Communications -Local and Offshore

Ann Pilkington and Russel JamiesonAPM People SIG

Project Challenge March 2014

A Quick Introduction - Russel

20+ years PM experience, primarily in

– Financial Services

– Telecommunications

APM People Specific Interest Group (SIG) Chair

APM Wessex Branch Committee

APM Nominations Committee

APM National Awards Committee Deputy Chair

Registered Project Professional (RPP)

Fellow of APM (FAPM)

PRINCE2, MSP and AIM Practitioner

Winning mentor last 2 years for Student PM Challenge!

Manchester United member (suffering badly this season )

Appeared on Page 3 of The Sun…No, alongside!

Quoted in Sunday Times editorial…Interesting!

Yes…I have project managed a failed project…Or have I?

Twitter @RusselJamiesonpeoplesig@apm.org.uk

Examples of Where (Overseas)

United States of America

Malaysia

India

South Africa

Quick Wins

• Email signatures and ‘Directory’ entries

• Full job title

• Office address

• Landline number

• Mobile number

• ‘Golden’ Hours

• Common times, if any, when employees across time zones are

available together

• Politely ask ALL teams to only take breaks when they fall outside

of the 'golden’ hours to maximise available time together

Quick Wins

• Always quote the same customers time zone e.g. UK – USA – AUSTRALIA…

• Email content

• DO provide full details of what you want and why

• DO provide business justification

• DO provide all references and key contact you have been speaking to

• DO ensure ‘subject’ reflects the contents e.g. Release AK – Story ABCDE–12345

• DO NOT rely on people figuring it out from a massive mail chain you have

forwarded

• DO NOT email if you can talk – it’s good to talk!

Quick Wins - Understand

When ‘Yes’ could mean ‘Yes’, ‘No’

or even ‘Maybe’

Ethnic Group

Religion

Language

Handshake

Presentation of Business Card

Concept of Face

Do’s and Don'ts

Names

Official Titles

Useful Phrases

Useful Websites

Costs – Offshore versus Onshore

• Be involved from inception…not after procurement…easier said than done!

• Beware of the ‘bean-counters’!

• Beware of offshoring at the expense of lost ‘in-house’ expertise

• Make sure that ‘Day 1’ savings aren’t out-weighed by ‘Days 2, 3 & 4’ costs of

re-work

𝑓 𝑥 = 𝑎0 +

𝑛=1

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𝑎𝑛 cos𝑛𝜋𝑥

𝐿+ 𝑏𝑛 sin

𝑛𝜋𝑥

𝐿

A Quick Introduction - Ann

PR and communication – more than 25 years – agh!

Journalist, PR, internal communicator

Now project communication specialist and trainer

Author of ‘Communicating Projects’ published by

Gower

Founder and Director of PR Academy – training in PR

and communication

Deliver PM for PR course

Designed and about to launch course in project

communication

Worked at programme level on major central

Government change initiatives: ERP and shared

services

Twitter @AcademyAnn

peoplesig@apm.org.uk

Communication and employee

engagement.

How can they help your project?

Passengers must

carry dogs on

escalators

Customer information

What is communication?

The response you get back

The biggest problem

with communication is

the illusion that it has

been accomplished

George Bernard Shaw

Engagement: a definition

MacLeod and Clarke conclude that “we believe it is

most helpful to see employee engagement as a

workplace approach designed to ensure that

employees are committed to their organisation’s

goals and values, motivated to contribute to

organisational success, and are able at the same

time to enhance their own sense of well-being”

(italics added).

CO

MM

UN

ICA

TIO

N

Engagement

ENGAGING

MANAGERS

Facilitate and

empower.

VOICE views are

sought out; people

see that their

opinions count.

INTEGRITY

Behaviour is

consistent with

stated values.

MacLeod and Clarke (2009) Engaging for Success

LEADERSHIP

Provides a strong

strategic narrative.

Feeling really well informed.

Professional

Timely, clear, accurate,

pertinent, consistent,

sincere, concise,

business-like.

Reinforces believable

values and narrative.

Propaganda

Content is biased

and does not

reflect reality.

Reinforced by

managers who

show commitment

to the project

Upward feedback

Advanced

Based on people

feeling well informed in

the first place, face to

face, actions taken as a

result or reasons why

action not taken

provided.

Basic

Surveys,

suggestion

schemes, email

boxes.

Reinforced by

managers who are

open to critical

feedback.

Engagement: the challenges for projects

Don’t mess with my scope!

Having enough time

Having a framework – who is going to make

it happen?

Adapted from Harkins, P. 1999 Powerful Conversations: How high impact leaders communicate. McGraw Hill

The Say Do Matrix

Achieving engagement

It doesn’t happen by itself – you need a structure

Managers facilitate conversations – they don’t

have to sell, sell, sell

If you aren’t going to act on feedback, best not to

invite it

Co-ordinate centrally, but deliver and act locally

Culture check – but don’t assume that people

don’t want to be asked

Some final thoughts….

Be clear about the role of communication – it isn’t a substitute for

good governance or line management.

Importantly, communication can’t make sense of something

nonsensical.

Sometimes the problem is with the solution being implemented and

communicators need to be able to recognise this and push back when

the expectation is on them to fix it.

No amount of communication, however creative, can turn a bad

solution into a good one.

And Almost Finally…

• People matter – wherever they are located!

• Things don’t always work out as planned but try and keep a smile on your

face…..and learn!

• I’ll get the ice-creams

Thank you…any queries or is it lunch?

Email: peoplesig@apm.org.uk

Twitter: @PeopleSIG

Web: http://www.apm.org.uk/group/apm-people-specific-interest-group