Rob Tieman - Transportation Project Management-Wiley (2023)
Rob Tieman - Transportation Project Management-Wiley (2023)
Rob Tieman - Transportation Project Management-Wiley (2023)
Rob Tieman
This edition first published 2023
© 2023 Rob Tieman
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or
transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise,
except as permitted by law. Advice on how to obtain permission to reuse material from this title is
available at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions.
The right of Rob Tieman to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with
law.
Registered Office(s)
John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, USA
John Wiley & Sons Ltd, The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQ, UK
For details of our global editorial offices, customer services, and more information about Wiley products
visit us at www.wiley.com.
Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats and by print-on-demand. Some content
that appears in standard print versions of this book may not be available in other formats.
Trademarks: Wiley and the Wiley logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons,
Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and other countries and may not be used without written
permission. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. is
not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the Library of Congress
Set in 9.5/12.5pt STIXTwoText by Integra Software Services Pvt. Ltd, Pondicherry, India
v
Contents
4 Scope 67
4.1 Scoping Process 68
4.2 Schedule and Budget Baselines 74
4.3 Roles and Responsibilities 75
4.4 Scope Management 77
5 Schedule 83
5.1 Critical Path Method (CPM) 83
5.2 Schedule Management Plan 92
5.3 Scheduling Issues 94
vi Contents
6 Managing Risk 99
6.1 Why Risk Management Matters 99
6.2 Risk Management Plan 101
6.3 Risk Identification 102
6.4 Risk Analysis 106
6.5 Risk Responses 109
6.6 Monitoring Risks 113
9 Communications 169
9.1 Project Communications 169
9.2 Stakeholder Involvement and the Stakeholder Engagement Plan 175
9.3 Media Relations 185
Index 287
1
“Leaders think and talk about the solutions. Followers think and talk about the problems.”
– Brian Tracy
1.1 Introduction
“Expect the best, plan for the worst, and prepare to be surprised.”
– Denis Waitley
with a myriad of local, state, and federal organizations that often have very different defi-
nitions of “a helpful and timely response.” Bureaucratic inertia, indecision, and personal
and professional agendas are commonplace. And so much more.
Transportation Project Management is a fascinatingly complex game. It will challenge
your patience, intelligence, and determination. And it will fill you with pride as you develop
and deliver tangible and enduring products that improve the safety and quality of life for
the community.
This book will paint a broad-stroke, contextual picture of foundational transportation
knowledge, provide a comprehensive examination of project management fundamentals,
and offer practical guidance on how to efficiently plan, develop, and deliver public trans-
portation projects.
sometimes complex and conflicting success criteria. At times this can be exhausting and
overwhelming. Resist surrendering that sense of wonder and excitement you had building
Lego creations as a kid. Remember, the goal is to build a solution that solves a problem and
improves the community’s quality of life. That is a noble goal.
Life is short. Harvey Mackay said, “Time is free, but it’s priceless. You can’t own it, but you
can use it. You can’t keep it, but you can spend it. Once you’ve lost it you can never get it back.”
In your professional career you only get so many projects to manage and lead. Seize the
limited opportunities to make a tangible and significant difference in the world.
In 2016, the worldwide management consulting firm McKinsey & Company estimated
large transportation projects typically finish 80% over budget and 20% beyond the original
schedule. Pending the sample set of projects, the results can be even more bleak. Bent
Flyvbjerg, of Oxford Business School, estimated 90% of mega projects go over budget.
Meanwhile, on the other end of the spectrum, small local transportation projects may be no
better. While the lack of holistic and consistent performance metrics over the life of the
project and across state and locality lines can make it difficult to determine if transporta-
tion organizations are developing and delivering projects on-time and on-budget compared
against a common schedule and budget baseline, there is no denying transportation pro-
jects have a history of being chronically late and over budget.
Why is this? In a recent Gallup poll of most trusted and ethical professions, engineers
rank second behind nurses, ahead of medical doctors and pharmacists. Top college engi-
neering programs are among the most competitive for entrance, and most rigorous to
complete. Transportation professionals are typically well-intentioned, bright engineers
who are driven to solve problems and build solutions. Where is the disconnect?
Many of the reasons for this uninspiring performance will be discussed and addressed in
this book. Some of these reasons are outside of our control, but most are not. An organiza-
tion or individual cannot expect success if their level of transportation project management
expertise and experience is low. This book will equip you to succeed.
We start at the very beginning. Project Management 101
is the Triple Constraint. It is so simple. Most every engi-
neer, manager, or administrator can describe it. Yet project
performance indicates most don’t understand it, properly
utilize it, or grasp its power.
As PM, the Triple Constraint is fundamental to all you
do. It is graphically shown as a triangle, with the three legs
being labelled for Budget, Scope, and Schedule.
This triangle, illustrated in Figure 1.1, represents your
project. Your project’s budget, scope, and schedule are
individual constraints that are inherently interconnected. Figure 1.1 Triple constraint.
4 1 Project Management 101
Once set, you cannot change one without impacting the other two. Think of the area within
the triangle as fixed. The option of simply enlarging the triangle is rarely realistic without
compromising the project’s success. So, if you extend the schedule line, the budget and/or
scope must decrease in order for the area within the triangle to remain the same. This
results in the common quip that you can have your project fast, cheap, or good – pick two
of the three.
It is important to recognize that you don’t have a project unless that project has a budget,
scope, and schedule. You may have an idea, a hope, a plan, or even a commitment, but you
do not have a project until you have a budget, scope, and schedule. Once the project is
active, the triple constraint is established. Once established, the PM lives within this tri-
angle. All project work should be conducted within this space. To be successful, you must
fiercely monitor and guard these three critical constraints. As PM, this is your primary job.
George Box said, “All models are wrong, but some are useful.” This is true of the Triple
Constraint. The three constraints have very different units of money (budget), time
(schedule), and content (scope). As such, there may be other constraints of similar units. For
instance, a decrease in funding, an anticipated funding shortfall due to a revised construction
cost estimate, or higher than anticipated project expenses may all fall under the budget of
the Triple Constraint. It can be tempting to try to read too much into this model. However,
while the concept is an oversimplification, it does effectively illustrate a project’s fundamental
competing and interdependent constraints. This understanding and mindset correctly
frames the context for successful Project Management and Change Management. The PM
must constantly search for, and find, balance between these three constraints.
When considering the Triple Constraint, it is important to realize it provides different
insights in different scenarios. When two of the three constraints are fixed, it can be prob-
lematic to adjust the third. If your budget and schedule are fixed, it is difficult to increase
scope by adding design features. If your budget and scope are fixed, the project cannot
extend its schedule without complications. If the schedule and scope are fixed, a budget
decrease may jeopardize success.
The situation is different when only one constraint is fixed. In these situations, the remain-
ing two constraints must be adjusted to balance the project. If the scope is fixed and your
schedule is extended, your budget may need to be increased. If your scope is fixed and your
budget is decreased, you will need to compress your schedule. If your schedule is fixed and
your scope is increased, you may need to increase your budget. If your schedule is fixed and
your budget is decreased, you may need to reduce scope. If your budget is fixed and your
schedule is accelerated, you may need to reduce scope. If your budget is fixed and your scope
is increased, you may need to fast-track your schedule.
In reality, most projects experience some variance in all three constraints. The scope may
be increasing, which necessitates extending the schedule and increasing the budget. Or the
schedule is suddenly accelerated, which necessitates increasing the budget to add resources
and reducing scope by eliminating nonessential design elements. Or the budget is cut,
which necessitates reducing the scope and modifying the schedule.
In all of these cases, effective Change Management is critical to project success. As PM,
you need to strategically be preparing and moving the game pieces so that you are posi-
tioned to win, meaning that you develop and deliver the project on-time and on-budget in a
way that satisfies the Project Management Plan (PMP) and achieves established success
criteria.
1.3 The Project Management Plan 5
Effectively managing a project’s Triple Constraint requires purposeful action. In the life
of most projects, the Triple constraints will be strained. Past performance shows us these
situations are not always handled well. Successful PMs are flexible in approach and adapt-
able to change while maintaining a laser-like focus on objectives, risks, and constraints.
Planned change is one of the most powerful tools a PM can use to nimbly develop and
deliver a successful project. Conversely, nothing will jeopardize a project faster than
unplanned or unmanaged change. The PM is fully responsible to monitor and manage any
and all changes to the Triple Constraint. Change Management is discussed at length in
Chapter 10, Controlling the Project, Section 10.3, Change Management.
Many mature organizations have a project-centric approach. For our purposes, this
means that every project has a schedule. Every schedule has essential tasks. Every task has
a responsible resource. Every schedule has a defined critical path. Every project has a PM.
Every project has a budget. Every dollar has a project. Every scope is defined. Every change
is processed per approved change management procedures. Underlying all of these tenets
is a fundamental reliance upon the triple constraint, which is the unyielding foundation for
all successful projects.
While your primary responsibility as PM is the Triple Constraint, there are other factors
you must also consider. Underlying the Triple Constraint of Budget, Scope, and Schedule,
are the constant undercurrents of Risk, Resources, and Quality. None of these are inherently
project constraints; although changes to budget, scope, and schedule may be dependent
upon, or directly impact, Risks, Resources, and Quality. As such, any of these may become
constraints that become entangled with the Triple Constraints. Identifying, managing, and
responding to Risks can directly impact any or all of the triple constraints. The same can be
true for Resources and Quality. Intentionally and proactively managing Risks, Resources,
and Quality will position you for project success. Conversely, ignoring or mismanaging
Risks, Resources, and Quality will almost certainly lead to failure. Each of these will be
discussed at length in subsequent chapters.
A project’s Purpose and Need defines the Why of the project. The project scope details the
What to satisfy the Why. The Project Management Plan (PMP) details the How, Who, and
When. This living document provides guidance and clarification on how the final product
will be managed during development. It provides clarity and consistency, and serves as a
tremendous resource during unexpected times or in the midst of critical staff transitions.
The PMP is the responsibility of the PM.
When you see “Plan,” think “How.” The project schedule is not the PMP. At its core, the
PMP is a collection of other plans, each one detailing how a critical area of the project will
be managed. Much of this may already be defined in your organizational guidance. The
intention of the PMP is not to recreate it, but to highlight key components. The final PMP
should not be a physical or virtual binder that sits proudly on a shelf. The PMP should be a
living document and a dynamic tool that is used and leveraged throughout the project.
6 1 Project Management 101
All projects should have a PMP. Larger and more complex projects can have massive
PMPs. However, even smaller projects can benefit from a very quick and simple PMP.
Many organizations have PMP guidance or templates that should be used and followed.
While each project is unique, the format can remain consistent. The content and level of
detail should be tailored to the size and complexity of the project, per your organization’s
guidance. If your organization does not have PMP guidance or template, you may use the
following format illustrated in Figure 1.2.
•Risk Register
Risk Management Plan •Assumption Log
“The war is not won with bayonets, but with effective organization.”
– Unknown
Matrix
Functional Organization Projectized
Organization Organization
Weak Balanced Strong
PM Authority
On the other end of the spectrum are Projectized Organizations. These organizations are
highly project focused, and arrange their staffs accordingly as all activities are intentionally
managed through projects. In this framework, the PM has tremendous power and authority.
Resources are completely controlled by the PM within this dynamic and adaptive environ-
ment. This structure can enable nimble progress as decisions can be quickly made for a
team that is first loyal to the project success. However, the inherent temporary nature of
this structure can challenge continuity and introduce employee uncertainty as they may be
reshuffled after each project. Additionally, while encouraging collaboration, it can limit
discipline-specific expertise that is essential in technical industries.
Most transportation organizations are Matrix Organizations. A Matrix Organization sits
comfortably in the middle, offering the best, and worst, of both worlds. An organization
can tailor their resources and strengths to enable flexibility and encourage efficiencies
across multiple objectives. Here resources answer to both the Functional Managers and
PM. Which manager has more power and authority determines if the organization is
Weak, Balanced, or Strong. In a Weak Matrix, the budget and schedule are controlled
by the Functional Managers. The PM may be part-time and is more of a coordinator.
In a Strong Matrix, the budget and schedule are predominantly controlled by the PM.
Functional Managers fill a valuable support role. In a Balanced Matrix, they share con-
trol of the budget and schedule. Typically, the PM will lead project-related tasks while
the Functional Manager is responsible for resource-related issues. This dynamic structure
enables concentration of expertise and successful collaboration across department lines.
However, it does necessitate effective communication to clarify potentially competing
roles, responsibilities, and objectives.
Not all PMOs are created equal. They too can have different structures and focus. There
are three basic types of PMOs: Supporting, Controlling, and Directive. Think of them as a
range, in this order.
A Supporting PMO encourages the PMs by providing optional resources, almost in a con-
sultant, advisor, or coach role. Typically, they would provide templates, best practices,
lessons learned, training, and manage any PM information systems. This structure sup-
ports the PMs by offering advice and guidance on an as-needed basis, if asked. Since inter-
actions are voluntary, their control, influence, and authority are low. Consequently, this
type of PMO can be summarily ignored without repercussions as they cannot enforce
anything. A Supporting PMO can be effective where projects can be successfully managed
in a loosely controlled environment.
The most common type of PMO is a Controlling PMO, which strikes the balance between
being hands-off and a taskmaster. In this sweet spot, they emphasize support, governance,
and conformance. Typically, they would also provide project management policies, proce-
dures, forms, reporting, and other tools. This type of PMO works to establish the project
management framework, and then enforces compliance with organizational practices and
methodologies. A Controlling PMO can be extremely effective in complex environments
where compliance with established practices is critical to success, such as in the transpor-
tation industry.
A Directive PMO directly manages the projects. In these instances, all PMs work directly
for the PMO. Success requires strong governance framework as their goal is to become effi-
cient project execution factories. A Directive PMO can be very effective in rigid, highly
regulated, high-risk environments, or in larger matrix organizations.
Assuming your transportation organization has a PMO, it is likely some version of a
Controlling PMO. As such, it will likely have some common objectives regarding project
management, including but not limited to: Governance, Standards, Policies, Processes,
Resources, Forms, Templates, Documentation, and Training. This all enables the organiza-
tion to provide consistency in project development and delivery between PMs and across
district, divisional, or department lines. This includes establishing and maintaining
common processes and performance metrics. It also often includes administrating the
organization’s project management software, tracking, and management tools.
The PMO should promote a pervasive project management culture that provides consis-
tency and harmony while increasing productivity and consistent results. The influence
footprint of a successful PMO is much larger than might be expected. It can be the tiny
rudder that turns the entire ship. Often one of the most important responsibilities of a PMO
is to minimize conflict and improve efficiencies at the critical links between people,
processes, and technology. As such, the PMO may be in a unique position to break down
organizational silos and build bridges of innovation. As a Transportation PM, understand
the expertise within your PMO and leverage it to your advantage.
A Project is a temporary effort to develop and deliver a product within the established
budget, scope, and schedule. A Program is a collection of projects that share a meaningful
relationship. A Portfolio is the full collection of projects and programs that share the same
strategic objectives. To use a music analogy, consider each individual song to be a project. An
artist’s individual albums would be separate programs. The artist’s full catalog of albums and
stray songs would be their portfolio. In transportation, every project is a project. Projects may
then be grouped into Programs by some meaningful relationship between the projects. This
may be a geographic district, a specific funding source, a defining discipline (e.g., bridges),
who is administering the project (e.g., DOT managed or Locality managed), or some other
useful distinction. For the purpose of performance metrics, projects may be analyzed in more
than one program. For instance, you may first look at a geographic district’s entire program,
and then look at all bridge projects across district lines. Every project should have a PM.
Pending the size and structure of your organization, you may also have Program Managers.
The portfolio would then be the entirety of programs and projects that share a strategic
objective. This will typically be all construction projects within your organization’s multiyear
funding plan. Figure 1.4 illustrates the relationship between these three entities.
Portfolio
Suite of programs and projects
Portfolio managed to optimize enterprise
value in alignment with
organizational objectives
Project
Program
Program
Project
Strategic collection of projects
designed to produce identified
Project
Program business value
Projects, programs, and portfolios operate at different levels that all need to work together
to ensure organizational success. Those responsible at each level operate at very different
altitudes and levels of expertise. It is helpful to realize each may have different focus and
success criteria. Pending the size and maturity of your organization, these different levels
may be clearly delineated or mostly blurred. The same person may fill one or more of these
roles in smaller organizations. Larger transportation organizations may have different
managerial and leadership individuals or entities at each level. For instance, there may be
a hierarchy of PMs that are under District program PMOs, that in turn are under the
Portfolio (or Enterprise) PMO in Central Office.
12 1 Project Management 101
(Continued)
1.5 A Look Ahead 13
(Continued)
“Man’s mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions.”
– Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
When a PM traverses their completed transportation projects, they see the improvement in
ways no one else does. They see the property with the belligerent owner who tried to kill the
project. They see the now grassed area of the test hole that confirmed they had a massive
utility conflict. They see the pipe outfall that needed to be extended and required additional
survey that stressed the schedule. They see the storm inlets in the roundabout that were
nearly impossible to adequately drain on the challenging incline. But that is not all they see.
They also see the median break strategically positioned to accommodate the church’s mas-
terplan for expansion. They see the pedestrian path that was extended to connect two
neighbourhoods so residents could safely walk and bike to the nearby swim club. They see
the improved roadway geometry and safety features that dramatically reduced accidents.
They see the innovative bridge abutment design that saved that massive old oak tree.
14 1 Project Management 101
When a PM looks at their completed project, they see so much more than just the com-
pleted assets. They see how the finished product came to be. They see the journey. Some of
these memories are wildly successful tales of innovation and persistence. Others are pride-
swallowing lessons learned. But they are all part of the story. They are all part of your
journey.
Whether each memory and issue went your way or not, they are all testimonials to suc-
cessful resolutions. PMs solve problems and make things happen, from megaprojects that
change the landscape and character of cities and corridors, to small projects that improve
safety at a pedestrian crossing. There are very few systems that directly impact our lives as
much as the transportation network. Be it our individual travel for work or pleasure, or the
transport of goods and services that enables our economy to survive and thrive. The
economic and time benefits of transportation improvements are real.
It is said PMs find a way, or an excuse. As PMs, you drive this ship. You have the power
to push development of an effective and efficient design. The larger your organization,
perhaps the easier it is to lose the urgency of your mission. If the project is delivered next
May or next September, does it really matter? If you are improving traffic efficiency, think
of all the time you are saving and giving back to each person who drives that road. If you
are improving a bike or pedestrian facility, think of the added joy families have using it,
and of those who now run on it every day. If you are improving safety, think of those who
may have been in serious or fatal accidents if the project were delayed. I guarantee that
their loved ones would say your efforts mattered a great deal. This is exciting! You are mak-
ing a difference. This should motivate you to wake up each day and drive your projects
forward. You are making a very real and tangible difference in the lives of the community
in which you and many, many others live, work, and play. As Ralph Waldo Emerson said,
“The reward of a thing well done is to have done it.”
15
“If you can’t describe what you are doing as a process, you don’t know what you are
doing.”
– William Edwards Denning
The PM is very similar to the conductor of an orchestra. They don’t need to know how to
play the viola, oboe, or timpani, but they do need to know the instruments’ capabilities and
constraints. They acknowledge the musicians are the experts, and work to position them to
perform their best. The conductor approaches the performance from a different perspec-
tive. They see the entirety of the score, understanding how and when which instruments
can be combined to enhance the results. They make adjustments to the plan to emphasize
key musical components. They guide and shape the performance in a way that enables the
full orchestra to reach their collective potential. And while they may speak for the full
orchestra, the conductor graciously thanks all those involved, highlighting key musicians
and soloists.
with an additional 20 to 50 million annually suffering nonfatal injuries. More than half of
all traffic road deaths are pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcyclists. Over 90% of the world’s
traffic fatalities occur in less developed countries. These deaths come with considerable
economic impact, costing most countries 3% of their gross domestic product.
Developed countries are not immune from these tragedies. Traffic deaths are rising in
the United States. The National Highway Safety Traffic Administration (NHSTA) esti-
mated there were 42,915 traffic fatalities in 2021. This represents a 10.5% increase over
2020. It should be noted that estimated vehicle miles traveled in 2021 increased by about
325 billion miles, representing an 11.2% increase over 2020. Normalized for miles traveled,
2021 saw a decrease to 1.33 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled, down from 1.34
in 2020. While this may seem like good news, perhaps we should think about it this way –
33 states experience more than one traffic fatality each day, with California, Florida, and
Texas experiencing over 10 traffic fatalities each day. Each death is a tragic loss that shat-
ters the world of their family and loved ones. This is unacceptable.
In America, the Federal Highway Association (FHWA) has embraced this safe system
approach. This important initiative is built upon the following six guiding principles:
1) Deaths and serious injuries are unacceptable
2) Humans make mistakes
3) Humans are vulnerable
4) Responsibility is shared
5) Safety is proactive
6) Redundancy is crucial
These six principles should be advocated and applied to all five elements of a safe system:
1) Safe road users
2) Safe vehicles
3) Post-crash care
4) Safe roads
5) Safe speeds
It is worth noting that transportation system stewards and designers can only directly
impact these last two elements: safe roads and safe speeds. Implementation of this philos-
ophy involves anticipating human mistakes, and designing transportation infrastructure to
reduce and mitigate risks of fatal or serious accidents in a holistic and overlapping manner.
As transportation system stewards and designers, we need to recognize that users make
mistakes and bad decisions. It is incumbent that we take measures to keep those impacts
at tolerable levels. At its core, injury severity is all about kinetic energy (Kinetic Energy = ½
mass × velocity squared). All auto safety features being relatively equal, in a head-on
collision you can’t avoid the law of conservation of momentum (momentum = mass ×
velocity). In both these simple equations, velocity is critical. Figure 2.2 is a FHWA prepared
graphic that shows anticipated fatality risks based on impact speeds.
These sobering realities should motivate designers to encourage safe speeds and manip-
ulate crash angles to reduce injury severity. This understanding has accelerated efforts
like traffic calming, speed management, and focusing on target speeds. Similarly, inno-
vative intersections are being embraced and advanced, including roundabouts, Diverging
Diamond Interchanges (DDI), Restricted Crossing U-Turns (RCUT), Continuous Flow
Intersections (CFI), and the like.
18 2 Project Development Process
100%
o
n
n
jec
ut
ria
-O
ts A
Ob
ead
est
pac
Ped
xed
oH
Fatality
e Im
Aut
Fi
Hits
Risk
Hits
Sid
Hits
to
to
Au
to
to
Au
Au
Au
0%
10 30 40 50 60 70
Impact Speed (MPH)
Standards
Crashes
Design
Standards
Crashes
Design
solutions that tailor solutions to each specific project. This mindset is perfectly suited toward
identifying and implementing reasonable and effective safety measures.
Every transportation project presents an opportunity to increase safety. As transportation
stewards and designers, we need to ensure the design is about decisions, not just dimensions.
A safe system culture places safety first and foremost in the system investment decisions.
2.2 Overview
“Slow down. Calm down. Don’t Worry. Don’t Hurry. Trust the process.”
– Alexandra Stoddard
Preliminary
Initiation Advertise Construction Closeout
Engineering
Preliminary Engineering is the process by which the idea of the initiated project is
designed to advance the project to construction. This is the Project Development Process
(PDP) that will be discussed at length in this chapter. The PDP is the responsibility of the
PM. While you should understand the other stages, you need to know your agency’s PDP.
Advertise is the process that incorporates advertisement and award of the construction
contract. These activities are unique in that they have one foot in project development and
the other in delivery. While it involves both design and construction, it is neither. More
accurately, it is the agency’s transition between development and delivery. At its heart,
these are procurement tasks aimed at the agency eventually making the business decision
whether to award the contract or not. Since many PMs guide their projects through this
stage, we will discuss this in more detail later in this chapter.
Construction is project delivery. This is the actual construction of the project. While its
official start and stop may vary by agency, it generally starts when the owner agency issues
the Notice To Proceed (NTP) to the contractor, and ends with Final Acceptance. Start trig-
gers may vary slightly, such as the contract execution date, or the actual date the con-
tractor begins working the site. NTP is most typical as the Contractor will often order
supplies and submit required paperwork submissions prior to mobilization, which is still
part of the delivery effort. Prior to Final Acceptance, there may be Conditional Acceptance
and Punch List resolution. Final Acceptance may also incorporate resolution of all
construction change orders, payment of Final Invoice, and release of any retainage.
Delivery activities are typically not overseen by the Development PM, but rather the owner
agency’s Construction staff, or their appointed representatives.
Closeout is the backend office work to balance and reconcile all accounting and program-
ming records. This involves reconciling all outstanding bills, settling claims, finalizing paper-
work, closing federal phase agreements, and archiving project records. The ultimate closeout
goal is to close the project in a timely way that maintains systemic records and financial
integrity, while identifying surplus funds that can be transferred and put to use on another
project. Some organizations require project expenditure certifications throughout the life of
the project (e.g., quarterly) which can tremendously expedite administrative closeouts.
A common standard for PM expense certification approvals is “reasonable” and “expected.”
While the PDP is well documented, it is often not well understood by those who rely on
its information. As Charles Kettering said, “Knowing is not understanding. There is a great
difference between knowing and understanding; you can know a lot about something and not
really understand it.”
The PDP are the rules by which the transportation development game is played. Imagine
gathering with family or friends to play a new, very complicated board or card game, but choos-
ing not to read the rules or instructions because you kind of have an idea how it should gener-
ally work. When confusion and frustration inevitably ensue, someone looks for a specific
answer to the specific question at hand, only to realize they have been doing some things wrong
that now need to be redone. So, the group takes multiple steps backward to take one step for-
ward, only to repeat this same predictable cycle again and again. Likewise, many transportation
projects follow this example because the PM doesn’t understand the rules of the game.
Discipline-specific engineers are that discipline’s Subject Matter Experts (SME) on the
PDP. By contrast, the PM needs to know the entire PDP, understanding the purpose of each
milestone and the relationships between tasks.
There are five questions every PM should be able to answer at any time on their projects:
WHY it is important
design meeting. Citizen Information Meetings proceed the Public Hearing which must
happen before you secure Design Approval. Wetlands are flagged, then confirmed, then
you move forward with applicable permits. Traffic counts are collected, then they are
integrated into the traffic models which drives the traffic study that recommends intersec-
tion design improvements. And so forth. These linear relationships are easy to define, and
powerful to display, particularly for tasks within each engineering discipline.
Mature PDPs use these linear relationships for higher level milestones as their framework,
while recognizing and optimizing the concurrent opportunities within different engineering
disciplines. The many separate, but related, engineering discipline trains should be running
down their own tracks, strategically positioned and timed to converge at key milestones. The
PM needs to keep everyone focused and on schedule, ensuring all are doing what needs to be
done, when it needs to be done, so the project will progress as planned. The only way for this
to happen is if the PM actually knows and understands the entire PDP workflow.
The power of concurrent engineering is realized only when the interconnectivity bet-
ween disciplines is well understood. The water resources train of tasks may appear rather
straightforward until you realize the hydraulic analysis can be an iterative process with the
structural engineer as they collectively optimize the bridge design to pass the required
design storm with the most cost-effective structure. The Traffic Signal design may appear
straightforward until a utility test hole dictates the traffic pole placement must be moved,
which impacts right-of-way and easement lines, which impacts limits of disturbance,
which impacts Erosion and Sediment Control (ESC) quantities and requires additional
measures that must be accommodated. The noise abatement train of tasks may appear
straightforward until the designers place the noise wall on top of the proposed drainage
pipes which necessitates redesigning the storm sewer, which was already redesigned once
because of a sanitary sewer extension betterment that was added to the scope. And so forth.
Exceptional PMs study and know the PDP. They have a breadth of experience that grants
them insight into the unique and sometimes complex interconnectivity of engineering dis-
cipline tasks. They have the knowledge to prioritize, and the wisdom of perspective. They
are humble. They ask questions. They strategically push the envelope a bit. They build a
strong team, and then get out of the way.
Scoping generally begins after PE is authorized and ends after the 30% design meeting. This
critical phase positions the project for success. When PE is authorized, you have an idea. This
2.3 Scoping Phase 23
Key Milestones
Assemble VE RW RW acquisition PS&E
project team Public Hearing authorization URL Advertise
Scoping Design Approval UFI 90% Plans Award
30% Plans 60% Plans
may be a mature idea that was thoroughly researched, planned, and vetted. Or perhaps it was
not. At project initiation, you should have the prescoping level budget, scope, and schedule. The
Scoping Phase further develops these preliminary ideas and transitions them into a project.
As PM, the Scoping Phase oscillates between hurry-up-and-wait and herding cats. It can
feel like you are captain of a ship that has just left to cross the ocean. However, as you set
sail you are still gathering your crew, the ship itself is still under construction, and your
destination is still being finalized.
The PM’s primary responsibility is to develop and deliver the project within the
established triple constraint of budget, scope, and schedule. The challenge in this first PDP
phase is that these constraints are not yet settled. Preliminary expectations have likely been
established that can guide you. But the whole point of the Scoping Phase is to clearly define
the triple constraint of budget, scope, and schedule in which you will operate for the
remainder of the project. Meanwhile, you are assembling your team, identifying stake-
holders, and building the Project Management Plan.
This phase has three overarching goals: Data Collection, Scoping, and 30% plans. Each of
the activities within this phase should forward one or more of these objectives.
During the first part of the Scoping Phase,
imagine a giant funnel, as shown in Figure 2.8. Inputs
A wide variety of inputs go in the top which are Data, Risks, Stakeholders, Constraints,
sifted and combined and evaluated and eventu- Design, Objectives, etc.
ally filtered to output the Triple Constraint of
the Scoped Budget, Scope, and Schedule.
As PM, you control and guide the inputs. You
are the project’s primary gatekeeper and facili-
tator. It is important to make sure all that
should be considered is, and that which should
not is not. This begins with any information
that was prepared during project initiation. Scope 30%
(Triple Constraint) Plans
Field data from all relevant engineering disci-
plines should then be added. At this stage, data Figure 2.8 Scoping inputs.
24 2 Project Development Process
collection is primarily from noninvasive investigations (e.g., ground and aerial survey, wet-
land flagging, traffic counts, etc.). Invasive investigations (e.g., geotechnical borings, test
holes, historic resource digs, etc.) are typically performed in the next PDP phase. Other criti-
cal inputs may include internal and external stakeholder expectations, financial realities,
political constraints, and all other nontechnical considerations.
As information is input into the top of the funnel, the PM is responsible to navigate the
scoping process. This can be a bit iterative as all relevant information will not be available at the
same time. The challenge is to leverage this information and work with the applicable SMEs to
qualitatively identify project risks. Each engineering discipline will identify its own risks. The
PM must find the interdependence between the disciplines, evaluate the identified threats and
opportunities, and synthesize these with the project’s objectives and resources. Risks will likely
not change the project’s Purpose and Need, but they may significantly impact design, resources,
constraints, and securing stakeholder buy-in. These qualitatively identified risks must then be
quantitatively converted to project impacts that are reflected in the Triple Constraint of budget,
scope, and schedule. Effectively identifying, analyzing, and responding to risk is the very
essence of scoping. These processes are further described in Chapter 6, Risk Management.
Scoping clarifies the project expectations, constraints, and resources, while setting up the
schedule and budget baselines against which you will be measured for the remainder of the
project. These scoping baselines are essential in order to correctly position the right
amounts of the right types of money at the right times in the multi-year improvement plan
so the projects and programs can be successfully developed and delivered. The Scoping
Process is further described in Chapter 4, Scope.
Most every project should have a kick-off and scoping meeting. Often these are combined.
The purpose is to gather the team together. This may be the first time many members are
interacting. As such, a meet-and-greet may be important, as well as discussing expected
roles, responsibilities, and ground rules for the project and future team interactions. This is
a great chance to share initial thoughts and set the tone for project expectations, while
laying the foundation of the desired team culture. Many of these points should be included
in the Project Management Plan.
NEPA is the National Environmental Protection Act. This is a fundamental federal
law that directs federal agencies to conduct environmental reviews to consider a proj-
ect’s potential environmental impacts. The range of NEPA’s scope is vast, and expand-
ing. The size and complexity of the proposed transportation project will determine the
type of required environmental document. The three main types, in ascending order of
complexity, are Categorical Exclusion (CE or CX), Environmental Assessment (EA), and
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The time and effort associated with these docu-
ments varies widely. Where a CE can be relatively painless, an EIS can drive the multi-year
project development schedule. If a project represents little to no impact on the environ-
ment, one can pursue a Findings of No Significant Impact (FONSI).
The details of NEPA, and its associated workflows, are complicated, nuanced, and evolv-
ing. This can be true for both the regulations and their interpretations, at the federal and
state levels. The more complex the project and required environmental document, the
more critical it is to engage environmental professionals who live and breathe these regu-
lations. Beyond their specialized knowledge, exceptional environmental experts also bring
with them positive and productive working relationships with the various decision-makers
and entities that hold some influence or jurisdiction for this process.
2.3 Scoping Phase 25
Environmental professionals will swim in their lane, and shepherd the NEPA process
throughout the life of the project. From a PM perspective, it is imperative that you under-
stand your project’s environmental commitments and risks. It is crucial that you connect
the environmental professional to the rest of the team, particularly the designer and
hydraulics SMEs, to ensure each discipline is aware of existing and changing constraints
and commitments throughout the development process. During the scoping phase, it is
essential that the PM works with the environmental professionals to determine the envi-
ronmental document type and help navigate this restrictive and prescriptive workflow.
Once the environmental document type is determined, the budget, scope, and schedule
should be adjusted to accommodate it, if needed.
Pending the type of environmental document, there may be associated stakeholder
engagement requirements. The PM should work closely with the environmental profes-
sionals to integrate NEPA-related public outreach into the project’s broader stakeholder
engagement plan, if and when it makes sense.
Generally speaking, environmental activities should never be critical path tasks. The PM
should endeavor to ensure concurrent engineering is utilized such that environmental
tasks are pursued at the proper time, but such that they never become critical path tasks.
This can require attention at both ends of the schedule spectrum. First, you must confirm
all necessary and required paperwork is prepared, submitted, and approved at the proper
time such that it does not delay progress. Conversely, a PM should ensure environmental
permits and the like are not secured too soon. Environmental activities become trouble-
some when they are completed either too late or too early.
The Scoping Phase can produce a number of important deliverables. Each engineering
discipline may produce a preliminary work product that includes data collection and pre-
liminary thoughts, recommendations, or design solutions. The Project Management Plan
should be assembled, as further described in Chapter 4, Scope. Risks should be appropri-
ately documented, as further described in Chapter 6, Risk Management. Stakeholders
should be engaged, as further described in Chapter 9, Communications. Scoping is closed
with the formal approval of a Scoping document, as per your organizational requirements.
The different discipline building blocks all come together in the 30% plans. Your DOT or
organization may refer to the 30% design meeting by another name, such as Preliminary
Field Inspection (PFI), Preliminary Design Meeting, or Staff Review Meeting. The design
percentage may also vary slightly, but is typically between 20% and 30%. While the exact
name and percentage is subjective, the intent and purpose of this first plan submission
should be the same. The goals are to pull together all the initial thoughts, identify and
answer big questions, and chart the course for a design solution.
The first challenge in data collection is to ensure you have all the information you need.
This discovery process can seem relatively straightforward. Were the wetlands flagged and
confirmed? Are there Threatened and Endangered species in your corridor? Where are the
underground utilities? Did Traffic collect all the needed counts for the intersection analysis?
Did the survey collect all the data points to evaluate sight distance on that complicated curve?
And so forth. The second challenge is to absorb and synthesize this information across disci-
plines. Do you need to collect additional survey since the Hydraulics Engineer had to chase a
creek farther than expected to demonstrate an adequate outfall? Do you need to expand your
wetland delineation footprint since it appears you may need more temporary pavement for
Maintenance of Traffic (MOT) since you cannot close the road during construction? The PM
26 2 Project Development Process
should work closely with the lead designer and team to ensure the right engineering disci-
plines, SMEs, and decision makers are involved in the right conversations to pull all these
thoughts and issues together in a way that paints a more complete project picture. The power
and expertise of the whole project team is greater than the sum of its parts.
The 30% plans provide an opportunity to ask and answer big project questions. What are
the high-risk issues that could significantly impact the project if not resolved? These are the
proverbial forks in the road whose chosen course of action will directly and indirectly
impact the design solution. Can you close the road during construction, or do you need to
keep it open to traffic? How many left-turn lanes will be at the signalized intersection? Is
there space to stage a crane for the bridge construction? Do you have an adequate outfall?
Because if you don’t have an outfall, you don’t have a project. The PM and lead designer
should concentrate on questions like these with focused intensity as they need to be aggres-
sively addressed and resolved at this stage in the project, before it is formally scoped.
While the 30% plans paint the design solution with broad strokes, some details are starting
to emerge. There may not be too much meat on the bones, but the bones should be there. For
roadway projects, the goal is to define the horizontal alignment. You should have all field
survey and located subsurface utilities. Any required Interchange Access Report (IAR) should
be secured. The environmental document type should be settled. Horizontal and vertical
roadway alignments are proposed, along with typical sections. It is understood that vertical
details may need to be adjusted as the storm sewer design or related utility work advances. You
should demonstrate an adequate outfall. Stormwater management approaches are reflected,
along with conceptual MOT strategies. The design approach should be logical and consistent
with the existing corridor characteristics, the project stakeholder expectations, and the proj-
ect’s purpose and need. The PM should work closely with the team and all stakeholders to
facilitate the close cooperation that is needed to define and address all risks and issues that
may impact the road’s horizontal alignment, across all engineering disciplines.
The 30% plans should be routed for review by all applicable engineering disciplines,
SMEs, and other appropriate reviewing entities. Comments should be received and evalu-
ated to discern if other major qualitative risks or conflicts were identified that should be
quantitatively converted to time and money in the scoping schedule and budget before it is
officially submitted, reviewed, and approved.
The PM should then assemble the formal scoping documents, as required by your orga-
nization. This should detail, at a minimum, the project’s budget, scope, and schedule. This
may be a form, a report, or be presented in another format. Regardless, this documentation
should then be reviewed and approved in a manner consistent with your organization’s
applicable procedures. The approved Scoping document should be retained by the PM, and
routinely used as the guiding reference for the budget, scope, and schedule constraints
within which they are to operate for the remainder of the project.
During the scoping phase the team is forming, as further described in Chapter 7,
Managing Resources, and each engineering discipline is running full steam ahead down
their own critical path. The PM must know the pulse of their progress, and be able to
quickly identify when to pump the brakes and bring other disciplines in on specific issues.
Otherwise, David G. Farragut’s “Damn the torpedoes, full steam ahead” approach will
necessitate rework down the line. The PM doesn’t need to know all the answers, but they
should know the right questions to ask at the right time. Team communication, as further
described in Chapter 9, Communications, is critical to Scoping success.
2.3 Scoping Phase 27
It is difficult to overemphasize the importance of field visits for the PM and the entire team.
Walk the site. Despite increasingly detailed and accurate remote tools and applications, there
is no substitute for walking the site. It can provide invaluable context. If possible, walk the
site with key team SMEs from each engineering discipline. You might be surprised how
quickly and efficiently risks can be identified and potential solutions flushed out at a high
level if you have the right people on site at the same time.
Figure 2.9 provides general guidance on key activities, milestones, and deliverables dur-
ing the Scoping Phase, divided by engineering discipline. While each discipline has its own
PE
Authorization
Time
Key Kickoff Scoping Scoping budget Scope the 30% 30% Design
PMP
Milestones Meeting Meeting and schedule project Plans Meeting
% Plans 0% 30%
Constructability
Construction
review
Preliminary
Materials Scope
soils report
Programming
Bridge / Structures
Structures Scope Bridge typical section
alternatives evaluation
Ground and
Survey Scope
aerial survey
Subsurface utility
URL
evaluation
critical path, their work is remarkably interconnected. Exceptional PMs understand and
leverage these interdependencies to increase efficiency and drive productivity.
Preliminary Design generally begins after the 30% design meeting and ends with Design
Approval. This is the phase where the design starts to put some meat on the bones. The PM
should build on the scoping momentum and continue to push the project within the triple
constraint criteria of budget, scope, and schedule that were established during Scoping. It
is especially important that the PM actively manage the triple constraint as Scope Creep is
common in this phase due to public involvement and the pace at which the design solu-
tions are being refined.
After coming together for the 30% preliminary plan design review meeting, it may seem
like the engineering disciplines then retreat back to their respective corners to focus on
their own work. This is expected and beneficial. However, the PM needs to continue to
ensure issues that may have ripple impacts with other engineering disciplines are appropri-
ately elevated, shared, addressed, and resolved. This is the time when some disciplines’
work is also uniquely intertwined. One example is how hydraulic and structural engineers
may iteratively collaborate as the hydraulic report may influence the structure span design
specifics. Effective PMs often use regularly scheduled team meetings, project status updates,
and the updated risk register to proactively identify and resolve cross-discipline issues and
opportunities.
As the project design advances, the plans continue to develop. Horizontal and vertical
roadway geometry advances. Typical sections are finalized. Drainage and Stormwater
Management take shape. Cross-sections are prepared as the earthwork picture becomes
clearer. Easement and Right-of-Way limits are finalized. Maintenance of Traffic plans
solidify MOT approaches. The plan sets begin to take form within your organization’s
applicable styling and protocol. Title sheets are drafted. Layouts are formatted. The plans
are beginning to look like real plans.
If your project meets the applicable federal and organizational thresholds, a Value
Engineering (VE) study may need to be completed. This can range from a straightforward to
involved examination of the plans by independent reviewers to identify risks and cost-sav-
ing opportunities. Such a review is appropriate at this time in order to ensure any selected
recommendations can be successfully integrated into the plan before the right-of-way and
easement lines are finalized. VE is further discussed in Chapter 8, Managing Quality.
During the early part of this phase, the PM should spend time evaluating project risks
that may impact the project footprint. One major focus of this phase is to finalize the
right-of-way and easement lines. Details like signs, signals, lighting, and landscaping may
seem premature at this stage, but the PM needs to ensure their conceptual solutions do not
adversely impact the proposed right-of-way and easement lines.
With the additional design information and project limit becoming defined, the necessity
and extent of invasive investigations becomes clear. Did the historical survey determine
2.4 Preliminary Design Phase 29
follow-up digs are necessary? Does it appear you need test holes in any location to nail down
potential utility conflicts? Where does the structural engineer need soil borings to advance
bridge abutment foundation design? And so forth. This additional information will enable
the respective discipline designers, engineers, and scientists to refine their designs with
increased clarity. It is important to determine this information now since the resultant
decisions and actions may influence the RW and Public Hearing (PH) plans.
The additional design solutions and field data should push utility conversations. Utility
designations should be completed, along with any needed test holes. This is also the appro-
priate time to initiate conversations with impacted utility owners. Schedule a Preliminary
Utility Field Inspection meeting to discuss possible conflicts and resolution strategies. Early
coordination can go a long way to expediting preparation of requested utility easements.
Concurrent with all of these activities is continued environmental progress. Pending
project specifics, there may be a whole host of permits and studies that need to be conducted,
reviewed, and approved. A critical part of most every project is the Draft Environmental
document that must be completed prior to Public Hearing. Do not try to navigate this reg-
ulative minefield by yourself. Rely on your organization’s or team’s environmental experts.
Actively develop a productive partnership that is commonly focused on responsibly pro-
gressing the project within its budget, scope, and schedule constraints.
