture and how are they identified? Don’t lose sight of how the project might reinforce or challenge an organization’s overall values and assumptions. Pay attention to whether the project is embedding mechanisms used by the organization’s leaders ‐ for example rituals such as CEO announcements or special presentations to the executive committee. It’s also important to note the project’s culture (clan, advocacy, hierarchical or market) and whether the project allows for diversity. Using the three lenses framework, says Rabelo, provides three different perspectives for reviewing a project and revealing potential problems that are often overlooked. It can also help the project manager to devise corrections or make adjustments before a project fails. Most importantly, says Rabelo, using the framework before beginning a project can help to initiate a project design that will truly achieve a corporation’s objectives. Source: Rabelo. L. “Using the three lenses framework to observe and analyse projects”, (2012) International Journal of Project Organization and Management, 4:1, 2012, pp. 54‐74. PMPerspectives.org is a website which connects project managers and sponsors with project management researchers. Our mission is to understand and improve project management practices. The research team comprises Dr. Blaize Horner Reich and Dr. Andrew Gemino from Simon Fraser University, Canada and Dr. Chris Sauer from Oxford University, UK. © Reich, Gemino, Sauer (2012) This PDF version was reproduced in 2013 with minor typographic corrections. © 2012 PM Perspectives Research Group Page 3 of 3