Have you ever heard the saying "it's like herding cats"? When you did, or if this was the first time you've heard it, did it resonate with you? Did you smile and nod your head? Well then at some point in your life, maybe even currently, you are a leader.
Project managers aren't just admins. They aren't just coordinators. They aren't just planners or schedulers. Project managers are leaders. Sometimes intentionally, sometimes reluctantly, sometimes in complete denial but they are leaders. They see the forest and the trees.
But leaders can't lead if they don't communicate. The people that you lead may be very skilled at what they do but it's your job to ensure that none of their talent is wasted on frivolous things because you did not communicate a direction to them. Having a team of the best football players on earth is pointless without a coach. Mediocre teams with coaches will beat all-stars with no coach.
But it's like herding cats!! Yes it is. We are all busy with competing priorities daily. That won't change. So how do I gets the cats to herd so we can get things done on schedule, with the level of quality we need and on budget ?
Cats may be very independent minded, divas who don't really put much stock in others. The sun don't shine till they wake! But no matter how high the pedestal they're perched on, cats still need to eat. They've got to come down to feed.
The independent minded, divas on your team, and all of the other team members for that matter, desire more than just showing up for a paycheck each week. We all do. Spend the time as a PM formulating your plan, coordinating resources, and scheduling WEEKLY progress tracking meetings with your team. Then feed them with communication / direction for the upcoming week. Give them specifics (their favorite dish) and deadlines (or the food will get cold). Here's a translation of the metaphor for the non-metaphor types ;)
| Herding Cats | Translation | Practical Application |
| Get the Cats to come prepared to eat | Prepare the team to provide the right updates on the right tasks at the right time | Detailed Tracking Meeting Agendas |
| Show them what they ate and whats on the next menu | Motivate the team to continue to perform by advertising their progress (good or not so good) | Detailed Progress Reports |
| Tell the top Cats only what they need to know to help keep the other cats in line | Remove blockers by synthesizing them and providing clear decisions for the Execs / Sponsor to make to unblock progress | Executive Briefing Decks |
| Keep them from straying too far | Manage scope by focusing only on those actions that will help the project, whittling out those that do not, and focusing the action item owners only on those action items that are current (right actions, at right time, for right deliverables) | Action Item Logs |
The challenge is that producing the 'meal' to maximize your results take time. Lots of time and analysis. This is the reason why most project managers DON'T do it. They either don't understand the value / benefit, don't know how to do it or they simply just don't have enough hours in the week to do it. Even with all of the software tools we have at our disposal today, this is still a highly manual, labor intensive administrative effort that most PM's avoid.
'There are too many other things that need my attention and I just don't have the time'.
At www.exorion.net we've solved this problem!
Just like the microwave oven turned hours of meal preparation into minutes (or in some cases just seconds) we have turned the analysis and prep time of communication to project team members into one that is done automatically in seconds!
So now you're asking yourself 'how is that even possible?' Go to www.exorion.net and click on the BETA test tab and watch the product presentation video for more information.
This is the most powerful way for project managers to herd the cats. You have to be consistent. If you communicate frequently; providing the information they need in a highly digestible and consistent format, at the right time to the right people, your team will understand what needs to be done, how when and why.
If your project was floundering, it will turn around and sail. If you were doing well, you will supercharge it towards success! Using our solution consistently on all of your projects will 'train the cats' to adopt successful behavior that will carry over from project to project for success on a consistent basis.
Need to herd the cats to get your project done? Feed them good food. They'll show up on time and leave happy.
The next time you catch yourself thinking "my project feels like it's rudderless at sea" or its "out of my control and I'm always playing catch up instead of leading it", you'll know that today you heard of a solution that will put you back in the drivers seat and steered towards success. www.exorion.net