One primary focus of the Preliminary Design phase is public participation. Stakeholder
input and involvement is crucial. All tasks in this phase are working toward the public
involvement and securing Design Approval. The collaborative coordination of interdepen-
dent engineering discipline tasks remains a top PM priority. Proactive Risk Management
and effective Communication are critical to success in this phase as the plans advance to the
point of RW plan submission. This means all aspects of the plans should be sufficiently
advanced such that all limits of disturbance, easements, and rights-of-way are firmly
established. While specifics within these boundaries will continue to evolve, the project and
acquisition footprint, limits of disturbance, should be settled. As such you should have all
needed easements and rights-of-way defined, this should include any needed private utility
easements (blue lines). Any needed design exceptions or waivers should be secured.
Locations for all Storm Water Management (SWM) basins or facilities should be known. Env
should have completed the Draft environmental document. Additionally, to that end, as you
triage and prioritize discipline specific issues, it is especially important that you press to fully
grasp the horizontal plan impacts. Is the redesigned stormwater basin changing its foot-
print? Does shifting the traffic signal pole to avoid underground utilities shift the sidewalk
enough that the slopes are not able to tie back into the existing landscape within the pro-
posed easements? Do the updated Maintenance of Traffic and Sequence of Construction
plans fit within the proposed Limits of Disturbance? And so forth.
Public Participation may begin with an organization choosing to hold one or more Citizens
Information Meetings (CIM) prior to the Willingness or Public Hearing. CIMs are voluntary,
and as such may assume a variety of formats to satisfy differing objectives. A formal presen-
tation format followed by an orderly question and answer session may work best for contro-
versial projects with lots of public interest. An open house format may be preferred for
smaller projects with less public dissent, while allowing staff to connect with the adjacent
landowners and address their specific concerns. Meanwhile, a town hall format may be
preferred to workshop the problem or gain feedback from local businesses. Whatever the
format or objective, be intentional. These are often held in coordination with other outreach
30 2 Project Development Process
efforts conducted through a variety of virtual and in-person initiatives. Effective CIMs can
be instrumental in facilitating a smooth Public Hearing. Public involvement is further
detailed in Chapter 9, Communications.
While it may be different pending your project specifics and your applicable regulations
and organizational expectations, many projects have a Willingness or Public Hearing.
A Willingness is a commitment your organization publicly posts that you are willing to
host a public hearing should it be requested. If any citizen does request a public hearing,
the organization may meet with them to see if they can address their concerns. If they do
not, then the organization must hold a public hearing. If no one responds to the Willingness
within the specified time, then the organization can assume the project has public support
and they are not required to hold a public hearing.
There are two types of Public Hearings: Location and Design. Location is predominantly
used when there is roadway on a new location. Design is a chance for the public to com-
ment on the design solution, be it on a new or existing alignment. Pending the project, the
Location and Design Public Hearings may be combined. The format of a Public Hearing
can vary pending your specific guidelines and expectations. There are some commonal-
ities. The public should have a chance to review the plans and submit comments. The orga-
nization should then respond to all received comments. This can typically be done in
person, or by a variety of virtual methods.
Following public involvement and the Public Hearing, the project should pursue Design
Approval. Prior to Design Approval, the plans should be updated to incorporate any design
changes prompted by VE or public involvement efforts. Design Approval is a formal
approval by the authorized entity that confirms consensus on the design solution.
The Public Need is established when the appropriate governing body formally grants
Design Approval. The Public Need is required to allow government transportation organi-
zations access to the available legal options of Eminent Domain, which will be further
discussed in Section 2.5, Detailed Design Phase. As such, many of the rules and require-
ments surrounding Willingness, Public Hearing, and Design Approval are detailed in state
and local legal codes. Be sure you consult your SMEs to ensure all appropriate rules and
regulations are meticulously followed.
Figure 2.10 provides general guidance on key activities, milestones, and deliverables dur-
ing the Preliminary Design Phase, divided by engineering discipline. While each discipline
has its own critical path, their work is remarkably interconnected. Exceptional PMs under-
stand and leverage these interdependencies to increase efficiency and drive productivity.
“Engineering isn’t about perfect solutions; it’s about doing the best you can with limited
resources.”
– Randy Pausch
Detailed Design spans from Design Approval through the 60% design meeting. This phase
requires close collaboration with all involved disciplines as detailed design is added to the
Public Hearing plans, advancing them from approximately 50% plans to approximately
2.5 Detailed Design Phase 31
30% Design
Meeting
Time
Key Public Hearing Public Design
VE
Milestones plans Hearing Approval
Constructability
Construction
review
Noise Abatement
Env Noise study Env documents Env coordination
design
Programming
Utility easement
URL Preliminary UFI Test holes URL plans
assessments
60% plans. The PM should work closely with the lead designer to ensure the different engi-
neering disciplines’ respective progress is consistent with, and does not conflict with, the
overall strategic solution. As the plans dive deeper into the weeds and risks are worked to
resolution, the PM is responsible to ensure the project remains within the defined triple
constraint of budget, scope, and schedule. Any risks to the triple constraint should be
actively tracked, and any resulting adjustments should follow your organization’s appli-
cable change management procedures.
32 2 Project Development Process
Design Approval officially settles the design solution and approach. Once you pass
through this gate, the design team works to advance the plans to the important 60% plan
review meeting. Organizations may call this critical event by different names (e.g., Field
Inspection, Detailed Design Meeting, 60% Staff Review Meeting, etc.). Regardless of the
name, this meeting is a critical project development milestone. These review meetings pro-
vide the unique opportunity for all the disciplines’ work to come together on a set of plans.
For a moment, the plans which are dynamically changing during design are static, allow-
ing a thorough review by the different disciplines and applicable SMEs. This allows unique
insight into how the entirety of the plan fits together and how it can be constructed. As
with other plan review meetings. Details are important and should be noted, but you need
to prioritize identifying and resolving multi-discipline conflicts. Section 11.3, Meetings,
provides further details on how a PM can effectively run project review meetings.
By the 60% design meeting, the plans should be starting to look significantly more
complete. Roadway alignment, grade, and typical sections should be finalized, along with
the pavement design, drainage design, traffic signal design, and Stormwater Management
facilities. Final sound wall, major structure and bridge plans, and traffic control device
plans should also be included, if applicable. The Maintenance of Traffic (MOT), or
Transportation Management Plan (TMP), should be well advanced, along with a proposed
Sequence of Construction (SOC) and Erosion and Sediment Control (ESC) plan. In short,
the permanent asset improvements should be well defined while the temporary measures
(e.g., MOT, SOC, ESC, etc.) should be advanced enough to demonstrate constructability.
This means issues like construction traffic shifts and ensuring positive drainage during all
phases of construction should be discussed and resolved.
Earlier in this phase, the different engineering disciplines should finalize their respective
reports. This may include, but is not limited to, hydraulic report, geotechnical report, noise
report, hazardous materials report, and so forth. Other Environmental documentation
should also progress during this phase. This may include, but is not limited to, stream and
wetland compensation credits or mitigation plans, the Finding Of No Significant Impact
(FONSI) or final environmental document approval, water quality permits, and other mis-
cellaneous permits (e.g., Coast Guard, etc.).
Design Approval establishes the Public Need that enables your organization to pursue
needed easement and right-of-way acquisitions. Generally speaking, most organizations wait
until after the 60% design meeting to begin acquiring the needed easements and rights-of-way.
This makes good sense as you then have the benefit of the additional design details. The
exception to this is if you have any Total Takes, which is when it has been determined that you
require the entirety of the parcel. This can involve relocations of a business or resident. Due to
the involved nature of the relocation process, it can be beneficial to begin the total take acqui-
sitions during this phase, which is typically before one begins partial take acquisitions.
During this phase the PM will work with the designers, surveyors, and Right-of-Way SMEs
to prepare to begin partial take acquisitions after the 60% design meeting. This typically
involves preparation of the Right-of-Way plans (or individually prepared plats if your organi-
zation acquires by plats), updating property owner information on the right-of-way data
sheet, and initiating or coordinating with utilities. The more complicated the utility situation,
the earlier coordination should begin. If not before, during this stage, you or your RW SMEs
should coordinate with all public and private utilities whose assets will be impacted by your
2.5 Detailed Design Phase 33
project. The PM should schedule a Utility Field Inspection (UFI) meeting in which all util-
ities come together to discuss the planned improvements, potential conflicts, and proposed
relocation plans. Pending the project, it can be helpful to walk the site together. Plans should
be distributed to the utilities before the meeting so those attending the UFI meeting can be
informed and any risks or conflicts can be discussed in a cooperative manner by all involved
parties. Take this opportunity when all are in the same room to press issues to resolution.
Figure 2.11 provides general guidance on key activities, milestones, and deliverables dur-
ing the Detailed Design Phase, divided by engineering discipline. While each discipline has
Design
Approval
Time
Key Utility Field 60% plans 60% Design
Milestones RW Plans Inspection Meeting
Constructability
Construction
review
Geotechnical Pavement
Materials
Report recommendation
RW
Programming
authorization
Detailed
Structures
bridge design
its own critical path, their work is remarkably interconnected. Exceptional PMs under-
stand and leverage these interdependencies to increase efficiency and drive productivity.
This phase advances the plans from 60% to 90% complete. However, there is so much more
happening in this phase that prepares the plan for Advertisement and construction success.
Shortly after the 60% design meeting that closes the Detailed Design phase, the project’s
critical path transitions to acquiring RW and relocating utilities. An organization can
benefit from formalizing the handoff of this critical path in order to set realistic expecta-
tions of budget, scope, schedule, and deliverables. This can be the most unpredictable part
of the project development process as so much of the critical progress is outside of your
direct control. The speed with which your acquisitions progress is largely dependent upon
the parties involved, the property’s ownership, your organization’s expectations as to how
acquisitions will proceed, and your organization’s willingness to pursue condemnation
when necessary.
Eminent Domain is the government’s ability to assume control and ownership of private
property for a public need at a fair, market price. This is a legal right that is described and
detailed in applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations. While many easement and
right-of-way acquisitions may be friendly and voluntary, others are not. If difficulty is encoun-
tered, Eminent Domain provides a predictable legal path of access and acquisition that enables
the project to continue while ensuring all citizens are fairly treated and compensated.
The processes of acquisitions are well documented, and may differ slightly by state or
region. In general, Real Property research is conducted based upon the plans. Legally pre-
scribed dollar thresholds determine the level of effort to establish fair market value of the
acquisition. An offer is prepared and presented to the land owner. Negotiations may ensue,
and the acquisition is legally transferred for the agreed compensation. Should the two
parties not reach agreement, the organization may file a Certificate of Condemnation with
the courts. This grants the organization access to the acquisition while negotiations con-
tinue. If unresolved, these may end up in court where the judicial system will determine the
amount to be paid. There are also “friendly condemnations,” where both parties agree that
filing a Certificate of Condemnation is the best path forward. This may be a property whose
title cannot be cleared for a variety of reasons, such as a church who intentionally keeps a
founding member listed as a trustee even after he died. In these circumstances a friendly
condemnation can be the quickest way to facilitate the legal transaction. If negotiations are
proceeding well, but access is needed to keep the project moving forward, another option is
a Right-of-Entry Agreement which grants the organization access to the acquisition while
negotiations continue, per specifications within the Agreement.
Right-of-Way activities are inherently legal processes. As such, they are directly
dependent upon the specific federal, state, and local directives. This may be especially true
should there be residential or business relocations. Some states may also have other legal
considerations in acquisitions, such as allowances for loss of business during construction.
2.6 Final Design and Right-of-Way Acquisition Phase 35
Because of the need to ensure all the i’s are dotted and t’s are crossed in exactly the right
order, Right-of-Way acquisitions are best left to those professionals who know and under-
stand the governing regulations, specializing in this uniquely focused aspect of project
development.
As PM, your role in acquisitions is likely to coordinate and facilitate, more than to actu-
ally do the related tasks. As such, it is imperative the designers and RW team members are
well connected. The design within the designated easements and rights-of-way may
change, but if the evolving design solution prompts any movement of permanent, tempo-
rary, or utility easements or rights-of-way, you need to immediately bring the RW SMEs
into the discussion. Similarly, if the acquisition negotiations introduce new conditions or
constraints you need to bring the appropriate engineering discipline SMEs into the
discussion. Any design changes prompted by the negotiations and settlement terms should
be reflected and incorporated into the plans.
Once all rights-of-way and easements are cleared, utility relocations may begin. This may
require separate approvals by your organization, one for each separate utility relocation
agreement. Consult your experts as to who pays what for utility design and relocation costs.
This can vary greatly pending the legal instrument by which the utilities’ assets are in your
rights-of-way.
Utility relocations can frustrate project progress due to occasionally unpredictable
response times. A utility’s relocation prioritization, especially those at their own expense,
may not match your own. There are other real considerations that may be out of your con-
trol. If your relocation crew is union and they go on strike, your job sits. If there is a natural
disaster (e.g., a hurricane or other natural disaster) and your crews are pulled to another
state to assist in emergency relief, your job sits. This can introduce real schedule and budget
risk into your project. Wise PMs leverage their organization’s URL experts and their exist-
ing professional relationships with utility contacts to effectively influence progress. Early
and consistent communications of expectations and project schedule constraints can go a
long way to forming successful partnerships.
This same mindset can also be beneficial when the project touches or crosses a railroad.
The presence of a railroad immediately introduces significant schedule and budget risk
into your project. In larger part, this is often due to unpredictable responses as it can seem
they dance to the beat of their own drummer. A bridge engineer once described a typical
roadway-railroad interaction with following example. Imagine you are playing ball in your
backyard with friends and it accidentally goes over the privacy fence into your neighbor’s
yard. You go to their front door and a grumpy curmudgeon opens the door. You explain the
situation, and his response is “so your ball is in my yard, forgive me if I don’t share your
urgency in retrieving it for you”, and then shuts the door. Obviously, there are talented,
cooperative people in rail who want to successfully partner with roadway projects.
However, it can sometimes feel like this example. In large part, this is due to the nature of
their rights-of-way. They were often here first, and may have special legal status. They also
have their own workflows that may not fit into your plans or schedules. Suffice it to say, if
you have rail on your project, you need to remain proactive and vigilant as any rail related
task can quickly become a critical path task. Seek out the experience and wisdom of those
with previous experience with the rail company on your project. These can often be the
structure and bridge engineers. Rail introduces significant risks on your project that must
be actively monitored and managed.
36 2 Project Development Process
Many organizations have mechanisms to extend the window for acquisitions and utility
relocations to Advertisement, Award, or even into Construction, if needed. However, these
approaches introduce significant schedule and budget risks into the project. While appro-
priate in certain extenuating situations, they should be actively avoided.
While rights-of-way and easements are being acquired and utilities are being relocated, the
design is concurrently being finalized. This includes, but is not limited to, roadway, bridge, major
structures (e.g., retaining walls, etc.), traffic control devices, landscaping, Erosion and Sediment
Control (ESC) plans, Maintenance of Traffic (MOT) or Traffic Management Plans (TMP), and
Sequence of Construction (SOC). Another concurrent path is to prepare all that is necessary
outside of plans to proceed to Advertisement. This includes, but is not limited to, securing all
necessary permits and ensuring all wetland, stream, and water-quality credits are purchased.
Once all these concurrent paths are complete, the project is ready to proceed with the
90% Design meeting. Some organizations refer to this as the 100% Design meeting, which
is often called the Pre-Advertisement Conference (PAC). This is the final design meeting
and is often the handoff from the designers to the contracting agents in the Advertise Plans
phase. It is a critical opportunity to openly discuss the constructability, work zone regula-
tions, MOT/TMP, ESC, SOC, communicate environmental permit constraints, expected
Construction and Engineering Inspections (CEI) efforts, and remaining project risks.
This is also the time when the designers prepare and submit the Plans, Specifications, and
Estimate (PSE). The specifications should be all that is needed for the contracting agent to
prepare the Advertisement package; this includes any special provisions. Pending your
organization’s workflow, this may be the window in which your Construction division
reviews and approves the bid specs and special provisions. As PM, if you know your project
has unusual or uncommon special provisions, it is a good idea to vet these early through
your reviewing and approving entity so as not to hold up progress at this point. The Estimate
should be the final submission estimate, which is the most accurate estimate and last
estimate that will be prepared before the Engineer’s Estimate.
The 90% design meeting is one of the critical milestones of design. As such, the PM should
ensure that the project is still progressing within its approved budget, scope, and schedule. If
there are any discrepancies (e.g., final submission estimate exceeds the budget), prompt action
should be taken to resolve any remaining issues so the project can proceed to Advertisement.
Figure 2.12 provides general guidance on key activities, milestones, and deliverables dur-
ing the Final Design Phase, divided by engineering discipline. While each discipline has its
own critical path, their work is remarkably interconnected. Exceptional PMs understand
and leverage these interdependencies to increase efficiency and drive productivity.
This final project development phase takes the final plans, advertises the project, and
extends through project award. This can be a very busy time for the PM, but in a very dif-
ferent way than every other phase. The steps in this phase center around procurement. The
Advertise Plans phase name may more accurately be called construction procurement. In
2.7 Advertise Plans 37
60% Design
Meeting
Time
Key 90% plans 90% Design
Milestones Meeting
Materials
Programming
Utility Utility
URL
relocation NTP relocations
essence, the plans are being packaged for Advertisement (Ad), and then shepherded
through procurement until a contractor is secured and the bid has been Awarded by the
governing authority.
It begins with the final design meeting that ends the previous phase. In it, the final
sealed and signed Plans, Specifications, and Estimate (PSE) are prepared and submitted
to your organization’s contracting agent. In some organizations this may be your pro-
curement office, in others it may be your construction division. Regardless, their function
is much the same. The bid package is assembled, a biddability review is conducted, bid
38 2 Project Development Process
Figure 2.13 provides general guidance on key activities, milestones, and deliverables dur-
ing the Advertise Phase, divided by engineering discipline. While each discipline has its
own critical path, their work is remarkably interconnected. Exceptional PMs understand
and leverage these interdependencies to increase efficiency and drive productivity.
90% Design
Meeting
Time
Key Bid
PSE Advertise Award
Milestones opening
Biddability Engineer's
Construction
Review Estimate
Materials
Structures
Survey
Traffic
Water
Resources
“Engineer (noun): A person who does precision guesswork based on unreliable data
provided by those of questionable knowledge. See also: Wizard, Magician, Magic 8 Ball.”
– Anonymous
3.1 Overview
3.1.1 Purpose
The big picture in Transportation Program and Portfolio Management is that your organi-
zation should strive to ensure the right amounts of the right type of money are in the right
place at the right time to keep the projects moving forward. In order to effectively do this at
the program and portfolio levels, you need accurate project schedules and estimates. This
requires consistent attention throughout the project development process.
Coexisting with this objective is the reality that transportation owner-operator organiza-
tions (e.g., DOTs, local governments, etc.) are not banks. Beyond planned reserves, sur-
pluses and shortfalls pose complications. Shortfalls can be challenging when you don’t
have enough money to advance and construct projects as planned. Surpluses are to be
avoided in part due to the moral obligation of public agencies to be responsible stewards of
public funds. The public money is to be used for public good. These realities effectively
make transportation owner-operators funding organizations. Money comes in, and money
should go out in a similar fashion. In order to do this well, more mature organizations
embrace the cyclical process shown in Figure 3.1 of selecting the projects, programming
the money, executing the program, closing the project(s), and reallocating resources.
The triple constraint of budget, scope, and schedule are inherently dependent upon each
other, directly constraining the others. You can’t strain all three at the same time. Figure 3.2
illustrates the old adage that you can only have two of the three: good, fast, or cheap. It can be
fast and cheap, but then quality will suffer as the scope is compromised. It can be fast and good,
but the cost will be high. It can be cheap and satisfy the scope, but don’t expect it to be fast.
Good
Expensive Slow
Pick two: Not
Possible
dramatically changes, you should promptly address this with the programming resources
to verify and/or update the project budget.
2. Generate
4. Adjust Cost
Estimate (Base + 3. Determine 5. Set
1. Define Scope Estimate for time
Allowance + Schedule Budget
(Inflation)
Contingencies)
compare projects for prioritization or application selection unless there is a consistent esti-
mating methodology. You need to be able to compare apples to apples. This is often more
challenging than you might at first expect.
Known-Knowns Known-Unknowns
(KK) (KU)
Base Allowances
Unknown-Knowns Unknown-Unknowns
(UK) (UU)
Contingencies can be calculated sums, but are often percentages of the base, allowance,
or their sum. Your organization should establish and maintain guidelines on acceptable
contingencies. All contingencies should be justified in the Basis of Estimate, which is
a document that identifies the logic, data, methodology, assumptions, constraints, and
calculations used to develop the project estimate. This document should also include the
estimate’s confidence level, which is the calculated or assigned probability that a result
will be within the anticipated accuracy range. Some mature organizations have more
comprehensively addressed this by adapting a risk-based estimating approach, which is
discussed in Section 3.3, Types of Estimates.
● Management Reserve
Management reserves are monies an organization may set aside to address unforesee-
able circumstances that might increase the cost of a project. These are the unknown-
unknowns, such as acts of God, historic storms, labor strikes, etc. Typically, senior
management controls these funds and must approve releasing any management reserves
to a specific project for a specific situation. Many organizations do not have dedicated
Management Reserves. In those cases, contingencies can be adjusted accordingly to
account for the unknown-unknowns, or the organization makes an intentional or unin-
tentional decision not to account for unknown-unknowns in the estimate or budget.
Management Reserve
(Unknown-Unknowns)
Contingency
(Uknown-Knowns)
Allowance
Expected Cost
(Known-Unknowns)
Base Cost
Base
(Known-Knowns)
Risk
Estimated Project Cost
management reserves, as many organizations do not have this as a separate cost estimate
component.
3.2.4 Inflation
When the estimate is complete, then inflation should be added. Inflation is the rate at
which the purchasing power of money falls as the currency value decreases over time.
More mature organizations may automate the addition of inflation into an estimate based
upon the PE, RW, and CN phase dates in the project schedule. This automation enables an
organization to control the utilized inflation rate and ensure it is fairly and consistently
3.2 The Basics 49
applied across all projects. If your organization does not have these capabilities, then your
estimate should manually add inflation rates, as approved by your organization.
The selected inflation rates may have various sources, be it historical values, national,
regional, or local indices and trends, or customized rates. While you certainly want to use
the most accurate inflation numbers, you won’t know if they are accurate until the time has
passed. As such, the chosen inflation rate should be reasonable, defendable, and consis-
tently applied across the organization. This consistency of use is imperative for efficient
program and portfolio management.
Pending the complexity of your project, and your organization’s processes, you may use
different inflation rates for different aspects of the estimate. For instance, you may have
one inflation rate for construction costs and another for rights-of-way. Or you may choose
one inflation rate for bridge steel and another for all other construction materials. The
organization should also intentionally choose the point at which the inflation is calculated
(e.g., beginning of the phase, midpoint of the phase, etc.). This approach can provide a
more tailored and precise estimate. If not dictated by your organization’s practices and pro-
tocols, be sure to document all inflation decisions in the Basis of Estimate.
+/− 30%
−
+/
Time
Preliminary Public Hearing PSE
Project <10% Plans 50% Plans 90% Plans
Milestones Scoping Design Meeting Advertisement
30% Plans 75% Plans 100% Plans
Estimate
Type Preliminary Detailed Engineer's
Before a project is active, it is a candidate project. Different organizations may use different
descriptors, but these are project ideas that may be researched and refined to wide-ranging
levels of maturity. There are a variety of ways in which candidate, or potential, projects are
chosen over others to become active projects. Application-based selections require poten-
tial projects to submit an application in order to be considered. These applications are often
then scored according to preestablished criterium to prioritize selection and funding. More
mature prioritization models often include some benefit–cost analysis. Some projects are
driven by an organization’s responsibility to maintain, repair, upgrade, or replace existing
transportation assets. Many other projects are selected by direct government intervention,
be it legislative or executive direction. This can be at the federal, state, regional, or local
levels. Regardless of how a project become selected and funded, suffice it to say, there are
many more needs and wants than available resources.
The field of transportation planning focuses on this important process of identifying
potential transportation improvement ideas, researching them to ascertain their feasibility,
and preparing planning level cost estimates. These planning level, or conceptual, estimates
are often used as placeholders in long-range plans, or in evaluation as to whether a candi-
date project should be selected for funding. These order of magnitude estimates provide an
early, imprecise idea of the time and money required to complete a project. Due to the vast
amounts of unknowns and assumptions at this state, rule of thumb accuracy levels of these
estimates may range from −25% to +75% of the actual budget.
3.3 Types of Estimates 51
While this writing acknowledges the significance and implications of preliminary esti-
mates, and the critically important role they play in a transportation program or portfolio,
we will focus our attention on estimates after a project is active. Once a project is selected,
prioritized, put in the organizations, and perhaps state and federal, multi-year transporta-
tion plan, and then funded, it moves from the Planning arena to the Project Development
arena, which is where we will concentrate our discussion.
For active projects, there are three unique kinds of estimates during project development:
Preliminary, Detailed, and the Engineer’s Estimate. Each is differentiated by the accuracy
of the data inputs. To oversimplify, Preliminary estimates are those formed before quan-
tities are known, Detailed estimates are those prepared using construction quantities, and
the Engineer’s estimate is that against which construction bids are considered when deter-
mining whether to recommend Award of contract.
As the project advances, Preliminary estimates are replaced by Detailed estimates. Just
before Advertisement for construction, the Engineer’s estimate is prepared. It is worth not-
ing that the transition from Preliminary to Detailed estimates is rarely clean, meaning there
may likely be a transition period where portions of the estimate are sourced from measured
quantities, while other portions are still calculated using preliminary estimate tools. As the
design advances, project risks should be decreasing and allowances should be clarified,
thereby increasing the accuracy of the estimate. Traditionally, Preliminary estimates are the
least accurate, while the Engineer’s estimate is the most accurate, as shown in Figure 3.8.
Time
Estimate
Preliminary Detailed Engineer's
Type
Uncertainty (risks)
Accuracy
viewed or used in ways that cavalierly disregard a preliminary estimate’s purpose and
inherent limitations. A politician may latch onto the first number they hear and never
forget it. The media keeps referring back to a preliminary cost estimate as they scrutinize a
troubled project. Various funding sources even lock in the preliminary estimate listed on
the application as the project budget. These examples all have others taking action based
upon the underlying assumption that a preliminary cost estimate is both precise and accu-
rate. In reality, while sophisticated organizations may achieve precision, the accuracy of a
Preliminary Estimate is inherently limited.
Preliminary estimates are essential to plan and program funds for all required phases of
a project: Preliminary Engineering (PE), Right-of-Way Acquisition (RW), and Construction
(CN). It should be noted that some organizations may consider four phases, adding Utility
Relocations (URL) between RW and CN. For the purpose of this writing, we will consider
the three approved federal phases (PE, RW, and CN). This assumes URL is part of the RW
phase. Most transportation programs are multi-year plans, and require placeholders until
a project is initiated. Many funding source applications also require a preliminary cost
estimate that is included in the selection criteria. Preliminary cost estimates are also invalu-
able in forecasting future workloads and resource allocations. These are examples of rea-
sonable purposes for preliminary estimates.
Figure 3.9 shows the four main approaches to creating a preliminary cost estimate. Each
has its advantages and limitations.
Analogous Estimates
More Accurate
Parametric Estimates
3.3.3 Parametric Estimating
PERT (Three-Point) Estimates
Parametric estimating leverages historical
Bottom Up Estimates data of recent projects, combining it with
statistical, scalable calculations. As such,
Figure 3.9 Types of preliminary cost estimates. if done correctly, it is inherently more
3.3 Types of Estimates 53
accurate than Analogous Estimating. Many organizations create parametric tools that vary
in complexity from Excel spreadsheets to complicated databases. The idea is an estimator
can enter known attributes (e.g., length of roadway, number of lanes, number of traffic
signal poles, etc.), and the tool will convert these to defined unit costs and generate a pre-
liminary estimate. Many parametric tools also consider other project factors as integrated
multipliers (e.g., urban-vs.-rural, road classification, pavement section, terrain, likelihood
of encountering unsuitable materials, known presence of rock, etc.).
When creating a parametric tool, one must keep the costs current on the internal tables. The
units by which a cost is calculated must also be scalable in order to generate consistent, accu-
rate, and defendable estimates. For instance, a project requiring a bridge with an 80-foot span,
it is likely not twice the cost of a bridge with a 40-foot span. Business rules regarding scaling of
units should be supported by historic data, and integrated into the tool. It should be noted that
creating and maintaining an effective parametric estimating tool can represent a significant
effort. However, many organizations have determined this is an investment worth making.
Those using parametric estimates would be wise to remember that these tools are just
focused algorithms. As such, garbage in = garbage out. The user must understand the
underlying business rules and be familiar enough with the tool to enter the input variables
in the intended manner. Two estimators using the same tool can produce two very different
estimates if they interpret or define the input parameters differently. Parametric estimating
tools typically do not handle risks well, often requiring the user to manually input risks
with an assigned value. Whether documented or not, every parametric tool has a long list
of assumptions that generally apply for a typical project. In reality, there is rarely a project
where all these assumptions are true. Additionally, some parametric tools are not updated
or equipped to handle more innovative solutions well (e.g., roundabouts, diverging dia-
mond interchanges, evolving types of environmental basins or stream mitigations, etc.).
Understanding the limitations of the parametric estimating approach, and your agency’s
specific parametric tool and its business rules and assumptions, will better enable you to
leverage its powerful benefits and interpret its useful results.
previous project estimates, primarily being: to ensure there is the right amount of the right
color of money at the right place at the right time to keep the project moving forward.
While the Engineer’s estimate may not be the only consideration as to whether or not to
Award (e.g., not enough allocations, contractor determined to be incompetent, etc.), it is
typically the major tool used to evaluate the reasonableness of the low bid amount.
The Engineer’s estimate should be the most accurate of all estimates. This makes sense.
The Engineer’s estimate is typically prepared concurrent with, or immediately after,
Advertisement. This estimate is prepared using the same Plans and Specifications that con-
tractors are using to prepare their bid. As such, it should be clear who will bear all remaining
project risks. Other critical construction details should also now be settled. Examples may
include construction duration, hours of operation, defined staging areas, miscellaneous or
unusual restrictions, and so forth.
It should also be noted that an Engineer’s estimate attempts to evaluate costs as a con-
tractor would. This means it should consider factors that extend beyond quantities and unit
costs. These may include men, equipment, materials, production rates, proximity to asphalt
plants or suitable material, accessibility of defined staging areas, and so forth. As such,
Engineer’s estimates are typically done by an organization’s most experienced estimators.
Since the purpose of an Engineer’s estimate is to be that by which submitted bids are
compared, it is common for these estimates to remain sealed. Pending the organization and
applicable state guidance, some may unseal this estimate after bid opening, after Award, or
keep them sealed indefinitely.
throughout the project development process. The default contingencies used for estimates
should be the medium percentage guideline. Any variance should be justified within the
Basis of Estimate. Any contingency percentage that is outside of the low to high percentage
guideline range may require organizational approval and should be justified in the Basis of
Estimate.
Type II, a risk-based deterministic contingency approach determines contingencies
through the use of a risk assessment that identifies all applicable projects risks. A specific
contingency is then assigned to each Risk based upon the probability of occurrence and
significance of impact. Applicable details should be included in the Basis of Estimate.
Type III, a risk-based probabilistic contingency approach is reserved for the most com-
plex of projects. Risks on any project warranting a Probabilistic Risk analysis should be
individually evaluated, often utilizing a Monte Carlo simulation. Such risk-evaluations are
rare, highly complex, and should be conducted by experienced subject matter experts.
The essence of risk-based estimating is to assign project and/or task contingencies based
upon project-specific risks. This often takes the form of a pre-set table of acceptable contin-
gencies based upon a selected risk category (e.g., low, medium, or high). The overarching
strategy is that estimates will be more accurate if they are tailored to consider the unique
project- or task-specific risks.
It should be noted that most organizations that embrace risk-based estimates require a
risk matrix and risk register in their basis of estimate documentation. A risk matrix is a
chart used to qualitatively analyze individual risks by rating the risk’s probability against
its impact. A risk register is a dynamic tool used by PMs and project teams to actively track
and monitor project Risks throughout the life of the project. Risks are addressed in more
detail in Chapter 6, Managing Risk.
also practical considerations. Most politicians or news outlets don’t say, “this project will
likely cost somewhere between $2.42 million and $4.07 million,” instead opting for, “this
$3.2 million project….” Single numbers are easy to understand, simple to convey, and
pragmatic for associated systems and funding plans.
There are also good reasons for ranges. Estimate ranges allow for consideration of mul-
tiple streams of risk, which can more effectively shape stakeholder expectations and lead to
improved decisions. These can be especially useful on larger megaprojects or more com-
plex projects where the optimistic and pessimistic estimates can vary widely. As the project
advances, this range should shrink until the Engineer’s Estimate is typically a single
number. While most experienced engineers and program managers agree an estimate
range is perhaps more appropriate, system constraints and stakeholder expectations often
drive an organization to revert back to a single number in their estimates.
“Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.”
– Abraham Lincoln
Any project-specific cost management plan should include a section focusing on change
management. Not only is it the right thing to do, it is incredibly important to maintain the
financial integrity of the project.
As with most bureaucratic workflows, an organization should be careful not to venture
into the space where you pass beyond the point of diminishing returns. The best of inten-
tions can quickly lose favor when the juice isn’t worth the squeeze. An organization’s
estimate guidance and requirements should be scaled to be reasonable and appropriate for
the different kinds of estimates throughout the life of the project.
up in MOT or safety as opposed to roadway costs, etc.), but it can be a great place to start. It
is worth acknowledging that there are likely exceptions to every rule (e.g., special provisions
may need to be individually addressed and subdivided into the discipline summaries).
While this effort can be a challenge to create and implement, there are real benefits. The
biggest is arguably the consistency it can bring to estimates, particularly as it relates to base,
allowances, contingencies, and inflation. Without a standard format, it can be difficult to
ascertain exactly where the allowances, contingencies, and inflation are being included, what
exactly they are to be covering, and whether multiple layers of contingencies or inflation are
included. A standardized format can be especially valuable when conducting estimate valida-
tion as it relates to funding applications. In addition to bringing estimate transparency and
order, it can also serve as a valuable checklist that can become an important component of
the basis of estimate (estimate supporting documentation). Ideally, this consistent estimate
data can be captured and leveraged for progressive data analytics that would empower more
precise and accurate estimates while enabling more efficient worklfows.
often based upon the most recent estimate. When discussing project estimates with the
public, it is important to remember a few basic principles.
First, most of those gathering, reporting, or consuming information on your project likely
do not readily understand the different cost components of base, allowance, contingency,
management reserves and inflation. Furthermore, they are likely not familiar with your
organization’s estimating procedures or acceptable accuracy ranges, as expressed in
your organization’s cone of uncertainty. Attempting to explain this may quickly overes-
timate their curiosity. Most just want a single number.
Second, anchoring is real. Anchoring is a cognitive bias where one unintentionally assigns
undeserved weight to preliminary information when making future decisions or evalu-
ating future actions. An example is when one becomes attached to a specific estimate
number without considering the associated Accuracy Range or Confidence Level of the
estimate. This often surfaces later in development when the estimate is rightfully
adjusted, and suddenly the project is viewed as unexpectedly expensive or a bargain.
Imagine a reporter, or Board Member, questioning you as to why your project has risen
in cost by 30% halfway through design. Anchoring is rooted in the assumption that the
earlier estimate was more accurate than the accepted Accuracy Range at that point of
project development.
Thirdly, optimism bias is real. This is the cognitive predisposition to assume your chances
of realizing negative risks are lower than reality, coupled with the assumption that your
chances of realizing positive opportunities are greater than reality. This natural and
institutional bias can unintentionally set unrealistic expectations, both at the project and
program levels. This often occurs within organizations when discussing high-profile
projects, or recovery plan for projects that have slipped. The stars rarely all align.
3.5.1 Overview
The purpose of performance metrics should be to monitor progress, enhance efficiency,
and enable continual refinement of an Agency’s practices and procedures in order to more
closely align with an organization’s mission statement, and effectively achieve its mission
critical objectives. With regard to budgets and estimates, the purpose should be to more
precisely and accurately estimate project costs so as to enable an organization to more effi-
ciently program available funds and execute the program in a way that optimizes
value-added improvements to the community. Like many aspects of transportation project
management, this is much easier said than done.
As with all performance metrics, it is imperative to carefully and meticulously define
exactly what you are measuring. The “what” you are measuring should be consistent with
the “why” you are measuring. Once that is decided, you should then deliberately choose
3.5 Performance Metrics 63
the “how,” “who,” and “when,” all of which should be consistent with the “why.” It is easy
for organizations to become so involved in the details of the metric that they unknowingly
drift away from “why” they were wanting to measure it the first place.
Some organizations prioritize ensuring there be enough money to award the project.
In these cases, estimates should target the low bid. AASHTO defines accuracy as the
measurement of how close estimates are to the Award low bid. Typically, this is an organi-
zation’s most accurate estimate, that being the Engineer’s Estimate vs. the low bid. This is
a reasonable metric as this comparison is already used to help make the business decision
whether to Award or not. If the intent is to measure estimate compared against the industry,
then the organization should perhaps compare their estimate(s) against all submitted bids.
Some organizations want to see how they are compared to what they previously promised.
In these cases, future estimates are compared against previous estimate baselines, such as
scoping. In these instances, the baselines are often referred to as the project budget.
It should be noted that the term “budget” can often mean very different things to very differ-
ent entities within the same organization. There is tremendous benefit in gaining concur-
rence across the organization on some of these commonly used terms. Some organizations
want to emphasize balancing programmatic funds. In these cases, scoping estimates should
be compared against the final total project costs.
In most cases, the estimates should tie to real money, that being bids or total costs.
Comparing estimates only to other estimates can provide more immediate feedback, but is
inherently constrained to each estimate’s underlying assumptions. Since these are not tied
to real money, they may provide limited value to the organization in their programming of
funds, and can more easily be manipulated.
Once your organization determines the data point(s) and baseline(s) they will use in the
metric, the logic must be settled as to what is considered accurate. What delta percentage
is good enough to be considered a good or accurate estimate throughout the different stages
of project development? Some organizations may choose to utilize an accuracy range that
expresses both the high and low acceptable estimate accuracy boundaries. These change
over time, becoming more stringent as the plan develops and risks are addressed. An orga-
nization’s Cone of Uncertainty should graphically depict the Accuracy Range throughout
the project development process. Other organizations may also choose a metric with a
sliding scale of accuracy. This allows each subsequent estimate to be compared to the
previous baseline estimate. This can work quite well provided the metric ties back to reality
of bids or total cost.
Whatever the reasons, you owe it to your Agency, your employees, and your citizens to
determine why there is an unforeseen disruption to the public project utilizing public
funds. As the reasons become apparent, I encourage leadership to prioritize advancing the
project, if reasonable, and then focusing on incorporating lessons learned into your organi-
zation’s best practices. Remember, the estimates may be sound, and perhaps the bids are
the outliers. This certainly doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t revisit the estimates to improve
your processes, but unless you are experiencing systemic busts, try to avoid organizational
overactions. If the bids are not in line with the estimates, then the organization must make
a business decision on how best to proceed.
Program busts should be handled at the program level. If project estimates are consis-
tently off by variances beyond industry standards, or your organization’s expectations as
defined in your Cone of Uncertainty, then the current estimating systems, environment,
tools, and procedures should be examined and refined, as needed. In these circumstances,
it can be beneficial to take a deep breath and approach the situation in a proactive, and not
reactionary frame of mind. Organizations should strive to ensure corrective measures are
consistent with the overall purpose of estimates. Any new or revised performance metrics
to track or drive these changes should also be consistent with the organization’s why, what,
who, when, and how of estimating to add value to the organization.
67
Scope
“No matter how good the team or how efficient the methodology, if we’re not solving the
right problem, the project fails.”
– Woody Williams
Scoping is a task, and a process. All project development schedules should include a scoping
task, which may be the most important task in the schedule. It represents the culmination
of the scoping process, or phase, of the project. The deliverable for this task is often an
approved Scoping Form or Report. This should be so much more than an obligatory form
or rubber-stamped approval. Successful scoping charts a course for success. Conversely,
inadequate scoping ensures complications.
At its core, Scoping establishes the project’s budget, schedule, and design content. You
cannot close scoping until all three of these are resolved. The formal approval of scoping
then grants the project approval to proceed. The established budget, scope (design content),
and schedule are reflected in the project’s Triple Constraint.
One of the foundational elements of successful project management is effective risk
management. This is as much a mindset as it is a prescribed list of activities. Great PMs are
exceptional at viewing their world through risk management-colored glasses, which grants
them an anchored budget-scope-schedule perspective to innovation and problem solving.
This is perhaps never more evident than in Scoping.
Generally speaking, Scoping should define the problem, solution, and project approach.
But Scoping extends beyond confirming and clarifying the project’s purpose and need. You
should assemble the project team and name discipline leads. Initiate the environmental
review process and determine the required permits and environmental documentation.
Identify and engage key stakeholders. Specify applicable design criteria. Perform survey
and other essential field investigations. Evaluate performance-based engineering alternative
solutions. Proactively identify design, environmental, right-of-way, utility, and construction
constraints. Determine project delivery method (e.g., Design Bid Build, Design Build, PPTA,
etc.). Determine level of public involvement (e.g., Post a Willingness, Location Public
Hearing, Design Public Hearing, Combined Public Hearing, etc.). Work with your team to
identify, evaluate, and prioritize qualitative project risks. Quantitatively convert these
qualitative risks to project impacts in terms of time (Schedule) and money (Budget). Adjust
the project Schedule and Budget accordingly. Gain confirmation on required resource
availability and concurrence from leadership on the resultant project package of Scope,
Schedule, and Budget. Some organizations require pre-scoping worksheets be completed
by each involved engineering discipline. This provides an effective way to engage key team
members, document discipline specific risks and associated schedule and budget adjust-
ments. This should all then be documented in the Scoping Form or Report that is approved
by the appropriate persons, positions, or entities. This final scoping document becomes the
basis for all future change management discussions.
On larger or more complex projects, other documents that may be generated dur-
ing this phase or incorporated into Scoping discussions include Project Charter, Project
Management Plan, Issues Log, Assumption Log, Risk Register, Risk Report, Stakeholder
Management Plan, Stakeholder Engagement Plan, Stakeholder Register, Scope Management
Plan, Requirements Management Plan, Requirements Traceability Matrix, Schedule
Management Plan, Cost Management Plan, Basis of Estimates, Quality Management Plan,
Quality Control Measurements, Risk Management Plan, Resource Management Plan,
Project Team Assignments, Resource Calendars, Project Calendars, Work Breakdown
Structure, Communications Management Plan, Performance Metrics, and Schedule and
Budget Scoping baselines. There is a point of diminishing returns on the value added in the
formal documentation of many of these efforts for smaller projects; however, these areas
should all be considered during Scoping for all projects. Most of these items should live in
the Project Management Plan.
“Slow down. Calm down. Don’t worry. Don’t hurry. Trust the process.”
– Alexandra Stoddard
4.1.1 Introduction
Scoping is a process. This process starts early, typically contains two key milestone meetings,
the Project Scoping Kickoff Meeting and the Preliminary Field Inspection (30% Design Review)
Meeting, and concludes with formal scoping approval with well-defined deliverables.
