How big things get done

How Big Things Get Done

One of my mentors, Wally Bock, recommended to me the book How Big Things Get Done. He said, “It’s one of the best books I’ve ever come across about planning and managing big projects.” I agree with Wally’s assessment and recommend it for all business leaders involved in scoping and executing company projects.

The authors analyzed data from over 16,000 projects to identify the difference between project success and project failure; from large infrastructure and construction projects like Olympic Games stadiums and high-speed rail networks, down to personal projects at the other end of the scale, like home renovations. 

The data shows that time and cost overruns are surprisingly common:

  • 1 in 10 projects are completed on time and within budget. 
  • 1 in 100 projects are completed on time and within budget, and deliver the key benefits that were promised upfront.

I find this data disturbing. These numbers are rounded up. The actual data is even worse than this.

In this blog, I share 2 big lessons from the book that resonated with me. Lessons that apply to the type of projects my SMB clients typically undertake (product launches, new process rollouts, geographic expansion, technology implementation, organization restructures, etc).    

Big Lesson 1: Think slow, then act fast

It’s like the old proverb, “Measure twice, cut once.” In other words, think before you act.

The authors assert that the best way to get a project done quickly is to divide a project into two phases. Planning, followed by Delivery. 

The terminology varies by industry. In movies, it’s “Development, followed by Production”; in architecture, “Design, followed by Construction”, but the basic idea is the same everywhere: Think, followed by Act.

A common problem stems from ambitious leaders with a GSD (Get S*** Done) “bias for action” who can undermine the success of a project from the get-go. They tend to rush through the planning and scoping phase of the project (the thinking phase). 

GSD leaders often don’t perform much analysis of similar projects undertaken by other companies. Risks are not carefully identified and discussed. Few (if any) alternative options are compared. Minimum viable products (MVP) are not used to validate assumptions before committing serious resources (aka “fire bullets, then cannonballs”). 

Instead, GSD leaders rapidly jump to conclusions and “lock in” to their favorite solution. The project team is urged to quickly move to the execution phase to “get some runs on the board.”

Everyone starts out happy because they can see progress happening. But inevitably the project hits roadblocks that could have been identified and mitigated during the planning phase. The majority of projects don’t “go wrong” so much as they “start wrong.”

Not only that, GSD leaders often fall victim to the “planning fallacy.” They dramatically overestimate what they can get done within the given time period. They assume a best-case scenario (which seldom happens). Reality bites them in the backside.  

Remember the data: 

  • 1 in 10 projects are completed on time and within budget. 
  • 1 in 100 projects are completed on time and within budget, and deliver the key benefits that were promised upfront.

Don’t get me wrong, a GSD “bias for action” is a commendable trait, but not when the tradeoff is a “bias against thinking.”

I suggest a change of mindset. Teach your team that allocating time upfront for proper planning “is making progress” on the project.  

Think slow, then act fast. 

Big Lesson 2: Take The Outside View

You might think your project is special, but unless you are creating something that has never been done before, it is not unique; it is part of a larger “reference class” of projects. 

For example, imagine you implementing new ERP software. As part of the planning and scoping phase, it is wise to conduct research on the average time and cost for a “reference class” of ERP implementations at companies similar to yours, to ground your baseline assumptions with relevant real-world examples.

Note: If your project is large and complex, with 3rd party interdependencies, even reference class averages may be too conservative. Many professional Project Managers say it’s not enough to simply add 20% or 40% to your original time estimate as a buffer. These experts recommend you should double your estimate. I’m not saying you need to be this extreme when scoping out your Strategic Projects (Big Rocks) for the quarter, but it is a sobering reminder about the importance of proper planning and analysis. 

Think slow, then act fast.    

My Recommendations:

When clients choose their Strategic Projects (Big Rocks) at quarterly planning sessions, I urge project teams to spend the first 7 days (8.3% of the quarter) planning and scoping the project using the following framework:

Week 1. 

The project team has 7 days to conduct preliminary research, plan, and scope the project. I recommend a premortem exercise (to identify and mitigate the worst-case scenarios). 

Develop a plan with a list of the key tasks or milestones “in scope” with conservative due dates, as well as a list of tasks that are “out of scope” for the quarter. Don’t be too granular, just list the major steps that (if completed this quarter) would constitute a 10/10 grade for strategy execution. 

And make sure you “deal with the monkey first” (identify the bottleneck and solve that problem first)

Week 2. 

The Senior leadership team reviews and signs off the project scopes for the quarter. The scopes should be not too hard (setting ourselves up for failure), not too soft (sandbagging), but in the Goldilocks zone (robust, with just the right amount of stretch). 

Weeks 3-10.

The Project team front-loads the work and “sprints hard” to complete the agreed project scope for the quarter by the end of week 10.

Weeks 11-12.

Tidy up loose ends, perform an After Action Review to capture lessons learned, create any necessary documentation, and begin planning the next phase of the project (where appropriate). 

The aim is to finish each quarter with some breathing room to spare. You want your project team to experience the thrill of achievement. Pop the cork and celebrate! Take the team out for lunch! Catch your breath! You’ve earned it.

Then we regroup for the next Quarterly Strategic Review and prepare for the next sprint.

My Parting Thoughts

The authors shared an interesting anecdote from a professional Tour de France rider who explained that the key to success in this grueling three-week bicycle race is “not losing” each day for 21 days. Only after that can you consider winning.

I presume “not losing” in this scenario means things like – don’t crash, don’t get injured, always keep up with the leading peloton of riders, etc. 

After reading this, other similar examples sprang to mind for me: Chess grandmasters say they win by not losing. Savvy investors say they become rich by not going bust. Warren Buffett said, “Rule #1: Never lose money. Rule #2: Never forget rule #1.”

Successful project leaders also think like this. Successful project leaders win by making sure they don’t lose.

Successful project leaders think slow, then act fast. That’s how they get big things done!

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Until next time…
Stephen