A while ago I was asked by a friend what he should do when he was first “handed” the daunting task of leading an organisation wide project.  For background, the project related to the identification and then the implementation of a software solution with HR related functionality.  My friend had never directly worked on a project let alone managed one.  He was selected as he was (is) a good general manager with HR experience.

I had a call last week from him saying that he had effectively completed the close out on the project, and that the project was a success.  A job well done.  As part of end of project review he was looking through old notes and came across an email I sent him in his first week after his appointment as the Project Manager.  Below is a cut from that initial emal I sent to him which he said was a useful start point to leading a project.  I hope this may be helpful to someone else. 

1. Don’t be over awed and don’t panic.  Project management is an exerise of logic and usually hard work.
2. Go with your eyes wide open; it’s easier to see what’s coming that way.
3. Find a mentor to bounce ideas around with and to help guide you through the life of the project.  Hopefully this person will know your organisation and how it works, and have great project experience.
4. Do some basic homework on what is project management.  There are some great easy to read texts (eg Idiots Guide to Project Management) to give you some basic grounding.  The aim initially is not to become an overnight guru in running complex projects, but to give you a broad understanding.  As you read through the guiding text and realise what you don’t know, don’t panic!  What’s great is that you are working out what you need to know or what skills/experience you may need to bring in.  As you become more comfortable with the running of projects, keep referring back to this text.  It will help you.
5. If you are able, see if you can get on a course about project management; again this will help your understanding and confidence.
6. Remeber every project is different so don’t just copy how the last project was set up and run.
7. Try to get a clear as possible understanding in the initial phases of the following: Who - who are you accountable to and make sure that your boss/sponsor/steering committee fully supports the project concept or brief (as the project progresses you must make sure they stay actively engaged).  Why - why is the organisation doing the project?  What is the purpose?  You must clearly understand the logic of the why.  If it doesn’t seem logical, you either don’t understand it properly and need to, or it isn’t logical and then the question is why is it being done?  What (#1) - exactly what are the project goals/outcome expectations from your organisation (as the customer), steering committee and any other stakeholders.  As you move into planning, these will tighten up and you will get these agreed to inwriting.  However, at this very early stage, you need to picture what the business really needs so it can achieve the ‘why’.  As part of this you need to know what (if anything) is the key driver(s) for the project and if there are any associated (or dependant) projects.  Re drivers, this would likely be linked to main outcome deliverables (to achieve the ‘why’) but sometimes there is another key driver from senior management (eg time…Go Live by beginning of new financial year).  Be careful, what seems to be the key driver at concept stage may not be the real driver or realistic to achieve when you have done your planning.  If this is the case, you need to manage expectations.  What (#2) - what is your orgnisations initial expectation for time (from start to full implementation), and what is their logic.  The time to move a prjoect from initiation to completion is so often understated and if you don’t get this right in the coming planning stage, it could become your cross.  What (#3) - what is your organisations initial expectation on budget and again understand how this estimate was made.  How - understand if your organisation has any stated project methodology, approach, templates, tools etc.  Even if you don ‘t know how these all work initially, at least you will start to understand the rules you are being asked to play by.
8. Get some reliable people around you with the right skill and experience (hopefully including that mentor mentioned above) to help work through the initial project planning phase.  In your planning you will work out your project team structure based on skills and experience requirements.  Don’t underestimate the value of having the right team around you, and if you cannot get the right full time team, look for how you can overcome any deficiencies; eg mentoring, short term engagement of techincal experts etc.
9. With your initial planning group work through a thorough planning process based on sound/proven project planning methodology.  Follow the proven approach step by step.  While you must have flexibility when applynig the methodology and approach, remember flexibility does not mean deviating from the path.
10. As part of your deliberate planning approach, make sure you involve all the relevant stakeholders and ‘experts’ in your planning.
11. ‘Communication’ sounds simple, and when all is said and done, it really is simple.  But for some reason it’s often the one thing that project teams do not do well.  There is no black magic surrounding communication, it’s normally just a case of getting out and letting people know what’s happening, why it’s happening, and then as things progress, how it impacts on them.  Words of caution: within the bounds of confidentiality etc never tell anything but the truth…it will come back on you; be clear and concise; make sure each public communication has a purpose; seek feedback at appropriate times; listen to concerns and questions and respond as quickly  as you can; there is a balance that you need to strike between too much communication and too little; and communication does not mean more detailed emails and more reports. 
12. Look for any lessons learnt on similar previous projects…you might find some helpful hints.
13. Lead the project.  It’s your responsibility.  And yes, leading = leadership.