Unofficially Scoping starts at project conception. A project idea is first imagined to solve
a problem or create new opportunities for improvement. These first thoughts begin to shape
the Purpose and Need. Planning resources may proceed to investigate and justify the candi-
date project with studies and projections. Often candidate projects must comply with
previous Planning studies and identified corridor improvements. Preliminary schedules
and cost estimates begin to take shape.
firms for interviews. The selected firms continue to research the project and brainstorm how
best to sell to the owner that they are best qualified to develop and deliver a successful solu-
tion. Even if the owner does not allow project-specific solutions to be presented in the inter-
views, the firms will likely still discuss their approach to solution development and highlight
major challenges of this project that they are uniquely prepared to overcome. The owner then
chooses the top ranked firm, and they begin to negotiate the consultant contract. For task
orders, the owner-operator leverages an existing on-call contract. For both project-specific
selections and task orders, this agreement details the consultant’s project scope, design stan-
dards, project assumptions, success criteria, deliverables, anticipated public involvement, the
development schedule, and the consultants’ cost. In order for the consultant to accurately
prepare a cost estimate for their services, they thoroughly identify and evaluate project risks.
Involved disciplines detail their anticipated work. A workflow is refined. Potential solutions
are vetted. This entire process rests on the fundamentals of the Scoping process: clarify the
Purpose and Need, identify risks, refine the solution, and delineate time and budget con-
straints. For many owners, the consultant contact is the basis for the Scoping Form or Report.
exciting time in the project development. Data is coming in and being evaluated. Strategic
design decisions are being made, even as different disciplines are chasing down answers to
their own critical questions. The PM needs to ensure everyone is providing what others
need when they need it, in order for the project to progress. The PM should work closely
with the lead designer to ensure the right people know the right information at the right
times so wise decisions can be made. You can think of each discipline as being its own train
on its own track. The PM needs to ensure the trains are all making concurrent progress
such that they all arrive at the 30% Design station at the same time. This is complicated by
the fact that some of these trains rely on input from other trains along the way in order to
chart their course of action. For instance, the hydraulic report can be critical to the roadway
approaches and bridge design. Or environmental permit constraints may impact limits of
construction which may directly impact RW and construction costs. Or chasing an ade-
quate outfall may require additional field survey, RW, and environmental impacts.
Successful PMs understand the significance of information during this early and critical
phase of project development. Like a pebble thrown into a still lake, the PM should grasp
the ripple effects of information and decisions. When they read the preliminary geotechnical
report that details extensive unsuitable materials, they need to ensure the road designer is
aware and the appropriate mitigation strategies are included in the Scoping cost and
schedule estimates. When a homeowner mentions their septic drain field is actually much
closer to the roadway than the records indicate, they need to ensure it is accurately located
and alert the utility engineers to determine if it will be adversely impacted and need to be
replaced. When the Subsurface Utility Survey shows a major natural gas line traversing the
project, they need to ensure the road designer can provide adequate cover and can work
with the hydraulics engineer so the enclosed storm sewer system can work around the
existing utility. In these instances, there is no substitute for experience. The more projects
you develop and construct, the more you will be able to quickly discern the intended and
unintended impacts of information at this early stage of development. Experience brings a
practiced perspective to triage urgencies, assign priorities, and bring the right people in the
loop at the right time. Exceptional PMs will not know all the answers, but they do know
what questions to ask.
All of the details determined and the decisions made must be documented in the final
Scoping documentation. Many transportation system owners have standardized Scoping
Forms that simplify this effort. If no existing and accepted forms are available, a Scoping
Report should be prepared in its place. This document should contain all critical project
information, such as project numbers, length, termini, and the like. A detailed listing of
project risks should be included, typically by discipline. Delivery method should be speci-
fied, along with the public involvement requirements. A Scoping Schedule should be final-
ized. A Scoping Estimate should also be finalized, along with appropriate funding details.
Applicable supporting documentation, such as all discipline-specific Scoping summaries,
should be included or attached to the final Scoping document. This Scoping document is
an essential project document. The PM should bring this to every subsequent milestone
meeting, and use it as a guide to ensure the project is progressing as intended. If the project
is deviating from this document, the PM should initiate Change Management procedures.
The Scoping Form or Report is not official until it is approved by the appropriate
authority. This approval may be required by different levels and different organizations.
For instance, a locality may approve its Scoping Report, which is then submitted to the
state DOT for various approvals. Often the cost or complexity of the project dictates at what
level approval is required. This should inherently convey the importance of the Scoping
process in setting up the project for development success. The final Scoping document is
approved when the final signature is secured.
The third and fourth steps of closing scoping are to implement the Scoping Schedule and
Scoping Estimate. This will often involve adjusting schedules in whatever scheduling software
or tools are being used. Similar adjustments will need to be made with the Estimates. More
mature organizations may leverage these Scoping Schedules and Estimates in performance
metrics to gauge future progress. This Schedule and Estimate are also key management princi-
ples to help the PM effectively manage the project and future expectations.
74 4 Scope
Closing scoping will transition the project from the Scoping Phase into the Preliminary
Design Phase of project development. Scoping clarifies the project path of the journey for-
ward. At this point the PM has the Budget, Scope, and Schedule triple constraint clearly
defined. Time to get to work!
Scoping positions your feet securely under you for the remainder of the project. During this
process you qualitatively identify risks, and then quantitatively convert them to time and
money impacts. When you formally close scoping, you establish the triple constraint of
budget, scope, and schedule.
The scope portion of this triple constraint is the confident understanding of the problem,
solution, applicable design criteria, and deliverable requirements. The schedule and budget
are reflected in the Scoping Schedule and Budget baselines. These are often the baselines
by which your actual task completion dates and future estimates are measured against to
evaluate performance through the remainder of project development. As such, focused
care should be given to their formation.
Organizational guidance should be used in determining how to weigh risks and their
impacts. It is not reasonable or realistic to assume 100% of your schedule or budget risks
will be realized. Similarly, it is not reasonable or realistic to assume 0% of your schedule or
budget risks will be realized. There are established mathematical models to assist in deter-
mining reasonable ways to normalize risk which are described in Chapter 6, Managing
Risk. Regardless of the method employed, the organization’s culture and risk tolerance play
an important role in determining how the identified risks are incorporated in the Scoping
Schedule and Budget baselines. Pending the project specifics, there may also be external
factors (e.g., political pressures, funding requirements, special events, etc.) that drive the
scoping schedule or budget baseline. A PM’s greatest challenge can be juggling these non-
technical constraints that conflict with the technical realities. In these circumstances,
managing expectations is key to success. This topic is discussed in detail in Chapter 10,
Controlling the Project, Section 10.1, Managing Expectations.
Whether by an organizational schedule template, past experience, or a project-specific
effort, the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) should be established during Scoping. Many
transportation organizations have established schedule guidance. This can range from
previous project knowledge to formal schedule templates by project type. During scoping,
the PM should carefully examine the schedule and WBS, which may result in adding or
deleting tasks. More likely, you will adjust the established task durations to account for risks,
opportunities, and resources. This is not an opportunity to arbitrarily extend the schedule to
create a generous buffer. That is neither right, nor especially clever. Rather the scoping
schedule baseline is an opportunity to right-size the schedule to the specifics of the project.
Remember the big picture of project schedules is to balance driving project development
with current realities, while ensuring the right amount of the right type of money is in the
4.3 Roles and Responsibilities 75
right place at the right time. This requires schedules to be honest, credible, and achievable.
Arbitrarily extending the schedule out of ignorance, incompetence, or undefined uncer-
tainties, as opposed to evaluated risks, often cause funding issues later on that will unneces-
sarily delay the project.
Condensing or extending project schedules from the initial template should be justified with
an associated risk. At scoping you should revisit your project’s assumption log. All assump-
tions have an associated risk. When a risk is identified, it is typically qualitative in nature.
Those with experience and expertise will more accurately convert these risks to quantitative
schedule adjustments. All assumptions and decisions should be appropriately documented in
project documents. The PM should then adjust the schedule accordingly before it is set as the
Scoping Baseline Schedule.
Although both are established at formal scoping acceptance, the Schedule Baseline
should be finalized before the Budget Baseline. This is because the base cost estimate
(expressed in today’s dollars) will need to be adjusted for contingencies and inflation, both
of which are dependent upon when the various project development and delivery activities
occur. Contingencies, management reserves, and inflation should be applied to the project
per organizational guidance. More details can be found in Chapter 3, Budgets and Estimates.
“Sometimes a player’s greatest challenge is coming to grips with his role on the team.”
– Scottie Pippen
It is said the most efficient form of government is a benevolent dictator. Conversely, the
most oppressive form of government can be a tyrannical dictator. The difference is deter-
mined by the respect for, or abuse of, absolute power. To temper this risk, democratic
republics, democracies, and most other western forms of government have established a
clear distinction between the separation of powers. These checks and balances strive to
limit abuse of power and ensure public good is pursued.
This same principle holds true in the planning, management, and execution of public
transportation projects. There are separate and defined tasks and roles. Often these require
vastly different skill sets and are performed by different people, in different divisions, in
different organizations, all working together for the public good.
In the example above, efficiency can increase and delivery can be expedited if roles are
consolidated under a benevolent dictator. Conversely, efficiencies can quickly go off the rails
and abuse can run rampant if roles are consolidated under a tyrannical dictator. An experi-
enced and talented PM can sometimes act as a benevolent dictator, streamlining operations
and forwarding progress in a way that benefits all. A PM may also knowingly or unknow-
ingly assume the tyrannical dictator role if they are inexperienced, incompetent, or have
more nefarious motivations. Given public projects are using public funds that are to be
expended for public good, it is typical a system of checks and balances are established to
encourage responsible behavior and limit the opportunities for abuse.
There are defined roles within a project. Pending the size and complexity of the project,
and your organization’s requirements and practices, not all of these roles may be recognized
76 4 Scope
or assigned. Likewise, some of these roles may be filled by the same person, especially on
smaller projects or in smaller organizations. It is also possible there are redundant positions
at different levels (e.g., federal, state, local, and consultant levels). Regardless, the function
of each role may need to be done. And it is important each role perform that function, but
stay in their lane to do so. Typical transportation project-related roles include:
● Project Sponsor – the individual whose support and approval are required for a project to
start and continue, and is ultimately responsible for enabling project success
● Project Manager (PM) – the individual assigned by the organization to lead the team in
developing and delivering the project within the established budget, scope, and schedule
● Project Champion – an informal role of one who makes the project success a personal
responsibility by pushing the team, liaising with stakeholders on behalf of the project,
and supporting the PM
● Functional Manager – one of authority over organizations, divisions, or disciplines with
which the PM will work to facilitate successful project development and delivery
● Project Team Leader – one who supports the PM in leading an aspect of the project team
in accomplishing a task or set of tasks
● Team Member – one who contributes by working to complete a project-related task, in
full or in part
● Stakeholder – any individual, group, or organization who may affect, be affected by, or
perceive to be affected by the development or delivery of the project
● Planning and Investment Manager – the individual who ensures appropriate funding is
properly obligated, allocated, and positioned so the project can advance according to the
established schedule
● Project Development Engineer – upper management individual responsible to execute
development and delivery of the project in accordance with approved program
● Agency Liaison/Project Ambassador – one who represents the project or organization to
other organizations, external agencies, the media, and stakeholders
● Senior Leadership – influential division or department directors
● Executive Leadership – individuals at the highest level of leadership within an organization,
typically the top person in every major silo or hierarchical pyramid within the organization
● Project Management Office (PMO) – central body that establishes, administers, and
maintains organization’s project methodologies, procedures, and tools
● Subject Matter Expert (SME)/Technical Leader – individual whose expertise, typically
discipline dependent, is critical to project advancement
● Governing Board(s) – authoritative state or local board that oversees projects, approves
funds, awards contracts, and bears the ultimate financial responsibility for the project
and program
There may be other individuals and organizations that impact your project. This can
especially be true on the funding side where FHWA, Metropolitan Planning Organizations
(MPOs), regional taxing authorities, and others may play a role. Many organizations strive
to intentionally separate time and money roles on a project, ensuring different individuals
fill the authoritative financial (Project Investment Manager) and project development
(Project Development Engineer) roles. This approach ensures no one person has complete
control of the project’s financial resources. For instance, if the project schedule or budget
4.4 Scope Management 77
“Management is, above all, a practice where art, science, and craft meet.”
– Henry Mintzberg
product specifications and begin stakeholder engagement. This effort can be critical to
refining success criteria and managing expectations through the project. This process gen-
erates the Purpose and Need, which is critical to advance the project. This Purpose and
Need can bear legal significance should the project require a public hearing in order to
exercise eminent domain for acquisitions. A public need is required. The basis of this is the
project’s Purpose and Need.
After requirements are collected, the scope is defined. The scope details the project’s
description, project approach, solution, roles and responsibilities, and deliverables. In
short, it captures all that must be accomplished in order for the project to be deemed a suc-
cess. This is a technical document. While it will not include all design features or specifica-
tions, it will detail the minimum deliverables. For instance, the scope may not include the
detailed pavement section or storm drainage design, but it may specify a Class II roadway
with curb and gutter and an enclosed storm drainage system. The scope is the baseline of
what is to be delivered. As PM, you need to understand it. You should frequently refer to it,
4.4 Scope Management 79
and highlight it at major milestone team meetings. The scope is the basis by which the
project is defined. Know it, and fiercely defend it.
Once the Scope is defined, you need to create the schedule and budget baselines. This
effort is incredibly important. Remember one of the fundamental goals of transportation
projects is to accurately schedule and execute the work so the right amount of the right type
of money is at the right place at the right time for the project to efficiently advance.
Transportation professionals often use the same word with different meanings. Scope
can refer to the process of collecting and examining project details to determine the selected
solution. Scope can also refer to the document that describes the project details and success
criteria. Scope may also be a specific project task in the WBS. If your project schedule
includes a scoping task, it is not complete unless and until you have the full triple con-
straint complement of budget, scope, and schedule that may become the established base-
line for the remainder of the project development. The complete scoping document, that
includes the budget, scope, and schedule, should be reviewed and formally approved, per
your organizational protocols. This formal approval is your organization’s promise to the
public regarding this project. It establishes the baselined triple constraint that is the basis
by which all future change management considerations will be measured and evaluated.
Controlling the Scope is the only scope management process that is not in the project
planning stage. Controlling the scope occurs continually throughout the life of the project.
Success requires an observant and vigilant PM who is fiercely protective of the project’s triple
constraint while faithfully following your organization’s change management procedures. If
your organization does not have change management procedures in place, you should create
them for your projects and document them in the Project Management Plan. While change
may be inevitable, successful change management requires consistency and discipline.
Change management is not only the foundational principle of controlling the budget, scope,
and schedule, it is the quiet secret ingredient to almost every successful project. This is dis-
cussed in detail in Chapter 10, Controlling the Project, Section 10.3, Change Management.
and unlimited factors, the one constant experienced PMs know very well in complex trans-
portation projects is most often change. Chapter 1, Project Management 101, Section 10.2,
Triple Constraint, details the unique relationship in project management between budget,
scope, and schedule. These three constraints are inherently and interdependently
connected. One cannot change without impacting the other two. It is rare that any trans-
portation project will not face some stress on one of these constraints that will necessitate
adjustment of the other two.
Be it via a well-intentioned, carefully-orchestrated deliberate action, or incompetence,
the results may look much the same. If your budget is cut, you may need to accelerate your
schedule or trim scope. If your schedule lags, you may need to increase your budget or
reduce scope. If your scope expands, you may need to increase your budget and/or schedule.
As PM, you need to be fiercely protective of your triple constraint. Only a fool adjusts
scope without considering and adjusting their budget and schedule. This line can be remark-
ably difficult to maintain in the midst of political and community pressures to expand scope.
These requests often begin with noble intensions to practice responsive customer service
that seeks to optimize stakeholder satisfaction. But actions have consequences.
It can be difficult to stand up in a public meeting and explain to a group of well-meaning
citizens that their requested sidewalk extension that would connect a now existing gap
cannot be accommodated because it is outside of the project scope, budget, and schedule.
That task can become more daunting when the elected leader conveys you will reexamine
that issue. The night may get even more difficult if an elected leader commits to installing
it, when you know it is outside of the project boundaries and will require you to collect
additional survey, modify all of your environmental permits, adjust drainage, acquire more
rights-of way, move additional expensive underground utilities, and so forth.
Charles R. Swindoll said, “Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react.”
Regardless of the motivation of the changed condition or constraint, how you react is cru-
cial. As PM, you must remain firm in practicing applicable change management proce-
dures. Maybe adding that sidewalk is a great idea? And if the budget and schedule can
accommodate that scope change, terrific. If they can’t, agreeing to the scope expansion in
hopes it will all somehow work out later is an irresponsible response that most often leads
to disaster.
Good, bad, and crazy project ideas can and will come from most any and all sources. Some
of these are brilliant and innovate; others test the definitions of reasonableness and common
sense. As PM, you should be the primary gatekeeper of the scope. Ideas should come through
you. Your charge is not to express your preference, but rather to determine if the idea war-
rants further attention. If it does, then you should proceed with applicable change management
procedures, as established and accepted by your organization. This includes evaluating the
resulting impact to budget, scope, and schedule, along with other critical nontechnical con-
siderations or success criteria. Unless you unilaterally control the budget, scope, and schedule,
then you are not formally approving or rejecting the change. Your job is to ensure the poten-
tial change is properly evaluated, and if approved, appropriate adjustments are made to the
budget, scope, and schedule to position the project for success.
4.4.4 Gold-Plating
Whereas Scope Creep involves new ideas to add to the project scope, Gold-Plating is mod-
ifying or improving upon existing scope components. This may seem less dangerous, but
Gold-Plating can represent an enormous risk to your project if left unchecked. Imagine a
project that is to construct a new four lane bridge over a state highway. The project scope
clearly defines the structure’s required dimensions, design criteria, and applicable stan-
dards. After public hearing, as the project advances to final design, an active community
group decides the bridge should accommodate progressive bike and pedestrian accommo-
dations. Local businesses submit a lengthy petition requesting the bridge be more aesthet-
ically pleasing with some distinctive architectural features that retain and emphasize the
unique character of the corridor. Soon the elected leader summons you into their office to
explain their vision that this bridge will be the signature gateway to their community. You
calmly explain that the project budget and schedule are based upon the scoped bridge.
They reply, that hasn’t changed, we still want that bridge, just with a couple additional fea-
tures and improvements that will significantly boost stakeholder satisfaction.
The scope establishes the minimum and maximum of what should be delivered. Adding
features or improvements to existing scope components that exceed standards or success
criteria, as defined in the approved scope, represent real risks to the project budget and
schedule. A community that just before advertisement desires more expensive street lights
or decorative street signs and posts is requesting Gold-Plating. If managed correctly, your
project estimate should not be able to absorb the costs of gold-plating existing scope com-
ponents. And even if the budget can absorb the cost increase, as public transportation pro-
fessionals, we are called to be responsible stewards of public funds. As such, changes such
as these should be processed and formally approved using applicable change management
procedures.
83
Schedule
“A schedule defends from chaos and whim. It is a net for catching days. It is a scaffold-
ing on which a worker can stand and labor with both hands at sections of time.”
– Annie Dillard
When a friend or family member has a baby, the two most common questions are: is it a
boy or a girl, and what is its name. These are natural, expected, and eminently reasonable.
Similarly, when discussing a transportation project, the two most basic questions are: how
much will it cost and when will it be completed.
A well-crafted schedule creates and maintains order amidst chaos. The schedule is an
essential component of the triple constraint. Not only does it shape expectations for
development and delivery, but it is the fundamental framework by which resources are
allocated, funding is programmed, cash flow is planned, and inflation impacts are incorpo-
rated into cost estimates.
While there are a variety of scheduling methodologies, the majority of transportation pro-
jects and programs are best run using the Critical Path Method (CPM). The CPM is a
proven mathematically-based scheduling algorithm developed in the 1950s. It is a pow-
erful approach that enables PMs to proactively manage their projects and promotes on-
time and on-budget delivery. CPM scheduling analysis can quickly assess your current
progress, where tasks can be run in parallel, the shortest time when a project can be
complete, when and where resources will be stretched thin, and the most important tasks
upon which you should focus to keep your project moving forward. The CPM is built upon
three core foundational elements: tasks, task durations, and task interdependencies. Once
the foundation is established, the model can then be enhanced by tailoring it to project
specifics or organizational preferences.
5.1.1 Tasks
The first step is to define the list of all tasks required to complete the project. A Task is a
discrete and defined process that can be assigned resource(s) and has associated costs.
Each task, or activity, should be an action that pushes the project forward. These should
not be Cover Your Ass (CYA) events or checks. Tasks should be a verb plus a noun (e.g.,
execute contract, deliver plans, secure Rights-of-Way, etc.). Tasks will then be ordered and
connected in the schedule network with constraints and dependencies.
If starting from nothing, these would be logically arranged within a Work Breakdown
Structure (WBS), which is a comprehensive hierarchical model of the deliverables that
comprise the project scope. The WBS is the holistic project picture that is composed of
smaller components. Effort within the WBS is defined by Work Packages, which are the
lowest-level of deliverables where cost and duration can be estimated and managed. Most
transportation organizations have the project activities already well defined in their Project
Development Plan. More mature organizations may have project templates where these
tasks are already selected and tailored for you based upon project specifics.
project, the schedule could have ten or hundreds of tasks. Determining the expected
schedule level of granularity is an enterprise-wide decision each Agency must make.
Eventually you will practically reach the point of diminishing returns, where adding addi-
tional tasks and resources actually reduces productivity. Experience will help you find this
sweet spot where your tasks capture the essence of your project development, and enable
you to drive productivity.
More mature organizations may include other events on their schedules that are not
tasks. A Milestone is a specific schedule event. These may serve as triggers to involve
others or decision anchors within the project development process. Milestones typically
have zero durations, no resources, and no work. While they do not impact the project
schedule, they represent significant project progress points worth tracking or celebrating.
Some milestones may represent a project Gate, which is a process through which a
project must successfully pass to move to the next authorized phase of work. A Summary
task, or Parent task, is a created task that visually represents the combined information
of a set of related subtasks. Summary tasks are for reference use only, and are typically
displayed in BOLD print in the project outline. In general, avoid assigning resources to
Summary tasks, and do not enter dates or change constraints on summary tasks. Let the
scheduling engine automatically roll up this information, including the duration, from
the subtasks.
The following two types are “soft constraints,” meaning they do not have a specific date
restriction associated with the task:
● As Late As Possible dictates the successor task starts as late as possible. This constraint
intentionally consumes all available float. This is typically used in backward scheduling
where you begin with the final deadline and work backward to the project start.
● As Soon As Possible dictates the successor task starts as soon as possible based on rela-
tionship dependencies. This is typically used on forward scheduling where you plan the
tasks based upon an early milestone. Most public transportation projects should be
scheduled using this constraint as it introduces flexibility by intentionally preserving
float while it minimizes the risk of schedule slippage.
5.1.6 Float
Float, or Slack, represents schedule flexibility. This is the amount of time a task can be
delayed without causing project delays. Technically slack is associated with inactivity,
meaning an activity can start later than originally planned; and float is associated with
activity, meaning an activity can take longer than originally planned. Practically, most use
these terms interchangeably.
There are different types of float, and it is important to understand which type is being
discussed. Free Float is the time a task can be delayed without impacting the early start of
successive tasks. This is the time a task can be delayed with no downstream schedule conse-
quences. Total Float is the time a task can be delayed without impacting the project comple-
tion date. The Total Float is shared across the series of tasks. Project Float is the time a project
can be delayed without impacting an externally imposed project deadline set by executive
leadership. Independent Float is the time a task can be delayed if all predecessor tasks are as
late as possible and all successor tasks are as early as possible. Interfering Float is the time a
task can be delayed without delaying the project’s planned completion date. Tasks on the
critical path, by definition, have no float.
Negative float, or slack, indicates there is not enough time scheduled for the completion.
It represents the amount of time beyond the project completion date a task requires. The
most common cause for negative slack is when task constraint dates are introduced that
cannot be met given task durations or schedule logic. When negative float, or slack, is pre-
sent, the schedule must be adjusted to eliminate it. Critical path tasks with negative slack
are called Hypercritical.
Near-critical path is a series of activities with very small amounts of total float. A near-
critical path may become a critical path if its float is exhausted. Near-critical tasks are those
activities with very small float. These should be watched closely as near-critical tasks can
quickly become critical tasks, which may have far-reaching project implications.
schedule’s logic and constraints. Early Finish (EF) is the earliest date a task can logically
finish given the schedule’s logic and constraints.
Numbers will be placed in each box. For transportation projects, the units for all six
boxes are typically in days. Refer to Figure 5.7 as you read the description below.
One potentially confusing element is that you count each workday. This means ES and
LS are the beginning of the workday, while EF and LF are the end of the workday. For
example, the ES for Task A is Day 1 and the task duration (D) is 2 days. To calculate the EF,
Task F
Duration (D)
Float (F)
Task F
1 4 4
you add the D to the ES (EF = ES + D). So, the EF for Task A is Day 2. This is because the
task begins (ES) at the start of Day 1, then add a duration of two full workdays, which is all
of Day 1 and all of Day 2. The EF is the end of Day 2. This thinking cascades to subsequent
tasks, so the ES of Task B (the immediate downstream task) would be start of Day 3.
Similarly, the EF for Task B is end of Day 9, so the ES for Task C is the start of Day 10.
This workflow has three separate parallel paths that converge at Task G. Since Task A, D,
and F have no start constraints, the ES of each is Day 1. They could all start at the beginning
of Day 1. You calculate the EF of each task in the manner described above until you
complete all concurrent paths that converge to Task G. When done, you know the EF for
the Task A track is 14, the EF for the Task D track is 9, and the EF for the Task F track is 4.
The workflow logic dictates Task G cannot start until all the previous tasks are complete.
As such, the latest EF is end of Day 14, which means the earliest ES for Task G is start of
Day 15. With a duration of 1 day, this means the EF of Task G is end of Day 15.
These forward pass calculations provide you with valuable information that is summa-
rized in the Figure 5.7. Perhaps most important, is that it is required to enable you to
complete the backward pass that determines float.
The Backward Pass, as shown in Figure 5.8, starts at the end of the project and calculates
each task’s late start, late finish, and float. Late Start (LS) is the latest date a task can start
without delaying the rest of the project. Late Finish (LF) is the latest date a task can finish
without delaying the rest of the project. The LF often equals the EF; however, there are times
when the LF may be an external constraint. Examples may be, needing to complete the road
improvement before the start of the college football season to support the increased traffic
flow, needing to complete the improvement to enable a scheduled special event, or needing
to complete the improvement before election day. Float is the delta between LS and ES.
In our example, the EF of Task G is the end of Day 15. This is also the latest Task G can
finish, so the LF of Task G is the end of Day 15, as shown in Figure 5.8. The LS is the LF – D,
which is End of Day 15 minus one workday, so LS is the start of Day 15. Float is then cal-
culated by subtracting ES from LS. For Task G, F = 0 days since ES = LS.
For all immediately preceding tasks, the LF is the day prior to the following LS. So, if the
latest Task G can start is beginning of Day 15, then the latest Tasks, C, E, and F can finish
Task F
1 4 4
11 10 14
is end of Day 14. Subtract the duration of each of these tasks to determine the respective LS.
Remember working days, so Task C, for instance, has a LF of end of Day 14, with a LS of
start of Day 10 to accommodate the Duration of five working days. Repeat these backward
pass steps for each task in each parallel path.
For Task E, you can see the LS is start of Day 12 while the ES is start of Day 7. Subtracting
these two values gives you a float of 5 days. Similarly, Task F has a Float of 10 days.
Once the forward and backward pass have been completed for all tasks, you can begin to
harness the power of CPM. All tasks with F = 0 are critical path tasks, as shown in Figure 5.9.
None of these can be delayed without directly delaying the project finish. As such, these
deserve your prime attention. The critical path of these critical tasks must keep moving for-
ward in order to achieve project success.
Task F
1 4 4
11 10 14
Understanding the significance of the LS and F may provide insight into optimizing
resource allocations. In this example, Task F may start anytime between Day 1 and Day 10
and still not be critical, but on day 11 task F becomes a critical path task. The resource for
Task F may have other work for other projects that are more urgent. Grasping the collective
intelligence and insights of tasks across project lines provides Program and Portfolio
Managers with powerful insights that can dramatically increase efficiencies and optimize
productivity.
As PM, you should regularly update and evaluate the schedule. Actual dates should be
promptly entered. This allows the schedule engine to churn and update the downstream
tasks based upon the established project logic. This is essential in order to determine if any
near-critical tasks have become critical.
horizontal bars that are tied to start and finish dates on the horizontal axis, and connected
with applicable relationships.
Pending the size of the project, the Gantt chart can become quite large. You may need a
plotter to print it. But it is worth it to print it and display it. This encourages the schedule
to become a concrete reality that all can see, subconsciously accelerating team buy-in. The
schedule is no longer the PM’s schedule, but the project schedule. Everyone should have
ownership and be vested in its success. An updated Gantt chart can be a powerful visual
anchor for the team that clearly shows where you are and what needs to happen when, to
move forward. This simple act can build team trust and encourage collaboration as trans-
parent expectations inherently encourage individual and collective accountability.
Figure 5.10 shows the Gantt chart for the provided example. Some CPM software may be
able to be customized to show additional information such as task owner, percent complete,
or other project data.
A 1 2 2 B
B 3 9 7 A C
C 10 14 5 B G
D 1 6 6 E
E 7 9 3 D G
F 1 4 4 G
G 15 15 1
“The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.”
– Michael Altshuler
A Schedule Management Plan describes how the project schedule will be managed during
the project. The plan provides guidance on the organizational policies and procedures for
planning, developing, managing, executing, monitoring, and controlling the project schedule.
Some typical sections may include: roles and responsibilities, update frequency, base-
lines, schedule change management, calendar definitions, performance metrics, control
thresholds, tools, and reports. Like all other aspects of the Project Management Plan, this
should be tailored to the size and complexity of the project, while adhering to your organi-
zational expectations.
While larger design-build and mega-projects may have very detailed Schedule Management
Plans, most transportation organization projects may not. Scheduling processes, procedures,
and expectations are best set at the organizational program or portfolio level. Generally
speaking, each project schedule should be treated similarly to every other project schedule
5.2 Schedule Management Plan 93
within the same organization. This consistency across projects builds credibility while
increasing efficiencies and productivity.
Your transportation organization may already have extensive guidance on how to develop,
manage, monitor, and control your schedule. This can be especially true if your organiza-
tion utilizes an enterprise-wide scheduling CPM software tool for all projects. However, just
because the practices, definitions, and expectations may be so established that it is taken for
granted, it doesn’t mean they are not important. These are your rules of engagement. As
PM, it is your job to know them and work within them. Even if documented ad nauseam in
your organizational guidance and culture, there are four key schedule aspects that every PM
should know and emphasize: Templates, Baselines, Monitoring, and Change Management.
understand your organization’s performance metrics, including when and how they
capture your schedule baseline(s). Be deliberate and strategic in positioning your project
for success.
Regardless of the reasons, keeping multiple schedules for different audiences creates con-
fusion, reduces accountability, and invites criticism of individual or organizational
credibility. This practice is an insecure time sink that creates more problems than it solves.
Nothing good comes from multiple schedules.
The PM controls the schedule. The team members all should have access to it, as should
leadership and key internal and external stakeholders. The specifics of the schedule that
are public facing is a decision that should be made by the organization. However, public
transportation projects are completed for public good using public funds. Most all project
documents, including the schedule, are available for public consumption and scrutiny,
even if only by a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. Closely guarding the schedule
to protect the PM or project, or for most all other reasons, is hugely counterproductive. The
goal is to develop and deliver the transportation project for the public good.
The schedule is the organization’s commitment to the public and team members. As such,
every project should have just one schedule. The schedule should be transparent and avail-
able to all. This increases accountability and ensures consistency of message and purpose,
while reducing the opportunities for conflict and misunderstandings. Having one schedule
builds individual and organizational credibility and trust, and is foundational to the PM
effectively managing expectations. From a program perspective, the one project schedule
should be used to ensure proper funds are available at the correct times, manage resources
and workloads, and improve project and program development efficiencies. And most
importantly, it is the best way to develop and deliver the project on-time and on-budget.
These are also known as mandatory logic or hard dependencies. Soft logic are relationships
that are linked by preference, reason, or industry standards. These are also known as
discretionary logic or preferred dependencies. When adjusting or resequencing tasks in
your schedule, focus on those with soft logic.
Managing Risk
“If you don’t invest in risk management, it doesn’t matter what business you’re in, it’s a
risky business.”
– Gary Cohn
“You cannot manage risk, or for that matter, build a risk management capability
without first understanding the ‘business value’ of risk management.”
– Pearl Zhu
Low High
Balanced
Risk Risk
Some are so afraid of making a decision, or making the wrong decision, that they drift
toward paralysis of analysis and become overly risk averse. Others are naïve, in denial, or just
provide risk management lip service and allow risks to evolve on their own, hoping it will all
eventually work out. Ironically, this can put them with those who actively seek risk. On
transportation projects, being overly Risk Averse or Risk Seeking will put you in a defensive,
reactive position with risk that ultimately jeopardizes your budget, scope, and schedule.
Ideally, you and your organization should fall in the balanced portion of this spectrum.
Here you are actively managing risks throughout the project in a manner that allows you
to be aggressive and proactive in risk responses, coupled with established change
management procedures. This combination is foundational to your project’s success.
Risk Management is more than a set of documents and processes. It is a mindset. For
some, this conscious decision requires a massive paradigm shift. Risks are real and present,
if you acknowledge them or not. Your identification, analysis, and response to risks directly
impact your projects’ and programs’ level of success. Establishing and practicing an
integrated and meaningful risk management strategy may be the single most important
thing you can do to increase your on-time and on-budget performance.
An effective organizational Risk Management strategy should be scalable. While every
transportation project should have a formal risk management plan, it may be tailored to
the size, cost, priority, or complexity of the project. Mature organizations understand this
and often establish thresholds for varying levels of risk documentation. You should ensure
the juice is worth the squeeze. While many risk management tools may not be deemed
appropriate on smaller projects, the mindset should remain. If you are not actively thinking
about identifying and responding to risks with your team, you will soon be actively scram-
bling to respond to changes that jeopardize your project’s budget, scope, and schedule.
Unmanaged risks can directly lead to increased costs, unanticipated schedule delays, poor
performance, lower quality, and damage to your and your organization’s reputation. You
may not be able to control all the risks, but you do control how you prepare and react.
Every PM should go through the Risk Management Project Workflow illustrated in
Figure 6.2 on every project, through the life of the project.
6.2 Risk Management Plan 101
Risk
Management Risk Management
Planning Workflow
Risk
Identification
Risk
Risk Analysis
Monitoring
Risk
Response
Transportation projects can extend in duration for years, often cycling through multiple
PMs and critical team members. In these circumstances, the organization’s risk attitude is
crucial. The Risk Management Plan is essential to maintaining continuity and uniformity
in risk management activities, and positioning the PM and project team to successfully
develop and deliver the project on-time and on-budget.
The Risk Management Plan describes how the project team will identify, evaluate,
respond, and monitor risk throughout the project. This formal document is often based
upon an organizational template. It details the framework, processes, tools, and expecta-
tions as to how risk will be managed. Information contained therein should reflect organi-
zational risk attitudes, and comply with applicable processes and procedures.
Risk Management Plans typically include:
● Definitions of Risk Probability and Impact
● Assumptions
● Risk Strategy or Approach
● Methodologies
● Roles and Responsibilities
● Risk Identification
● Risk Assessment and Analysis
● Risk Response
● Risk Monitoring and Controlling
Risk Management tools and details that are included or referenced within the Risk
Management Plan typically are:
● Risk Breakdown Structure
● Probability Impact Matrix
102 6 Managing Risk
● Accuracy Estimates
● Risk Register
● Assumption Log
● Schedule detailing frequency and timing of risk management activities
● Risk reporting format
The Risk Management Plan should be developed during early planning phases of the
project and finalized before scoping is complete. The result should be incorporated into
the Project Management Plan. It should be noted that like other aspects of the PMP, an
organization may have all of this already documented within their existing policies and
procedures.
The PM ultimately bears all responsibilities for the Risk Management Plan. They shall
guide its planning, and formally approve it. The PM shall regularly review and update
this plan. The PM must document all risk and risk responses, per the plan. The PM must
communicate applicable risk information to their superiors and to the project team,
secure decisions and concurrence on risk responses, and ensure each risk response is
appropriately and effectively implemented. The PM should ensure there is appropriate
budget and time for risk identification, analysis, response, and monitoring activities. The
PM also plays a vital role of promoting a balanced Risk Management mindset within the
project team that promotes optimization of resources, time, and money. One way to
accomplish this is to make Risk Management a standing agenda item at all regular team
meetings.
“PMs are the most creative pros in the world; we have to figure out everything that could
go wrong, before it does.”
– Fredrik Haren
A Risk is any uncertain event, activity, or condition that can impact the project in a negative
or positive way. Negative risks are threats. Positive risks are opportunities. Residual risk is
risk that remains after a risk response strategy has been implemented. A Secondary risk is
a risk created by your response to another risk. These risks represent the intended and unin-
tended consequences of your efforts to actively manage other risks. Often secondary risks
are less serious than primary risks, but not always. Both residual and secondary risks can be
negative or positive. Risk identification is the ongoing process of identifying and examining
risks and their effects on project objectives.
Effective Risk Identification begins with establishing and ensuring mutual concurrence
on project fundamentals. The purpose and need. The project context. The project’s Scope,
Budget, and Schedule. The project’s success criteria. If these are not defined, understood,
and accepted, you will not be able to effectively identify and manage risks.
This Progressive Elaboration is when projects incrementally develop in small steps. This is
particularly common in the planning phase of a project, as expectations and specifics con-
tinue to be gathered and clarified. In these instances, risk identification should be continually
revisited and refined.
6.3 Risk Identification 103
technical requirements, budget, and schedule should be set for the remainder of the
project. Should any changes occur to the triple constraint thereafter, applicable change
management procedures should be followed. The foundation of Scoping is to advance and
refine the design so you can identify, analyze, and quantify project risks. By close of
scoping, you should have completed a prioritized Risk Register, determined risk responses,
and adjusted your project’s time (schedule) and money (budget) to accommodate identi-
fied risks. This positions your project for success. After scoping, the PM transitions into
Risk Monitoring and then repeats the Risk Management Project Workflow presented in
Figure 6.2.
the consequences, UUs can produce two undesirable results. Their unexpected nature can
cause stress and confusion while simultaneously lowering others’ confidence in your ability
to lead. Whether reasonable or not, it is often assumed the PM should have anticipated the
risk. Should an issue emerge from the UU quadrant, it should be promptly addressed with
developed project team initiative, creativity, and resilience. UUs can be accommodated for in
Design Margins, Schedule Float, Contingencies, and Management Reserves.
Risk ID Unique ID (number) for each risk – this is for internal tracking purposes
Name Name to which risk will be referred
Date Date risk was identified
Type Is this a negative (threat) or positive (opportunity) risk?
Description Detailed, clear, and thorough description of risk and what it means
Triple Constraint Will this risk potentially impact Scope, Budget, and/or Schedule?
Trigger The risk trigger should be described and documented
Responses Document planned or implemented risk responses
Comments Document the iterative process of risk management as the risks evolve
Risk Owner Who is responsible to monitor risk and implement risk response?
Status Is risk being monitored, in risk response, or closed?
Probability The probability of occurrence
Impact The project impact if the risk is realized
Risk Score The numeric product of Probability and Impact from the Risk Matrix
Risk Exposure Schedule risk exposure
Earned Value Budget risk exposure
Management (EMV)
Risk Identification must be completed before the PM and team can advance to Risk
Analysis. Risk Analysis is the evaluation and prioritization of identified risks. This is a
two-step process. The risks must be qualitatively assessed, and then quantitatively evalu-
ated. Qualitative Risk Assessment is a project management technique that subjectively
analyzes the probability and impact of a risk occurrence. The risks are categorized on a
probability and impact matrix, and those deemed significant may undergo a quantitative
risk analysis. Quantitative Risk Analysis is the mathematical analysis of the probability
and impact of a risk occurrence. This analysis should be conducted after qualitative anal-
ysis so it can assess risks that have been identified as significant.
Impact of Occurrence
3 × 3 grid. The probability and impact ratings Medium
2 4 6
should be logged on the Risk Register, and (2)
updated as needed. If not already defined by
your organization, below are general guide- Low
1 2 3
lines for delineated categories: (1)
Impact of Occurrence
● High = Catastrophic
● Medium = Critical
● Low = Marginal
Risk Score is the numeric product of the probability multiplied by the impact. This can pro-
vide clarity on prioritizing the urgency of the risk, and may also dictate organizational
reporting requirements. This should be documented in the Risk Register that was initiated
during Risk Identification. Risks should then be quantitatively analyzed.
There is a species of swans in Australia that happen to be black in color. For those who
did not know this, the idea of a black swan seemed impossible, until it wasn’t. A Black
Swan event is a realized risk with a low probability and high impact. Nassim Nicholas
Taleb described this phenomenon in detail in his book entitled, The Black Swan: The Impact
of the Highly Improbable. These outlier results are beyond normal expectations. While rare,
these Black Swan events are challenging to risk management. These can be difficult to
anticipate, but require prompt attention when realized.
impact the critical path in very different ways. The Expected Monetary Value (EMV)
describes the project’s financial Risk Exposure. The result, which should be in today’s
dollars, will be a positive number for negative risks (threats) and a negative number for
positive risks (opportunities). See the example table in Figure 6.6.
This approach becomes more reliable when more risks are included. EMV calculations
are also inherently dependent upon the accuracy and associated assumptions of the proba-
bility of occurrence and estimate for financial impact. Accordingly, this approach works
best when you are risk neutral, being neither risk averse nor risk seeking.
Most people make a decision and then search for data to rationalize it. For business-
minded audiences, it is advantageous to present the risks in financial terms. Precise data
can be very convincing, but be cautious of its accuracy. There are other risks imbedded in
these numbers. How confident are you of its likelihood? How certain are you of the finan-
cial impact? While potentially convincing, EVM calculations can be difficult to defend.
Pending the complexity of the project or specifics of certain risk(s), you may choose to utilize
Probabilistic Analysis tools within your quantitative analysis. The most common of these are
three-point estimates and the PERT (Program Evaluation and Review Technique) estimate.
These both rely on estimate ranges. For each risk you prepare three different numbers:
● Pessimistic estimate (P) – this is the maximum estimate of impact
● Optimistic estimate (O) – this is the minimum estimate of impact
● Most likely (M) – this is the most likely estimate of impact
The Three-Point estimate adds P + M + O and divides by three. The PERT estimate is a
weighted average using these same three estimates. You add P + O + (4 times M), all
divided by six. These simple probabilistic estimates can be effective ways to increase accu-
racy of your EMV calculations. For more advanced requirements, a Monte Carlo statistical
simulation can be used that analyzes all possible outcomes to create an even more accurate
probabilistic estimate.
The cycle of risk identification, risk analysis, risk response, and risk monitoring should
be repeated throughout the project. The PM is responsible to drive this process and docu-
ment all relevant information on the Risk Register.
While you need to be vigilant, also be cognizant that it is easy to reach the point of
diminishing returns; meaning beyond a certain point, efforts to accurately capture all pos-
sible aspects of a specific risk may not be worth your time. Organizational guidance on Risk
Exposure can provide clarity on prioritization thresholds.
“Risk is like fire: If controlled it will help you; if uncontrolled it will rise up and destroy you.”
– Theodore Roosevelt
If you don’t proactively manage risks, you are deciding to allow risks to manage you. Think of
the PM as being the coach of a football team preparing for a game. You scout the other team
and evaluate their strengths, weaknesses, and tendencies. You make your offensive and
defensive game plans and contingency plans, and think about possible game scenarios. If you
don’t prepare, it is impossible to be proactive. You will spend the limited and valuable game
time trying to figure out how to respond in real time, and likely fall further and further behind.
