Throwing in the towel with a contract early. Moral dilema

[clearedforlanding]

Notify the risk to your stakeholders in writing, specify the actions by them required to mitigate the risk and carry on invoicing. Do a GAP analysis in the form of a traffic light analysis - make everything red & amber - as a ass covering exercise but hey you might actually find it a productive tool.


Oh and you are a TPM. It is your role to solve these problems, not whinge about them.

[DimPrawn]

Oh and you are a TPM. It is your role to solve these problems, not whinge about them.

[SimonMac]

What is your role on the project?

Do you have any clout to get anything done

[Troll]

Hi All,

A long time lurker of the forum and wanted to get some peoples opinion of a dilemma I am in. I appreciate that this question is often asked as people are in a similar situation to me but I wanted to share all the same.

3 months in to the project and I could sense things weren’t right. The programme manager left, an experienced PM left and my own concerns were growing. The project is huge, budget is no issue and I have contractor resource coming out of my ears and more if needed. However there is a drop-dead date when it must be completed.

So what’s the problem?

• A matrix managed environment meaning I rely heavily on the FTE ops teams to do the project work.
• No top down comms from CIO/director level of importance of project resulting in staff who don’t care if the project happens or not.
• An organisation with a history of morale problems within their IT dept.
• Heavily unionised so people wont do things if they think they don’t need to.
• Senior management are ineffective and cannot assign work to their staff. When they do the staff often do not deliver.

Do I suck it up and see it as experience and take the money? Or do I leave and work on a contract that is ready for this type of project and I can get satisfaction on delivering something? Am I underestimating the senior position as one that should be less involved with the technical ‘doing’ and more about getting people on board?

Anyway that’s it and thanks

Set up your own recruitment agency with your partner as the front man / woman

Get rid of all existing contractors as inept and replace with those sourced from your agency at increased margins

Flood the project with contractors if budget is no issue

Make sure the contractors you place understand there is an expected "finders fee" of one days rate in cash , in a brown envelope prior to commencing and again at each renewal

Milk the sucker until you retire

HTH

[LondonManc]

Hi All,

A long time lurker of the forum and wanted to get some peoples opinion of a dilemma I am in. I appreciate that this question is often asked as people are in a similar situation to me but I wanted to share all the same.

3 months in to the project and I could sense things weren’t right. The programme manager left, an experienced PM left and my own concerns were growing. The project is huge, budget is no issue and I have contractor resource coming out of my ears and more if needed. However there is a drop-dead date when it must be completed.

So what’s the problem?

• A matrix managed environment meaning I rely heavily on the FTE ops teams to do the project work.
• No top down comms from CIO/director level of importance of project resulting in staff who don’t care if the project happens or not.
• An organisation with a history of morale problems within their IT dept.
• Heavily unionised so people wont do things if they think they don’t need to.
• Senior management are ineffective and cannot assign work to their staff. When they do the staff often do not deliver.

Do I suck it up and see it as experience and take the money? Or do I leave and work on a contract that is ready for this type of project and I can get satisfaction on delivering something? Am I underestimating the senior position as one that should be less involved with the technical ‘doing’ and more about getting people on board?

Anyway that’s it and thanks

If you're a project manager, it's your job to de-risk the project.
List all your risks and the price of mitigating them. If budget is no problem then you can still deliver.

[clearedforlanding]

If you're a project manager, it's your job to de-risk the project.
List all your risks and the price of mitigating them. If budget is no problem then you can still deliver.

+1. I get the suspicion that OP may not be experienced enough to turn this one round with the questions he is asking however.

[surfstar]

Thanks for those with productive feedback.

I am the technical senior PM delivering multiple projects in an overlying programme.

Programme and all subsequent projects are red and amber. GAP analysis of skills and RACI matrix of roles and responsibilities has been done and reported up stream. Contractor resource is heavily backfilling permies roles to free them up. Utilisation reports on permies work are captured to identify the delta of where they need support. Escalations often hit criticism on how the programme is communicating to the permies on the work they need to do rather than concentrating on getting things done. Comms plan has been revised and is now mature.
A key thing here is no accountability when things dont get done. Again this is often escalated to the people who do nothing. By accountability Im not expecting disciplinary measures but more sense of urgency. The organisation is dysfunctional and the type of programme this is exposes permie staff and can often lead to sabotage of said projects. Budget is big with an emphasis on external professional services to de-risk the projects. However augmented contractors require a long duration in post prior to being set free on the services and apps.
The organisations IT dept. is very immature and has a proven record of not delivering projects. There is inherited bad blood between projects and ops and we (PMs) are seen as the bad guys demanding work to be done.
I know where the problem is and it falls on the mid to senior management who haven’t cascaded the importance and urgency of the programme to staff.
I’m trundling along on this until a better project comes along. The programme will ultimately deliver but the rollercoaster of challenges is what im concerned with and the stigma of delivering a pigs ear doesn’t intrest me. Im not chasing rates and would work for less on something that is deliverable, enjoyable and where I know people wont tell me to **** off when I walk out of the room.

[SueEllen]

The organisation is dysfunctional and the type of programme this is exposes permie staff and can often lead to sabotage of said projects. Budget is big with an emphasis on external professional services to de-risk the projects. However augmented contractors require a long duration in post prior to being set free on the services and apps.

Why are you allowing contractors to be hired who take a long time to get up to speed?

[surfstar]

Why are you allowing contractors to be hired who take a long time to get up to speed?

Its company policy to have a mandatory period (circa 2/3 months) and yes I know and agree this is ridiculous but this is what im dealing with

[oracleslave]

Thanks for those with productive feedback.

I am the technical senior PM delivering multiple projects in an overlying programme.

Snip

These projects / programmes are not unique. You have decisions to make and the good news is you have options:

1) Do the best you can. Continue to escalate, communicate and report on the issues. Try and address the dysfunctional areas in a rational and even handed manner. If you stick it out to the end, it's likely you'll feel a significant sense of satisfaction at having been able to deliver something in spite of everyone around you. I know I did.

2) Do the bare minimum and get out before the car crash happens and head off in search of that perfect role somewhere else

Either option is fine. It does read to me like you're far too personally and emotionally involved and are carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders. When was your last holiday?