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Project and Programme Management in Local Government
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Local Authorities are constantly under the scrutiny of Central Government, customers, the media, and their own internal performance and corporate management teams. The services an authority provides are assessed regularly against key performance indicators such as quality, speed, efficiency, economy and effectiveness. These assessments impact greatly on how Local Authorities are viewed by themselves and more importantly, those they serve.
Corporate-wide Approach
So, why should a local authority be concerned about its strategic approach to managing programmes and projects?
Common practice on project and programme management can be hard to achieve for any organisation. Local authorities, however, face more issues than most. Most authorities have to consider:
- Rapidly shifting priorities, both cross-authority and within departments;
- Front-line' versus 'back office' resource pressures;
- Balancing authority needs with those of strategic partners;
- Member and public interest in specific initiatives;
- Skills mix and variety of 'inherited' project management practices.
In this environment, it can be difficult to maintain a clear perspective on the bigger picture, or to understand where the greatest risks from project or programme mis-management really lie.
A corporate approach to programme and project management can make a major contribution to alleviating these issues and help authorities to prioritise strategic and high profile work, against day-to-day service delivery and unplanned initiatives.
Establishing a Common Approach
There are a number of requirements to successfully establishing corporate-wide PPM. The most important of which are:
Look for Good Practice
When developing and implementing a corporate-wide PPM methodology there are frequently pockets of good PPM practice which should be captured and considered. Think laterally - this could include a range of public and private sector organisations, not just other local authorities. Look for similar characteristics, i.e. organisations expected to work with multiple partners or to react quickly to shifting policy requirements. Don't overlook good PPM practice in-house.
Get Top Level Buy-in Early
Corporate management buy-in is, of course, essential. So too is the early buy-in of directorate and service heads, project managers and service team members. This is necessary as it will ensure that the CPPM is not just another piece of 'shelf-ware', but something the whole authority can actually relate and work to.
Clearly Define Roles
Every project needs an owner. All too often the primary programme and project roles are poorly defined with ambiguity surrounding the responsibility, accountability and key activities. These roles need to be understood in the context of a 'project management environment', not merely a local authority organisational structure.
Get the Reporting Right
In maintaining a successful CPPM implementation there needs to be project or programme reporting and management arrangements in place. These should not duplicate existing performance reporting but should complement it and be programme or project-specific.
Is it a Programme or a Project?
It is important to be able to identify, from normal 'business-as-usual' service delivery activities, what actually constitutes a programme, a project or a project within a programme. A simple risk-based scoring and assessment tool, adapted from the '22 Questions technique' developed by Oakleigh can help.
Make it Flexible
A common PPM approach should not be so prescriptive that it can only apply to complex projects. It needs to be scaleable and applicable to real scenarios across all types of projects. Ensure that the basic principles of the corporate PPM approach are transparent and can be easily understood.
Making it Happen
Of course, implementing a CPPM approach successfully will not happen overnight. There needs to be enthusiasm and buy-in across the authority, and not just from the centre. This can be done through a series of consultative workshops to develop the material and agreeing a clear route to implementation.
Collaborative working is essential for success and the acknowledgment that there must be some level of change management required. The implementation and branding needs to be planned and pitched at the right level and it will need to be supported by ongoing (preferably in-house) training and awareness sessions.
The result is an authority that can adapt to changing circumstances across a broad range of projects and programmes and be confident in its ability to manage risk and resource.
If you have any questions about the subjects covered in this white paper or you would like to find out more about how Oakleigh Consulting could help your organisation, please contact us on 0161 835 4100 or email us.
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