You want to be the coach that controls the game. You want to win. Successful coaches are
remarkable risk managers. They are constantly planning, identifying, analyzing, responding,
and monitoring risks. They make assumptions, make decisions, and strive to be structured yet
agile as they evolve to stay ahead of changing conditions in a dynamic environment.
You will either respond to risks proactively or reactively. The choice is yours. Incompetence,
busyness, naiveté, laziness, or procrastination are not valid reasons to ignore risks. Successful
PMs choose to be proactive, which positions them to better control their project. PMs who
feel constantly behind and surprised by events that seem to overtake and overwhelm them
are almost all passive risk managers. Being reactive severely limits the number and effective-
ness of your available responses, and eliminates virtually all possibilities of exploiting
positive risks (opportunities).
Risk Response Planning is conducted after risk analyses to determine the best response
for each identified and prioritized risk. While the PM is ultimately responsible to manage
all risks in order to successfully develop and deliver the project, the chosen risk responses
should be consistent with the organization’s risk tolerance and appetite. Risk Tolerance is
the level of uncertainty an organization is willing to accept for each specific risk. This can
be quantified in an acceptable variance in performance measures. Risk Appetite is the total
amount and types of risk an organization is willing to accept in order to pursue its objec-
tives. These represent the level of risk you are comfortable assuming. It doesn’t mean you
like it, but you can tolerate it. Most organizations have historic precedents of risk tolerance
that reflect their culture and objectives. Your personal risk tolerance may be different than
that of your organization, but be cautious of straying too far from accepted thresholds
without appropriate concurrence. There may be no faster way to run to the far end of the
limb by yourself than mishandling risks.
The PM is responsible to ensure the Risk Register is maintained, and its contents available
to the team. This includes ensuring each assigned Risk Owner is updated on risks for which
they are responsible, including full knowledge of their risk triggers. Should a trigger be passed,
the PM is responsible to ensure the identified risk response is implemented by the Risk Owner.
can Actively Accept the risk, meaning you take action to prepare for the consequences. This
often takes the form of budget or schedule risk-specific contingencies.
Exceptional PMs understand when to escalate risks. Risk Escalation is elevating the risk to
a higher authority for management of that risk. Highly sensitive or political risks may need to
be escalated to gain concurrence or direction on how best to handle that risk. Elevating a risk
can also be an effective way to manage project expectations while securing concurrence on
leadership’s preferred risk response. Especially with escalated risks, the PM must be diligent
in monitoring the risks and implementing appropriate project change management measures
if needed.
Implementing risk responses can often be difficult and unpopular, but it is the necessary
and right thing to do. It may be beneficial to remind yourself and others that the purpose of
risk responses is not to cast blame, or find an acceptable scapegoat should a negative risk
be realized, but rather to proactively manage risk in such a way that the project may con-
tinue to advance within its established con-
straints of budget, scope, and schedule.
Risk Responses - Threats
The selected risk response should be
based upon the specifics associated with
each risk. Figure 6.8 can be used as a guide
High
Avoid
gat e
as to when the four risk responses may be M it i at s
hre
Impact of Occurrence
Transfer
6.5.2 Positive Risks (Opportunities) Mitigate
Sharing the risk means partnering with a third party who is better positioned to realize
the opportunity. You need to find those who are best able to capture the benefits for the
project. This may be accomplished by pushing the risk trigger, increasing the probability
of occurrence, and increasing the positive impact to the project. As Transference often dis-
tributes the negative risk liability, so Sharing often distributes the realized benefits.
Examples may include shared cost savings in design innovations or construction means
and methods.
Enhancing the risk is to take intentional action to increase the probability of occurrence
and or the impact of the risk. Resulting modifications in design or approach may increase
the likelihood of capturing identified benefits, or increase the scale of the beneficial
impacts. One common tactic is to focus on facilitating the risk triggers that enable the risk
to be realized. If an organization can enhance the probability of occurrence to 100%, then
they have exploited the positive risk.
Accepting the risk means you taking no intentional actions to exploit, share, or enhance
the risk. If you do nothing, by default you are accepting all positive risks, even if they are
not identified. You may get lucky every now and again; but generally, accepted positive
risks are rarely realized. In a proactive risk management approach, only insignificant
positive risks should be accepted. These should be documented and tracked, but the bot-
tom line is the juice isn’t worth the squeeze to commit resources to actively pursue realiza-
tion of this opportunity.
Positive risks can also be escalated in an effort to best manage them. This is especially
true when key individuals’ input, involvement, or influence may enhance the risk to the
point where you could exploit it. Realizing opportunities can do more than providing
positive benefits to the project’s budget, scope, and schedule; it can boost team morale, gen-
erate and increase community goodwill, and strengthen the reputation and credibility of
the PM and organization.
While each positive risk response should be based upon the analysis, Figure 6.10 can be
used as a guide as to which of the four response strategies to select for each risk.
Enhance l
e Al negative or positive risk is almost always accom-
an c
En h u n it ies
Impact of Occurrence
W h
Share rectly impact the project’s budget, scope, or
Exploit schedule. Change management and risk
management are both the responsibility of the
PM.
Low
Accept
Mitigating risks can create intended and
Low Medium High unintended consequences. Identifying, assess-
Probability of Occurrence ing, and managing secondary risks should be a
part of the initial risk mitigation consideration.
Figure 6.10 Positive (opportunity) risk
response guidance. Regardless of your risk response, some residual
risk may remain.
6.6 Monitoring Risks 113
“There is no doubt that Formula 1 has the best risk management of any sport and any
industry in the world.”
– Jackie Stewart
Risks on a public transportation project often develop over time, are challenging to iden-
tify, are difficult to quantify, and are even more difficult to control. Public Sector projects
frequently present very high levels of largely undefined, unique, and occasionally unprec-
edented risks. They are a high-stakes game characterized by significant and irreversible
commitments that aim to satisfy a wide range of success criterion that are initially set and
then tend to evolve from a diverse group of stakeholders. To further complicate matters,
public sector project solutions may not be selected from an optimized list of alternatives.
More commonly, project boundaries and critical design features are often dictated and are
not easily changed. The sanitary sewer extension will start at point A and end at point B at
predetermined elevations, following the natural creek line between the two drainage
basins. The roadway improvement will begin at this intersection and end at that intersec-
tion complying with applicable design speed geometry in-between. The bridge replacement
will begin at this bank and end at that bank and tie into existing approach grades. Because
114 6 Managing Risk
these designs are not selected or scoped to intentionally minimize risk resolution, the PM
must play the hand he is dealt. He must actively seek to proactively identify and evaluate
potential risks, diligently prioritize each based upon their likelihood of occurrence and
possible impact to the project, and successfully manage and respond to these risks until the
project reaches completion.
Following Risk Identification, Analysis, and Response, the fourth essential process in the
Risk Management Project Workflow is Risk Monitoring. This is a continuous effort that is
ongoing until project completion. Risk Planning is essential, but the reality is that risks will
change and evolve. It is not uncommon for a PM to find themselves steering the project
ship through a very different sea than that upon which they set sail. Throughout the dura-
tion of a public transportation project, risks will continue to be added and dropped from
the risk register. Risk monitoring is an essential component that empowers the PM to be
positioned to proactively respond to threats while seizing opportunities. The knowledge it
produces grants team flexibility and enables innovation.
The Project Management Institute’s (PMI) Project Management Body of Knowledge
(PMBOK) defines Monitoring Risks as, “The process of monitoring the implementation of
agreed-upon risk response plans, tracking identified risks, identifying and analyzing new
risks, and evaluating risk process effectiveness throughout the project.” Inputs for this process
are primarily the risk register, change management documentation, and utilized risk
management metrics.
At least at every major design milestone (30%, 50%, 60%, 90%, and 100% design meet-
ings), the Risk Register should be updated, and both Qualitative and Quantitative Risk
Analysis should be conducted. Risk Monitoring should be a rolling process throughout the
life of the project. However, Risk monitoring is a task that often gets buried under the pro-
verbial piles of urgent papers. Some of these simple steps may make it more manageable to
achieve. Be fanatical about collecting status information on risks. Be equally fanatical that
it only be the status you need, not extraneous information. Document all essential
information. As Clifford Stoll said, “If you didn’t write it down, it didn’t happen.” Monitor
the status and trends as a procedural matter of routine. Make the effort meaningful by
promptly and intentionally acting on gained insights.
Think of risk monitoring as exercising. A haphazard and undisciplined approach will
yield marginal results, at best; whereas, a commitment to an intentional workout plan will
produce meaningful results. Similarly, all risks may not need to be monitored with the
same frequency, or with the same intensity. Significant or volatile threats and opportu-
nities may warrant special attention.
Risk triggers are tricky business. While some are obvious and straightforward, many are less
so. Some risks may have multiple triggers that are in very different forms. Typically, the more
advance warning the trigger provides, the less reliable it is. For instance, you may be able to
identify a worrisome trend, but the longer the trendline of your projection, the more assump-
tions you must make to substantiate your conclusion.
It is important that you strive to identify triggers that accurately warn of the associated
risk. If you are having difficulty identifying the trigger, speak to those most likely to
cause the risk or feel its impact. Ask them how they would know if the problem occurred;
then work backward. Many soft, or qualitative, triggers can be effective at warning of a
problem without clearly identifying the core issues. For instance, you may receive fore-
warning that a Home Owners Association is planning to attend an upcoming public
hearing in mass to protest a roadway expansion due to traffic concerns. While stake-
holder discontent may be a risk, that doesn’t truly prepare you for the possible breadth of
core issues that may arise. Many hard, or quantitative, triggers can provide precise data,
but often not soon enough to take corrective actions to avoid the issue. For instance, a
PM might be reviewing the monthly consultant bill and notice one work activity has
spent 80% of its budget while only 40% of the work is complete. It is better to discover this
situation before the entire budget line item is spent, but it may be too late to take correc-
tive actions that will not end up impacting other aspects of the project. Some triggers are
secondary in nature, meaning you observe the secondary risk trigger after the original
risk is realized.
Many useful triggers are not able to be predicted and are completely unexpected. For
example, you might overhear a conversation in the elevator that a contractor on one of your
jobs just won a big project with a short fuse that will demand most of their resources once
underway. Or you are at your child’s PTA meeting and overhear some grumblings from
other parents whose neighborhoods are adjacent to an ongoing construction project. In
both of these examples, you can proactively act on this knowledge before the consequences
of that risk continue to escalate. As PM, you never know from where you will pick up use-
ful bits of information. Consequently, it is important to keep your ear to the ground and be
ever vigilant and observant.
It is imperative that you associate a Risk Owner with each risk on the Risk Register. The
Risk Register should also list the Risk Trigger. The Risk Owner should be carefully chosen
as they are the ones best positioned to monitor the risk trigger and implement any risk
response. If the PM is not the risk owner, they are responsible to ensure the Risk Owner is
aware of the risk trigger and monitor updates.
The goal of triggers is to keep your finger on the pulse of the correct spheres of influence
so you have advance warning and can more effectively respond to risks if they are partially
or fully realized. Experience teaches the best triggers are personal warnings that are offi-
cially, or unofficially, provided by those with whom you have an established relationship
based on trust and mutual respect. An afternoon of clever analysis of all the project metrics
cannot replace a single phone call from a colleague in a permitting organization giving you
a heads up that you may be receiving a letter later that week that says thus and so. Likewise,
a casual conversation in the hall from a coworker telling you this issue is going to be a
problem is worth more than any weekly progress report. It is invaluable that you actively
establish a network of such connections within your own organization, within your con-
sultants, and within the many federal, state, and local entities with which you must interact
116 6 Managing Risk
to build your project. This takes time and deliberate effort, but is an investment that can
pay back immeasurable benefits. As with everything you do, be ethical, be honest, be smart,
and maintain appropriate confidentiality and discretion.
or probability of occurrence (in units of percentage). This tool can be especially effective in
communicating with the team. A Risk Burndown Chart, as shown in Figure 6.12, can be a
powerful visual to focus responses and mobilize momentum toward solutions. This can also
provide a historic record of the effectiveness of the team’s risk response. As threats are iden-
tified and risk responses are implemented, the risk exposure and probability of occurrence
should diminish over time.
Managing Resources
“The strength of the team is each individual member. The strength of each member is
the team.”
– Phil Jackson
“It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.”
– Harry S. Truman
Roughly translated, the second law of thermodynamics states that a system left to its own
devices will naturally devolve into increasing states of disorder. This Entropy is self-evident
in public transportation project teams.
Culture matters. The culture, tone, and productivity of a team is the PM’s responsibility.
Yes, the corporate culture is incredibly important, but a PM can directly impact the team’s
culture. Harmonious, high functioning teams do not happen by chance. They take time,
but this is a critical and powerful investment. The PM must be intentional to this end, stra-
tegically fostering trust, acceptance, and commitment to shared common values and goals.
Developing and managing a team are two very different functions. Developing a team
means establishing and improving the competencies, team interactions, and overall team
environment to enhance project performance. This is concentrating on the beehive, not the
bees. Managing a team means focusing on the individuals. This involves providing
feedback, resolving issues, and managing team changes to optimize individual team mem-
ber’s performance. Two very different foci that require two very different skill sets.
Successful team development requires intentional planning and consistent fol-
low-through. First, the PM must accept that they run the team. While there are likely no
project schedule milestones related to team culture, it is the undercurrent that can carry
your objectives toward shore or pull you back out to sea in spite of your best efforts to the
contrary. Push decisions to the lowest possible level. Be alert and aware of the pace and
pulse of progress and relationships. Emphasize collaborative decision making. Be humble.
Actively listen. Be kind. Praise in public; criticize in private. Lead with empathy. Truly care
about your people. Become vested in them as individuals and their individual success,
which will be a part of, and extend beyond, this project. Develop a safe, supportive space
that builds trust, empowers innovation, and energizes greatness. The culture is the frame-
work and momentum that positions your team for success.
William Wrigley, Jr., said, “When two people in business always agree, one of them is
unnecessary.” Conflict is inevitable. In a vibrant team, the absence of conflict is a danger
sign. As Mark Sanborn said, “In teamwork, silence isn’t golden, it’s deadly.” When conflict
occurs, it is critical that you manage conflict in constructive manner, meaning people
arguing about the problem, as opposed to a destructive manner, meaning people arguing
about people. Team members should resolve their own conflict, with the PM stepping in
only when necessary. The team’s culture you develop can establish a structure that pro-
motes healthy debate and constructive conflict resolution.
Differences of opinion can challenge assumptions and spark innovation, provided the
conflict does not turn contentious. There are five basic strategies of conflict resolution.
Withdrawing or Avoiding is retreating from conflict. While cooling off may have some tem-
porary benefit, eventually you still need to find a solution. Smoothing or Accommodating
emphasizes areas of agreement while ignoring the true problem. This is another lose-lose
situation. Forcing or Directing pushes one’s viewpoint at the expense of others.
Compromising and Reconciling is where both parties give something up. While all of these
may be appropriate given a specific situation, the preferred method is Collaborative prob-
lem-solving, which examines alternatives and involves cooperative give and take.
True leadership extends beyond positional power that is based on one’s formal position
within the organization or team. Pending your organizational structure, some or all of the
team members may not report directly to the PM. Especially in these circumstances, it is
imperative you develop other forms of power. Expert power is based upon your skill or
knowledge. Referent power relies on respect or admiration others may have for you based
on your personality, actions, and decisions. Informational power controls the gathering or
flow of information. Persuasive power is the ability to convince others to embrace a
preferred decision or course of action. Personal power is sourced form one’s charisma.
Ingratiating power relies on the application of flattery. Reward power is the ability to give
praise or bonuses. Coercive power is the ability to discipline. Pressure-based power is the
ability to limit another’s freedom, options, or movement. Find the combination that fits
your style and then refine it.
Assume positive intent. This is good practice for most all personal and professional rela-
tionships, but it also holds true for teams. Assume positive intent. This can be a challenge
when personalities clash or messages may seem overtly confrontational, but it is a benefit
to the entire team when the leader consistently and predictably assumes positive intent in
both the message and the messenger. Sometimes, this trust can be compromised and you
may desire to adjust your approach for specific situations or individuals. And be aware that
while many may have their own angle or agenda, that is not inherently inconsistent with
assuming positive intent.
For anyone who played team sports, you know you don’t have to like all of your team-
mates to win. It can help, but it is not required to achieve success. By contrast, each team
member needs to feel included and committed to each other and the common goal. The
“you mess with one, you’ve got us all” mentality is extremely powerful and effective. It can
be a challenge to find this delicate balance of collective and individual accountability, but
when you do it is a powerful force for progress.
7.1 Developing and Managing a Team 121
Some teams create team charters. This is a document that is created by the entire team,
and is signed off by each team member. It contains the ground rules, describing team
values, agreements, and operational guidelines. It may also include collective expectations
for communications, meetings, decision making, conflict resolution, and anything else
important to the group members. Even if not formalized, this exercise can be a powerful
team-building experience, particularly when a new group is forming or you are onboarding
new members. One short exercise is to give everyone a pad of sticky notes and then write
down answers to a few questions targeting values, priorities, past times, hobbies, expecta-
tions, shared objectives, and goals. Share your answers, and then group the notes on a wall
to show commonalities. This is an effective way to accelerate relationships and quickly
begin to lay a strong foundation of trust. It may be the most valuable hour or two of your
entire project.
Teams can be like children in that they usually live up or down to expectations. Few
things will encourage a team more than the expectation of success. Make team building a
priority. Explain why it is important, invest in your people, and have fun. Be it on-site or
off-site, during work hours or on the weekend, doing something meaningful or something
silly, in your comfort zone or something completely new. Use your imagination and be all
in. Team building activities are vital to getting to truly know each other and building trust-
ing relationships. Additionally, they can create powerful opportunities to set the ground
rules of behavior and performance expectations. These should address how the team mem-
bers work with each other, how the team will handle obstacles, and how the team will meet
deadlines. Some examples may include a commitment to promptly return communica-
tions, to being honest and listening to fresh ideas, to the quality and timeliness of project
deliverables. A team with defined boundaries will be happier and more productive. Once
expectations are clarified, then the stage is set for goals.
Set SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timely) individual and team
goals. Goals can give each employee a united purpose and a cohesive mission. Achieving
realistic goals can create a sense of unity and trust and this can be self-motivating, where
unrealistic goals will generate apathy and erode morale. Clear goals should be paired with
motivation that is consistent with the team culture. The results can be cumulative and
astounding. Some of us who played sports were fortunate enough to have a coach that cre-
ated a cohesive team with personalized motivations that pushed us to achieve more as an
individual and a team than we ever thought possible. Those life lessons endure and are
directly transferable to the business world.
Mature teams invest in their team and team members’ development. One way to accom-
plish this, while insulating against SME loss, is cross-training. Another method, often con-
ducted concurrently, is mentoring. An experienced coach or advisor can provide needed
support and guidance and perspective to team members at all levels, including the PM.
Know when to lead and when to take a step back. Delegation is the action of trust. No
one wants to work for a micromanager. Tell your team what needs to be done, and then
grant them the respect and freedom to best determine how to accomplish the task. When
delegating, define the Who, What, When, and Why, while providing some freedom in the
How. Remember you want to control the outcome, not necessarily the process. Experience
will help you discern when to be a dominant leader driving progress with lasered focus
toward the goals, and when to give the team the creative space to innovate and lead them-
selves. Successful PMs find a way to do both within the team’s established cultural fabric.
122 7 Managing Resources
Recognize team and individual successes. Everyone likes to be appreciated. And there is
something to appreciate in each of your team members. Highlight conquered challenges,
collaborative innovations, supportive actions, and specialized skill sets.
Successfully managing a team requires tact, interpersonal skills, emotional intelligence,
and courage. This is not a spectator sport. The ability to identify, assess, and manage your
own and others’ personal emotions is critical. There are many effective ways to lead and
inspire your team, you need to find the style that fits you and your unique skill set.
Interactions may be cordial, with conversations concentrating on work and safe topics. The
PM should take the lead while providing clear expectations, consistent guidance, and
prompt responses.
individual efforts and achievements. Meanwhile, the PM needs to ensure the project
.
finishes, and finishes strong. Always take time to celebrate with your team. Experienced
PMs understand the public transportation world can be small; there may be a good chance
you will work with these team members again on future projects, so treat them well from
the beginning to the end.
7.1.3 Motivators
Employees are as loyal to an organization as their options allow. Fredrick Herzberg
established his Hygiene Theory of motivation that asserts one’s work environment does not
cause satisfaction, but if missing, can cause dissatisfaction. Thus, one’s compensation, bene-
fits, and work conditions are only preventative in measure. In 1943, Abraham Maslow pro-
posed a hierarchy of human motivations that now bears his name, as shown in Figure 7.2.
He asserted that people can only ascend to higher levels after achieving security in all
previous levels. Knowing where your team members are on Maslow’s Hierarchy can pro-
duce insight as to their engagement and commitment to your team.
For any individual or team to reach its full potential, culture matters. When a team envi-
ronment is one that is inclusive, promotes safety, makes its members feel valued and
respected, recognizes contributions, and challenges our creativity, the team does more
than just survives, it thrives. It is the PM’s responsibility to develop and manage the team
in ways that makes this happen.
Survival Disengaged
food, water, sleep I can't wait to get out of here
Many are promoted to PMs because they are exceptional engineers. These can be very dif-
ferent roles, requiring very different skill sets. This may be most evident in how one assem-
bles and leads a team.
Successful transitions from engineer to PM are rarely by accident. Some typical engi-
neering traits are easily transferrable. Focus and follow-through. Accurately defining the
problem, risks, and constraints. Creative problem solving. Attention to detail. Others can
be far more challenging. Delegating. Managing stakeholder expectations. Managing
change. Resolving conflict. Making decisions amidst ambiguity. Operating in an unpredict-
able environment where influence management is key to success. Most of these soft skills
center on relationship building and effective communication.
Many engineers make the mistake of assuming everyone thinks like they do, or dis-
counting those that differ in opinion, approach, or priority. Exceptional PMs know that
this is a recipe for disaster. When broadening one’s focus from a task or engineering disci-
pline to an entire project, it is beneficial to have the maturity to recognize there can be
strength in diversity of thought. Sometimes an outlier of thought or personality can be a
126 7 Managing Resources
magical force multiplier, while other times they can almost instantaneously subterfuge
momentum and catapult the best laid plans to ruin before you even realize what is happen-
ing. Successful PMs have the wisdom to identify and embrace the former, and quickly jet-
tison the latter. Successful projects have PMs that invest in the team and foster an
environment that builds and maintains healthy relationships. When you hire an engineer,
you are not buying a widget, or other interchangeable commodity. You are renting access
to their minds, hoping to benefit from their thoughts, creativity, and problem-solving
skills. In the best of cases, underlying all of this is a foundation of trust, agreement of eth-
ical principles, and complimentary personalities.
The reality is we don’t often have the opportunity to hand-pick our team. More typically,
we must play the hand we are dealt. Perhaps we are able to choose some key team mem-
bers, but others will almost assuredly be assigned. A few may be superstars. Some may be
cooperative. Some may be functional. Some may be distracted and unfocused. Others may
be openly disruptive and a daily challenge. An effective PM identifies, and then leverages,
the strengths of the team members to remain focused on the project objectives. Navigating
personnel issues and fostering positive and productive team dynamics are not skills typi-
cally taught in engineering education. Nor are most engineers particularly good at it.
Fortunately, there are well-established tools that provide incredibly useful insights into
the psychological undercurrents and motivations of ourselves and others that can increase
one’s emotional intelligence. Understanding some of these foundational principles will
enable you to be a better leader and facilitator in how you connect with others to build and
maintain high performing teams. As Charles Maurice said, “I am more afraid of an army of
one hundred sheep led by a lion than an army of one hundred lions led by a sheep.”
There are a number of outstanding available personality resources. Each approaches the
topic with a slightly different perspective and purpose. Any can provide unique insights
into yourself and others. If combined, you can capture a more complete picture of your
team and yourself that will enable you to more effectively work, communicate, and lead in
a way that builds trust and increases productivity. Five of the most common and trusted
personality assessments for business are:
1) Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) looks at how you process information and make
decisions.
2) DISC (Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Compliance) examines your preference
in communication and behavior.
3) Strength Deployment Inventory (SDI) evaluates the motives of what drives behavior
when things are going well and when in conflict.
4) Enneagram determines your core motivations.
5) Clifton Strengths identifies what you naturally do well.
The underlined letters in your answer to the each of these questions combine to form
your four-character personality type. There are sixteen uniquely identified personalities.
Results detail a host of insights and cascading work implications. In a time of change,
MBTI can suggest what people will likely do to manage the change. MBTI shows how team
members approach similar tasks and situations, as well as how we go about getting what
we want. The results show what information we value, and our differing approaches to
creativity, problem-solving, and decision making. Figure 7.4 is a summary of the sixteen
personality types:
(Continued)
128 7 Managing Resources
INFP The Healer Idealistic, Curious, Imaginative, Driven to understand others and
(Inspired help them reach potential, Loyal to values and their people, Seeks
Crusaders) harmony of life and values, Sees possibilities for better future
INTP The Architect Rational, Contemplative, Quiet, Contained, Adaptive, Problem-
(Expansive solver, Analytical, Focused, Logical innovator, Drawn to ideas over
Analyzers) social interaction, Seeks logical explanations, Identifies patterns
ESTP The Dynamo Bold, Tactical, Energetic, Outgoing, Enthusiastic, Pragmatic,
(Dynamic Thrill-seeker, Risk-taker, Problem-solver, Spontaneous, Flexible,
Mavericks) Results focused, Tolerant, Theories bore them, Enjoys the moment
ESFP The Performer Outgoing, Spontaneous, Adaptive, Passionate, Collaborative,
(Enthusiastic Friendly, Accepting, Spirited, Common-sensed, Loves people and
Improvisers) life, Entertainer who enjoys the stage, Makes work fun
ENFP The Champion Charismatic, Enthusiastic, Imaginative, Spontaneous, Flexible,
(Impassioned Improviser, Kind, Supportive, People-focused creator, Loves
Catalysts) helping others explore creative talents and reaching potential
ENTP The Visionary Clever, Entrepreneurial, Quick, Stimulating, Alert, Outspoken,
(Innovative Resourceful, Emotional intelligence, Ambitious, Bored by routines,
Explorers) Embraces intellectual challenges
ESTJ The Supervisor Decisive, Efficient, Practical, Realistic, Systematic organizer, Hard
(Efficient Drivers) worker, Dependable, Focused on achieving results, Likes logical
standards, Finds solutions, Eager to lead groups
ESFJ The Provider Outgoing, Loyal, Follow-through, Cooperative, Conscientious,
(Committed Kind, Pragmatic, Devoted, Responsible, Seeks harmony in their
Builders) environment, Enjoys deep relationships, Notices others’ needs
ENFJ The Teacher Goal-oriented, Empathetic, Facilitator, Responsive, Sociable, Kind,
(Engaging Caring, Responsible, Charismatic organizer, Inspiring leadership,
Mobilizers) Highly attuned to others’ emotions, needs, and motivations
ENTJ The Commander Candid, Decisive, Strategic leader, Organizational problem-solver,
(Strategic Well-informed, Planner, Goal-setter, Shares knowledge, Skilled at
Directors) coordinating people and activities, Sees underlying relationships
A high-level understanding of your own MTBI personality type, as well as your coworkers,
will grant you valuable insight in how to best to relate and communicate to others on your
team as you will better understand how they think and what they value.
•Dominace •Influential
•Direct •Inspirational
•Decisive •Interactive
•Doer •interesting
D I
C S
•Compliant •Steady
•Cautious •Stable
•Careful •Sincere
•Conscientious •Supportive
Communication Direct and Direct and open Indirect and open Indirect and
tendency guarded guarded
Keys to Focused brevity, Share experiences, Be polite, Express Focus on facts
communicating Avoid repeating Encourage dialog, interest in them, and details,
with this type self and making Don’t interrupt Clarify Minimize
generalizations expectations emotions, Be
patient
Prioritizes Accepting Taking action, Giving support, Ensuring
challenge, Taking Collaboration, Collaboration, accuracy,
action, Achieving Expressing Maintaining Maintaining
results enthusiasm stability stability
Challenges/May Lack of concern Being impulsive Indecision, Delegation,
be limited by for others, Disorganization, Multitasking, Compromising,
Insensitivity, Lack of follow- Working in Social events,
Impatience, through, Staying ambiguity, Overly Quick decisions
Skepticism, focused, Speaking accommodating, Being critical,
Getting into the directly, Avoiding change Overanalyzing,
details Researching facts Isolating self
When you take the assessment, your results (profile) are reported as a dot within the
DISC circle, along with a highlighted area of your zoned preferences. The more intensely
you align with a specific personality type, the further your dot is from the center of the
circle. The highlighted area can overlay one or more other quadrants. Most have a domi-
nant type that leans toward an adjacent quadrant with whom they share characteristics.
The twelve DISC identified personality subtypes are:
● DC: The Challenger
● D: The Winner
● DI: The Seeker
● ID: The Risk Taker
● I: The Enthusiast
● IS: The Buddy
● SI: The Collaborator
● S: The Peacekeeper
● SC: The Technician
● CS: The Bedrock
● C: The Analyst
● CD: The Perfectionist
Your results profile may also include advice on how best to communicate and work with
other personality types. As PM, you can plot the dots of everyone on your team on the same
DISC circle to ascertain the makeup of your team. This can quickly provide insights on
your team strengths and challenges, which can be extremely helpful in determining how
7.2 Personality Assessments 131
best to communicate in ways that builds trust, and motivate your team toward
productivity.
Preferred Work
Focus Area Value System Description Characteristics Environment
Preferred Work
Focus Area Value System Description Characteristics Environment
9 Seeking Autonomy
Enneagram Circle
Peacemaker Resisting the Present
8 1
Challenger Instictive Reformer
(gut)
7 2
Enthusiast Helper
Feeling
6 (heart) 3
Loyalist Thinking Achiever
(head)
Seeking Security 5 Seeking Attention
4
Future Focused Investigator Past Oriented
Individualist
7.2.4 Enneagram
Enneagram is a modern version of older, ancient wisdom traditions that differentiates
those that rely on instincts, thinking, and feeling. This personality assessment tool then
divides humanity into nine (9) different personality types that are graphically displayed
around the circumference of a circle, as shown in Figure 7.10. Figures 7.11, 7.12, and 7.13
provide some detailed insights for each of the nine personality types, divided by focus area.
The position on the circle becomes important relative to adjacent personality types. Lines
can also be drawn between the personality types that add additional understandings.
Enneagram can provide some deeper insights on individual’s mindsets, as well as commu-
nication and productivity strengths and challenges.
7.2 Personality Assessments 135
Premise Love and respect are Love and respect are Only perfect people
gained by being strong earned by blending in are worthy of love
and just with others’ agendas and respect
Summary Protective, Leader, Mediator, Reassuring, Moral, Strict
Maverick, Intimidator, Accommodating, Perfectionist, Judge,
Self-assured, Assertive, Easy-going, Critic, Crusader,
Decisive, Direct, Willful, Preservationist, Patient, Contentious,
Confrontational Complacent, Receptive, Self-controlled,
Adaptive Principled
Focus of Attention Power and control, Others’ wants and What is right or
Protecting those that needs, Conflict, wrong, correct or
need it Wholeness, Peace of incorrect, Integrity,
mind Balance
Focus of Energy Being powerful and Avoiding conflict, Other Trying to improve
protective, Fighting, people, Separation, Loss
Self-protection
Fear/Avoidance Vulnerability, Being Conflict Corruptness,
controlled, Weakness Imbalance
General Strengths Bold, Assertive, Accepting, Calming, Honest,
Action-oriented, Strong relationships, Responsible,
Strength under pressure Steady Improvement-
oriented,
Conviction,
Serenity
General Domineering, Defines Ambivalent, Passive- Critical,
Challenges own version of truth, All aggressive, Surrenders Judgmental, Rigid,
or nothing style, Quick agenda, Lazy, Avoids Uncomfortable
tempered conflict, Disengaging with emotions,
Anger, Guilt,
Hypocrisy
Communications Protective and concerned Diplomatic and Once committed
Strengths with providing for the considerate becomes extremely
group loyal
Communications Compromise can feel Avoids conflict, Hard to Focuses on
Challenges like surrender, Low say “no,” Goes along to perfecting the
tolerance for ambiguity keep the peace flaws, “Scorched
earth” policy if
angry
Job Performance Strong leadership, Great Imaginative Consistent effort,
Strengths at overcoming obstacles Dependability,
to get it done Thrifty
Job Performance Can fall prey to “My way Distracted in priorities Perfectionism leads
Challenges or the highway” and productivity, to procrastination,
approach Ambivalence Self-imposed
pressure
Premise Love and survival Love and recognition Others enjoy the
depend on giving to get are only for winners happiness I deserve
Summary Supportive, Advisor, Successful, Motivator, Romantic, Artist, Deep,
Nurturer, Manipulator, Producer, Chameleon, Melodramatic, Intense,
Caring, Generous, Ambitious, Focused, Creative, Emotional,
Friendly, Considerate, Shrewd, Adaptable, Temperamental,
People-pleasing Competitive, Driven Self-absorbed, Expressive
Focus of The wants and needs To feel valuable, Roles, Sees the best in what’s
Attention of others, Being Image, What brings missing, and the worst of
appreciated success and approval what’s here
Focus of Energy Giving and helping, To Achieving goals, tasks, Searching for the special,
feel loved and prestige To be uniquely
themselves
Fear / Avoidance Own needs, Being Failure, Worthlessness The Commonplace,
unloved Having no unique
identity or significance
General Helpful, Empathetic, Achievement- Creative, Empathic,
Strengths Emotionally oriented, Image Idealistic, Emotionally
intelligent, conscious, balanced
Relationship-oriented Authenticity
General Intrusive, Dependent Out of touch with own Envy, Moodiness,
Challenges on others’ approval, emotions, Intolerance Impatience with reality,
Pride, Distracted in for negativity, Always Feeling like an actor in
others’ emotions pushing to be “the your own life
best”
Communications Helpful, Caring, Socially aware, Emotionally engaged
Strengths Relationship-oriented Social skills
Communications Easily distracted, Status conscious, Need Alienation, Sense of
Challenges Losing self in others’ to produce something being different from the
need, Mind goes blank of value to prove people around you
worth
Job Performance Collaborative Energetic, Creative
Strengths leadership style Adaptable
Job Performance Conceding to others Overworked, Unrealistic, Unpleasant
Challenges can interfere with Competitive, emotions can ruin
autonomy of leading Impatient productivity
7.2.4.1 Wings
Everyone has a dominant personality type. However, most everyone also has aspects of one
or both of the adjacent personality types on the circumference of the Enneagram circle.
These “wings” compliment your dominate type in important, and sometime contradictory,
ways. Wings don’t change your core motivations, but they do influence them. Some have
one wing. Those with two wings typically have a more dominant wing.
7.2 Personality Assessments 137
Premise Love and respect are Love and protection Frustration can be
gained by practicing are gained by avoided by attending to
self-sufficiency vigilance and positive options
endurance
Summary Thinker, Innovative, Guardian, Devil’s Entertaining, Optimist,
Sage, Reductionist, advocate, Skeptic, Generalist, Adventurer,
Cerebral, Private, Pessimist, Cautious, Escapist, Spontaneous,
Curious, Detached, Anxious, Alert, Uninhibited, Visionary,
Quiet, Perceptive Responsible Versatile, Scattered
Focus of Attention What others expect Being without Positive possibilities in
support or guidance, all things, Limits and
Evaluating risks and constraints
worst-cases
Focus of Energy Becoming self- Becoming vigilant or Interesting ideas and
sufficient, Mastery, questioning, To have activities, To be
Understanding support and guidance satisfied and content
Fear/Avoidance Uselessness, Uncertainty Discomfort and Pain,
Helplessness, Being unfulfilled,
Incompetence trapped, and deprived
General Strengths Scholarly, Analytical, Strong relationships, Optimistic, Fun-loving,
Non-attachment, Attentive, Perceptive, Positive visioning
Self-Reliant Courageous
General Emotionally detached, Procrastination, Scattered, Impulsive,
Challenges Isolated, Replacing Doubt, Reactive, Avoids self-reflection,
direct experience with Indecision, Seeking Boredom masks
concepts, Greed reassurance, Fear emotional confusion
Communications Independent, Self- Enduring loyalty and Life of the party,
Strengths reliant, Brings clarity to support Enthusiastic, Fun,
confusion, Loyal friend Adventurous
Communications Detach to observe, Can Can attribute their Inwardly-focused,
Challenges become invisible, own feelings to others Sensitive to criticism,
Emotions are intrusive Dismissive of limits
Job Performance Systemic and well Strong under Strong Generalist,
Strengths thought out adversity, Asks hard Great at starting new
questions to eliminate projects
skepticism
Job Performance Useless specialization, Anxiety peaks near Scattered thinking,
Challenges Emphasizes thinking the point of success, Lacks follow-through,
rather than doing which may make you Struggles with details
a target
7.2.4.2 Lines
The Enneagram also provides insight on how we can travel, or be pulled, to different person-
ality types. Our dominant personality type is our home base. The enneagram lines indicate
other personality types with which you have special relationships, as shown in Figure 7.14.
138 7 Managing Resources
Focus Knowing how Knowing how to The ability to build Helps teams consider
to make take charge, strong relationships what could be, the
things happen speak up, and that can hold a team ability to absorb and
make sure the together and make analyze information
team is heard the team greater than that can better
the sum of its parts inform decisions
Defined Achiever Activator Adaptability Analytical
Clifton Arranger Command Connectedness Context
Strengths Belief Communication Developer Futuristic
Consistency Competition Empathy Ideation
Deliberate Maximizer Harmony Input
Discipline Self-Assurance Includer Intellection
Focus Significance Individualization Learner
Responsibility Woo Positivity Strategic
Restorative Relator
strengths are woven together in a fabric of your unique experiences and perspectives. Use
two or more seemingly contradictory or unrelated strengths to support and strengthen
each other.
Below is a quick summary of each defined Clifton Strength under the Executing
Dominant Strength:
● Achiever – tireless, hard worker who finds satisfaction in being busy and productive
● Arranger – flexible organizer who arranges resources to optimize productivity
● Belief – unwavering core values that produce a clear life purpose
● Consistency – fair-minded individuals who ensure equality by following clear rules
● Deliberate – serious and cautious decision makers who anticipate obstacles
● Discipline – embrace processes and routines to create structure order
● Focus – prioritize directions with consistent follow-through to stay on track
● Responsibility – a natural obligation to honestly and loyally keep their commitments
● Restorative – easily discern what is wrong and enjoy reaching resolution
Below is a quick summary of each defined Clifton Strength under the Influencing Dominant
Strength:
● Activator – adept at transforming thoughts or conceptual ideas into action
● Command – decisive individuals who take control with a strong presence
● Communication – effectively convey thoughts through natural conversations
● Competition – motivated to win as they naturally compare progress to others
● Maximizer – driven to achieve individual and group excellence through improvement
● Self-Assurance – confident in their values, identity, and their course of action
● Significance – seek validation through other’s eyes and admiration
● Woo – charismatic social butterflies who can quickly connect with others
Below is a quick summary of each defined Clifton Strength under the Relationship Building
Dominant Strength:
● Adaptability – those who live in the moment and accept and embrace life as it comes
● Connectedness – recognize and value links and connections between people and events
● Developer – coaches who spot and develop others’ potential
● Empathy – understanding others by fully considering their perspectives and feelings
● Harmony – avoids conflict by constantly seeking consensus and areas of agreement
● Includer – identifies and intentionally involves everyone to ensure no one is excluded
● Individualization – embraces uniqueness and appreciates strength through diversity
● Positivity – optimists with infectious enthusiasm
● Relator – values and prioritizes close and meaningful relationships
Below is a quick summary of each defined Clifton Strength under the Strategic Thinking
Dominant Strength:
● Analytical – logic-driven thinkers who search for reason and causes
● Context – understand and frame the present based upon the history and traditions
● Futuristic – visionaries who are fascinated with what can be
● Ideation – brainstormers who revel in ideas and find trends and connections
140 7 Managing Resources
Leaders motivate, inspire, and create buy-in with big-picture, strategic vision. Managers
are task-oriented achievers that can dive head-first into the minutia. PMs must be able to
shift between the CEO (strategist) and COO (operations) roles on a project. This is perhaps
nowhere more evident than in resource planning.
The PM should pursue efficiency. This means intentionally planning to complete the
tasks using as few of resources as possible. However, not enough resources can impact
schedules, which can impact costs. Generally, resources should be negotiated at the
functional manager level. Finding the right fit and attitude is essential to success.
Tasks in the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) should be assigned to an individual who
bears responsibility of completion. If multiple people are responsible, then no one is
responsible. Someone needs to be responsible.
An assignment matrix can be especially effective in showing and tracking the relation-
ship between work packages and team members. An RACI chart is typically created in
initiation and identifies key roles and responsibilities for major tasks and decisions. It lists
7.3 Resource Planning 141
who is Responsible (does the work), Accountable (ensures work is done), Consults (input
required by SME), and Informs (update status). An RACI chart can also provide valuable
insight in balancing workloads.
Unfortunately, there are times when a team member just doesn’t fit and you need to
enable them to seek other opportunities where their skills may be better utilized and appre-
ciated. In public transportation projects, you don’t always have the option to readily replace
team members. But one bad apple can spoil the batch. Consequently, the PM must proac-
tively identify and address toxic behavior that undermines the team culture and jeopar-
dizes project goals. If there are performance issues with a team member, they should be
dealt with straight away. Be sure to include Human Resources and the team members
functional hierarchy in any formal discipline proceedings.
Sometimes team members become too tasked focused, acting as if under the assumption
their responsibility is of primary importance and all others should accommodate their pref-
erences or constraints. Sometimes that is the case. Typically, though, it is not. The PM
should understand the big picture and leverage the critical path to provide a perspective
and clarify expectations.
Throughout the course of administering a project, a PM may be exposed to a number of
resource terms and ideas. Resource Allocation is the assigning and scheduling of resources
for project-related activities. Ideally this is done by the PM, but may be overridden by a
program manager if resources are to be shared between multiple projects. Resource
Availability is whether a specific resource is available for use at a given time. The Resource
Breakdown Structure is a hierarchical list of resources needed for the project, classified by
type and function. A Resource Calendar shows resource availability over time.
Resource Optimization Techniques can be used by a PM to balance supplies and demands
for resources. Resource Leveling is done when resource availability is the constraint. This
involves adjusting task start or finish dates when resources have been over-allocated or
become scarce. This technique is also used when a limit is imposed on a particular resource
for some reason. This often allows schedule slippage that can adversely impact the critical
path. Resource Smoothing is done when time constraints are the priority. The objective is to
leverage tasks floats to balance resources across tasks to they are completed on time while
avoiding the peaks and troughs of resource demand. The schedule and critical path cannot
slip with smoothing, so tasks can be delayed no longer than their free or total float.
to clarify roles and responsibilities. Other projects may warrant a full RACI Matrix to define
task owners and dependencies.
Additional resource management aspects may be added to the plan, that should be tailored
to the size, complexity, and specifics of the project. Some examples may include training
needs and personnel development plans. Team member recognition and award plans
may be included, where applicable. There may also be a host of other Team Management
issues you may wish to include. Some examples may include staff acquisition plans, staff
onboarding and transition protocols, resource and work calendars, compliance, and safety.
Remember the point of this plan is not to create work for anyone, but rather to establish an
easily referenced foundation upon which you build your resource management processes.
