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IS PROJECT MANAGEMENT THE MAP TO GUIDE OUR JOURNEY THROUGH A DIGITAL WORLD?
The Australian Institute of Project Management and Aurecon recently interviewed a range of industry strategic thinkers to get their pulse on the role project and portfolio management is currently having in guiding the digital transformations.
NAVIGATING THE DIGITAL LANDSCAPE According to recent research by Aurecon, 83% of surveyed businesses believe change will be considerable in the next 2-5 years and a majority feel their organisations are not properly prepared to handle it. While most agree significant strategic initiatives will be needed to improve, transform and
Connecting and navigating the digital landscape is a common challenge. For centuries, humans have relied on maps to guide them through unfamiliar landscapes, and this new digital terrain should be no different. As change permeates more deeply into our everyday lives and organisations look for better ways to navigate the ever-transforming world, is project management the map we need?
THRIVING IN THE FUTURE
Our industry insights reveal that although the role of project management in digital transformation is well understood, the extent to which it is embraced across an entire organisation greatly varies depending on business maturity and the size and scale of projects being implemented.
Ian Sharpe, Associate Director Business Transformations, Western Sydney University
However, the role of program and portfolio management for the many smaller to medium sized projects is not always clearly, or uniformly defined. This subset of projects often lacks structure and investment for how they are approached and collectively managed – not realising value for the organisation. In isolation, success or failure of smaller projects may not have a huge impact, but collectively the impact can be significant.
LINK TO STRATEGY
Large and highly complex projects driven by strategic intent apply this same approach to digital — a business case is created, and a governance process undertaken to launch the project.
However, for a significant number of projects the strategy is less clearly defined, and businesses are keeping pace either with competitors, regulatory changes, customer expectations or with technology.
Aurecon research shows businesses believe that change will be considerable in the next 2-5 years (Source: Aurecon)
Source: iStock
CENTRALISED CONTROL Our interviews revealed most large projects driven by strategy were also collectively managed and tracked by a centralised business function. Again, however, the subset of smaller to medium projects are not managed in this same fashion.
Tamara Mirkovic, the Program Manager for the Queensland Government’s Accelerating Science Delivery Innovation (ASDI) Program, shared her thoughts on what best practice PMOs look like for digital transformations:
“To be successful, PMOs need to be an enabler and not a blocker. PMOs need to have a supportive and scalable mindset, because heavy, traditional governance doesn’t work well in the digital space.”
TRACKING AND MEASURING BENEFITS
Organisations are under pressure to demonstrate financial return on digital investment. Measuring and tracking value is something everyone understands the need for and is trying to do. Many are unclear how to monitor and track a program of multiple, concurrent projects of varying sizes and complexities which touch every aspect of a business.
Knowing which part of an integrated strategy moves that performance needle, and therefore knowing if individual investments are sound, is an ongoing challenge.
HUMAN CHANGE AND UPSKILLING
A common theme throughout our interviews was that digital is not solely about technology, it is also about workforce transformation. It is about leaving a legacy and creating depth of skills so when the next project arrives, everyone is progressively getting better, faster, smarter and more efficient.
Interviewees confirmed that the link between digital transformation project success and formal change management processes is essential. However, a strategic approach to managing change is often the missing piece for many small to medium sized projects, which are less funded and less structured from a management perspective.
Advancing people’s skills for ‘what’s next’ is a business imperative for any digital transformation journey. Unfortunately, confusion around best practice and timing causes upskilling to be pushed to the back of the ‘to do’ list.
“It’s not just about all the efficiencies, it’s about saying what’s the organisation that’s going to be created.” David Counsell, Gas Asset Strategy and Planning Manager, AusNet Services
WE NEED MORE THAN A MAP Just as navigation systems have evolved to guide future explorers, so must project management. Rather than framing our professional offerings as a map with defined steps, they need to be capable of sensing, analysing and communicating the full gamut of the environmental influences on a project and of the project on the environment in real time.
This is not a new theory of project management. However taking these well-established ideas and adapting and modifying them to cope with emerging digital transformation activities in a continually changing business and regulatory environment is new.
This article is an excerpt from research conducted by Aurecon in conjunction with the Australian Institute of Project Management. Read the full article here: https://www.aurecongroup.com/ thinking/thinking-papers/digital-project-management To learn more about Aurecon’s Our Digital Futures study, visit: https://www.aurecongroup.com/expertise/digitalengineering-and-advisory/digital-futures
Author: Lachlan Waiteis a project leadership professional within Aurecon's Program Advisory team with over 15 years experience.
