Project Management Skills Project Management Skills

for lawyersfor lawyers

Increasing Importance of PM for lawyers

• Growing Role of GC’s– Handling the merger of their firm with another– Selling or acquiring assets or shares– Going public– Negotiating complex agreements

• Increasing constraints– Strict budget– Aggressive timing – Tight resources

Increasing Importance of PM for lawyers

• Increased complexity

– Cross functional teams

– Massive number of individual tasks to be completed

– Difficulties to align priorities

– No hierarchical power

– Globalization of the markets

– Highly matrixed environments

– Strategic for the company (its future, its revenues)

Importance for GC’s to develop PM skills

Requirements for a successful PM - Defining the project and clarifying the responsibilities – Key question – WHO ?

• Who is in charge ?• What are your responsibilities ? Do you have decision making

authority ?• Who is on the team and in charge of what ?• Who are the sponsors ? The team leaders ?• Is everyone who is performing work for the project identified?

– Clarify ambiguous roles and responsibility • PM should be officially announced in writing by the top

management• Make sure everyone you need is on board

  Firstname Name Title Site E-mail address Mobile Phone number Complete Site Adress Postcode

Company’s name

Department 1

Department 2

EXTERNAL LAWYERS

CONSULTING CONTACTS

Project organisation

Project organisation

Work stream leaders

PMO

Consulting contact

Requirements for a successful PM - Defining the project and clarifying the responsibilities

• Key question – WHAT ?– What is the scope of the project?

• Clearly define the scope and objectives of the project • Make sure everyone understand the scope of the project

– What resources do you need?• Internally • Externally

– What are the major deliverables?• List the main deliverables• List the key milestones

Requirements for a successful PM – Organizing and planning the Project

• Key question – WHEN ?– Schedule is very important – not too many but not too few meetings – How often the teams will meet ?– Identify dependencies: which teams need to deliver first?– Appoint someone to maintain the project file

• Important issues– Make sure to organize regular sponsors’ meetings – Identify timely workstream’s issues– Anticipate any impact on the schedule– Inform – fluidity of information is vital

Requirements for a successful PM – Organizing and planning the Project

• Key question – HOW ?– Track each task by listing each of them– Make sure someone update the list regularly– Define one owner per task– Homogeneous information: communication is key

• Make sure to consult as broadly as possible• List also external tasks

– To be done by the vendor / acquirer– Administrative approvals

• Track and take adaptive action if required

Action items tracking form

Conclusions - Qualities to be a good PM

• Manage expectation• Good leader – motivator• Big picture oriented• Effective communicator• Good organizer• Goal oriented • Anticipate risks• Good understanding of other departments issues

Conclusion – close out the project

• PM requires a lot of energy – make sure to :

– Celebrate the project completion (closing diner, tombstones)

– Recognize everyone’s contributions – Learn – what did go well / what did not?– Share tools – if useful for other projects (avoid to

reinvent the wheel for each new project)

QUESTIONS ?