Civil Engineering consultants play a critical role in the development and delivery of public
transportation projects. From survey to subsurface utility designation to geotechnical bor-
ings to traffic studies to hydraulic evaluations to environmental permitting to road layout
to bridge design, and so much more. Most all transportation system owners and operators
rely on consultants to successfully develop and deliver their transportation program.
Forming and maintaining productive partnerships is essential.
This becomes increasingly important as owner-operators rely more heavily on consultant
expertise. There can come a point when transportation organizations stop approving consul-
tant plans, and realize they are instead accepting them. This transition can be favorable if the
owner-operator acknowledges this change, and accommodates it by appropriately adjusting
required workflows and documentations such that project risk is properly realigned with
this approach. Other organizations can stumble if they practically are accepting plans, but
still act as if they are approving plans. Each transportation organization should make a con-
scious decision if they are accepting or approving plans, project applications, scopes, sched-
ules, and estimates, and then have workflows that align with this decision.
and can respond to consultant questions. Submitted proposals typically include a proposed
project team organizational chart, their approach to project design, demonstrated success
in similar projects, and applicable resumes. The proposals should be scored based upon the
criteria detailed in the RFP. Remember throughout this process that you are not judging
their proposed solution, but rather their professional capabilities to successfully complete
the design should they be selected. Once a firm is selected after the short list interviews,
their contract is negotiated that details the schedule, budget, and scope of their work. For
many projects, this consultant contract is a critical component for the scoping document.
On-call Annual contracts are where the transportation organization selects a firm to pro-
vide specific services for as yet undefined needs. Task orders are then assigned to the consul-
tant under the Annual Contract for each project or effort. The task orders serve as the Scope
of Service, subject to the terms of the Annual Contract. Once Annual Contracts are established,
they are the quickest way to bring a consultant onboard. Most Annual Contracts have
legislative or organizational limits on the initial term, the number of renewals, and dollar
limits on each task order and for each contract term. These follow the same general workflow
shown above except the RFP is tailored to the needs and specifics of the annual contract.
Pending applicable state and local procurement laws and regulations, there are different
contractual methods to hire an engineering consultant under professional services
contract. The three most common are time-and-materials, fixed fee or lump sum, and
negotiated fee. Time and materials are when the owner pays the consultant based on their
actual time and expenses. This arrangement can bring a firm onboard when the scope is
not well defined. However, the realized schedule benefits should be weighed against the
budget risks as this arrangement can quickly resemble a blank check if not carefully
managed. A fixed fee, or lump sum, contract sets a firm price for the agreed services. This
arrangement can be beneficial if the budget is fixed, as it prioritizes the fee over scope and
schedule. A negotiated fee typically most values the scope. Consultant hours are assigned
to accomplish the agreed Scope of Services. The hourly rates are totaled for a not-to exceed
fee for the specified work. Consultant’s billable hourly rates should be calculated per appli-
cable federal, state, and local regulations. Direct labor rates are multiplied by approved
overhead rates that can vary widely. Agreed expenses and profit margin are then added to
the total, which may include escalating inflation rates on multiyear projects. Most project-
specific transportation designs are of this fee structure. Each of these arrangements assigns
different risks to different parties. Be intentional and choose the fee structure that works
best for you given the situation.
144 7 Managing Resources
aren’t focused on counting nickels to maximize profit on this one project. Instead, you can
collectively focus on the project goals, knowing the symbiotic, win-win, long-term relation-
ship will be positive and advantageous for both parties.
In general, the DOT PM drives the project, pays the bills, removes roadblocks, and
secures decisions, while the consultant PM guides and provides the technical solutions that
satisfy the project’s purpose and need. Of course, it is more complicated than that. Below
are some key responsibilities of both the DOT PM and consultant PM in key project areas.
DOT PM Consultant PM
DOT PM Consultant PM
Complete the project within the project budget Complete project SoS within the budget specified
within the consultant contract
Promptly review consultant invoices to ensure Promptly submit accurate invoices (typically
charges are “reasonable and expected” and monthly)
reflect design progress, per payment terms in
SoS
Confirm invoice line-item percentages reflect Meet the profit target established by firm
actual work progress
Ensure prompt payment of approved invoices Proactively identify and discuss with DOT PM
any budgetary concerns or issues
Work with Consultant PM to proactively practice Work with DOT PM to proactively practice
established Change Management Procedures, if established Change Management Procedures, if
needed needed
7.4.5 Schedule
The consultant’s schedule should be specified in their contract. Ideally it would be the
same as the project schedule. PMs that attempt to juggle multiple schedules for the same
project do so at their own risk. There should be one project schedule. Having said that, the
consultant schedule may contain tasks or interim milestones not on the project schedule.
These should be consistent with, and not conflict with, the project schedule. Figure 7.19
details the DOT and Consultant PM responsibilities regarding schedule.
DOT PM Consultant PM
7.4.6 Contract
The consultant contract dictates what the consultant will do and when. Just as important,
it often dictates what the consultant won’t do. Great care should be taken in the formation
7.4 Managing Consultants 147
of the SoS and Consultant Agreement to ensure both parties are satisfied with the intended
deliverables, when they will be delivered, and the quality of what is provided. Once the
contract is executed, this becomes the foundational document for all future performance
and change management discussions between the owner-operator and consultant. Figure
7.20 details the DOT and Consultant PM responsibilities regarding the contract.
DOT PM Consultant PM
7.4.7 Risk
Successful PMs are exceptional at managing risk. The DOT PM is responsible to complete
the entire project. The consultant PM is responsible to complete the SoS. Most project risks
impact both the DOT and consultants as they work collaboratively to push forward.
However, it is important to realize that some situations may pose risks to one party, but not
the other. There are also times when risks may be at conflict between the two. Proactive
and open communication is critical to navigating these difficult situations. If done right,
the partnership is strengthened and you cooperatively progress toward mutual success.
Figure 7.21 details the DOT and Consultant PM responsibilities regarding risk.
DOT PM Consultant PM
Proactively identify and evaluate project and SoS Proactively identify and evaluate project and SoS
risks risks
Communicate risks to Consultant PM and Provide risk mitigation solutions to DOT PM for
determine how best to proceed consideration
Promptly decide risk response approach based Support and enact DOT chosen risk responses
upon DOT’s risk appetite and project specifics
Work with Consultant PM to proactively practice Work with DOT PM to proactively practice
established Change Management Procedures, if established Change Management Procedures, if
needed needed
7.4.8 Resources
Like many other areas discussed here, there are two separate but intertwined arenas. The
DOT PM is responsible for the resources to complete the project. This includes the consul-
tant, typically the consultant PM or contract administrator. The consultant PM is respon-
sible for all consultant and subconsultant resources required or utilized to accomplish the
SoS. Figure 7.22 details the DOT and Consultant PM responsibilities regarding resources.
DOT PM Consultant PM
Ensure DOT SMEs are available to assist and Ensure proper resources conduct work to satisfy
provide guidance, as expected SoS within contract schedule and budget
Ensure reviewing resources conduct prompt Ensure key team members and SMEs participate
reviews and provide meaningful comments in project, as promised during procurement
Ensure correct resources are engaged to secure Balance delegation with coaching and team
prompt decisions so consultant may advance member development
Ensure project Civil Rights obligations are being Ensure all contractual Civil Rights obligations
met are being met
7.4.9 Quality
The DOT PM is responsible to provide a project solution that satisfies the project scope and
meets or exceeds all applicable local, state, and federal standards. The consultant PM is
responsible to satisfy the contractual SoS. The DOT PM should ensure these two quality
efforts are consistent. Figure 7.23 details the DOT and Consultant PM responsibilities
regarding quality.
DOT PM Consultant PM
Ensure consultant’s quality QC/QA processes Conduct contracted services in compliance with
comply with established plans established QA/QC standards and procedures
Ensure consultant work product and deliverables Produce deliverables that comply with
meet established quality standards established QA/QC standards and procedures
Promptly address and resolve all quality issues Promptly address and resolve all quality issues
7.4.10 Communications
Communications are critical to any successful partnership. The DOT PM and the consul-
tant PM have different communication responsibilities. The vital exception is the shared
responsibility to communicate with each other. The relationship between the two PMs is
critical to project success. Figure 7.24 details the DOT and Consultant PM responsibilities
regarding communications.
7.4 Managing Consultants 149
DOT PM Consultant PM
Appropriately escalate identified issues in a Promptly inform DOT PM of issues that are
timely way to secure decisions, direction, or limiting or inhibiting progress
responses so as not to delay the project
Ensure consultant PM knows and understands Provide enough technical detail to the DOT PM
all applicable DOT policies and procedures so they fully understand key technical issues
Communicate project updates to stakeholders, Support DOT PM in stakeholder engagement, as
as defined in the Stakeholder Engagement Plan requested and specified in SoS
Provide timely and accurate project updates to Provide timely and accurate project status
leadership updates to DOT PM
Coordinate all public-facing project Support DOT PM in all public-facing
communications, including media, websites, and communications, as requested and specified in
social media SoS
Coordinate all related agency interactions, Support DOT in all related agency interactions,
unless previously agreed Consultant would unless previously agreed Consultant would
direct these efforts direct these efforts
● Stay involved. Do not hand over the keys to the project and expect the result to satisfy all
of your objectives and expectations.
● Appreciate their expertise. They may be the SME and know more than you on certain
issues. That is why you hired them. Listen. However, as PM you should know the pulse
of your organization’s and stakeholders’ needs, expectations, and constraints. You need
to guide their expertise to ensure project objectives are being met.
● Establish communication expectations. Have consultant provide weekly status updates
that summarize what they accomplished this week, what they intend to accomplish next
week, outstanding risks and challenges, a snapshot of schedule and budget milestones,
and any decisions, directions, or actions they need to proceed.
● Meet in person. Have in-person status update meetings on a biweekly or monthly
schedule.
● Build real relationships. Get to know their key team members, the SMEs, and those
doing the grunt work. Visit their office. See their work product as it develops.
● Realize transportation development can be small world. As your career progresses, you
may work with these individuals again, be it with the same company in the same role, or
with other firms in very different capacities. In many cases, it is reasonable to expect your
paths will cross again in some way. As such, approach each project with the personal
goal to build or strengthen long-term professional relationships.
● You are hiring people. Companies may bring resources and processes and institutional
knowledge, but individuals still will design your project. Choose wisely.
● Consultants are not all created equal. Consultants are not a commodity, that being the
product is essentially equivalent regardless of who produced it. When your organization
150 7 Managing Resources
hires them, you are renting their mind, buying their ideas and advice. Build long-term
relationships with those that do exceptional work.
● When negotiating fees, consider the big financial picture. While some consultants charge
more than others, consider the total project cost. Smart, sound, and innovative designs
will save you construction money, as well as long-term operations and maintenance
costs. Solutions designed with practical and cost-efficient MOT and SOC approaches will
save you construction dollars. A complete and thorough set of plans and specs with
minimal errors or omissions will save you construction money.
● Respect their chain of command. Just because you can go directly to their key personnel
to get answers or action, don’t do it unless those direct lines of communication have been
discussed and are acceptable to both parties. Follow the agreed upon communication
protocol that should be detailed in the Project Management Plan.
● Be open and honest. Strive to create an environment where the consultants truly are an
extension of your staff. The relationship should not be contentious or confrontational,
but rather a collaborative cooperation built on trust and mutual respect.
● Address issues promptly. Be it performance, personality, expectations, budget, billing,
schedule, scope, or quality related. Ignoring the problem usually only makes it worse. As
PM, you need to tackle difficult situations promptly and professionally. Not only is the
smart thing to do for your project, it is the right thing to do.
● Especially when conflict arises, remind yourself you are on the same team. You need
each other in order for you both to be successful. Search for win-win solutions. Find a
way to make it work.
● Celebrate successes. Although in different ways, the consultants may be vested as much
or more in the project as you are.
● Say Thank You!
151
Managing Quality
8.1.1 Overview
I was in a portfolio performance meeting once when someone wisely asked, “What is the
point? We can push a lot of crappy projects out the door on-time and on-budget. But are we
making good decisions?” This is the essence of why quality matters.
At its most basic level, the goal of most transportation projects is to design and build an
improvement that increases safety and positively impacts commerce and the community.
Ideally this means developing and delivering a fiscally responsible final product that serves
its intended purpose and satisfies stakeholder expectations.
Meanwhile, the old adage remains true, “Good, Fast, and Cheap…pick any two.” Public
transportation organizations should have a deeper perspective when answering this
question as they typically own and maintain the asset. As such, life cycle costs should often
be considered. Even on well-constructed projects, the long-term maintenance costs may be
significant. Quality matters.
So how do you as the owner effectively ensure a quality product, especially in those cir-
cumstances where the construction contractor is selected by low-bid? The textbook answer
is to create a set of approved plans and specifications that satisfies the project scope while
being designed in accordance with all applicable standards and regulations, and then build
it in accordance with these contract documents. This straightforward objective can be chal-
lenging to achieve.
If you concentrate too little on plan quality, you will pay for it in construction change
orders, operation, maintenance, and life cycle costs. If you concentrate too much on plan
quality, you may never get the plan set approved for construction as error- and
omission-free plans and specifications are truly rare…like spotting Bigfoot rare. Striking
this delicate balance within the organizational framework and established boundaries is
often the responsibility of the PM.
Qualitative quality can be difficult to capture, or even ascertain. A new road widening
may look fresh and new and impress some citizens, while others notice slightly off-parallel
lane lines, or poorly timed traffic signals, and conclude it was a sloppy job. It is not
uncommon that many form their quality judgment based upon a small number of aesthetic
elements, and then the conclusion is extended to the entire project. As such, finishing
touches matter.
Quantitative quality is able to be measured and has direct and indirect costs associated
with a low-quality product. There are two main reasons for quantitative quality on a public
sector project. First is to ensure the product is built according to the plans, specifications,
contract documents, and applicable standards and regulations. It should be noted that dem-
onstrating this as evidenced through consistent execution of an approved quality control
plan can be an essential requirement of some public funding sources. Secondly, transporta-
tion projects are often owned and maintained indefinitely by the project’s owner-operator;
therefore, you have a vested interest in ensuring you “get what you paid for.” The only rea-
sonable and reliable way to make certain of this is to plan, implement, and execute an effec-
tive quality control plan. Quantitative quality is where you and your project team should
and will spend most of your quality management time.
Impressions of perceived quality can also be formed over time, or be extended to your
project based on something completely unrelated. Imagine a driver annoyed by an
unrepaired pothole on a road that he recalls just being built a few years ago. He may
easily extend his opinions of quality and service regarding that pothole to the
administration of your nearby road project. Your organization’s reputation and
credibility matter when it comes to the public’s perception of quality. They will often
approach your project from a benevolent or skeptical viewpoint, and evaluate your
project through that lens.
realize that this is one of those areas where good intentions can unwittingly create a
bureaucratic beast that requires constant feeding.
QA is meant to complement and empower QC. QC rarely occurs on its own without QA.
But successful QA does not inherently ensure successful QC. Organizations and project
managers should beware the point of diminishing returns. Make sure the juice is worth the
squeeze.
someone who did not do the QC. In design, this is often others within the same engi-
neering firm. In construction, it is often personnel within a different company, organiza-
tion, or department who complete this effort. Examples during development may include
documenting QC reviews or cataloging quantitative statistics on plan comments.
Examples during delivery may include random material testing to verify the accuracy of
the QC tests, and ensuring compliance of QC testing frequency and results with the
approved QA/QC plan.
● Independent Assurance (IA) is an unbiased monitoring of the QC and QA efforts. IA is
checking the checkers (QA) who check the checkers (QC). To ensure an unbiased evalu-
ation, this should be an independent effort by those not associated in any way with the
QC or QA activities. Any testing or sampling that is done under IA should be conducted
on different equipment. IA is not typically performed on design, and used in construction
when specified in requirements.
● Independent Verification (IV) is an unbiased monitoring of the IA effort. This becomes
the fourth layer of quality management – checking the checkers (IA) who check the
checkers (QA) who check the checkers (QC). IV is not typically performed on design, and
is used in construction when specified in requirements.
● Owner Independent Assessment (OIA) is similar to IA, but is conducted by the project
owner. This is perhaps most common during Design-Build. If the Design-Build team is
contractually obligated to adhere to the approved QA/QC plan by conducting QC, QA,
and IA, the project owner may implement OIA to “spot-check” and monitor the Design-
Build team’s QA/QC efforts. OIA allows the project owner to judge for themselves if those
responsible are correctly implementing and complying with the approved QA/QC plan.
● Owner Independent Validation (OIV) is similar to OIA, but different in that it is com-
monly focused more on ensuring QA/QC compliance in order to process payment. As
such, OIV often concentrates on verifying the quality of products incorporated into the
project meet acceptable specifications.
● Quality Assurance Manager (QAM) is the designated individual responsible for ensuring
project adherence to, and compliance with, the approved QA/QC plan. This should be
one individual, not a committee, who is defined in the approved QA/QC plan. Pending
the size and complexity of the project, this is often a more senior management role with
the authority to direct other personnel or contracted organizations’ efforts.
● Construction Engineering Inspection (CEI) is an overarching umbrella under which can
be construction administration, testing, inspections, surveying, and other construction
oversight-related tasks. QC/QA often drives much of the CEI effort. On larger, more
complex projects this is often a service that a third party provides for the owner. In this
instance, the owner would oversee the CEI firm who is overseeing the contractor.
“Be a yardstick of quality. Some people aren’t used to an environment where excellence
is expected.”
– Steve Jobs
156 8 Managing Quality
Define
Measure
Analyze
Improve / Design
Control / Verify
Organizational Maturity
this require an engineering solution, a process change, or both? Generally, one-off errors or
omissions should be addressed with engineering solutions, while multiple or repeated
errors in a discipline should be addressed with process changes.
In these circumstances, it is important to maintain a healthy perspective while striking a
balance between vigilance and understanding. Most of these issues, particularly process
changes, will likely be made at a program or portfolio management level. In order to be effec-
tive, organizations must have the courage not to dismiss issues for the sake of expediency, or
to walk the path of least resistance. Likewise, they should embrace the wisdom not to over-
react and to see outliers as what they are. Remember the old adage, “hard cases make bad law.”
Kaizen is a Japanese business philosophy that focuses on continuously improving
processes. The Kaizen approach is often framed in terms of continuous improvement of
quality. What this really means is small changes will build incrementally over time. These
changes can be the product and the process. Minor improvements compound over time to
dramatically improve quality. Quality-focused organizations and PMs build momentum in
pursuing excellence. Otherwise, they will struggle with apathy and scramble to react to the
inevitable errors and omissions.
increases the slope of a drainage pipe to mitigate up-system hydraulic grade line concerns.
This now creates a conflict with the utility group’s planned sanitary sewer extension at the
outfall end. The sanitary sewer designers can effectively shift the gravity sanitary sewer, but
it means more temporary wetland impacts. This increased wetland disturbance sends the
environmental group into panic mode because it was not in the submitted permit application
and will cross the area threshold pushing them into an Individual Permit which will optimis-
tically add six to nine months to the project schedule. And through all of this scenario, no
one thought to bring the lead roadway designer or RW back into the discussion until it sur-
faces as an error in plan review that the easement areas are insufficient. Small problems can
quickly mushroom into larger ones if left unchecked. Well-intentioned modifications can
cast a particularly large net of ripple impacts when one makes changes or improvements to
the Sequence of Construction, Maintenance of Traffic, or Erosion and Sediment Control
plans without ensuring coordination with the other responsible team members.
Exceptional PMs have a diverse knowledge and experience base that provides an
insightful perspective. They have the ability to quickly size up a situation and determine
the fundamental risks and issues. They recommend solutions that will work and identify
those that will not. I remember many occasions as an eager, junior engineer where I was
with a senior engineer who demonstrated this omniscience. When I would ask, “How do
you know that won’t work?” or “Why were you concerned about this and not that?”; the
response often was, “I’ve seen it before” or “I just know.” I think most better engineers have
had a private moment of pride when realizing they have reached this level of experience.
That is certainly not to say they cannot and do not learn new things every day, but there is
a foundational base of knowledge and real-world experiences that can give you an advan-
tageous perspective from which you can approach most any situation.
Generally, consulting engineers work with many clients and gain experience designing
unique solutions for a variety of operational and situational circumstances. Generally, con-
tracting or construction engineering grants the experience of seeing how plans are built,
grasping equipment constraints and potential, understanding effective work sequencing,
and the like. Generally, public sector engineers gain the appreciation of building quality
products that last and satisfy broader success criteria as they can be involved with the
traffic flow, citizen input, and long-term maintenance. You can be an exceptional PM if you
have any of these backgrounds, but it is easier if you have done two, even easier if you have
done all three. If you have done all three, you have a rare perspective that can be a powerful
asset as you have first-hand insight others can’t and won’t offer. The broader your perspec-
tive, the better you will likely be at proactively identifying the intended and unintended
consequences of plan modifications, and the more you will know who to bring into the
resulting discussions to capture all that is needed so that ripple impacts will not become
quality issues.
fresh eyes from experienced perspectives may see new previously unseen or missed oppor-
tunities. The VE objectives are rather straightforward.
● Increase product quality.
● Decrease construction costs.
● Decrease long-term facility ownership costs.
● Reduce construction time.
● Simplify the construction process.
● Minimize project risks.
The VE team typically prepares recommendations that are then evaluated by the design
team. Examples of recommendations may include changing a bridge design to ease or accel-
erate construction, saving pavement sections as opposed to a complete rebuild, targeted
narrowing of lane or shoulder widths, leveraging innovative E&S measures to eliminate
a sediment basin and the associated easements, redesigning drainage to avoid temporary
travel lanes or utility relocations, and the like.
VE can be traced back to the Federal-aid Act of 1970 which required VE on Federal-aid
projects. Since that time, various regulations have defined the criteria when a VE study is
required. The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) requires VE on any project with a
total estimated cost exceeding $50 million that is designated on the National Highway
System (NHS), or any NHS bridge project exceeding $40 million. State DOTs often have
significantly lower project cost thresholds. If required, the owner has no choice. If not
required, the owner may still desire to conduct VE.
There are many VE strategies and methodologies, but they all generally contain the fol-
lowing steps:
● Information Gathering – VE team reviews the project history, information, and plans
with project management and designers. During this step, the VE team strives to under-
stand the project background, context, goals, and operational parameters.
● Brainstorm – VE team brainstorms on ways to build a better mousetrap. This step includes
questioning of assumptions and searching for creative, outside-the-box resolutions. The
ability to pursue tangential thinking free from initial judgment is crucial to success.
● Analysis – VE team evaluates brainstormed alternatives for materials, approaches,
construction means and methods, sequencing, and the like. They then rank these ideas
based upon viability, ease to enact, value added, and other project- or organization-spe-
cific criteria.
● Development – VE team investigates viable alternatives with more in-depth analysis
to determine feasibility, risks, and rewards of options. They then summarize and pre-
sent the findings and recommendations to the designers and decision makers.
Effective presentation and marketing of these ideas can facilitate consideration and
expedite acceptance.
● Implementation – This is often the most challenging of steps where the recommended
and accepted ideas are integrated into the project. Effective project management leader-
ship is essential to successfully incorporating these alternate solutions into the project
design in a cooperative, productive manner that I matched with positive morale among
the staff and designers.
8.3 Measuring Quality 161
As with all design QA/QC efforts, strategically choosing the responsible individuals who
are conducting the study is much more critical to success than the process itself. If done
correctly, VE can prove to be a powerful tool to reduce cost or construction time while
ensuring the Scope still satisfies the project objectives.
VE is a process that should be leveraged early on in the design process, before the
designed solutions get too much meat on the bones. VE should ask big questions first, such
as is this the right solution for this situation? FHWA offers relevant guidance, which is
often strengthened by DOT protocols. The goal is to be smart, practical, and innovative.
VE is a process.
VE is also a mindset.
Experienced PMs and designers capture the mindset from the process and apply it to
their smaller projects throughout development.
employees are completed, and how to track and document all of this in ways that are defend-
able and auditable. It is important to understand that many transportation owner-operator
organizations have their own QA/QC processes and procedures that often need to be
combined with those that are established within consulting firms or other partner organiza-
tions. These requirements should be captured and discussed to reduce redundancy of effort,
and to adequately accommodate all QA/QC efforts into the project’s schedule and budget.
for construction management, and are not acting in the capacity of an Enforcement
Inspector. An example would be a local roadway project that utilizes federal funds. At any
time during this construction, inspectors from the state’s Department of Transportation
or Federal Highway Administration may show up to review any aspect of your project.
● Manufacturer inspectors are those who conduct inspections at businesses that manufac-
ture materials for the project. These individuals typically work for the manufacturer.
Examples include bridge beam inspections at the steel mill, concrete pipe fabrication
inspections, and aggregate inspections at an asphalt plant.
● Specialty Inspectors are those individuals who inspect a specific aspect of the project for
which they have a unique and uncommon knowledge. The most common example
might be bridge inspectors who require specialized training to achieve bridge inspection-
specific certifications or certified SCUBA inspectors for underwater inspections.
● Testing Inspectors are those individuals who conduct materials testing and work for
geotechnical, environmental, civil, or laboratory testing service companies. Testing
inspectors perform the predefined tests utilizing properly calibrated equipment and fol-
lowing the standardized procedure. Their role is critical to provide accurate and timely
information as to what is being put in the ground, but they typically bear no decision-
making responsibilities other than to report the results to the construction inspectors. I
separate these from construction inspectors who are concerned with the materials, the
process, and the product.
Most mature organizations embrace the notion that aggressively pursuing quality management
provides a good return on their investment. In transportation, this becomes more evident as
one widens their perspective.
Consider a plan design flaw, be it an error or omission. The design engineer may deem
correcting it is not worth the required rework. The discipline lead may add that it can best
be handled in the field as the benefit of fixing it not worth the time. The PM may realize this
error will significantly impact other disciplines and have concerns over schedule delays to
Advertisement. The Program or Portfolio Manager may be concerned pushing the error to
the field will increase change order costs. Organizational leaders may be concerned field
solutions will result in higher asset life cycle costs by increasing future operation and main-
tenance cost.
Obviously not all plan errors and omissions are created equal, nor do they result in equal
impacts to the project’s budget, scope, and schedule, and the asset’s life cycle costs. As such,
it can be a challenge to balance competing priorities. Add to this the reality that stake-
holders don’t often appreciate the cost of quality.
It is important to acknowledge that there has never been, and will never be, a perfect,
error-free set of transportation plans. The PM should leverage organizational guidance,
and the consultant’s QC/QA protocols if applicable, to catch and correct significant issues.
What is a significant issue? This should be defined by the organization, with more mature
entities having tighter definitions. Generally, a significant issue is one that adversely
impacts the project’s budget, scope, or schedule, or introduces longer-term asset operation
and maintenance costs, beyond the preestablished organizational thresholds.
It can be difficult for a PM to determine which issues are significant, especially when
there are conflicting priorities. Imagine trying to reconcile conflicting organizational pres-
sures to resolve issues on the plans so that they are not pushed into the field while still
making the scheduled Advertisement date. In these instances, organizational protocol
should provide guidance. Additionally, the PM and public transportation organization
bears ethical obligations to the public. If you become aware of a quality issue, then you bear
responsibility to take action. The decision may be to do nothing and accept the risk or
resulting costs, but be intentional and take action. Denial is not an ethical choice.
It is important to remember that Quality Management should not be an afterthought or
a series of selective decisions. To be effective, Quality Management must be woven into the
fabric of project development such that significant issues are identified early and aggres-
sively addressed to resolution. This requires transparency, trust, and cooperative collabora-
tion toward a common goal.
The cost of many errors and omissions are never realized because they don’t occur, or are
quickly identified and resolved. As the design progresses, rework to correct errors become
more complicated. Discipline details are finalized. Permits are submitted or issued. Right-
of-Way and easement lines are delineated and presented to the public. Maintenance of
Traffic and Sequence of Construction plans take shape. The further the design progresses,
the more the ripple impact of correcting errors increases. Costs typically increase even
more if the error or omission is corrected in the field. Correcting errors or omissions on the
plans before advertisement can be pennies-on-the-dollar compared to corrective action
with a contractor’s change order.
The different aspects of the quality costs can be divided into two different categories:
Conformance and Nonconformance. Conformance costs are costs incurred in the effort to
prevent errors or defects. Nonconformance costs are those incurred when a defect or error has
occurred. Costs increase as a quality issue passes from conformance to nonconformance.
Conformance costs are frequently divided into two subsections: Prevention costs and
Appraisal costs. Prevention costs are those efforts to provide and support a culture of error
prevention. These may include training, process documentation, and adequate resources
to do the job right the first time. Appraisal costs are costs incurred to measure, monitor,
and control Quality.
Nonconformance costs are frequently separated into two subsections: Internal failure
costs and External failure costs. Internal failure costs are rework costs to correct the error
or omission before the product is delivered. This could be rework costs before the design
plan are advertised for construction. External failure costs are costs incurred to correct the
error and omissions after the product is delivered. This could be the change order costs to
correct the errors or omissions in the field.
As PM, you are leading the team. When errors and omissions occur and are identified,
they must be acknowledged and resolved. Part of your job is to ensure this happens.
Consultants will often live up to, or slide down to, meet the owner-operator expectations.
A PM should expect quality plans, and create a culture that promotes them. This often
includes transparency of errors, which enables faster and more thoroughly capturing the
intended and unintended consequences of the errors or omissions. Perhaps most impor-
tant, this often includes the freedom to openly and honestly discuss errors and omissions.
Work the issue; don’t attack individuals. First examine the processes, their internal training,
their internal QA/QC reviews, and so forth. If a pattern of errors or omissions develops,
then the conversations need to change, and likely be quickly elevated so as not to jeopar-
dize the project’s budget, scope, or schedule.
It is important to acknowledge not all engineers are created equal. They have different
strengths, different experiences, different level of commitment, different personalities, and
different communication styles. Similarly, not all consultant firms are created equal. They
have different cultures, different leadership, different profit models, different priorities,
and different training and mentoring for their employees. Consultants are not interchange-
able commodities. When you hire an engineer, you are renting their mind. You are lever-
aging their expertise in anticipation that they will solve your problems within given
constraints and move your project forward.
Pending the firms you hire, the ones doing the design may not be the individuals who led
the short-list interview presentation during the professional procurement process. Many
firms use draftsman, technicians, and junior engineers to do much of the foundational
design and modeling. In these instances, their work product should be closely reviewed
before being presented to the owner-operator. This can be especially true for junior engi-
neers whose perspectives, knowledge, and experience are commonly at vastly lower levels
than a senior engineer. Many junior engineers calculate numbers with no real contextual
understanding of what those numbers mean in the real world. Perhaps more important,
most junior engineers have spent little to no time in the field, and truly have no idea how
projects are actually built.
Plans are built in the field. Despite the obviousness of this statement, many designers
do not design plans with this in mind. This quickly becomes apparent when in a meet-
ing you ask the consultant how are you going to widen the road and maintain two-way
traffic without temporary pavement, or what equipment will be used to set the stream
embankment armoring solution you propose and how will you get it to the point of
installation. The reality is that many designers don’t have sufficient construction expe-
rience to draw from as they design the project. This can be especially true for those
firms that specialize in large or complex public transportation projects where there can
be some length of time between project origination, design, and construction. This is
why I would ask designers in professional services short list interviews which of their
sample projects have been built. It can be surprising how many projects engineers have
designed that have never been built. Some lessons you best learn when your plan goes
to the field. There is a huge difference between a design working on paper, and that
which can be built. This is another case where you want those gray-haired engineers
looking at the plans. Remember, the goal is to build things, not generate great looking
plans.
8.4 The Costs of Quality 167
involved in examining and reviewing the plans and bid specifications. A colorful hierar-
chical QA/QC team chart and detailed workflow document is worth far less than a few
candid meetings with respected professionals who are experts in their fields. For example,
if your organization is administering the construction, get your construction SMEs with
decades of institutional knowledge to review the plans and specs. They may not like it, but
it is an investment that will pay big dividends.
So, what can you as a public sector PM do to manage plan quality? This is an especially
critical role on larger, more complex projects where the QA/QC risks are less based in lack-
of-knowledge and more rooted in coordination. I recommend having regular project walk-
throughs between the major milestone plan submissions. These can be in the field where
you walk the site or in a large conference room where you can walk around a roll-plan.
Have all engineering team disciplines present, start on one side of the project, and walk and
talk your way through it. This helps ensure each of the engineering discipline trains that
are concurrently running down their own tracks are still heading in the same direction.
Equally important is to accept the role of the communications clearing house for your
project. As PM, you are in more meetings on more aspects of this project than anyone else.
As best you can, the PM needs to ensure information, improvements, concerns, and
decisions are distributed to the right individuals to minimize unintended ripple effects that
may eventually surface as plan error or omissions.
169
Communications
“Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down
and listen.”
– Winston Churchill
“The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.”
– George Bernard Shaw
nothing new to report, a polite check-in can provide assurance and validation. You may be
working your tail off to track down the answer to someone else’s question, but unless you
communicate that you are actively working on it, how are they to know. In silence, their
default assumptions regarding you and your priorities may be quite different than reality.
And especially for stakeholders, their perception is their reality. Effective communication
is the cornerstone for managing expectations, which is discussed in Chapter 10 of this book.
Successful PMs differentiate between communication and communications. Communication
(singular) is the process of exchanging information. These are focused acts that heavily rely
on our personal communication strengths and weaknesses. These are soft skills that
we can individually work to improve. Communications (plural) is the means by which
communication takes place. This includes the framework within which communication
occurs. A project’s communications can, and should, be managed, which involves three
distinct processes: Establishing a Communications Plan, Managing Communications, and
Monitoring Communications.
For instance, your boss may want a project status update every Friday in email format.
Your Program Manager may want an in-person briefing the third Wednesday every month.
Your team may benefit from personalized task lists every Monday morning. You may
decide to provide key community stakeholder groups a video update every quarter, while
others who signed up for the project email list on your organization’s website prefer email
updates only at major milestones. Regardless of your specifics, the Communications Plan’s
goal is to establish an intentional, strategic, and workable framework by which project
information will be shared. This is a remarkably effective tool to leverage when managing
expectations.
The Communications Plan is also a great place to document expectations for project doc-
umentation. What will be saved, by whom, where, and in what format? Many organiza-
tions already have existing documentation protocols. Perhaps there is a centralized
electronic document repository with established naming conventions, versioning nomen-
clature, file hierarchy, and associated project metadata. If so, this is easy to reference, and
augment with any project-specific needs. If your organization is less structured, this plan
should carefully detail all project documentation expectations and requirements.
There can be overlap between the Communications and Stakeholder Engagement plans.
While they may seem very similar, the Communications Plan should focus on what to say,
and to whom it should be said. The Stakeholder Engagement Plan should focus on who to
listen to and what feedback you seek to elicit. The Communications Plan ensures the right
project information is being distributed to the right people at the right time in the right
way, all for the purpose of efficiently driving project progress. The Stakeholder Engagement
Plan ensures the right stakeholders are being engaged in an effective way in reasonable
frequencies for the purpose of efficiently managing expectations to promote a successful
project delivery.
it. Experienced PMs realize these are not obligations, as much as they are opportunities to
report project progress, proactively discuss risks and challenges, and praise team members’
success. These are scheduled events designed for you to actively manage expectations.
Seize these powerful opportunities.
the listeners. They focus on the issues, and don’t take dissent or criticism personally. They
empathize while not letting their emotions cloud their judgment or responses. They have
an accurate bullshit-meter, and aren’t afraid to use it. They know when to be direct and
when to let an issue simmer. They promptly address conflict and seek win-win solutions.
They are inclusive and build relationships built on trust and mutual respect. They are con-
sistent and reliable.
Effective communication is the basis of almost everything a PM does. Perhaps more so
than any other area, this is one of the professional skills where we have trouble seeing our
own blind spots. We naturally assume our message was clearly conveyed, and if confusion
resulted it must be on their end. We naturally assume the listener heard our position and
completely understands it, even our mindsets and assumptions that we didn’t share
because they are so obvious. We naturally assume the audience absorbs the content and
ramifications expressed in our presentations and well-prepared slides. We naturally assume
the language we use to explain technical issues is understood by all those listening. Some
of these assumptions are assuredly not true. Seek candid, trusted feedback to help you see
your own blind spots.
Learn to become a storyteller. Especially in our increasingly distracted existence, grab-
bing and holding a listener’s attention is hard. Stories are a powerful tool to do exactly that.
We love stories. We remember stories. And many people are often motivated by feelings
and emotions over facts. Stories provide a powerful way to bind these all together. Stories
also can provide a platform to convey to the listener that their concerns are being heard and
considered. While we each have and will develop our own style of storytelling, the formula
is often the same. There is a situation, followed by an action, that produces a result, which
leads to a lesson learned.
President Ronald Reagan was one of America’s foremost orators, earning him the mon-
iker of “The Great Communicator.” Ken Khachigian, a former Reagan speechwriter wrote,
“What made him the Great Communicator was Ronald Reagan’s determination and ability
to educate his audience, to bring his ideas to life by using illustrations and word pictures to
make his arguments vivid to the mind’s eye. In short: he was America’s Teacher.” In describing
his own style, Reagan said, “What I said simply made sense to the [man] on the street.” He
also advised, “Talk to your audience, not over their heads or through them. Don’t try to talk in
a special language of broadcasting or even of politics, just use normal everyday words.” His
advice, approach, and example are directly applicable to every PM who wants to improve
his own communication skills.
The PM is 100% responsible for stakeholder involvement. Team members may assist. Public
relations and graphic designers may be leveraged for their expertise. Leadership may
176 9 Communications
interject themselves in planned or impromptu manners. But the ultimate responsibility for
stakeholder relations falls squarely with the PM.
And the reason is simple. Effective stakeholder involvement is an incredibly important
component to efficient project advancement. As the project progresses, there is an inverse
relationship between the influence of stakeholders and the cost of change (both in terms of
time and money), as shown in Figure 9.3. This does not necessarily mean stakeholder
influence diminishes as the project progresses, but the impact to the project to implement
requested changes increases the further you are in the development process. Ideally stake-
holder input would be captured prior to scoping. Changes can become much more costly
to implement after Design Approval. Early engagement is not only the right thing to do, but
there are important business reasons to do it, and do it well.
St ak
High e h o ld
e r In h an ge
Co st o f C
Cost of Change
ce
Stakeholder
Influence
Low
Time (Not To Scale)
Project Final Design Advertise
Preliminary Detailed
Development Scoping and RW and Award
Design Design
Phase Acquisition Plans
Design Plans 30% 75% 90% 100%
Engagement, and (4) Monitor Stakeholder Engagement. These processes begin early in the
planning stage, and extend through the life of the project.
Every project should have a Stakeholder Engagement Plan. Pending size, complexity,
location, and design solution of your project, you may not implement all aspects, but a pro-
active and intentional communication mindset is critical to your project’s success. The PM
should tailor the Stakeholder Engagement Plan to be appropriate and reasonable for your
specific project, while complying with your organization’s guidance and requirements.
churches, schools, businesses, economic development, community groups, parks and its
patrons, and the traveling public. There may also be other external stakeholders that don’t
readily come to mind, like Police, Fire, First Responders, school transportation (buses),
local hospitals and other medical facilities, business organizations, organizations that meet
in facilities that will be impacted (e.g., Scouting troops, Youth Basketball leagues, etc.), the
press, trade organizations, and local, regional, or national special interest groups (e.g., bike
and pedestrian advocates, environmental groups, etc.).
At the end of this step, you should have a list of stakeholders. This is the brainstorming
section of this process, and the results may be a little chaotic. It is okay if it is lengthy and
not as organized as you might prefer. This list is the start of your Stakeholder Register.
Future steps will refine the list that you will finalize during Step 4.
INTEREST
Low Stake High Stake
Figure 9.6 Stakeholder quadrant definitions.
9.2 Stakeholder Involvement and the Stakeholder Engagement Plan 179
scale. A simple way to also display the position of the stakeholders is to color code their
names. In the example in Figure 9.7, green indicates advocates and supporters, red indi-
cates critics or blockers, and blue indicates those that are neutral.
Keep Manage
Satisfied Closely
Local Media Local Businesses
Power
Low High
Interest
Figure 9.7 Stakeholder quadrant responses.
The Salience Model analyzes stakeholders in three dimensions: Power, Legitimacy, and
Urgency. It is shown as a Venn diagram with eight specified regions, as illustrated in Figure 9.8.
Each stakeholder should fall into one, and only one, category.
1) Dormant Stakeholders have lots of power but no legitimacy or urgency, and therefore
not likely to become heavily involved (red region).
2) Discretionary Stakeholders have legitimate claims but little urgency or power, therefore
not likely to exert much pressure (blue region).
3) Demanding Stakeholders want things to be immediately addressed. Although they have
little power or legitimacy, they can make lots of “noise” (yellow region).
4) Dominant Stakeholders have both formal power and legitimacy, but little urgency.
They often have expectations that must be met (purple region).
5) Dangerous Stakeholders have power and urgency but are not really relevant to the
project (orange region).
Power
1 8
4 5
7
2 3
6
Legitimacy Urgency
6) Dependent Stakeholders have urgent and legitimate stakes in the project but hold little
power. These stakeholders often rely on others to amplify their voices (green region).
7) Definitive Stakeholders have power, legitimacy, and urgency, and therefore have the
highest salience. (white region at the intersection of all other regions)
8) Non-stakeholders have no power, legitimacy, or urgency (outside the regions defined by
the circles 1, 2, and 3).
different approaches. As PM, your most valuable commodity is your time. Effective planning
can help ensure you spend your time wisely, where it should be spent.
The plan can be tailored in a format that is most usable for you. Often the Risk Register can
be expanded to suffice. Sometimes a separate and more formal document is preferred.
Spreadsheets can be very effective. Regardless of the project size or complexity, the same
basic components should be included: listed stakeholders, the content or deliverables, the
intended frequency, who is responsible to prepare and deliver the communication, preferred
method of communication, and the priority. Some general guidance is reflected in Figure 9.9.
Sh
Stakeholders
te
st
are agem
Hig bora
Int r
En
igh owe
ere
Dynamic
dT
g
P
lla
wo nt
h
Co
-W
ult
e
dH
ay
Active
ns
an
h
an r
Hig
Co
we
d
Po
Int w
st
Discussion Engagement
ere nd
a
Push Communications
orm
st
w wer
On gem
En
ga
e-W en
Inf
Po
Int
Less Effort
w
ay t
More Pull Communications
Lo
Lo
Stakeholders
This lays the foundation of what you should expect from yourself as PM in communi-
cating with each stakeholder, a consistent and intentional approach. However, as with
most plans, there should be some inherent flexibility. If you see a stakeholder in a store and
they bring up the project, use that opportunity to determine if their expectations have
changed and assure them you understand their positions. Ask the HOA President if you
can attend the upcoming HOA social function and talk for ten minutes about the project,
since social functions are almost always better attended than the business meetings. There
will always be a place for face-to-face conversations and project meetings. But you and your
organization may choose to explore websites, leverage social media and email lists, or even
use radio ads, signage, or other advertising avenues. Be creative. Remember the goal is to
establish trust, building credibility, and effectively managing stakeholder expectations.
It should be noted that there are fundamental differences between a Public Information
and Public Involvement efforts. Public information is a one-sided dissemination of information
from the organization to the public. Public involvement is a two-sided conversation. Examples
of public information may include website or social media updates, and mass mailings. Public
involvement seeks to interact with the public in such a way as to encourage input and include
stakeholders in the decision-making process. Most successful stakeholder engagement plans
include both of these. Problems often ensue when the public perceives an organizational
public involvement initiative to really be a public information effort.
182 9 Communications
information and other project specific categories (e.g. – adjacent land owners, HOA member,
local business owner, etc.). Systems would ideally assist the organization in discerning the
power, legitimacy, and urgency of each position. Forward thinking project managers and
organizations want to leverage this data to prioritize feedback and more effectively tailor
responses. There is also an organizational need for resources to stand up and support multi-
platform initiatives. This would ideally enable an organization to seamlessly capture and
leverage stakeholder input in all current social media platforms, as well as all traditional com-
munications. Organizations may also pursue mobile applications to further integrate project
digital visualizations, advanced mapping functionalities, and social data gathering trends
such as crowdsourcing. Concurrent with these technical advances, the organization may
need to review its workflows to ensure accurate and consistent messaging.
The big picture of the transportation game is to have the right money in the right place at
the right time so the pipeline of projects can be predictably developed and delivered. Thinking
externally, organizations need to balance project resources and constraints with increased
stakeholder expectations. While some projects may warrant a fully interactive virtual public
hearing, advanced simulations, dedicated website, and the like; others will not. What is the
new baseline of effort? How is it decided, and by whom? Can it even yet be established, or is
still a case-by-case decision? In the same state, the content, frequency, and quality of virtual
engagement in affluent urban areas may significantly differ from that in rural areas where
internet availability is limited and the community prefers in-person interactions.
Embracing these changes also represents significant internal workflow adjustments
within transportation organizations. This goes beyond the immediate need for graphics
and data specialists. There is an old engineering adage that says, “We can do anything with
enough time and money.” Increasing the quality and frequency of virtual stakeholder
engagement is certainly possible, but only with real project schedule and budget consider-
ations. This is particularly challenging for projects that are already active. It is common to
underestimate the amount of time required by the Project Manager and development team
to engage and respond to a comprehensive stakeholder engagement plan. Appropriate
change management procedures should be followed that properly adjust the project’s triple
constraint of budget, scope, and schedule. In order to be successful, each organization
should intentionally decide how to accommodate these project impacts.
It is clear we have crossed the Rubicon. Stakeholder engagement moving forward should
include virtual and in-person components. What this hybrid approach looks like, and how it
is implemented, may not be readily standardized in your organization or in the industry. As
responsible public stewards, we must balance the benefits of a comprehensive, multiplat-
form approach with the realities of diminishing returns at the project, program, and port-
folio levels. Schedule and budget constraints dictate organizations can’t be everything to
everyone; however, we should be intentional and strive to be effective. Organizations should
focus on the noble purpose of stakeholder outreach, and then strategically tailor their
approaches to the specific project and affected communities to best leverage the strengths of
all available platforms and outlets to responsibly accomplish the overarching objectives.
The Stakeholder Engagement Plan should specify how frequently you will monitor the
plan. Pending the length of the project, it could be quarterly or annually. You can certainly
make changes whenever it is deemed prudent, but scheduled monitoring ensures you take
a holistic look at specified intervals. This enables you to remain proactive in managing
stakeholder expectations. All changes should be documented in the plan. This not only
helps during this project, but also can be valuable information that is leveraged for Lessons
Learned.
“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that,
you’ll do things differently.”
– Warren Buffet
The news media may play a pivotal role in shaping public opinion of your municipality or
agency. As a PM, you may receive requests for media interviews, be interviewed during
public participation, or hold a news conference. It is imperative you understand the opportu-
nity this presents to convey a positive message for your organization, and you appreciate the
damage it can cause if mishandled. As PM, you should be prepared should you pick up the
phone and hear, “This is John Smith from Channel 12 news. May I ask you a few questions?”
concisely and effectively convey your message. Whether the station is airing answers to
questions or pulling quotes from your interview, the message is in your words. Be thankful
and humble, but exude control. Use a strong, relaxed, and comfortable voice and pace. Your
tone can subtly promote confidence and authority while eliminating uncertainty and doubt.
Video relies on moving pictures. Examples are TV, video conferences, social media, webi-
nars, and other internet video broadcasts and content distributions. Most citizens still rely
on local TV news as the primary source for local information. Video is an emotional media
where your message can have a powerful impact. In addition to all of the nonverbal com-
munications, it is imperative that you accurately and succinctly respond to their questions
while not providing a response that can be misconstrued. The biggest challenge in TV
interviews is to be concise. This is especially challenging on complex transportation pro-
jects that take years to design and construct. Your conversation will likely not be aired in its
entirety. Responses are generally edited to sound bites of three to six seconds, with the
story narrated by the reporter. Plan ahead and be prepared with answers to anticipated
questions that summarize your message in less than six seconds. That is not easy. However,
like many things in life, there is no substitute for experience. Until you feel comfortable,
practice, practice, practice. Role playing with peers or your organization’s communications
office can be a great time investment.
The advent and explosion of social media has transformed how organizations gather and
distribute transportation project information. The ability to stay connected is constantly
evolving and expanding. News cycles continue to shorten. The expectations of immediate
access and updates are pervasive. While the applications and media vehicles may change
over time, the basics of print, voice, and video media remain unchanged.
passed from one to another and ultimately up the chain of command. This may be due to
fear or intimidation of being quoted, or simply being on camera. But letting this responsi-
bility land on the desk of the one with the courage to do it is not always the wise choice.
There are times when it is important to have a senior leader give the interview as their
position lends credibility to the seriousness with which your organization is responding.
However, this is not always the case. Your organization should choose the individual that
can best promote the message you want to send. Ideally, they would be competent, confi-
dent, and professional. They would convey a presence of control and authority while not
seeming arrogant. They think before they speak and are careful, precise, and deliberate
with their wording. They are concise, calm, and charismatic. There are very few people
who can do all of this well, but many can convey an honest and straightforward message
with confident credibility. For project-specific issues, this is often the PM.
As PM, it is imperative you are aware of who is speaking about what, with which media
outlets. Public opinion can be a powerful force in project development, particularly during
public involvement. You should keep a close eye on what is being reported about your
project, as it is part of your job to keep your finger on the pulse of public opinion.
pictures of you standing in front of bulldozers clearing trees can be unsettling to viewers
and quickly erode hard-earned trust you have cultivated with citizens. Know that most
news sources will shoot background footage of the ongoing construction anyway. So gen-
erally, there is no advantage to on-site interviews. Be especially wary of interviews on loca-
tion when responding to a tragedy. It doesn’t matter how well your words say the situation
is under control; if the scene behind you leads people to believe otherwise, they won’t
believe you.
Interviews outside your organization’s building entrance can lend credibility to your posi-
tion and convey that you are “of the people.” It can also be effective on sunny days in
providing an optimistic feel. Conversely, avoid this setting on cloudy days as the background
and setting can look gloomy, ominous, or disengaged. This can be a good location to provide
an update on a particular situation. Generally, it is not a choice for a longer interview.
An office or conference room interview is a controlled environment where you can more
easily control the setting, lighting, and sound quality. This is the best location for a longer
interview where you can have a more in-depth discussion of the project or situation. It
allows you to refer to plans, documents, or other visual materials that can explain and
strengthen your positions. A conference room can make it seem more like a work session
to the audience where you are approachable, cooperative, and productive. An office inter-
view where you are sitting behind your desk can present an image of authority and power.
Remember to ensure all background wall-hangings and desk displays present an image
consistent with your, and your organization’s, intentions and principles. It is important to
thoughtfully determine where you want to host the interview based upon what image you
want to project.
In studio interviews are not that common. When one is granted, perhaps for a local
morning show, approach this opportunity with an increased commitment to preparation.
Be especially cognizant of your body language and tone so you present a complete and con-
sistent image that complements and underscores your message. Give some thought to what
you will wear, and allow yourself plenty of time to prepare so you can effectively and suc-
cinctly deliver your message.
specific aspects of your project. You may or may not have authority to speak for other
Departments, private entities, or other stakeholders involved in your project. You may or
may not have authority to speak for related or unrelated organizational activities. During
the interview remain focused on the project, and speak only to those issues upon which
you can authoritatively comment.
yards of borrow to achieve the necessary thirty feet of relief.” Instead, you could say, “the citi-
zens can expect to see a bunch of trucks bringing in dirt to create a thirty-foot-tall hill.”
Similarly, limit the numbers and statistics you cite and try to create images and analogies
that paint a mental picture for the audience.
what someone else said. Unless you know exactly what was said, how it was said, the con-
text in which it was said, and what was intended; don’t fall into this trap. Even if you say,
“Assuming what you cite is correct, I would recommend…,” remember the editing room can
easily remove your disclaimer from the final broadcast. Talk about what you know and
keep on message. You can also acknowledge and respectfully decline their question before
bridging to your talking points. For instance, “I have no knowledge of that conversation and
therefore cannot speak to it, but I would like to emphasize…”
The Silent Pause. Many of us are naturally uncomfortable with silence. Reporters know
this, and will often use this powerful technique. They will ask you a question, and when
you are done talking, they will look at you with beckoning eyes as if to say, “keep going” or
“can you expand upon that thought.” It is a natural instinct to keep talking and fill this silent
void. Don’t do it. This can lead to providing more information that you intended to convey.
Once you answer the question, stop talking and stare back at the reporter, patiently await-
ing the next question. No matter how awkward it may seem at the time, be smart. They will
edit out the silent pauses before broadcast.
The Bait-and-Switch Ambush Interview. While not common, some reporters will use
this technique. They call to schedule an interview and describe the nature of their ques-
tions. At the interview, they will ask a few questions on this topic before completely switch-
ing gears and focusing on a completely different topic. Usually, the new subject is more
controversial, and the questions are direct and confrontational. In the moment, it is easy to
feel ambushed as they pursue a more sensationalized story. Their questions may be filled
with false premises, he-said-she-said scenarios, or other tricky questions. When this occurs,
it is imperative you remain composed, providing professional and diplomatic responses.
Remember, your body language, facial expressions, and everything you say may be aired.
Provide measured and authoritative responses that are securely rooted in facts. If questions
begin to repeat themselves, you may say, “I think we have covered that already. Is there
anything I can further clarify for you? If not, I appreciate your time.”
ongoing crisis, or to stay ahead of a breaking story. Regardless of the focus, the purpose for
a news conference is the same. You want to distribute a single, consistent factual message
to many media outlets at the same time. While not common for public organizations, these
can be a powerful tool when used correctly.
News conference rule number one, it’s your show. You control the timing, the setting,
and what is addressed. It is likely your organization’s Communications or Public Relations
office has expertise that should be utilized. The timing is important so that you make, or
miss, the various news submission deadlines. The setting is important because you want
the backdrop to match the intended tone. Whatever you decide, deliberately choose the
timing and setting. Plan the event to ensure there is adequate access, parking, seating,
lighting, and so on. Once the news conference is scheduled, your Communications or
Public Relations office can likely assist in notifying the local media of the event through
their established connections.
Another decision is whether you will distribute media packets immediately after the
news conference. These should be carefully crafted in advance and can effectively empha-
size your message. Typically, these may include a fact sheet, written remarks or statements,
relevant photos or schematics, and background information to help them complete their
story. Include the full names and titles of those speaking at the event, as well as contact
information for follow-up questions.
Once the event is underway, remember this is your show. Tell the reporters the agenda
and format of the event, and stick to it. Read a prepared, and rehearsed, opening statement
that incorporates key points of your message. Set the proper tone with your words and non-
verbal actions. Remain poised, confident, and in control. Smile, if appropriate. Keep your
remarks brief and on point. If you are taking questions, point to one reporter and recognize
them as having the floor. When you are ready to end the news conference, provide advance
warning, such as, “We have time for two more questions.” And remember to end by thanking
everyone for their time.
It takes the coordinated contributions of many individuals to pull together a successful
news conference. As with all team efforts, be sure to recognize and thank the team mem-
bers whose efforts made it happen.
hospitals, schools, critical businesses, civic organizations, and the media. When in the
midst of a crisis, make sure there is a single, authoritative voice through which all
information flows to the media. This individual can change, but it is crucial to have only
one spokesman talking to the reporters at a time. This will better ensure consistency of
message and minimize misconceptions. During a crisis, it is imperative to remind staff that
no one talks to reporters other than the designated spokesman.
If you are your organization’s spokesman, know what you are going to say and how you
are going to say it. Remain calm. Be compassionate. Be reassuring and controlled. Start
your remarks by focusing on the safety of the individuals who are involved in the accident
and of those who are working to resolve the situation. Do not discuss money or schedule
impacts. As the event develops, you may provide information on injuries, damage, rescue
or remediation efforts, and other situational details, but remember to keep the focus on
safety. Do not rationalize that “accidents happen,” instead, say “The cause is under investi-
gation and our findings will be made available to you when complete.” Focus on the facts. Do
not speculate on causes, damages, or hypothetical questions. Know how are going to end
the interview. This can be a simple summary such as, “Our primary concern right now is for
the safety and well-being of the individuals involved. Everything else can wait. I will let you
know when additional information is available. Thank you.”
195
10
The PM’s job is to develop and deliver the project within the established constraints of
budget, scope, and schedule. A straightforward objective. And then stuff happens.
There may be days you feel like Colonel George Custer making your own last stand, fac-
ing threats to your triple constraint from seemingly every side. Political indecision.
Changing priorities. Evolving success criteria. Funding complications. Technical chal-
lenges. Extreme weather. Unanticipated stakeholder influence or involvement. Union
strikes. Entropy. Inexperienced or unskilled team members. Staff turnover. Boneheaded
decisions. Realizing unanticipated or inadequately accounted risks. Bureaucratic inertia.
Some of these threats you can predict and control. Most you cannot.
These perhaps mostly external threats can then be further complicated by internal and
contractual constraints of quality, resources, and risk that lay atop your triple constraint of
budget, scope, and schedule. Effective PMs understand how to be successful amidst ambi-
guity. They have the innate ability to navigate uncertainty with the assurance of their
internal compass guiding them through the unknown. This behavior and the associated
results have nothing to do with chance or luck. Effective PMs actively monitor and control
their projects.
Managing expectations is one of the most important, and also one of the most overlooked,
responsibilities of a PM. It is typically not taught in school, is difficult to measure, is incred-
ibly time consuming, will likely not be considered on your performance evaluations, and
yet is an essential component to any successful project.
Each stakeholder approaches the project from a different perspective, with different heart-
felt and intellectual concerns, and with varying levels of passion and intensity. Each
stakeholder also approaches the project from a different intellectual and professional
background, often assuming their professional and life experiences directly transfer to the
transportation project workflow, which is often not the case. Even if all of these stakeholders
unanimously agree on the goals of this project, there would likely still be a wide range of dif-
fering expectations. Elected officials may expect a ribbon cutting before the next election.
Adjacent business owners may have expectations regarding construction hours, continuity of
access, uninterrupted power and utilities, temporary signage, and construction noise. Nearby
medical outpatient facilities may have expectations regarding notification in advance of blast-
ing. Local schools may have expectations regarding continuity of bus access and accommoda-
tions for parent and day-care pick-up lines. And so forth. As PM, it is essential you identify,
understand, and manage these expectations, which can vary widely and often conflict.
Experienced PMs know that one does not accidentally execute a successful public project.
There are far too many bureaucratic challenges whose institutional inertia will quickly
slow it enough that it can easily be derailed by competing interests, changing agendas, or
apathy. Successful projects are not planted and then left to grow without care, they are cul-
tivated. Projects require pruning, weeding, watering, and constant maintenance. When
expectations are proactively and effectively managed, all stakeholders can feel good about
the outcome of the project, even if the process or end results are different than they first
expected. Conversely, if expectations are mishandled or disregarded, a project can come in
on time and under budget and still be viewed by many as a failure.
to goals. Understanding the differences of how goals are established as compared to how
they are evaluated will enable the PM to more effectively manage expectations.
be powerful and inspiring. Consider a streetscaping project that will rebuild a sense of
community in the neighborhood, or a pedestrian facility to be a community amenity and
encourage personal fitness. Because qualitative goals are inherently difficult to measure, it
is not always clear if and when the goal has been achieved. Occasionally there is a straight-
forward consensus of success, but far more common is a range of perceived results.
Qualitative goals often become secondary to quantitative goals because they are difficult to
measure. As the old PM adage states, “That which gets measured, gets done.” While many
PMs consider qualitative goals “touchy-feely” and less important than quantitative goals,
exceptional PMs know you do this is at your own peril. Everyone would readily agree citi-
zens should be treated fairly during acquisitions for a public project; however, different
stakeholders approaching acquisitions from very different perspectives may hold vastly
different expectations of what this process should look like. Similarly, adjacent residents
may have very different opinions of what constitute reasonable construction hours. And so
forth. The longer any expectation gap exists, the more entrenched it becomes. Most unre-
alized expectations begin with an admirable qualitative goal that is measured qualitatively.
As PM, be especially aware of the risks associated with this approach.
Poor
Time
It can be beneficial to visualize this graph as you communicate with each stakeholder.
What does their graph look like before and after your communication? Did the gap grow or
shrink? Is the slope of the expectation line trending more favorably? The concepts in this
graph can be a valuable tool in managing expectations that allows you to proactively iden-
tify troubling trends, and assists in prioritizing where to spend your valuable time.
The goal is for the perceived and delivered value to exceed expectations. This is often the
case if the perceived value exceeds, or is equal to, delivered value. As Vin Scully said, “Good
is not good when better is expected.” If there is a negative Expectation Gap, meaning expec-
tations exceed perceived value, the PM can best close or eliminate this gap by:
1) Decreasing expectations
2) Increasing perceived value
3) Over time, maintain favorable slopes to close or eliminate this gap
In order to gauge a stakeholder’s perceived value, you need to ask them. Often the act of
initiating conversation and soliciting feedback will increase the perceived reality value in
and of itself. Additionally, these interactions can be valuable self-reflection tools that illu-
minate our blind spots so we can be more effective moving forward. This is especially true
if there are significant discrepancies between intended, delivered, and perceived realties
versus expectations.
For most stakeholders, satisfaction is how their perceived reality measures against their
expectations, not your intentions or how the project satisfied its purpose and need within
contractual constraints. The Triple Constraint of budget, scope, and schedule, along with
organizational performance metrics, are inconsequential to most stakeholders. These are
mostly internal constraints and objectives. Exceptional PMs understand and leverage the
differences.
Expectation Gaps may be project risks that should be logged on the Risk Register. This
may be especially appropriate should critical stakeholders or leadership have significant
expectation gaps, or if there seems to be a systemic expectation gap that is indicative of
larger PM or organizational issues. Corrective actions can be documented in the project’s
risk response plan.
200 10 Controlling the Project
Capture Communicate
Deliver
expectations often
There are also times when the whole truth cannot be shared. This may be due to design
decisions that are under debate, privacy issues, political considerations, potential private
developments, pending legal actions, or a variety of other issues. Discretion is a professional
necessity. In these situations, it is acceptable to divert the conversation, not to say anything,
or to state you can’t discuss that issue at this time. Whatever your response, never lie.
The pressure on PMs to develop and deliver projects can be immense. Mediocre PMs are
easily manipulated to saying “yes” or making ill-advised concessions. This may especially
common in public meetings or closed-door meetings where directives are given by leadership
in a way that does not invite debate. However, in addition to being politically savvy, successful
PMs strategically reshape the discussion into what is achievable and follow established
change management procedures.
3) Capture expectations
Expectations can be deep and broad or singularly focuses and extremely specific. They can
be formed by what you said, what you didn’t say, or even how you said it. They can be
formed by something someone else said or did, past histories, hopes, or desires. They may
be rational or irrational, valid or unfounded, practical or impossible. Some stakeholders
will directly tell you. More may allude to them. Others will remain silent and presume you
should know.
Before you can effectively manage expectations, you first need to capture them. Empathy
is critical. You need to hear what they are saying, and infer what they are not saying. If it
still isn’t clear, ask direct and probing questions. It is important that you fully understand
their position because you need to not only identify the expectation, but also the driving
force behind it. A citizen’s unusually strong attachment to a particular tree makes sense
when you discover it was planted in memory of a deceased loved one. A private school’s
illogical entrance request becomes reasonable when you understand the adjacent tract of
land is to be bequeathed to them. You can more effectively resolve the issue at hand when
you understand and consider the underlying motivations. When talking with stakeholders,
it can be very efficacious to repeat the expectations and motivations back to the stakeholder
to confirm understanding. For instance, “I want to make sure I heard you correctly. I under-
stand that your expectation is that there will be a median break on the proposed roadway at
your business’s side entrance because you are concerned about delivery trucks being able to
make a U-turn and safely enter your site?” This acknowledges understanding of their issue
while inherently allowing flexibility in resolution. It is incredibly important to most stake-
holders that they feel like they are being heard. It is imperative that you convey empathy
for their situation and acknowledge their position. This is an essential step before you can
genuinely reassure them you are committed to doing what you can to address their con-
cerns. The final resolution on most issues will not satisfy all stakeholders. However, they
are much more likely to accept an undesired outcome if they feel heard, understood, and
part of the process.
Identifying and capturing expectations is an ongoing effort that needs to be sustained
throughout the life of the project. Realities and opinions change. Expectations are a
dynamic, constantly changing landscape. It is critical you continually keep you finger on
the pulse of the expectations. On a large-scale public project, you cannot logistically gather
the expectations of all involved stakeholders. If a project has ten adjacent property owners
202 10 Controlling the Project
you can, and perhaps should, meet with each of them. If you have a hundred adjacent prop-
erty owners, the PM will not have time to meet with each individually. You need to proac-
tively identify the pivotal players and actively seek them out. Be it the corner business
owner, the church’s pastor, the HOA President, or the neighbor who knows everyone, find
the stakeholders who influence others. If you don’t know who they are, ask.
4) Prioritize expectations
You may find there are as many expectations as there are stakeholders. Eventually you
need to prioritize them, assigning a relative importance and urgency to each. Some consid-
erations include who holds the opinion, how many people this stakeholder may represent
or influence, and the size of potential risk they pose to the scope, schedule, and budget of
the project. These practical considerations must be appropriately weighted while striving
to do the right thing the right way. Prioritizing expectations is a dynamic process throughout
the life of the project. This is especially true for larger transportation projects where the
schedules can stretch for years. More detailed information on Stakeholder Engagement is
included in Chapter 9, Communications. Those expectations that generate risks should be
appropriately documented and addressed, as detailed in Chapter 6, Risk Management.
5) Address conflict
Transportation projects often create conflict. Sometimes there appears to be winners and
losers. If you are straightening a roadway curve for safety, it is moving closer to one side of the
street but further away from the other side. If you are installing a new water line, some will
benefit from the increased capacity while others will be inconvenienced by its construction.
Some have the ability to enter seemingly almost any situation and walk out with con-
sensus, or at least a reluctant acceptance, of the decision. These individuals can have very
different styles to bring two sides together, convince one side to adjust their thinking, or
have one side accept the outcome. There are many outstanding resources on how to suc-
cessfully navigate conflict to an acceptable and desirable resolution. But there is one com-
monality; when it comes to conflict, leaders confront it.
Whether you enjoy conflict, tolerate it, or dread it, conflict resolution is an essential PM
skill. You cannot ignore it and hope it goes away. Like mold on forgotten leftovers in the
back of the refrigerator, unless you take care of it, the mess will only grow. This is especially
true with conflicting expectations. The longer a stakeholder holds an expectation, the more
entrenched it becomes. If left unchecked, this anticipation of a perceived reality can trans-
form into a powerful fact in their minds that becomes difficult to refute. If you become
aware of stakeholders with conflicting expectations, promptly address them. Don’t let
them fester and grow into larger issues. The saying, “an ounce of prevention is worth a
pound of cure” definitely applies here. Many conflicting expectations can be avoided with
proper planning and proactive, consistent communications.
6) Communicate often
Any concerted effort to manage expectations includes proactive and consistent stakeholder
communications. In general, frequency is much more important than length, or sometimes
even content. Frequent and concise communication instills an assurance that you are on
the job and actively looking out for their interests. These “touches” maintain a dialog
throughout the project that builds into relationships that can become critical when and if
priorities shift and concerns arise.
10.1 Managing Expectations 203
Within your communications, be honest, straightforward, and forthright. Most can sense
sincerity. Don’t bluff. Don’t lie. Never assume. Be humble. Compliment others when
speaking to groups. Praise in public and criticize in private.
Many PMs struggle with detailing technical and procedural knowledge to stakeholders
in a way that fosters confidence while not appearing arrogant or condescending. It is vital
that you can describe complex engineering situations in nontechnical terms. If this is not
easy for you, practice. Practice describing a project issue without using any technical terms
or acronyms. If you are not sure how to begin, pretend you are talking to a group of par-
tially-interested fifth graders. To hold their attention and get your point across, you should
be interesting, concise, and perhaps a little entertaining. When nervous, many naturally
revert back to their technical comfort zone terminology. Resist this urge as it may make
you appear insecure or aloof. Impressions matter.
One of the main purposes of an active communications plan is to avoid surprises. These
surprises can be unpleasant questions from citizens or the media that blindside your
elected leaders. They can be legal action by a property owner or activist group to slow or
stop your project. They can be consultant delays in meeting a deliverable date. Many of
these situations could have been avoided if the PM communicated effectively such that
they had their finger on the pulse of the project.
The media is another tool that can be used to disseminate project updates to a large
number of stakeholders. Proactively publicizing a traffic flow shift on an active construction
site can minimize citizen frustrations. If your project just made a major milestone, let the
media know the good news. If it is a slow news cycle, they may be searching for content and
would be glad to profile how your important project is moving forward. Be creative and
intentional.
Additional information can be found in Chapter 9, Communications. Section 9.2 dis-
cusses Stakeholder Involvement and Stakeholder Management Plan. Section 9.3 addresses
Media Relations.
7) Influence expectations
It is very difficult to manage expectations if you cannot effectively influence expectations.
If a stakeholder’s Expectation Gap graph is unfavorable, there are only two ways to change
the graph in your favor: (1) lower expectations, and/or (2) increase perceived reality.
The best sales professionals are outstanding listeners. They want to learn what motivates
and matters to their customers. This will enable you to be more persuasive. What are their
expectations? What are their assumptions? What are their desires and fears? What drives
their expectations? What is it they want, and why? What will they accept? Like managing
expectation tasks, influencing expectations is an on-going, dynamic process that benefits
from persistent and concerted efforts.
To effectively influence others often requires acute emotional intelligence and a refined
host of soft skills. Being charismatic, funny, and a good storyteller can all be very helpful
character traits. While these can be developed, we are all blessed with different gifts. Don’t
focus on what you may be lacking. Concentrate on your strengths. Be yourself. Be genuine.
Be logical. Listen. Empathize. Speak to others’ emotions. Find common ground and empha-
size shared values and goals.
Additional information on influencing others can be found in Chapter 11, PM Soft Skills.
Section 11.5 details the Seven Pillars of Influence Management.
204 10 Controlling the Project
8) Monitor expectations
Stakeholder expectations will change over time. While Budget, Scope, and Schedule changes
should be well documented, changing expectations often are not. You must monitor expec-
tations. It is essential to keep your pulse on stakeholders’ expectations so that you know
when and how they are evolving. You cannot manage that which you do not know. So,
ask questions. Listen to your stakeholders. These regular interactions also provide oppor-
tunities to identify incongruent expectations and influence them while at an infant stage
before they become too entrenched.
9) Deliver
The most powerful impact in managing expectations is to deliver. Successful PMs shape
expectations to mirror what they are able to produce. This approach fundamentally relies
on being able to deliver. As such, it is essential you assemble a team with complementary
skills, experience, knowledge, and technical expertise to get the job done. With public
transportation projects, the ability to navigate through the sea of red tape is invaluable.
Exceptional PMs have that unique combination of patience, persistence, tact, and
hard-nosed determination to will something into fruition. Strive to develop and maintain a
reputation for making realistic commitments, and delivering results based upon those
expectations. This can be major project milestones, or promptly returning their phone call.
There is no faster way to build trust and strengthen your credibility that doing what you say
you will do.
10.1.5 Managing Up
Managing up can be a challenging and a high-risk proposition. But pending the project,
there are times when a PM must manage up in order to keep the project moving forward.
You need to understand how your organization really works. Be aware the practical
reality may significantly differ from the current org chart and published procedures. How
are decisions made? Who makes the decisions? Who do those people rely on and trust?
What are the big picture organizational and programmatic objectives leadership wants
to advance? You need to have a mental map of the leadership and decision dynamics in
order to effectively strategize how best to secure your desired results. You need to know
who to influence, and when, to increase the likelihood your proposal is accepted or the
right decision is made. You want to establish a layered foundation so decision discussions
become a chorus of affirmative head nods. Bringing decision makers together prema-
turely, or before you really understand all the issues at play, can result in unexpected and
unpredictable results that can directly impact your project’s budget, scope, and schedule.
As exceptional trial lawyers never ask a question to which they don’t already know the
answer, so PMs should not bring critical project issues to decision makers without some
advance preparations.
In order to effectively manage up, those above you need to know and trust you. They
need to be familiar with your work, your values, and your commitment. It is important to
find ways to establish these connections and build social capital before you need to use it.
Realize that people are persuaded by different means. Some require a logical argument.
Others look for passionate emotions. The most effective persuaders strategically combine
10.1 Managing Expectations 205
facts and feelings, but in different measures pending their audience. Listen. Ask questions.
Understand how to best tailor your message by leveraging and emphasizing the information
and benefits.
Approaches that best resonate with feelings are Reflecting and Asserting. Reflecting is the
ability to reflect back to the other person not only what they are saying, but what they are
feeling. This relies on active listening and empathy. Asserting is the ability to express your
own needs and desires in a compelling way that authentically leverages emotions. This
relies on connecting the idea to deeper feelings. Both of these approaches can forge pow-
erful connections to feeling-minded decision makers.
Approaches that best resonate with facts are Questioning and Suggesting. Questioning is
the ability to ask neutral, open-ended, logical questions whose answers provide you insight
into meaningful data or opinions held by others. Suggesting is the ability to propose a well-
crafted case or business plan that is supported by facts and reason. Both of these approaches
bring credibility and order to fact-minded decision makers.
Reflecting and Questioning are most applicable early in the influencing process as you are
gathering information and preparing to advance your preferred course of action. Asserting
and Suggesting are best used later in the influencing process, after you are satisfied the table
is set for a favorable response. Since most decision makers consider combinations of facts
and feelings, you may need to use all four approaches in varying degrees. The intention is
not to manipulate anyone, but rather to ensure a fair case is made for your assertion in the
way that most resonates with each individual.
their important contributions. Invest the time and interest to get to know them as people,
beyond their team role. Discuss the who, what, and when. Trust them enough to share the
why, and figure out the how. Act as Tim McGraw sings in the song entitled, “Be humble
and kind.”
“If everything seems to be going well, you obviously don’t know what is going on.”
– Edward Murphy
As PM, you will spend most of your time monitoring and controlling your project. Monitoring
is the collection of performance data. How is the project progressing? What do the formal
and informal metrics convey? Controlling is what you do with the performance data. This
starts with comparing actual progress versus that which was planned, but then also includes
analyzing the variances, identifying trends, and taking preventive or corrective action,
if necessary. For example, if your monitoring shows the project schedule to be late, then
controlling is analyzing the impact, making schedule adjustments, and pursuing change con-
trol processes if the delay is unrecoverable.
A monitoring and controlling mindset is critical to PM success. These are not part of your
job; they are your job. The cyclical processes described in this section are to be continually
practiced throughout the life of the project. This discipline and consistency will enable you
to position your project for success, even in the most trying of circumstances.
Communications
can know and control the pulse of the project.
Tier 2 Acute situational awareness will prove invalu-
Support able in positioning you to strategically man-
age change. The tasks themselves are rather
Tier 3
Foundational simple to describe, but can be challenging
to do well. To be effective, this cycle must be
Figure 10.3 Tiers of importance. continually repeated throughout the life of
10.2 Monitor/Control the Project 207
3. Identify solutions
4. Take action
5. Assess results
and expectations are pouring on you faster than you can absorb it. It is in time like these that
prudence is absolutely essential. You need to slow things down. Resist the urge to assess
blame. There will be time for that later when it can be handled in a constructive manner. In
the midst of the storm, you need to focus on the problem. This requires clarity of thought.
Be fiercely protective of you limited time, prioritize critical information, and think.
Voltaire famously said, “No problem can stand the assault of sustained thinking.” But solu-
tions do require thinking. In the moment, this can seem counterintuitive. In most sports,
you ideally want to eventually think less and react to the situation in a way that relies on
your strategic preparation and disciplined practice. This focused and instinctive response
allows the athlete to quickly and nimbly adapt in a rapidly changing environment. Many of
these premises are also true in business. As PM, there are plenty of times when you should
rely on your experiences and the strategic game plan for you project. You should trust your
instincts and be able to improvise with thoughtful and agile reactions. However, crises are
not these situations. While you may very well rely on your own instincts to eventually
make a decision, it is imperative you recognize the level of seriousness of the issue and
identify the intended and unintended consequences of the action and reactions. This
requires disciplined and intentional thought. When things seem to be falling apart around
you, this is exactly when you need to stop, take a deep breath, call a time-out, and think.
2) Define the problem
You can’t solve what you don’t understand. What problem are you trying to solve?
Answering this question may be challenging. For example, imagine you find out you didn’t
get your environmental permit because the plans changed and now show additional
impacts that were not previously discussed or approved. Is the problem that you don’t have
your permit? Is the problem whatever design considerations caused the plan change to
increase the environmental impacts? Is there a communications problem within your
team? Is it a job performance problem in that the environmental agent didn’t update the
permit to show the design changes? Is the problem that this information will cause addi-
tional work for the consultant which will strain the already tight budget? Is the problem
that any resolution will delay project advertisement, which will push up against funding
deadlines on this politically charged project that was promised to be delivered on time?
What is the problem? What if it is more than one of them?
Think back to proofs in geometry class. The first step is to define the givens. Do not allow
yourself to be distracted. It is imperative you define which problems you are trying to solve.
You can’t do this effectively if you are reacting, and not thinking. You need to strategically
210 10 Controlling the Project
determine what are the core issues. And when there are more than one, you must search
for dependencies and then prioritize them.
Defining the problem can be challenging when the information flow is less than ideal.
This may be due to the accuracy or completeness of the information, or the timing of when
you become aware of it. There are times when it is difficult to know what to believe. In
these instances, you must remain focused and objective. As Ronald Reagan said, para-
phrasing the old Russian proverb, “Trust but verify.”
In all cases, effective communication is critical. You need to reach out to those you trust, and
to those who have the answers you need. As the situation develops, remember to keep com-
munication as transparent as it is appropriate and productive. This means reaching out to
your team, your peers, and your leadership. Strive to keep all those who need to be in the loop
in the loop, be they below you, above you, or at your level in the organizational hierarchy.
3) Identify solutions
Once the problem is defined, then you can search for solutions. Resist the urge to put the
cart before the horse and jump right to possible solutions before you have defined the
problem you are trying to solve. Haste will often lead you down the wrong path.
There are three aspects to enacting solutions: (1) does the solution work, (2) what are the
intended and unintended consequences, and (3) buy-in from the team and stakeholders on
the new path forward. Searching for solutions is what engineers do well. This is what we
are trained to do. Pending the size and complexity of the problem, PMs should resist the
urge to do it all themselves. While a PM may be able to find the solution by themselves, and
maybe they can even identify all the intended and unintended consequences of the solu-
tion by themselves, they most likely can’t secure team and stakeholder buy-in by them-
selves. Project development is a team sport. Seek out different perspectives. Include key
stakeholders and team members in the discussions. If there is time, this effort can foster
collaboration and spurn innovation. Look beyond positional authority. When it hits the
fan, seek those who you can trust to tell you the truth and provide sage advice and direction.
Just as there may be more than one problem, there may be more than one solution. In the
previous project example, while the immediate problem is securing the permit, you may need
to concurrently be adjusting budget realities and managing stakeholder schedule expectations.
The strategic solution may include multiple aspects on parallel fronts. When this is the case,
clear and consistent communication to the team, leadership, and stakeholders is essential.
While finding solutions, don’t speed, but be speedy. Avoid the cliché of paralysis of anal-
ysis. Pending the situation, you will likely not know all the information you want to know
before you need to move forward. Leadership is often a series of calculated and educated
guesses. As such, spend your limited time wisely. In the previous project example, if it is a
design issue that has caused the unanticipated encroachments, get the right people in the
same room and figure it out. Target thinkers and experienced engineers. Consult the ide-
alists, attorneys, and regulators to make sure you stay on track, but focus on the problem
solvers. Spend your time with those who look for solutions, not those who look for problems.
Whatever your solutions, be sure to evaluate the implications to your project’s triple con-
straint of budget, scope, and schedule. Whichever solution you pursue, you must practice
appropriate change management in order to sustain project viability. Don’t win the battle
only to lose the war.
10.2 Monitor/Control the Project 211
4) Take action
While it is important not to hastily rush to action, it is likewise unwise to doddle. Fish or cut
bait. Shit or get off the pot. These clichés are true. There comes a clear time for action when
you, as the PM, need to make a decision and move forward. Especially in times of crisis, the
perception of authority is paramount. In the midst of a storm, the captain of the ship needs
to be seen at the wheel.
How do you know when it is time to act? When facing tough decisions, General Colin
Powell succinctly describes his 40/70 rule, “Once the information is in the 40% to 70% range,
go with your gut. Don’t wait until you have enough facts to be 100% sure, because by then it is
almost always too late.” The 40/70 rule is shown in Figure 10.8.
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
Degree of Certainty
As the Powell Rule details, sometimes more information is not helpful. Complex
phenomenon and problems can often be narrowed down to a simple set of criteria to eval-
uate the underlying fundamental issues. At a point, extra layers of information may only
confuse the issue. As Einstein said, “If you can’t explain it to a six-year-old, you probably
don’t understand it yourself.”
Sometimes you won’t know what to do. In these cases, you can seek wisdom from trusted
advisors with whom you have established relationships of trust. The first impression of
experts is worth more. Just as an experienced gray-haired engineer can look at a set of plans
and quickly identify where there are looming construction issues, so can experienced
leaders approach a complicated or contentious situation and offer valuable insights.
Once you decide what action to take, and when to take it, you must bring everyone into
the loop who needs to be included. The old adage counsels that a passenger jet liner pilot
can make dramatic and unexpected turns, but not without causing quite the raucous in the
cabin. As pilot of your project, you need to provide warning to those who need it in the
cabin, updates to controllers on the ground, and have your team prepared and ready to exe-
cute the changes so they can respond to any complications. Effective communication may
not guarantee success, but lack of it will expedite failure.
In 1519, Spanish Conquistador Hernan Cortes landed on Mexico and promptly burned
his ships. With their way home laying on the bottom of the ocean, his men were extremely
motivated to succeed in their mission. While I am not suggesting you so drastically mark
every decision as a point of no return, it is important that you and your team are properly
motivated to move forward on the decided path. This can be especially challenging for
those who may have been proponents of possible solutions that were not selected. In these
212 10 Controlling the Project
instances, address the issue. Whether you meet with them individually or as a team,
emphasize shared principles and the collective team goals. Projects are a team sport. Each
member of the team has a vital role to play, and we must do our jobs well in order for the
project as a whole to succeed. Even after these efforts, there may be some holdouts. It is
then your responsibility to kindly remind them that not everyone agrees with every decision
all the time, but when the flag goes up, we all need to get in line and salute.
5) Assess results
There is a time for everything.
After the problem is defined, solutions are identified, and actions are taken, then you
should evaluate results. Are your solutions working? Are the intended and unintended
consequences acceptable? Are there new risks that need to be managed? Are there relation-
ships that need to be repaired or rebuilt?
Exceptional PMs have the ability to effectively triage priorities during crisis. They then
do not allow themselves to be distracted, and with laser-focus they address first things first.
That often means that after the dust settles from the original sprint to action, there are
other issues that must be addressed in their proper time. Once the course is charted and
you are steering the ship out of the storm, is often that time.
Your efforts to define the problem and identify solutions may necessitate recreating some
course of events or decisions. During those phases, it is usually not productive to distract
yourself with assessing blame or exacting retribution. The exceptions for this are if there is
criminal activity, individual actions that warrant organizational disciplinary action, or if
individuals’ roles on the team need to be adjusted in order to effectively move forward.
Crises can be remarkable teaching moments. The stress, urgency, and stakes of the
situation often sear these lessons learned into our professional fabric. Understand this
unique opportunity, and strategically use these occasions to train team members and stake-
holders. Be candid, kind, and constructive. Invest in them to strengthen your team for pre-
sent and future success. This is what leaders do.
be selected and funded on its own merit. Successfully managing multiple projects means
successfully managing a collection of individual projects.
Effective time management is absolutely critical to success. Use the three-tier system of
importance, described earlier in this section, to evaluate issues and discern priorities. Keep
a proper perspective. Use the strategies discussed in Chapter 11, PM Soft Skills, Section
11.4, Time Management. Trust your team, and delegate. Be protective of your time. Make
daily to-do lists. Schedule time each day to think and plan. Find balance. Use self-reflection
to evaluate if you are being effective. Not busy, but effective. Strive toward self-awareness
and self-improvement. Find a mentor. Learn from your mistakes. Read business and
industry books. Strive to be exceptional at your craft.
Be aware of project interdependencies. Perhaps this is shared team members or the same
design consultant. While each project and contract must stand on its own, these situations
may present opportunities to optimize efficiencies. This does not mean muddying the
waters by mixing resources, but it does mean being situationally aware to leverage resources
where possible to realize increased efficiencies. Some examples may be strategically sched-
uling plan submissions to normalize workloads and expedite review times, or completing
the hydraulic analysis of an upstream structure before finalizing the hydraulic analysis for
the downstream structure on another project.
Perhaps most important, you need to find a way to see the whole picture. What is your
entire workload and schedule of commitments? If you only concentrate on the fires of the
day, you will never get anywhere. You need to keep a laser-like focus on the long-term
goals, and managing interim goals to ensure you are positioned for success. Leverage your
organization’s project, program, and portfolio management tools. If they are lacking, find a
way to overlay your project schedules so you can see future workload, upcoming mile-
stones, and submission deadlines. Know, and be fiercely protective of, the triple constraint
(budget, scope, and schedule) of each of your projects. A successful PM portfolio is built on
individual projects that are developed and delivered on-time and on-budget.
While a project’s Budget, Scope, and Schedule should be set at Scoping, a transportation
project can resemble a living, breathing organism that changes with the political tides,
economic and financial realities, adjacent community developments, upgraded industry
standards and regulations, stakeholder expectations, public input, and evolving prior-
ities. For example, if a project takes five years to develop and deliver, it is likely unrea-
sonable to assume site conditions, community needs, and involved stakeholders would
remain unchanged. A growing urban area can be completely transformed in a far shorter
time with residences, retail, business, and industry that may completely change the antici-
pated needs, benefits, access points, multi-modal accommodations, and traffic flow of your
project. Often the biggest challenge a PM faces is how to successfully and seamlessly incor-
porate these changes into your project.
214 10 Controlling the Project
It is the PM’s job to manage the project within the triple constraint while balancing risk,
resources, and quality. This can be extremely challenging to accomplish pending the pro-
posed or dictated changes. To proactively manage these triple constraint risks of change, it
is imperative the PM keep their finger on the pulse of stakeholder expectations, public
input, and leaderships goals and priorities. Whether you see the change request coming a
mile away or if it is thrust upon you at an unscheduled meeting Friday afternoon, your
response should be the same.
One of your most important PM responsibilities is to faithfully and consistently practice
effective change management procedures. Many organizations have established change
management policies. If yours does, know it and follow it. If yours does not, I recommend
you use something similar to general guidelines described below as it protects you, your
organization, and the project.
Once the Budget, Scope, and Schedule are set, they are set, and it is your job to fiercely
protect the triple constraint and work within it. All Budget, Scope, and Schedule change
requests should be in writing. This documents who is requesting the change, when, and
why. A change request form should then be completed that describes the request and the
details the resulting Budget, Scope, and Schedule impacts. This should then be evaluated
by the designated change control board/agent. This may be the project sponsor, a
director, or other assigned individual empowered to make these decisions. While some
organizations may allow the PM to serve as the control agent, this is not typical. Assuming
the change request is approved, all change control documentation should be appropri-
ately saved, necessary adjustments to the Budget, Scope, and Schedule should be made
in the appropriate systems, the decision should be communicated to the team and all
impacted stakeholders, and any associated project documentation (e.g., permits, risk
register, etc.) should be updated. This should be followed for all requests, whether they
adversely impact, or benefit, the triple constraint. Astute PMs realize that change request
forms can be the most powerful and impactful tool in their arsenal. It can calm emo-
tional agendas, reinforce clarity of purpose, promote collaborative progress, and bring
order to chaos.
Changes are not necessarily bad. They are a normal and expected part of project
management. However, a project can quickly get into trouble if changes are made without
regard to, or approval of, the resultant impacts to the existing Budget, Scope, and Schedule.
When an overeager or overaccommodating PM works to incorporate a requested change
into their project without analyzing and documenting the resultant impacts to the triple
constraint, they do so at their own risk and they introduce a significant project risk. Well-
intentioned undocumented changes can quickly become a nightmare should there be staff
turnover, the winds change course and request additional or conflicting changes, or if
there are inconsistencies with federal, state, or funding boundaries, requirement, or
established purpose and need. If the project ends up with Budget, Scope, or Schedule busts,
undocumented changes are extremely difficult to explain and defend. In these circum-
stances, a PM can quickly find themselves alone at the end of very long and unstable limb.
Even though it can be time consuming and some control agents may not want to attach
their name to all requested changes, practicing good change management procedures is an
essential PM responsibility.
10.3 Change Management 215
The triple constraint dictates that you cannot change the budget, scope, or schedule without
impacting the other two. This fundamental principle has underlying impacts on how a
project solution is pursued.
The traditional approach to project development is quite formulaic. The transportation
industry is overflowing with manuals, standards, and guidelines. Time tested and trusted,
these standards can expedite design in a manner that enforces consistency and uniformity.
The traditional approach is for the standards to dictate the scope. For example, this
classification of roadway requires a specific pavement section and typical roadway section.
Waivers and exceptions were discouraged. The solution was determined and then the
needed money was programmed to fund it. Scope drove the budget and schedule.
Our transportation infrastructure and systems are aging. Our populations are growing.
Citizen expectations are rising. Environmental regulations continue to expand. Costs are
increasing. Revenues are not keeping up with demands. The bottom line is we have more
transportation needs than available financial resources. As Aubrey Lane said, “Limited
transportation dollars have consequences.” Today’s reality is that the industry has transi-
tioned to where the budget is often driving scope and schedule.
Something needed to change. The transportation industry has responded with a radical
idea that requires a fundamental paradigm shift in transportation solutions. Performance-
Based Design (PBD) focuses on pursuing context-sensitive solutions that satisfy the defined
purpose and need. The traditional approach starts with the design standards, which dictate
the scope. PBD starts with the purpose and need, considers project-specific conditions and
constraints, and then develops a cost-effective scope. These different approaches are depicted
in Figure 10.10.
This change in approach represents a seismic shift in thinking. Sound engineering princi-
ples haven’t changed. PBD promotes finding new and innovative ways to apply them that may
Design Standards
Traditional
Approach
Design standards dictate
Scope
Project Scope
Performance Based
Design
Build up Scope from
existing conditions to
Purpose & Need satisfy Purpose & N eed
be outside of the manuals, while ensuring safety. It does not dismiss engineering standards,
but rather emphasizes engineering judgment. PBD remains flexible in approach, unwavering
in the objective, encourages innovation, and balances the solution with economic realities.
The roadway geometrics and project solutions are based on needs, not blind application of
standards.
The industry transition has been slow and steady. In 2006 FHWA released their
“Flexibility in Highway Design” publication. Subsequent years saw many DOTs and orga-
nizations begin to embrace design exceptions, waivers, and deviations. Engineers began
parsing the manuals for “shall” versus “should” conditions. In 2018, the AASHTO Green
Book (A Policy on Geometric Design of Highways and Streets) shifted to Performance-Based
Design. While this approach may not be applicable in every circumstance, the intention of
this transition is to provide greater flexibility to the designers so organizations can optimize
their Returns-On-Investments (ROI) of transportation dollars, improve safety and mobility,
and ensure solutions are appropriate for the setting and satisfy the purpose and need.
The PBD mindset can be especially advantageous to the PM during change management
circumstances. A growing number of criteria-based funding applications set the project
budget earlier in the process. Some of these are set as early as funding application approval.
At this early stage, preliminary plans may be available, but likely not beyond 30% design
plans, if that. In these situations, the project risks may not be fully identified or evaluated.
Project schedules are preliminary best guesses. The project is likely not yet scoped. If the
budget leg of the triple constraint is fixed, then any subsequent changes to Scope or
Schedule will require some creative change management solutions.
PBD thinking can be an invaluable tool to navigating these sticky wickets. The team will
use the manuals and engineering standards, but seek context-sensitive solutions that are
appropriate for the specific site conditions and satisfy the big picture purpose and need.
Examples may include saving a pavement base instead of tearing it out and rebuilding, or
integrating a diverging diamond interchange into the design, or shrinking bike path widths
during critical sections of the improvement. While there likely is some crossover between
this and Value Engineering, there are some differences. Value Engineering is typically a
singular event involving professionals with little or no prior exposure to the project who
review an existing design and seek to identify opportunities to reduce costs or expedite
construction. PBD similarly seeks ways to reduce cost and expedite delivery, but also main-
tains a laser-like focus on the project’s purpose and need, concentrating on the needs not
the wants, while never compromising safety. PBD is also not a single event, but a mindset
that can be integrated into the project from funding application through final design.
While PBD is a powerful design tool, it may not be applicable for every project. There are
challenges in its evolving implementation. Engineering discipline and divisional silos need
to be broken down. Collaboration needs to be embraced. Designers need to release their
death grip on manuals and standards and truly think about each unique situation and solu-
tion. This approach takes courage. Engineers may not readily recommend a waiver or
exception to standards as this bring additional organizational and professional risks. What
if the idea doesn’t work? The standard solution will work and is irrefutably defendable. It
is said civil engineering is the one profession where our mistakes become monuments of
incompetence for all to see. The degree to which an organization or individual pursues
PBD is proportional to their commitment to the strategy and their risk appetite.
218 10 Controlling the Project
Innovation can also bring additional challenges. For example, where adding a round-
about into the design may improve safety and lower costs, it may ignite substantial public
concern that necessitates significant stakeholder outreach efforts.
The PM is responsible to develop and deliver the project within the established budget,
scope, and schedule. As such, the PM plays a pivotal role in balancing scope solution inno-
vations that balance economic and schedule realities. They should remain focused on the
scope, but flexible in approach. Especially during change management challenges, PBD
can be a powerful tool the PM and designers can leverage to progress to success.
The majority of engineers and PMs are inherently goal-oriented. Many of these are also
disciplined, inwardly driven, and intensely competitive. This blend can create a lethal
combination of dedication and productivity that can seemingly will a project forward.
Other PMs have vastly different approaches, but experience similar results. While it may be
possible to be a successful PM and not be goal-oriented, it is not common.
Most everyone is familiar with SMART goals. They should be Specific, meaning they
state what you will do. They should be Measurable, meaning there is an objective way to
evaluate progress and success. They should be Achievable, meaning they are possible to
accomplish. They should be Relevant, meaning they are reasonably connected to your role
and worth doing. And they should be Time-based, meaning they have a schedule. SMART
goals are well-established tools that can be remarkably effective in forwarding short-term
and long-term agendas. A PM should be experienced and accomplished at setting and
achieving SMART goals.
Many forward companies have supplemented SMART goals with OKRs (Objectives and
Key Results). The Objective should speak to the intrinsic value of the work itself, and be
inspirational in nature. Each Objective should be paired with three to five Key Results.
These are the real-world, metric-driven realities that balance quantity and quality. They
should be specific enough to be accurately measured. An OKR often takes the format of
(objective) “as measured by” (key results). Employees should have no more than three to five
OKRs at one time, which should be consistent with established short-term and long-term
goals. This allows them to come to work and easily know and focus on their top priorities.
Great leaders have uncluttered thinking that allows them to clearly drill down on what
needs to happen to move forward. OKRs can be operational and aspirational. Operational
OKRs are those that need to be achieved within an established schedule and budget.
Examples would include many of the project development tasks. Aspirational OKRs are
the audacious goals that ignite our passions. Examples may include innovative engineering
solutions. Particularly when formed with team member input, individual and team OKRs
can be a powerful force to focus, align, track, and stretch your team.
Both goals and OKRs should drive us to be innovative, efficient, and productive. At their
best, goals and OKRs should push us beyond our comfort zone, leading us to achievements
10.6 Project Management Methodologies 219
that live between our abilities and our dreams. Timid goals that intentionally underesti-
mate potential to ensure success will not improve you or your team. Similarly, establishing
goals or OKRs with low value objectives that really don’t matter to anyone, or key results
that are nearly impossible to actually measure is an academic exercise of futility. While
these sandbagging tactics may seem successful if your goal is to Cover Your own Ass (CYA),
they will never drive or meaningfully improve your operations.
One key to success with SMART goals or OKRs is often the ability to say no to things that
distract or detract. This can include our own pride or expectations. As Voltaire said, “Don’t
allow the perfect to be the enemy of the good.” Know when good enough is good enough.
Much like SMART goals, the power of OKR is in the mindset that drives success with
these tools. OKRs inherently value merit over seniority. What you know is less important
than what you can do with what you know. What do you produce? It is simple and straight-
forward. What is the objective, and what are the specific key results to know if you achieved
your objective? This “can-do,” “get-it-done” approach is especially important in transporta-
tion project management.
Transportation PMs are often faced with goals set for us that are not SMART goals. What
then? While these circumstances can be frustrating and challenging, they are not impos-
sible. Perhaps there is no silver bullet, but combining a number of tools in this book can
position you for success. Communication, stakeholder engagement, managing expecta-
tions, managing the project’s triple constraint, practicing change management, and leading
the team are all tools that will enable you to set and achieve individual, team, and project
SMART goals or OKRs.
“Management is, above all, a practice where art, science, and craft meet.”
– Henry Mintzberg
carried a four-lane, divided roadway over the river. The Scope would be defined by this
objective and conformance with applicable design and safety standards. If the project took
a little longer, or cost a little more to construct, that was accepted as long as we built a
bridge that carried a four-lane, divided roadway over the river that complied with all appli-
cable standards. The scope was fixed, and the budget and schedule components of the tri-
ple constraint were the more flexible constraints.
This approach is rapidly changing. As the transportation moves toward more objective,
application-based project selection, often the budget or schedule becomes the fixed compo-
nents, with the Scope becoming the flexible constraint, as shown in Figure 10.11.
Fixed Scope
Constraints
Sc
et
le
he
dg
du
Bu
du
Bu
he
dg
le
Sc
et
Flexible
Constraints Scope
This trend will continue to grow. Limited resources have consequences. Engineers are
encouraged now more than ever to pursue innovative designs, using the project’s Purpose
and Need as their guide. Design waivers and exceptions are no longer viewed as something
to be avoided at all costs, but rather an approach to be leveraged to promote context-sensi-
tive solutions. This power of flexibility is the basis of Performance-Based Design, as
described and advanced in AASHTO’s Green Book. Design is no longer driven by blind
applications of standards in all circumstances. Design is increasingly encouraged to accom-
modate a project’s unique circumstances.
Upon this landscape is an ever-growing list of success criteria that transportation organi-
zations and PMs are compelled to address. Organizations, and their resulting performance
metrics, often focus on a project being on-time and on-budget. These are tremendously
important priorities, but they are not the only success criteria. Some expanding criteria lends
itself to being objectively quantified, such as safety, congestion mitigation, and economic
development. Others are more subjective in nature, such as accessibility and wealth creation.
Still others have local or political priorities, such as maintaining the character of a corridor
or opening the new roadway to traffic before the start of a new school year. There are
technical and social aspects to these new realities.
Technically, transportation systems and assets have continued to become increasingly
complex. Transportation projects are so much more than concrete and steel. Integrated
traffic signals and intelligent traffic systems have transformed our roadways. The amount
of automated and physical data collected on projects and systems is staggering. Drones can
capture seemingly unlimited data points during a remote bridge inspection. Integrated
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) can display layers of seemingly every asset from
extensive data sources. We are designing roads in 3D models that can create remarkable
10.6 Project Management Methodologies 221
life-like simulations of facilities not yet constructed. Success criteria on many transporta-
tion projects now extends far beyond opening up new pavement to traffic.
Most transportation organizations have many more needs and wants than resources.
Infrastructures are aging. In lean environments, preventive maintenance is often the first
effort to be pushed back. This short-term solution often brings longer-term problems as dete-
riorating assets become more expensive to repair, or may reach the point of being functionally
obsolete and require complete replacement. Unpredictable market conditions, such as infla-
tion, supply chain issues, or other economic constraints, only exacerbate the situation. All of
this further emphasizes the need to be flexible in individual project solutions.
Socially, there is a growing appreciation of transportation systems. This realization man-
ifests itself in many ways. Take the holistic understanding that transportation assets are
more than roads; they are a fundamental and shared community asset. This simple asser-
tion can bring with it many cascading success criteria. Subjective concepts like community
building, expanding access, wealth creation, environmental stewardship, and economic
justice are now commonly emphasized transportation project success criteria. These ideas
are often bolstered by guiding legislation and political agendas. These subjective goals may
clash with objective design criteria, and often surface during stakeholder engagement.
Virtual stakeholder engagement has expanded the avenues by which citizens can become
involved in the process. While transportation organizations and projects benefit from
increased transparency and stakeholder involvement, it does necessitate an increased
ability to shift project development in a more Agile way.
Requirements
Figure 10.14 compares these two
management approaches by highlighting Hybrid
some of their key differences.
When considering the spectrum of trans- Waterfall
portation projects, from large and complex
Clearly
megaprojects to local streetscapes and Processes
Def ined Evolving
everything in-between, it is obvious that
one size does not fit all. Pending the size, Figure 10.13 Project approach comparison.
specifics, and complexity of any transportation project, there may be certain Waterfall or
Agile aspects a PM may want to leverage and embrace.
It is interesting to note that many of the comparisons in the Figure 10.14 are organiza-
tional decisions. These portfolio-wide decisions are often based on the company’s cultural
precedents and risk tolerances.
One could assert that Agile strengths are already being leveraged in a hybrid approach in
Design-Build project development and delivery. In these projects, schedules can be crashed
as disciplines are often pressed to work concurrently, and in a more iterative fashion.
For most transportation owner-operators, on Design-Bid-Build projects, there are some
inescapable truths that entrench waterfall methodologies. The project development process
is paramount as it is carefully crafted to satisfy all applicable federal, state, and local require-
ments and design standards within a wide range of subject areas. Project durations can be
lengthy. Team turnover can be high. Documentation is paramount to satisfy the various
federal and state reviewing and auditing entities. The flow of federal and state funds is
extremely prescribed. Yet, stakeholder engagement can and does influence the project scope
halfway through design. Performance-Based Design does encourage innovation and flexi-
bility in solution approaching throughout the design. Changing market conditions does
require flexibility and nimbleness in order balance resources and priorities to successfully
develop and deliver projects, programs, and portfolios. So how do we leverage some of the
benefits and practices of Agile into the necessary Waterfall structure, processes, and roles?
don’t own the float. PMs don’t own the float. In project centric environments, the organi-
zation owns the float.
Organizations can use concurrent engineering to create fantastic ways to graphically
depict the PDP is a slightly different way. This is most often done by discipline, with each
disciplines’ tasks shown concurrently with the others. Especially for the PM, this can be a
tremendously useful tool. While each discipline is making progress, swimming in their
own lane, a PM can and should be searching for ways to expedite the schedule by identi-
fying opportunities to leverage floats in a way that encourages concurrent progress to opti-
mize the critical path. This focus is empowered when paired with other good project
management practices, such as proactive risk management and preemptive stakeholder
engagement.
Waterfall
Time
Agile
This creates a clear paradigm conflict for performance metrics. By nature, many
performance metrics compare what actually happened to that which was expected. While
there can be significant contextual nuances with each of these concepts and compared
fields, we will refer to that which is expected as the baseline. Be it a schedule, budget, or
some other entity, the baseline is that by which actuals, or more current information, are
compared to determine acceptable progress or success, however that may be defined or
endorsed by the organization.
There are many ways in which organizations assign and prioritize baselines. Some orga-
nizations capture budget and schedule baselines at Scoping. In these instances, these three
10.6 Project Management Methodologies 227
triple constraint components are formalized in a scoping document that passes through a
prescribed approval process. Scoping approval then sets the project’s scope, schedule, and
budget baselines. Other organizations may use other triggers to capture baselines. Many
organizations set performance metric schedule and budget baselines based upon the
planned Fiscal Year for advertisement. In these instances, previous baselines may be cap-
tured, but are not prioritized as those for the current Fiscal Year. Still other organizations
use different triggers to capture scope, schedule, and budget baselines at different points of
project development. For instance, scope may be captured at time of project selection from
an application-based prioritization, the prioritized schedule baseline may be captured at
Public Hearing, while the prioritized budget baseline may be when the project is in the
planned current Fiscal Year for advertisement.
There are a few fundamental decision points. When will baseline(s) be captured? What
are the performance metric tolerances? And under what circumstances will the organiza-
tion’s change management policy enable adjustments of the baseline(s)?
The iterative nature of Agile encourages multiple points to “reset” baselines. Scoping is
obvious. Design Approval, which is after Public Hearing, is another reasonable choice. At
this point, the public has been engaged, and by its very nature, Design Approval provides
concurrence with the design and approval to move forward. Other potentially logical
choices may be the major 30%, 60%, and 90% design reviews. At each of these milestones,
the different disciplines come together and the project is momentarily “static” during the
plan reviews. Organizations should strive to intentionally choose points that are logical
and reasonable. One key factor is when and how data is collected. You may decide a
baseline(s) should be captured at Design Approval, but that only works if your systems and
workflows support capturing meaningful baseline(s) at that point in development.
Another choice organizations must make is whether to capture scope, schedule, and
budget baselines at the same time, or individually capture them at different points of
development. As long as it is an intentional decision with sound logic that supports your
organization’s mission and objectives, there may not be any absolute, or more correct,
option. Ideally, you would only reset baseline(s) at a point of clarity where risks have been
mitigated, design has significantly progressed, or key decisions were secured.
Another way organizations can implement a hybrid approach in performance metrics is to
expand their change management procedures. This often resonates with more mature water-
fall organizations that value formal approvals and robust documentation. By expanding the
criteria by which scope, schedule, or budget baselines can be revisited, an organization can
retain process control while embracing flexibility. This approach can encourage innovation,
while discouraging a performance metric “get-out-of-jail-free” card by automatically grant-
ing a baseline reset that accommodates poor project management or progress.
Another option is to integrate contextual realities with agile approaches by leveraging tol-
erance logic in existing waterfall metrics. Consider the budget baseline. Let’s assume an
organization acknowledges the reality and adopts a cone of uncertainty. If their cone of
uncertainty states a preliminary cost estimate is +/− 30%, then performance metrics should
reflect this understanding. Similarly, if the cone of uncertainty specifies an expected accu-
racy of +/− 15% at Public Hearing, then performance logic should reflect this understanding.
The logic behind automated performance metrics can be modified to accommodate chang-
ing estimates within these organizationally approved tolerances.
228 10 Controlling the Project
10.6.8 Conclusion
Transportation project development is predominately Waterfall, and will remain so.
However, industry changes beckon for a more Agile approach. It is now common for
project changes in budget, scope, or schedule to be dictated to the project, throughout the
project. When this occurs, the processes need to be nimble and adaptive enough to respond.
More mature organizations recognize the inherent inconsistencies and opportunities
within these changing industry dynamics, and are choosing to pursue a Hybrid approach.
The basis of hybrid project management is to acknowledge contextual realities, and then
leverage the strengths of Waterfall and Agile to improve efficiencies and streamline
development. While the challenges transportation owner-operators face may be similar,
each organization will likely follow their own path as they strive to responsively and
responsibly move forward. It will be fascinating to see how the industry evolves and
embraces the best of Waterfall and Agile.
“Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted
counts.”
– Albert Einstein
focused test preparation? At what point does the metric stop reflecting reality and start
driving schools’ decisions and actions? Is this a good thing or a bad thing? Some may assert
a bit of both. Regardless, the metric of standardized test scores has evolved to empower the
standardized test writers to drive the curriculum and modify teaching practices and prior-
ities in many schools. Similarly, does your organization’s on-time metrics reflect reality or
drive decisions and influence behaviors? What master are you serving – good business or
the metric? Are you making good decisions, or is the metric driving your actions? Is the
data being used to answer questions that stretch beyond the data’s meaning and reasonable
influence? Beware the tail wagging the dog.
It is easy to lose the forest for the trees. If a project makes its schedule but blows its
budget, was it a success? If the PE is completed under budget and the project is advertised
on-time, but the quality of the plans is such that construction becomes a drawn-out,
change-order infested quagmire, was the project a success? Would your answer change if
you were the PM who brought the project to Ad on-time and under-budget before hand-
ing it over to Construction? There is rarely a single performance metric that tells the
whole story.
tion
What could Prescriptive
happen? Analytics iza
tim
Value
Op
Why did it Predictive
happen? Analytics ght
esi
For
What Diagnostic
happened? Analytics t
igh
Descriptive
Ins
Analytics
ht
dsig
Hin
Difficulty
Figure 10.17 Performance metrics organizational maturity.
reliance on manually created and manipulated reports, often in simple or highly custom-
ized spreadsheets. Consequently, individuals at every level create their own spreadsheets
to track their own operational issues. This inconsistent environment inevitably leads to
endless conversations as to the origin and accuracy of one’s numbers, at the expense of
focusing on what story the data can convey.
Diagnostic Analytics strive to answer the question of “Why it Happened?” This dynamic
reporting is a giant leap forward for an organization as it fundamentally shifts to using data
analytics to guide decisions and drive progress. Data owners are defined. Data sharing is
encouraged. Business Intelligence (BI) tools are leveraged so everyone has the same data.
Dashboards are created and embraced. While originally conceived to convey a simplified
view (think of an old car dashboard with a handful of dials clearly conveying specific
information), many become a behemoth of a data dump to answer a growing list of ques-
tions, enabling users to dive as deep as they desire. This means more users need to become
analysts to discern what is really going on. BI and reporting expertise become concentrated
in smaller, siloed pockets as users struggle to reconcile the accuracy of the data as filtered
through complicated business logic against the story the Dashboard is telling. Any apparent
disconnects between the Dashboard results and the perceived reality can create skepticism
of the tools and advance the idea of multiple sources of truth. Remember the end goal is not
a flashy report or integrated Dashboard. Just because the data is accessible, doesn’t mean it
is worth reporting. What question are you asking? And are you really answering it?
Predictive Analytics strive to answer the question of “What could happen?” This level
of maturity surfaces when organizations transition to focus on understanding what
information different employee roles need to be successful. Here the data is telling a story,
bringing IT and the Business together to serve the employees by answering their most
relevant questions. This requires aggressively combining different systemic data sources
across the organization. However, as opposed to working to get as much data in everyone’s
hands as possible, this strips down the data to that which is essential for different roles.
Strategically filtering the data streamlines performance and allows more focused decision
10.7 Performance Metrics 231
making. This data evolution requires a consistent view of data throughout the organiza-
tion, and ultimately enables more proactive insights and measurable results.
Prescriptive Analytics strive to answer the question of “What should we do?” Here intel-
ligence emerges from the data that can rapidly add value to your organization. Employees
should feel supported by proactive information the data provides that can even be tailored
down to the individual. This maturity level relies on collaborative, cross-functional cooper-
ation, which is built upon a reliable trust of the data.
Cognitive AI/Machine Learning strive to answer the question of “What I don’t know?” At
this maturity level, the organization is using AI and Machine Learning in real and mean-
ingful ways. This transformational environment should allow the organization to reach
new levels of optimization by focusing employees on high-value efforts and automating
low-value tasks. Approval hierarchies and organizational structures become flatter.
Governance becomes less restrictive and more cross-functional. Employees are empow-
ered to nimbly and effectively use the data-driven culture and resources. Know that this
maturity level remains aspirational for most organizations and industries.
10.7.5 Innumeracy
John Allen Paulos’ book, Innumeracy, Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences, details
how even well-educated people often struggle to understand basic mathematical principles,
the meaning of numbers, and their associated probabilities. This pervasive innumeracy reg-
ularly results in misinformed decisions at all levels. Most metrics are not well understood.
In large part, this is due to innumeracy in those who create and interpret the metrics.
Magnitude matters. Engineers often use units and assume the data consumers under-
stand. In reality, most engineers can likely not truly grasp the magnitude difference bet-
ween an environmental contaminant reading in ppm (parts per million) vs. ppb (parts per
billion). The general public most assuredly would be less enlightened. The same is true for
other units. Are 12,000 vehicles per day reasonable or excessive for your project’s ADT
(Average Daily Traffic) volume? Is 18,000 cfs (cubic feet per second) peak stream flow rea-
sonable or excessive for the proposed road crossing? Is a $1.5 million change order reason-
able or excessive on a $20 million project? Most struggle to fully grasp the magnitude of
numbers, particularly in context. This means most can be swayed to accept an asserted
agenda that cites most any number.
Many lack foundational arithmetic, algebraic, and geometric skills. This can translate to
basic miscalculations in those that create, interpret, and consume data and performance met-
rics. This is particularly tricky when paired with moral equivalency. For instance, an evalua-
tion of the anticipated benefits of light rail or biking facilities may appear convincing when
compared to automobiles; however, most do not normalize for cost, usage, and volume. You
cannot compare siloed data in an equivalent way without properly scaling the comparison.
Percentages are especially susceptible to misinterpretations. Traffic congestion is down
15%. Projects are now being delivered 20% faster. Project development is now 75% on target. One
may assume these three examples are conveying good news. Are they? Benjamin Disraeli
said, “There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.” On their own, these three
examples convey no context as to what is really being evaluated, and to what it is being com-
pared. You would have no idea if this is good news or not? To conclude otherwise you must
disregard logic or fill in the many gaps with your assumptions or predispositions.
There are two common innumeracy traps that can make percentages especially mis-
leading. First, the denominator matters. If a couple has their child come home from college,
their volume of dirty dishes may increase by 50%, but when the child goes back to college
the couple only experiences a 33% reduction in dirty dishes. Assuming equal contributions,
the volume of dirty dishes generated by the child didn’t change, but the percentages don’t
appear to add up. Second, you can’t average averages, but that doesn’t stop many from
doing it. If look closely, you will likely be stunned how many metrics and reports rely on
averaging averages, a clear violation of mathematical principles.
quantify the collective subjective emotional state to consistently define and delineate road
rage in an accurate and comparative manner?
As a general rule, objective data can be measured objectively while subjective data should
be measured subjectively. Expressing traffic volumes in a detailed statistical analysis makes
sense as traffic data is inherently numbers based. Accurately capturing the tenor, urgency,
and level of passion of citizens at a Public Hearing is a different kind of challenge. Consider
a public hearing in which 100 people attend. 60 submit comment sheets. Based upon
the subjective check boxes (strongly disagree, disagree, neutral, agree, strongly agree), it
appears 30 are generally in favor of the project. Of the 60 comments, 120 different specific
issues were mentioned. 30 people spoke. 10 endorsed the project; 20 spoke against some
aspect of the project. All speakers inferred they were speaking on behalf of others. Did
the public hearing go well? Is the public in favor of the project? Many times, the provided
answer frames the data to support the preference of whoever is responding. It can be chal-
lenging for an objective statistical analysis of the data to accurately tell the whole story.
Attempting to objectively summarize subjective issues often results in the temptation to
attach weight to metrics that they were not intended to carry or cannot accurately support.
Math, definitions, assumptions, and reality matter.
Understanding that this reality does occasionally occur should prompt us to confront the
fundamental question of which data should we value, the aggregated or the partitioned?
The answer depends upon the story behind the data. This cuts to the heart of effective
performance metrics, that being the insights from the resulting metric should not extend
beyond the inherent constraints of the data itself. This is another reason why those creating
the performance metric should work closely with the data generators and data owners to
ensure the weight and meaning of the data is accurately reflected and leveraged.
Pavlides and Perlman demonstrated that in a random 2 × 2 × 2 table with uniform distri-
bution, Simpson’s paradox will occur once every sixty times. Meanwhile Kock demon-
strated in path models (i.e., models generated by path analysis) with two predictors and
one criterion variable, Simpson’s Paradox would occur once every eight times. While
Simpson’s Paradox is not common, it does occur. As such, experienced performance metric
creators and consumers resist the urge to quickly infer causation, and double check the
assumptions and logic before waving the statistically significant banner.
while increasing the speed, efficiency, and quality of the process and product. This can be
a challenge when making widgets in a factory. It becomes significantly more challenging
when evaluating a transportation project that has multiple funding sources, extends for
years, and has a significant number of stakeholders, many of which have conflicting goals
and success criteria. This is complicated as many of these factors in a transportation project
are outside of your direct control. Don’t let yourself get overwhelmed. Focus on what you
know is true.
The PM is responsible to develop and deliver the project within the triple constraint of
budget, scope, and schedule. Accordingly, transportation project performance metrics
should start here. The PM must also consider the resulting impacts to risk, resources, and
quality. Your organization may choose to extend performance metrics to these areas as well.
Then you may wish to expand to others.
Choosing the right metrics is as much an art as it is a science. Resist the urge to pick
metrics that are indicative of progress. Instead choose metrics that drive progress. For in-
stance, does Federal Right-of-Way Authorization worth tracking? From a funding perspec-
tive…absolutely. To ensure the authorization is secured before proceeding with associated
Right-of-Way costs…absolutely. To track the development of the project…not so much.
Since the federal authorization creates a schedule start-no-earlier-than constraint for some
downstream tasks, it is important; but it does not drive progress since securing the autho-
rization may occur long before other tasks. While it may create a schedule constraint, it
rarely drives the critical path.
The specific metrics your organization will choose are highly dependent upon your avail-
able data and priorities. The higher the stakes, the more important it is to track progress. It
can be challenging to weigh competing metrics. For instance, a project that is delivered
on-time and on-budget may be a short-term success but long-term failure if the quality is
substandard. At the program and portfolio level, the focus should shift from individual
project progress to efficiently executing the organization’s multiyear improvement plan.
The big picture is to develop the projects so you can balance the program so the right
money is the right place at the right time to develop and deliver projects that improve safety
and positively impact our communities and commerce. Governments bear an ethical obli-
gation to be responsible stewards of public funds. The same schedule, budget, and scope
metrics at the project level can often be scaled up to a program or portfolio level. Various
Business Intelligence objects allow detailed diagnostic analysis that can easily transition
from program-wide views down to project specifics.
k
Ris
Project Budget
Schedule Variance
(SV)
Budget At
Actual Cost Completion
Cost
EVM is built upon four fundamental ideas that are measured in dollars on the “Cost”
y-axis across “Time” x-axis. These four measures can then be manipulated to provide
meaningful analysis and valuable forecasts.
PV is determined by summing the value of the planned work that is to be completed at
any point on the baseline schedule. This can be calculated by the organization as a tem-
plate based on past experience and specific project criteria, or by summing the budget
assigned to each work breakdown structure component, or scheduled task, and cross-ref-
erencing it to the baseline schedule. The PV serves as the EVM baseline, and enables
schedule progress analysis.
EV is the measure of work that has actually been completed. The EV is the corresponding
sum of completed tasks. This is graphed on EVM, and then compared to the PV to deter-
mine project health by enabling schedule and budget progress analysis.
10.7 Performance Metrics 239
AC are the actual costs incurred by the project at any time. This is graphed on EVM and
used to determine the financial health of the project by enabling budget progress analysis.
BAC is the project budget. This is a specific point on the EVM graph that is a specific
budget amount at specific time on the schedule, that being at Award or at project comple-
tion pending the span of the EVM analysis.
These four measures can be used to the following standard variances that can be espe-
cially insightful to PMs. Cost Variance (CV) is described in Figure 10.22. Schedule Variance
(SV) is described in Figure 10.23. They are graphically represented in Figure 10.20.
CV = EV - AC
Negative 0 Positive
On-Budget
Negative 0 Positive
On-Budget
These fundamental measures can also be used to calculate standard indexes that provide
additional insight into the health of the project. Cost Performance Index (CPI) is described
in Figure 10.24. Schedule Performance Index (SPI) is described in Figure 10.25. Figure
10.26 shows how these two indexes can provide project insights.
EVM also provides established ways to forecast the project’s progression that the PM can
use to proactively identify situations that may require corrective action. The following are
the EVM standard forward-looking measurements.
● Variance At Completion (VAC) is the forecast of what the CV will be specifically at the
point of project completion. This represents the expected amount the final cost will be
over or under the original budget. The formula is VAC = BAC − EAC. This essentially is
the old budget minus the projected budget.
240 10 Controlling the Project
CPI = EV / AC
Bad Good
SPI = EV / PC
CPI and SPI Project Insights Estimate At Completion (EAC) is the esti-
●
4) Scenario four is when events are such that you need to start over to determine a new
accurate estimate. You take the Actual Cost and add a newly calculated ETC. Use this
formula: EAC = AC + ETC
● Estimate To Complete (ETC) is the expected remaining cost to complete the project. This
is not the expected total project cost (EAC), but rather what is yet to spend to complete
the project. ETC can be calculated one of two ways.
1) Based on past performance, use the formula: ETC = (BAC − EV)/CPI
2) ETC = a new revised estimate that is prepare for all remaining tasks
● To Complete Performance Index (TCPI) represents the CPI efficiency that is needed to
complete the project by the scheduled completion. This is an indication of whether the
project’s baseline schedule is recoverable. TCPI is calculated one of the following two
ways. In both cases, you divide the remaining work by the remaining cash.
1) Scenario one is when you assume the original BAC is still achievable. Use this for-
mula: TCPI = (BAC − EV)/(BAC − AC)
2) Scenario two is when you assume the original BAC is not achievable, and the EAC is
now the new budget target. Use this formula: TCPI = (BAC − EV)/(EAC − AC)
A TCPI of 1.3 means the project must be 30% more efficient to finish on budget.
11
PM Soft Skills
“Soft skills have more to do with who we are than what we know.”
– Marcel M. Robles
Soft skills drive business success. A study from Boston College, Harvard, and the University
of Michigan determined that soft skill training delivers a 250% Return-On-Investment
based on productivity and retention. Given the importance of these topics, perhaps Soft
Skills would be better labeled Human Skills.
“It’s what you learn after you know it all that counts.”
– John Wooden
Engineering is the application of mathematic and scientific principles to improve and con-
trol our lives and the world around us. It is a noble profession with grand aspirations.
Engineering is a strange combination of technical expertise, creativity, and stubborn deter-
mination. Most non-engineers have a stereotype image of engineers. Whether the profes-
sion attracts or amplifies the stereotypical personality is an interesting question. Regardless,
there is something different about most engineers compared to other professions. A large
part of this is because engineering is about more than solving problems; it is a mindset in
how we define problems and pursue solutions.
Let’s start by looking at the college engineering education. While there are exceptions,
most engineering students scored very high on their Math SAT/ACT, and perhaps less so
on the English sections. Most took advanced science in high school, and did quite well.
Most have an inherent interest and aptitude in math, combined with a natural curiosity to
know Why, and understand How, things work. They get to college and work at a major that
typically requires more credit hours to graduate, and has more demanding coursework
than many other majors. A wise engineer once told me that an engineer’s college education
was structured in phases to intentionally shape how we think, each tweaking our thinking
just enough to prepare us for the next phase. They teach us math because it is the language
of engineers, and so that we can think in different ways than we could before. Once we
understand the math, they teach us physics, which uses math to describe the world we
observe around us. How to define the problem. Once our mind has shifted enough, they
teach us Theoretical and Applied Mechanics (TAM), or other applied engineering sciences
so that we can learn the principles of statics, dynamics, thermodynamics, materials, and
others. How to manipulate the world. How to approach solutioning. Once we understand
those fundamental theories, we shift into our focused engineering disciplines where we
can apply all we have learned in the form of engineering. If we were to jump right into the
Engineering courses, while we may be able to solve the problems, we wouldn’t understand
how to think about the problems so that we can apply it correctly to other situations.
Engineering education is focused on training engineers how to think. How to define prob-
lems. How to assign risk. How to describe assumptions. How to think about solution strat-
egies. How to optimize resources. How to calculate and build solutions.
These are aspects that excite engineers. These are why most engineers became engineers.
We grew up building overly complex Lego creations and took things apart to figure out how
they worked. We asked Why…a lot. We played strategy games and enjoyed competing to get
the right answer. While there are certainly exceptions, there are undeniable commonalities
among most engineers. And I don’t know of any engineer who went through the gauntlet
of their engineering education with the aspiration of pushing papers. We want to solve
problems. We want to build things. It is how we are hard-wired.
This passion and technical expertise are fundamental to being a good PM. But they do
not ensure you will be a great PM. In order for you to be a good PM, you must have both
technical proficiency and the knowledge and understanding of the Project Development
Process. These are foundational for you to have the opportunity to be a great PM.
But in order to be a great PM, you must excel at skills that stereotypical engineers tradi-
tionally lack. While engineering educations are heavy on math, science, TAM, and engi-
neering, they may not include formal training in, or even recognize the importance of,
interpersonal soft skills. As you advance in your careers, emotional intelligence and inter-
posal skills can become even more valuable than your technical base. This is perhaps
nowhere more evident than as a PM, where most of your job is collaborating and commu-
nicating with your team, leadership, and stakeholders.
Below is an unprioritized list of essential PM soft skills that are required for you to reach
your full potential and be a great PM:
● Leadership – the ability to transform vision into reality by motivating, mobilizing, and
guiding a group of people to act toward achieving a common goal
● Team Building – the ability to bring individuals together into a cohesive unit that is
working interdependently and cooperatively to accomplish a common goal
● Coaching – the ability to promote individual development in a supportive and challeng-
ing manner that equips and empowers by providing personalized training and guidance
● Conflict Management – the ability to identify and constructively resolve conflict
promptly, sensibly, fairly, and efficiently
● Trust Building – establishing credibility and building trust to develop positive, productive,
and efficient working relationships with team members, leadership, and stakeholders
● Negotiation – the ability to effectively work with others to compromise and resolve dif-
ferences in a way that reaches a mutual agreement or finalizes a deal
11.2 Characteristics of a Successful PM 245
● Emotional Intelligence – the ability to monitor and discern others’ and one’s own emo-
tions, and then use this information to guide your thinking and behavior
● Political and Cultural Awareness – understanding political realities and cultural differ-
ences such that your future actions consider and leverage these constraints, traditions,
and opportunities
● Decision Making – the ability to evaluate options and wisely choose solutions that for-
ward project, program, and organization objectives
● Influencing – the power to be persuasive and have a meaningful impact on someone’s
decisions or actions, or the outcome of a process
● Communication – the ability to actively listen and effectively convey ideas and
information to others in written and verbal formats
● Motivation – the ability to instill and sustain in yourself and others the desire to act in
service of a goal
It is important to recognize no one is as skilled and proficient as they would like in all these
areas. However, this does not diminish the importance of each essential soft skill. As dis-
cussed later in this chapter, our individual professional development should be intention-
ally focused on these critical skills.
“What you do speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say.”
The PM is a critical and visible position for project development and program delivery.
Your team, leadership, and stakeholders are watching. Consistency and dependability are
paramount. Exceptional PMs realize there is more to this role than satisfying the project
criteria. While developing and delivery of your project is fundamental, how you do things
can be just as important as what you do. If you deliver your project on time and on budget
but lose your team and burn every relationship bridge in the process, you will likely struggle
with long-term, sustained success. It is a career-crippling mistake to assume you need to
sacrifice one to achieve the other.
Throughout a project, the PM may fill a variety of roles. From task master to cheerleader.
From delegator to party planner. From accountant to engineer. From planner to firefighter.
From strategist to micromanager. From negotiator to mediator. From spokesman to scribe.
From coach to mentee. From instigator to peacekeeper. From decision maker to seeing
which way the wind is blowing. In one meeting you may feel like the General issuing
orders to the troops, in the next you may feel more like a Private taking orders they don’t
yet fully understand. It is an exciting and challenging role.
A successful PM is able to seamlessly shift between the three critically important roles of
Leader, Manager, and Entrepreneur. A leader ensures the organization is doing the right
things. A manager ensures the organization is doing things the right way. An entrepreneur
ensures the organization is innovative and able to do old things in new and more efficient
246 11 PM Soft Skills
ways. Pending the audience or situation, a PM should provide the role that is needed to best
forward the project at any given time. Figure 11.1 lists core competencies for each of these
roles, in no particular order.
Core Competencies
Leader Manager Entrepreneur
Integrity/Honesty Dependable/Predictable Creative Thinker
Accountable Involves Others/Develops Persistence/Determination
Staff
Decisive/Courageous Communication Skills Assertive
Political Savvy Builds Trust/Respect Problem Solver
Inspires/Empowers Others Prioritizes Innovative
Focused Vision/Deliberate Sets Realistic Goals Commitment
Communication Skills Follow Through Initiative/Opportunity
Seeking
Shows Respect for Others Resolves Conflict Follow Through
Strategic Thinker Manages Time/Workload Resourceful
Relationship Builder Technically Proficient Self-Aware
Resilient Helps Others Succeed Charismatic/Persuasive
Effective Anticipates Future Needs Self-Confident
Negotiator/Influencer
Adaptable Organized Communication Skills
Maintains Balance Emotional Intelligence Situational Awareness
Effective Change Agent Goal Oriented Risk Tolerant
While there are stark differences between these three roles, there are also commonal-
ities. Common threads of integrity, honesty, interpersonal skills, communication skills,
follow through, and an inner public service motivation run through each of them. Use
these as a solid foundation to successfully transition between them.
Long-term PM success and sanity requires being able to efficiently transition from one
role to another. This begins with accepting the reality. You may not like it, but success
demands it. Filling these roles spans a wide range of characteristics, skills, and abilities. You
won’t have them all, and you don’t necessarily need to in order to experience success. Spend
the time and energy to be self-aware. Various personality assessments are discussed in
Chapter 7 of this book. Take them. Know your own strengths, weaknesses, and motivations,
as well as those for key team members. Leverage your strengths. Manage your weaknesses.
It is important to realize a PM has very different success criteria based upon the view-
point. A project’s budget, scope, and schedule are absolutely critical, but there is more.
Leadership considers a PM’s ability to lead a team, and organizational loyalty. Past
performance is valued, along with technical expertise, process knowledge, and a good
business and political senses. Charisma, stakeholder acumen, and availability also matter.
11.3 Meetings 247
As does a PM’s ability to think on their feet and present polished verbal and written com-
munications. A project’s team members may have very different hopes for the PM.
Typically, they want a technically competent leader who is forthright, follows-through, and
is respectful of their subject matter expertise. They value a constructive, as opposed to
destructive, communicator who praises in public, criticizes in private, and defends the
staff. They want to know they are being heard and their concerns are being considered, and
that a timely decision will be made.
Much like your projects, you are a work in progress. You should be a different PM five
years from now than you are now. If you aren’t, that’s a problem. Never stop learning.
Never stop growing. Be intentional in your professional development. Concentrate on
refining your strengths and improving your weaknesses. Learn something new every day.
Allow yourself the freedom to extend beyond your comfort zone so that you struggle or fail.
Learn from your mistakes. Find a trusted mentor. Share your experiences with others who
can benefit from your wisdom. Foster positive and productive working relationships that
are built on trust, respect, and productivity. Appreciate the different styles and skill sets
that generate results. Be thankful for your natural skills and abilities. Embrace every day
with joy and determination.
11.3 Meetings
– Thomas Sowell
Experienced PMs know not to confuse meetings with progress. While effective meetings
can be one of your greatest tools to advance a project, ineffective meetings can be an enor-
mous time sink that casts your project and team into a quagmire of unfocused, demoralized
disarray. So, what’s the difference?
As a PM progresses in their career and completes more complex projects, two truths
become self-evident. First, your most valuable commodity is time. Second, your most
valuable assets are your knowledge, experience, and relationships. Exceptional PMs use
meetings to strategically leverage their time to learn and disseminate critical knowledge
that forwards project and program objectives.
Every meeting should have a purpose. As PM you are the captain of the ship, and it is not
acceptable to wander about rudderless or float wherever the tides and winds take you. A
PM uses the project’s Budget-Scope-Schedule as the North Star to proactively chart to suc-
cess, and then strategically reacts to real-time challenges to stay the course. Meetings play
a critical role in both proactive navigation and responding to stay the course. This is espe-
cially true as you work with your team to deliver the project. As Warren Buffet said, “You
will never see eye-to-eye if you never meet face-to-face.”
As you formulate the meeting’s purpose, it can be helpful if you also consider the meet-
ing’s intent, the meeting format, the expected participants, and the desired results. Bear in
mind that every meeting should have both human connection and work product compo-
nents. Intentionally considering and strategically selecting these aspects of meetings will
increase team morale while driving your productivity.
248 11 PM Soft Skills
format. It is not uncommon for them to be overshadowed with stress of budget, scope, or
schedule constraints or anticipated busts. In these instances, it is imperative you remain
calm, focused, and actively maintain communications to effectively manage expectations.
5) Team-Building Meetings
Transportation project development and delivery is a team sport. Over the life of a project,
the PM may play the role of coach, team captain, quarterback, equipment manager, and
water boy. Through it all, an effective PM values that a cohesive, competent, and coop-
erating team will produce results. Team-Building meetings can be an invaluable tool to
create and maintain strong project teams. These meetings can assume a variety of forms,
ranging from one-on-one lunches, to retrospectives, to retreats, to team-building exercises,
to happy hours, to dinners or events to celebrate milestones or specific project successes.
Team-Building meetings should fortify your team, strengthen relationships, facilitate
understanding, build trust, and encourage collaboration. As with most things of value in
life, they must be earned. Collaborative success, consensus building, and realizing shared
goals are powerful ways to strengthen relationships and increase trust. A cohesive and
unified team is a remarkably powerful force to establishing and maintaining a sustained,
successful Transportation development and delivery program.
A PM rarely gets to choose his own team. Team-building activities can be especially
important when the team is dysfunctional or newly formed. If the dysfunction is concen-
trated to select individuals, it is imperative you reach out to them. You should strive to
identify the core issue(s), eliminate the dysfunction, remove the isolation, and bring them
back into the fold. This will likely also include reaching out the rest of the team to encourage
a welcoming environment. Proactive team building is especially critical when a new team
is being formed. One effective tactic can be to have everyone share some personal
information (e.g., where they grew up, how many siblings, how many children, pets, etc.),
their life priorities outside of work (e.g., family, travel, working out, etc.), work values (e.g.,
honesty, timeliness, professionalism, respect, etc.), and project goals (e.g., on-time, on-bud-
get, satisfy scope, etc.). This can be a powerful way to quickly lay the foundations of trust
as the team realizes their common life priorities, work values, and project goals.
Generally speaking, most meetings lasting more than an hour experience diminishing
return in productivity.
If applicable, always end meetings with recapping any action items for the groups. Action
Items are to-do list items that are only complete if they include:
1) What needs to be done?
2) Who is going to do it?
3) By when?
“Time is our scarcest resource and unless it is managed nothing else can be managed.”
– Peter Druker
Below are some business and project management concepts and tools that may help you
refine your own style to be even more efficient and productive.
● Quadrant 3 represents tasks that are time sensitive but they do not advance your
long-term goals. Where possible, these tasks should be delegated to others so you can
focus on more important tasks.
● Quadrant 4 represents tasks that are neither urgent nor important. Avoid doing these
tasks as they are likely not worth your time.
When determining which tasks to keep, and which tasks to delegate, this general rule may be
helpful. Delegate repetitive tasks that take time, keep tasks that require seasoned judgment.
but crafting a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) can provide clarity of direction. If possible,
touch each issue only once and then move on to the next one.
Find and refine your own personal time management style, approach, and tools. Strive to
ensure your actions are adding value to your projects, your team, and your organization.
Busy can be the enemy of achievement. Ensure you are being productive, not just active.
Maintain a healthy work-life balance. Take care of yourself, physically, emotionally, and
spiritually. Stay true to your morals, ethics, objectives, and expectations. Spend time with
your family. Eat healthy. Exercise regularly. Get plenty of sleep. There is no softer pillow
than a clear conscious. A life in harmony can be exceptional.
set of persuasion weapons from which you can choose to arm your influencing arsenal, as
well as the knowledge to recognize what tactic is being used against you, and how best to
counter it.
Balanced
is a powerful action that is both free and priceless. Create a visible platform where your team
feels safe and confident in driving innovation and productivity. Be a champion for your team
and team members. This simple act can ignite motivation and build fierce loyalty.
accomplishments look easy. Maybe they just have good timing, good luck, or good karma?
More likely they were prepared and then identified and seized the opportunity.
Organizational intelligence and situational awareness are understanding how to get
things done. It is grasping organizations’ realities, strengths, and limitations. All organiza-
tions have a formal org chart and informal channels. Astute PMs understand positional
and hierarchical authority, but are also well connected to the organizational influencers.
They understand both how things are supposed to get done, and how they really work.
Situational awareness is both a mindset and a skill set. You should view challenges
through your situational awareness glasses. Is there more to the story or this issue at hand?
Why are they asserting that position now? Why is this manager always negative in the
afternoons but more receptive to ideas in the morning? Situational awareness begins with
being curious and observant. Think before you speak. Pay attention to nonverbal clues and
communications. Listen and seek to understand. Don’t win the battle only to lose the war.
It is the ability to read a situation, know the cultural and political pulse, and discern the
real issues at play. It is introducing an initiative at the right time to the right people in the
right context. It is advancing solutions that solve the immediate problem and the one loom-
ing on the horizon. It is proactively taking care of your team members. This mindset and
knowledge will sharpen your intuition that will allow you to more strategically and effec-
tively advance your projects and initiatives.
PMs with great situational awareness attract attention. They leverage these insights to
build and maintain that all important project momentum. There may be nothing more
damaging to a public transportation project’s budget, scope, and schedule than bureaucratic
inertia. However, even in challenging situations, PMs with situational awareness find ways
to make critical contributions that add value to the projects, processes, and organization.
This reality and reputation can unlock tremendous opportunities in influence management.
Have you noticed that being right is often not enough to persuade another? Maybe they refuse
the truth? Or maybe they refuse to acknowledge the truth from you? Or maybe there is more
going on? Analytic reasoning is a starting point for effective persuasion, but it doesn’t end there.
11.6.1 Propositions
Before you can effectively assert or refute arguments, it is beneficial to understand the
three general types of propositions, or assertions.
Propositions of fact assert a truth or falsity of some matter. The intention is to convince you
to accept a premise as factually true or false. “Traffic is worse in our subdivision now that it was
five years ago.” When advocating or refuting a proposition of fact, it is critical to understand
definitions. What defines “worse” – peak traffic flow, total traffic volume, more through
traffic, more truck traffic, etc.? Are these definitions industry standards, personal experience,
historic precedence, by comparison with other areas, by a recognized expert, or some other
foundation? Pay attention. He who controls the definitions controls the argument.
262 11 PM Soft Skills
general to the particular. Deductive arguments have two areas of weakness to guard against,
or attack. If one agrees with the premise and cannot find fault with the logic, then they must
agree with the conclusion. Conversely, the conclusions are only as strong as the premise and
logic. Often the premise involves definitions or industry standards, which makes the logic
especially critical to the validity of the conclusion. Beware using an inductive conclusion as
the premise in your deductive argument. Also beware deductive arguments based on emo-
tional premise or upon personal feelings or experiences. You must first address the implied
emotion before you can reasonably disagree.
Inductive reasoning starts with specific observations and then infers general conclusions
for all circumstances. For instance, an adjacent property owner may say, “Your organiza-
tion completely botched right-of-way negotiations with me. I’m sure you did with everyone else
too. How do we even know the proposed traffic signal design will work?” The strength and
weakness of this approach is whether the particular examples can logically scale to be evi-
dence of the overarching assertions.
This approach can be an especially persuasive if one pairs historical data with anecdotal
experiences. The noted preacher Henry Ward Beecher said, “An illustration is a window in
an argument that lets in light.” A well-crafted personal anecdote can vividly awake emo-
tions and create a remarkable loyalty to a specific position. This is a powerful tool of per-
suasion, particularly when combined with the authoritative credibility of historic statistics.
The primary weakness of inductive reasoning is when the conclusion goes beyond what
the example supports, thus making the conclusion conjecture. When refuting inductive
positions, consider the following. The example must be factual. It can’t be hypothetical. Is
it based on emotions? Is the example applicable to the issue at hand? Is the example a typ-
ical representation of reality, or is it an outlier? As the saying goes, hard cases make bad
law. Are there exceptions? Remember, it only takes one exception to disprove the logic leap
from the specific to the general. Are the historical data and statistics accurate, timely, and
applicable? Is the generalized conclusion logical, or is it slanted to advance an agenda? Is
the asserted conclusion relevant and worthwhile?
readily dismissing the reality that most decisions are compromises that may both positively
and negatively impact the projects’ budget, scope, and schedule. Procrastinators may lack
follow-through or simply enjoy the adrenaline of pressing toward stress-filled deadlines.
This can also be a tactic to create conflict or assert one’s own importance by forcing issues
to become critical path tasks or be addressed by a larger group. Distractors are those who
pursue tangential ideas at the expense of the focused objectives.
When dealing with negative thinkers, it can be beneficial to try to ascertain the motivation
behind the negativity, and then utilize previously mentioned tactics to combat them. It
should be noted that this is best approached as a process, and not hoping for a single
eye-opening realization. One’s pessimism may be rooted in deeper psychological and personal
webs than just the project at hand. Conversion from pessimism takes time and trust.
their blocked desire, i.e. – the town needs an enema. You can appeal to beloved symbols or
sentiments, using stories and emotionally loaded vocabulary. You can also appeal to their
wants, fears, angers, or compassion to properly frame the context of the conversation.
You may choose to rely on the persuasiveness of the speaker. Positional authority and a
respected reputation can be leveraged. Being genuine, sincere, and kind can go a long way
to establishing credibility. An appropriate sense of humor can be disarming and engaging.
A strong and pleasing voice with an interesting pitch, rate, volume, and cadence helps.
Active listening body language, consistent eye contact, good posture, reasonable hand and
body movement all add to your message. These can be powerful tools when combined with
a sincere and enthusiastic desire to obtain a response.
Your style of speech also matters. Choose effective, image-bearing words. Use names and
personal pronouns. Use simple words, avoid acronyms, and choose action verbs. Use
simple, balanced sentence structures. Avoid sentences where the meaning is not clear until
the end. When listing things, try to limit it to three. Strategically work in rhetorical devices
like the direct question, figures of speech, applicable quotes, comparisons, rhetorical ques-
tions, and human-interest stories. Never underestimate the power of repetition. Tell them
what you are going to say, say it, and then tell them what you told them.
You are responsible for your own career. You are responsible for your own professional
development. Employers and industry organizations can provide tremendous resources
and guidance, but you are charting your own course. If you are not advancing or devel-
oping as you would like, look in the mirror.
If you are an engineer, earning the licensure of being a registered Professional Engineer
(PE) will likely open professional doors for you. The contrary is perhaps even more true;
you may find not having your PE will eventually limit your career advancement. If you are
a PM, earning a Project Management Institute (PMI) certification may present you with
additional opportunities. For instance, becoming a certified Project Management
Professional (PMP) adds an industry-recognized credential that increases your market-
ability. It is also likely the process of becoming registered or certified will increase your
knowledge, skills, and abilities that will enable you to be more productive and efficient in
your work. Licensures and Certifications are important steps in your career, but they are
not the end goal. They form a solid foundation upon which you can build your career.
Most licenses and certifications require some ongoing Professional Development Hours
(PDH) or Continuing Education Units (CEU) to remain in good standing with the issuing
body. Choose to make these much more than just obligations you seek to most expedi-
tiously satisfy. Eagerly pursue knowledge for the sake of knowledge. Make a plan for your
own personal development, and then be intentional in achieving it. You are solely respon-
sible for your own personal development.
11.7 Professional Development 267
12
Real-World Challenges
“Life is what we make it, always has been, always will be.”
– Grandma Moses
12.1 Ethics
Nurses, doctors, and pharmacists consistently rank as the most trusted and ethical profes-
sions, followed closely by civil engineers. I suspect healthcare professions top these lists
because we want to believe those who are directly caring for our health are altruistically
acting in our best interests. But then civil engineers? Why is this the public perception? Is
it warranted? Do we live up to these expectations?
Ethics are the values and moral principles that guide our decisions and govern our
behavior. They are the parameters within which we operate. Our character should reliably
reveal our personal ethics. Malcolm Forbes said, “You can easily judge the character of
others by how they treat those who they think can do nothing for them.” My favorite definition
of character is that it is who you are when no one but God is watching. Consistency is par-
amount. As Vince Lombardi said, “Watch your actions, they become your habits. Watch your
habits, they become your character.” Hypocrisy should be abhorred, both privately and pro-
fessionally. Lombardi also said, “Practice does not make perfect. Only perfect practice makes
perfect.”
Our personal ethics are the foundation upon which our professional ethics should be
built. While there are certainly professional situations and decisions where right and wrong
are clearly evident, others live within the vast shades of gray. It is here where one’s character
and ethics become invaluable, serving as the North Star to safely navigate the seas of
ambiguity.
Public transportation projects have a direct and substantial impact on the community’s
quality of life. In the development and delivery of transportation projects, we serve as
public agents and responsible stewards of public funds. As such, PMs and engineers should
hold themselves to the highest of standards, fiercely guarding and protecting the public
trust. This is especially true if they are licensed Professional Engineers (PE). In addition to
the many business and legal reasons, it is the right thing to do. Or as Mark Twain said,
“Always do the right thing – this will gratify some and astonish the rest.”
A civil engineer’s ethical obligation is first to the public, then to their employer and
client, and finally to other professionals. The National Society of Professional Engineers
(NSPE) has identified six fundamental canons of their Code of Ethics that impact each
obligation.
1) Engineers should recognize that the general public’s quality of life is directly dependent
upon their designs, decisions, and engineering judgments. As such it is imperative engi-
neers hold paramount public safety, health, and welfare.
2) Engineers should practice professional competence by preparing, performing, sealing,
and overseeing work only in areas for which they are qualified.
3) Engineers should maintain objectivity and truth in all professional services including
design, reports, statements, and testimony. All relevant and pertinent information
should be considered so that a sound technical decision can be made based upon
technical expertise, relevant experience, and honest conviction.
4) Engineers should be a faithful agent or trustee for their employer and client, and avoid
all potential conflicts of interest.
5) Engineers’ words and actions should be professional and remain above reproach by pre-
serving confidentiality and even the appearance of impropriety. Engineers should build
their professional reputation on the demonstrated merit of their expertise and provided
services.
6) Engineers should act in an honest, forthright, and responsible manner that enhances
and advances our noble profession
In ethical matters, do the right thing, all the time. Public transportation projects are by
definition, public projects. Assume all of your actions and decisions may be questioned or
investigated in the local news. The ends do not justify the means. PMs and PEs must
fiercely guard their credibility. As Abraham Lincoln said, “Be sure you put your feet in the
right place, then stand firm.”
Public Transportation Projects can take a while to develop and deliver. Boston’s Big Dig
began in 1982 and was completed in 2007. There are plenty of other high-profile, and more
local, examples of projects that take decades to complete. These legacy projects are not typ-
ical, but also not uncommon. Pending the complexity, even newer, fast-tracked projects
will take years to complete. While there are many valid reasons for these durations, one
reason for delay that is not often discussed is staff turnover.
12.2 Project Continuity 271
systems. Move to quickly understand the project goals, its challenges, influential stake-
holders, expectations, and risks. Get to know your team. Work to build relationships and
learn their strengths and weaknesses. Keep the project momentum by focusing on the next
immediate milestones. Unless a decision requires immediate action, don’t rush to judg-
ments. The notable exception to this is if the project is running late or over budget. If you
are “righting the ship,” then you need to establish clear command control early on. This
does not necessarily translate into arbitrary assertions of positional power, but it does mean
you may need to immediately address the culture and prioritization of project tasks.
Pending project goals and expectations, you may need to do that which is necessary to put
the project back on track. This can be difficult to do without alienating the team. In these
instances, creating unified buy-in on shared goals and celebrating team successes can be
powerful instruments to propel the project forward.
“The chaos doesn’t end, you kinda’ just become the calm.”
– Nikki Rowe
If before your work day is ended you make a daily to-do list for the next day (a practice I
would highly encourage), it is not uncommon that halfway through the next day you will
not have accomplished much on your prepared list. The work life of a PM is dynamic.
Flexibility, focus, and perspective are keys to success. Remain flexible in approach, but
maintain a laser-like focus on your objectives. It is not uncommon to, in real-time, priori-
tize urgent matters on different projects, all of which have to be done within a timeframe
that dictates not all will get done. Effective PMs know how to manage chaos.
Time is a PM’s most precious resource. Use it wisely. The temptation is to work to reduce
the number of items on your list of action items, perhaps even starting with the easiest ones
to expedite achievement. While this may be productive to a point, it is more important that
you are strategic. Be intentional with your time. You control your day, not the other way
around. As Coach John Wooden said, “Never mistake activity for achievement.”
Experience brings perspective, which is a wonderful tool to assist in prioritizing tasks.
Wisdom is knowing which fires of the day are truly important. Don’t do the most things
you can do in a day; do the most impactful things you can do in a day. This means some
days you may only work on one thing, but if it the most important, then that is what you
should do. Filter out the static to concentrate on what really matters.
One important function of a PM is to make decisions. In addition to making a wise
decision, a strong PM predicts and prepares for the intended and unintended consequences
of the decision. They think about what other disciplines, team members, and stakeholders
will be impacted. What will be the impacts to the project’s budget, scope, and schedule?
How will this impact resources availability?
While making wise decisions can be critical to success, indecision can kill it. As the
saying goes, “Be decisive. Right or wrong, make a decision. The road of life is paved with flat
squirrels who couldn’t make a decision.” Sometimes you need to make a decision. Often this
is in the midst of chaos where ambiguity is rampant. You may not know all the information
you want or need to know. Especially in these circumstances, remember indecision is a
decision. So be intentional and make a decision. Ask for advice. Defer to your organiza-
tion’s preferences or precedents. Consult key project documents. But make a decision. If
you are unclear how to proceed, remember your first priority is to guide the project to suc-
cess within the triple constraint of the established budget, scope, and schedule. If changes
need to be made, then follow applicable change management procedures. Evaluate unex-
pected developments through risk management glasses, and follow established risk
management procedures. Take care of your team. Do the right thing. And say Thank You to
those who helped.
Chaos is a relative term, really more of a feeling. It is a perceived lack of control or order.
A project can be progressing well, and then something changes. Momentum shifts. And
like a rising tide the team, stakeholders, leadership, or even the PM can suddenly feel like
the wheels are falling off even as you are racing downhill without trustworthy brakes.
Silence feeds the fear and speculations. Particularly when things aren’t going well and you
don’t know what to say, communication is imperative. There is a reason why citizens tune
in to hear their leaders address a national emergency in real-time. It is not so much that we
expect them to have all the answers, or even know all the questions. But it is reassuring to
know there is someone in charge. It is comforting to know they are aware of the issue and
working on a solution. Team members, executive leadership, and stakeholders are no dif-
ferent. The PM needs to exude reasonable and justified assurance that this too shall pass.
274 12 Real-World Challenges
Make time out every day to think. Thinking is an undervalued and increasingly rare asset
in the workplace. In our rush to do more with less, we often don’t take the time to ask what
it is we should be doing and why. As PM, you are captaining your projects’ ships through
the sea of development. It is imperative you take time to think about the looming storms,
keep an eye on your outside threats, evaluate your crews’ strengths and weaknesses, take
inventory of your supplies and morale, review your shipping charter, and then chart a
course for your fleet to success. You can’t do this if you constantly reacting. You cannot
project stability and instill confidence to your team, your stakeholders, or your leadership
if you are constantly reacting. You need to think, plan, and execute.
When chaos rages as a tempest around you, be a steady hand. Be predictable in behavior.
Avoid extreme highs and lows. Be approachable. Lead by example. The PM sets the tone for
the team. Intentionally strive to convey a composed and calm demeanor. Be like a duck on
a pond. Even though your legs may be paddling like crazy under the water, others see you
calmly and gracefully gliding across the surface. Regardless of your schedule or remaining
action items, give your full attention to the issue at the moment. Listen, think, make a
decision, and move on. When things became more chaotic, you need to concentrate on
your stillness. When arguments become emotional and frenetic, you need to focus on solu-
tions. As Sun Tzu said, “In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity.”
These same principles hold true when crisis occurs. In general, when crisis occurs, the
following game plan seems to provide some reasonable guidance.
● Safety first – Identify and take whatever actions are necessary for the safety of those who
may be immediately involved, and to ensure public safety
● Think – don’t react immediately or overreact
● Define the problem
● Identify alternatives
● Don’t access blame
● Take positive, authoritative action and pursue best solutions
● When the dust settles…evaluate the results and take corrective action, if necessary
● Communicate in all directions – up to leadership, down to staff and subject matter
experts, and out to stakeholders
In most cases, you will have ample advance notice to prepare for an upcoming audit. If
they do not provide one, request a list of suggested documents and records they will want
to review. You will also want to know a schedule of their visit and how many people will be
in their party. They may not provide you the list of names who be visiting, but they can
likely give you a sense of the areas of expertise that will be represented and requested. This
can be useful information in helping you determine the best space for the audit, and the
personnel you will want to have present or available.
When formulating an audit strategy, you should start with the list of documents and
records they will want to review. This will give you an indication of how wide a net they
will cast into your data archives. It can also provide insight as to the focus. Pending the
state of your records, their request can represent a significant effort. You need to plan so
you have the requested documentation available and organized. It can be helpful to estab-
lish a number or color-coded filing system to expedite easy access. This responsiveness can
go a long way to demonstrating you are taking the audit seriously, and is tangible evidence
you are conscientiously trying to do the right thing.
Pending the audit, just as important as their requested records are your documented Standard
Operating Procedures (SOPs). Auditors love SOPs. It allows them to easily examine your pro-
tocol and quickly have a feel for your workflow. SOPs allow them to easily check off the boxes
on their forms that you have a documented procedure. SOPs also provide a vehicle that can be
modified to easily incorporate their recommendations. If you do not have SOPs that you antic-
ipate they will want, you can quickly create them or find another way to demonstrate your
process is logical, consistent, and complies with the spirit and letter of the regulations.
As you prepare, it is appropriate to consider who will be involved in the audit. You need
to make available those individuals who have specific roles or responsibilities that are criti-
cal to supplying accurate insight of your procedures. You want to carefully choose individ-
uals who speak the auditors’ language. The classic example is ensuring your accountant
and controller are available to respond to financial questions. You also want to choose
representatives who are skilled and deliberate communicators who say what they mean,
mean what they say, and have the wisdom and discipline to practice discretion when
appropriate. Charisma can help, but is not the most desired characteristic. Most auditors
have little interest in establishing connections. The confidence and competency of your
audit response team’s lead spokesman can go a long way to providing a positive, forthright,
and cooperative impression in the auditors’ minds that can easily transfer to your program.
Many larger audits will have a multiple team approach. In this case, assign team leaders
and support staff well ahead of the audit. Ensure everyone knows their role and authority
during the audit. It is preferred that your organization speak with a single voice. The sec-
ond-best option is to speak as a single voice. So go over with your staff what they should
and should not discuss. Make sure each individual only speaks to their areas of direct
responsibility. This will minimize conflicting reports. These reminders are especially
important when auditors employ the method of attempting to separate staff on a team and
ask them all the same question to see if consistent answers are provided. This is a logical
tactic as they want to make sure the organization’s SOPs are being carried out by those who
actually do the work. So, if they ask the construction inspector about an accounting
question, it is the inspector’s responsibility to decline to answer and refer the auditor back
to the team leader so he can make sure the right person is responding to their inquiries.
12.4 Surviving an Audit 277
perspective is critical as you decide what to do with these recommendations. You may use
your communication and political skills to shape the audit results and frame the recom-
mendations to your executive and political leaders. If appropriate, do not underestimate
the opportunities audit results and recommendations can present to be an impetus for
needed or desired change.
“You must learn a new way to think before you can master a new way to be.”
– Marianne Williamson
Success breeds opportunity. The PMs on most larger projects were first granted that oppor-
tunity because of their success managing smaller projects. Not everyone can successfully
make this transition. One common reason for failure is that may PMs naively believe they
can scale up to larger projects by using the same processes, tools, and mindset that were
successful on smaller projects. They don’t fully appreciate the exponential increase in com-
plexity. This can be the significance of the unintended consequences of poor decisions and
missed deadlines, which can be crushing. The mounting avalanche of information and
decisions can quickly snowball and become overwhelming without previous experience,
strong procedures, and an experienced team. Successful large project PMs understand they
cannot run a large project like they did a small project, or they will fail.
So, what defines a small vs. large project? Most rely on cost (budget) thresholds. Some
rely on anticipated schedule durations. Others rely on the engineering complexity. More
advanced organizations select or assign the PM based upon a collection of factors. This may
include budget, schedule, and scope, but may also include considerations such as stake-
holder involvement, anticipated public opposition, risk control, political sensitivity or
indecision, team experience, utilities and right-of-way issues, presence of railroads, envi-
ronmental concerns, specialized construction challenges, problem and solution complexity
and communication demands.
Upscaling magnifies the bad and makes the good significantly harder to achieve. In order
to combat this immutable law of scaling, a PM should focus on the following ten areas that
should be intentionally addressed:
12.5.1 Budget
As a project budget grows, so do the financial complexities, oversight expectations, and
accounting scrutiny. Routine tasks like processing invoices and tracking the budget can
become far more complicated than expected. Additionally, as a project’s budget and com-
plexity increase, the estimation method may need to change. Be aware the level of effort to
secure an accurate estimate on a larger project may be significant. Quantitatively converting
qualitative risks to money, and then forecasting appropriate contingencies, reserves, and
inflation rates can be as much art as science. Established financial systems, practiced pro-
cedures, proven policies, and experienced administrative support are critical to creating
and maintaining the essential documentation needed to successfully execute the project
and satisfy all contractual and funding obligations.
12.5 Scaling Project Approaches 279
12.5.2 Scope
Fluidity and flexibility are essential to success of small projects. Larger projects require a
very different administrative structure. The complexities and nuances of a large project
scope can be significant. This can often result in a voluminous scoping document that the
PM must vigilantly protect. Scope creep is real. On larger projects, it is imperative the PM
rely on established change management procedures to document any changes, and inte-
grate them into the workflow while minimizing impact to the critical path.
12.5.3 Schedule
Microsoft Excel can only carry you so far. Larger projects can become exceedingly complex.
The number and interconnectivity of tasks require something more robust. Making,
tracking, and maintaining schedules should be done in programs with dynamic, critical
path method schedule engines such as MS Project, Project Web Application, or Primavera.
These programs allow you to manage the project, and properly evaluate schedule impacts
when performing risk analysis. These programs are also powerful enough to track and
manage resources and costs, if desired.
12.5.4 Teams
PMs can have tremendous success managing small projects with streamlined, nimble
teams that share common goals and a history of trust of productivity. There is a tipping
point where the critical mass of larger projects requires a completely different para-
digm. The size and the makeup of a large project team often includes hierarchical layers
with new and changing faces. Building and maintaining a high performing team on a
large project is a critical and significant accomplishment in its own right. A PM should
expect turnover in staff and key team positions throughout the life of a larger project.
Integrating new team members into the tasks, expectations, and culture of the project is
critical to success.
12.5.5 Communications
It is simple math. A team of two people have one communication link. A team of three has three
links. A team of four has six links. A team of five has ten possible communication links. As the
size of the project team and number of stakeholders increases, so does the time a PM must dedi-
cate to communication. Status reports, engineering summaries, meeting minutes, official
letters, requests, approvals, press releases, emails, public involvement documentation, and so
much more must all be carefully crafted, distributed, and stored. Perhaps nothing is more dis-
ruptive and demoralizing to a team than an open-ended Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)
request on a large project where a comprehensive document management approach is nonexis-
tent. A PM must control the message, and strive to keep communications among the team, and
to the stakeholders, effective and accurate to efficiently forward progress while minimizing inac-
curate assumptions, misconceptions rumors, and innuendos.
280 12 Real-World Challenges
12.5.7 Risks
Risks on smaller projects tend to be less in numbers, intensity, and complexity. Consequently,
a small project PM can often very successfully identify, evaluate, and resolve risks as they arise
in a rather informal manner. On larger projects, this is a recipe for disaster. Established risk
tools (e.g., risk analysis, risk log, etc.) should be leveraged within a proven risk management
environment. A PM must be vigilant in encouraging his team to identify, and appropriately
elevate, risks so they may be properly evaluated and addressed. Risk resolution should follow
established change management procedures that evaluate actions based upon resultant effects
on budgets, scope, and schedule. Additionally, there may be management actions to accom-
modate risks (e.g., adjusting contingencies, updating schedule and then budget, etc.). The
larger and more complex a project is, the more time the PM will spend on risk management.
proactively seeks out key stakeholders and involves them in the project and process. The
time and effort to meet with them, listen to their evolving concerns, and keep them
informed should not be underestimated.
“Good governance is less about structure and rules than being focused, effective, and
accountable.”
– Pearl Zhu
Guideline
Applicability
What Standard
Why Policy
12.6.1 Policies
Successful organizations start with the Why. Policies should address the fundamental ques-
tions of Why an organization does what it is doing. They are typically formal statements
that are written or approved by Senior Management. Driven by business objectives and
consistent with mission and vision statements, policies convey the organization’s
282 12 Real-World Challenges
principles and the risks leadership is willing to accept. They lay the foundation upon which
all other aspects of the guidance hierarchy are built. They should be solid, and insulated
from whimsy and hurried change.
12.6.2 Standards
After you know the Why, you can focus on the What. Standards detail the What. They
describe what is required in quantifiable measures. In transportation projects these can be,
and often are, established at Federal, State, and Local levels, with the higher levels trump-
ing the lower levels. Standards are the rules that give formal policies shape and direction.
One critical nuance in standards is the vast intentional difference between the verbs
“shall” and “should.” “Shall” dictates a mandatory requirement that must be satisfied.
“Should” opens the door for some flexibility in interpretation and application in the form
of sound engineering judgment. In case it is needed or justified, every PM should know the
avenues by which exceptions and waivers can be considered and granted for the various
standards. Generally speaking, exceptions and waivers should not replace sound engi-
neering design. They are intended to be a Plan B, and should be used as such.
12.6.3 Procedures
With the Why and What defined, an organization can effectively describe the How, which
also includes the Who and When. Procedures provide detailed step-by-step implementation
instructions on how to achieve the goal or mandate. The word procedure is derived from the
word process. Procedures should build upon the Why of Policies and the What of Standards,
and focus on the detailed guidance that directs individuals to successfully complete an
established process. As such they should be readable and functional, finding the sweet spot
of how much information to provide so all will understand and be able to comply.
While some procedures become entrenched and bear the formal or informal label of
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), others are prone to change. Policies should stand
the test of time. By contrast Procedures may often be modified in response, or to drive,
changing business, industry, legislative, or operational preferences or requirements.
Accordingly, procedures should adhere to strict change control processes that document
changes and clearly tracks historic and current versions of the guidance.
12.6.4 Guidelines
Guidelines are less formal recommendations of action that can provide very effective
guidance where other documents are silent. They typically take the form of general recom-
mendations while inherently providing flexibility for the unknown and sound engineering
judgment. Guidelines can prove particularly helpful when specific standards do not apply.
These are the time proven advice of “General Rules of Thumb” and “Best Practices” that
can help one navigate through a sea of ambiguity.
12.7 Planning Fallacy 283
“The planning fallacy is that you make a plan, which is usually a best-case scenario. Then
you assume that the outcome will follow your plan, even when you should know better.”
– Daniel Kahneman
Most transportation projects are delivered late and are over budget. How is this possible
when they are typically designed and managed by intelligent, motivated, and well-inten-
tioned engineers? Yet Boston’s Big Dig that was supposed to be completed for $2.8 billion
in 1997 was finally completed in 2007 for $14.8 billion. The Concorde supersonic airplane
experienced cost overruns of 1,100%. The Sydney Opera House was over budget by 1,400%!
How is this possible? Engineers are supposed to be good at math and logic games. And
aren’t schedules and cost estimates exactly that?
In 1979, Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky introduced the idea of the Planning
Fallacy, the human phenomena in which we tend to grossly underestimate the time it takes
to accomplish tasks. Kahneman later refined this principle in 2003 to extend beyond sched-
ules and also include cost and risk.
Consider a survey by College Board of 1 million college students. 70% ranked their own
leadership abilities above average compared to their peers, while just 2% rated themselves
below average. In their abilities to get along with others, 25% ranked themselves in the top
1%. In another study, on average incoming college students expected to academically per-
form better than 84% of their peers. These opinions defy both logic and reality. You might
think we get better at this with age and wisdom. But generally speaking, we are astonish-
ingly terrible at estimating, be it in terms of time, cost, risk, or even our own abilities.
In addition to our own estimating limitations, there are other personal, professional, and
institutional reasons that consciously or subconsciously promote the Planning Fallacy.
This may be especially true within the transportation industry. Those that start a transpor-
tation project rarely finish it. Planners, politicians, and engineers need to sell the project so
it is selected and funded. Planning predictions are naturally forward focused, which makes
it far easier to disregard past performance and be overly optimistic with current situations
and anticipated efficiencies from ongoing or anticipated leadership initiatives and process
improvements. It is common to overestimate benefits and organizational efficiencies while
underestimating schedule, costs, and risks. The reality is optimistic estimates boost the
project’s benefit/cost ration, and increases the chance of securing funding. Sell the idea and
sort out the details later. Optimistic estimates make great political sound bites, resonate
with the community, and can help advance individual careers. Optimistic estimates are
consistent with an organization’s aggressive objectives and stretch goals.
There are other practical reasons why the Planning Fallacy may occur. Successful people
often assume others, and the organization itself, does or should have the same productivity
as they do. The reality can be quite different. A better PM will deliver a project faster than
a less skilled PM. Professional leadership is not an interchangeable commodity.
Additionally, it is easy to create a best-case scenario for a high-priority project that does not
take into account other projects and initiatives, that are known or may as yet be undefined,
that will drain resources from an idealized schedule. Projects schedules are often created
with the inherent assumption that they are and will always remain the top priority for all
284 12 Real-World Challenges
working on it from start to finish. Leveling resources and workloads across the program are
rarely reflected in individual project schedules.
Further exacerbating the impact of the Planning Fallacy is the Optimism Bias, which is
our natural tendency to underestimate the probability of experiencing adverse effects. This
can go well beyond a glass half-full optimism. Our perception of risk can be in direct oppo-
sition to contrary evidence, and even our own personal experiences. We tend to misper-
ceive causes of certain events, giving ourselves perhaps undue credit for positive outcomes,
while we may readily attribute negative outcomes to external factors. We tend to overexag-
gerate our talents, wisdom, influence, and control over risk factors that we truly don’t con-
trol, such as inflation, stakeholder and community sentiment, and so forth. We are also
quick to discount the Black Swan event. Named after the historic belief that black swans
did not exist until they were discovered in nature, this principle captures our inclination to
disregard an unusual event or circumstance that we consider beyond the realm of normal
expectations. In retrospect, these high-impact events happen more frequently than we
acknowledge, such as a hurricane disrupting construction or supply chains in the southeast
United States.
Complicating matters is the fact that in transportation projects, those making the opti-
mistic estimates rarely bear the consequences of resulting budget and schedule busts.
Underfunded projects with inadequate scopes and unrealistic schedules set unachievable
expectations with leadership and stakeholders. There is also a real human impact on the
PM and staff who find themselves in a very difficult situation that institutionally constrains
their opportunities to succeed. Morale quickly erodes, accelerating with each request to
justify the delays and cost overruns while providing yet another recovery action plan. If
persistent and systemic, the discontent will ultimately produce staff ambivalence, turn-
over, and loss of agency credibility.
Once the original optimistic estimate is made, another tenant of the Planning Fallacy
takes hold, Anchoring. This is when the original estimate intentionally or unintentionally
becomes the default benchmark. Anchoring can be strengthened when a project schedule
or budget is tied to other issues and leveraged for other uses. Consider the politician who
promises to deliver a signature project by the next election, or a public speech by leadership
committing to turning around a stagnant project by an arbitrary or meaningful date. The
more entrenched that original anchored estimate becomes, the harder it is to revise it. This
can be especially true in organizations that culturally discourage bad news that conflicts
with the overall message and theme, regardless of its merit. Bearers of bad news may be
labeled difficult, disloyal, or incapable. In extreme cases they may be professionally
shunned, or even have their careers stalled or redirected.
Like so many other things in life, the first step toward a solution is acknowledging there
is a problem. Recognition of the Planning Fallacy by Project Managers, Program Managers,
Planners, and Leadership can go a long way to enabling an effective approach. Practically,
it is paramount that schedule and budget estimates are prepared to appropriate baselines
of similar projects. These reference class projects provide comparisons to actual past
performance. This data should be adjusted to account for risk and confidence levels in the
estimates. Mature organizations will evaluate their projects in order to create solid, pro-
gram-wide schedule templates that balance past performance with department objectives.
These templates should be regularly proofed against actual past performance.
12.8 Closing Thoughts 285
Optimism is a wonderful attribute that enables us to look forward with eager anticipa-
tion. Optimism can motivate employees and inspire a community. Optimism can improve
morale and create a vibrant and healthy culture. While there may be many reasons to be
optimistic as we estimate project schedules, costs, and risks, it is our responsibility as engi-
neers and public servants to also be realistic. Not only is it the better long-term business
decision, it is the right thing to do. Credibility can take a lifetime to earn, and a moment to
lose. Fiercely guard it.
– Simon Sinek
In his book Start with Why, Simon Sinek details the critical importance of building your
business foundation on the WHY. Most businesses focus on the WHAT. But businesses that
build fanatical loyalty among their employees and customers have an inherent consistency of
purpose and passion that permeates their operations at all levels. They start with the WHY.
Those of us fortunate enough to work in the transportation industry, never have to
wonder about the WHY. We have a noble calling. We save lives. We ensure public safety. We
fuel economic growth and development. We ensure the efficient movement of people and
goods that drives, sustains, and enhances the economy. We make a difference. We make a
direct, meaningful, and enduring impact on people’s lives, improving the quality of life in
the communities in which we live, work, worship, and play. As PMs, we are uniquely posi-
tioned to drive the development and delivery of transportation projects. This is a sober and
honorable responsibility.
To all transportation project managers…Godspeed!
Index
a big picture 2–3, 41, 43, 57, 72, 74, 140, 141,
accurate estimation 36, 43, 53, 61, 63–64, 278 183, 186, 204, 208, 217, 224, 237, 259
action-oriented communicators 173, 174 bottom-up estimation 54
active listening 174, 205, 256, 264, 266 bridging technique 189
acute situational awareness 206 budget baselines 74–75, 227
advancing/refuting arguments: budget management:
cause and effect 264 change management 59–60
deductive vs. inductive reasoning contingency 61
262–263, 262f cost management plan 57–58
evidence 263 estimates and public 61–62
negative thinkers 264–265 estimate validation 58
persuasion tactics 265–266 formatting estimates 60–61
positions 264 triple constraint 58–59, 59f
propositions 261–262 budget process 44–45, 44f
advertise 20 budgets vs. estimation 43–44
advertise plans 36–39, 39f business intelligence (BI) 230, 237
Agile project management 222
analogous estimation 52, 53 c
anchoring 62, 284 categorical exclusion (CE/CX) 24
application-based selections 50, 58 change management 4, 5, 59–60, 94,
appraisal costs 165 213–215
aspirational OKRs 218 change management plan 8, 215, 215f
auditors 275, 276 chaos management 272–274
audit surviving: citizens information meeting (CIM) 29, 30,
during 277 71, 152, 182
after 277–278 Clifton strengths 138–140, 138f
auditors 275 closing scoping 73–74, 73f
preparing 275–276 coaching 123, 244
public agencies 274 coercive power 120
cognitive AI 231
b communications 29, 70, 116, 121, 148, 149f,
bandwagon approach 265 168–170, 202–203, 206–207, 245, 279
benefit–cost (B/C) 50, 58, 69 management 171–172
project manager (PM) 1, 21f, 76, 226, 237, quality control (QC) 58, 154
259, 271–274, 279–284 vs. quality assurance (QA) 153–154, 153f,
acquisitions 35 154f
change management 217 quality management:
conflict resolution 202 definitions 152
contracting agent 38 monitoring and controlling 156f
development team 183 coordination issues 158–159
environmental professionals 25 fundamental approaches 156
information systems 10 organizational maturity 156, 156f, 157f
lead designer 26 product vs. process issue 157–158
media interviews 185 quality management plan 158
methodologies 225f VE 159–161
mission execution 2 overview 151–152
organizations 154, 183 QC/QA layers 154–155
planning fallacy 284 QC vs. QA 153–154, 153f, 154f
project-related tasks 9 qualitative vs. quantitative 152–153
project’s information flow 205 quality management plan 8, 158
resource optimization techniques 141 quality measurement:
risk register 109 CEI 162–163
schedule 95 hard truth 161–162
scoping process 24 QA/QC tips 163
SMART goals 196 quantitative goals:
soft skills 244–245 measured qualitatively 197
stakeholder involvement 175 measured quantitatively 197
team atmosphere 257 quantitative risk analysis 107–108, 108f
UFI meeting 33
visual and digital technology 250 r
project monitor/control: RACI chart 140–141
crisis 208–212, 209f referent power 120
formal and informal metrics 206 regional taxing authorities 76
juggling multiple projects 212–213 relationship building 125, 138, 139
priorities 208 request for proposals (RFP) 69, 145, 197
tiers of importance 206–208, 206f residual risk 102, 112
Project Scoping Kickoff Meeting 70 resource allocation 52, 91, 141
propositions 204, 257, 261–262 resource availability 141
public agencies 2, 41, 69, 219, resource breakdown structure 141
225, 274 resource calendar 141
public hearing 22, 29, 30, 78, 81, 115, 182, resource leveling 141
227, 233, 250, 254 resource management:
public information vs. involvement 181 collaborative decision making 119
public participation 29, 185 conflict 120
culture matters 119
q delegation 121
qualitative goals: mentoring 121
measured qualitatively 197–198 motivators 124
measured quantitatively 197 positional power 120
qualitative risk assessment 106–107, 107f positive intent 120
quality assurance (QA) 58, 153–155 skill sets 119
quality assurance manager (QAM) 155 SMART goals 121
294 Index