Business Reporter: Project Management

HIGHWAY PATROL Why a new approach will reduce accidents on the road

LONDON 2030 The new infrastructure that will transform the capital

MISSION TO MARS How Microsoft is pitching in to help NASA’s rovers roam the Red Planet

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It’s down to project managers to kick-start the stalled engine of UK productivity OPENING SHOTS JOANNE FREARSON

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RITAIN HAS a productivity problem – and it needs good project managers to lift it out of the mire. Currently, the UK lags behind most other developed countries when it comes to producing goods and services.

In his Autumn Statement, Chancellor Philip Hammond pointed out that it takes a German worker four days to produce what their British counterpart makes in five.

That may sound like something of a generalisation aimed at tabloid headline writers, but statistics from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) arrive at a similar conclusion: nine out of 10 UK cities performed below the European average and more than half are among the 25 per cent least productive cities in Europe.

There are a few reasons why our project managers are potentially impacting our productivity – and a lot of them go back to the financial crisis of 2007-08. Figures from the Bank of England have shown that productivity in services in the UK grew by less than 1 per cent between 2008 and 2015, compared with an

increase of 15 per cent between 2000 and 2008. The resulting wage freezes and underinvestement in new technologies and training which could have helped boost productivity led to stagnation.

A lot of organisations assumed that if they hung on to staff, it would help the company save the costs associated with having to lay people off, as well as the potential costs of having to rehire them when things picked up again.

It might have seemed like the best solution during what were pressing times, but, now that the dust has settled, British people are still working longer hours, and for lower pay, than their counterparts in the rest of Europe.

So with a workforce stretched in all directions, it’s down to project managers to work creatively to improve productivity in the UK. Training will help, although last year’s State of Project Management report showed that 33 per cent of organisations said that training was either not available or they did not know about its availability.

The government, at least, has recognised this productivity gap,

“With a workforce stretched in all directions, it’s down to project managers to work creatively to improve UK productivity”

and is taking steps to close it with Hammond’s announcement of the National Productivity Investment Fund (NPIF) in his Autumn Statement. The NPIF is set to invest £23billion of additional funds in areas such as housing, transport, digital communications and research and development, in a bid to boost overall productivity.

But resources are nothing without good management, and in order to make sure that these projects run smoothly, good project managers will have to be employed to get the most out of them. The country needs managers with the technical aptitude, business nous and people skills to be able to deliver these projects from start to finish.

The update of PRINCE2, the leading training programme for project managers, to make it more tailored towards specific projects,has been a welcome development. Nevertheless, the UK still has a long way to go before its productivity level catches up with its G7 counterparts. It will require training and investment by companies in their project managers to get the country back up to scratch.

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NASA’s Project Sidekick is using augmented reality technology from Microsoft to help out on the International Space Station and the next Mars Rover project

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Out of this world New augmented reality software developed by Microsoft is being used by NASA to help out on some of the biggest projects on – and off – the planet…

JOANNE FREARSON

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ICROSOFT’S NEW augmented reality system, HoloLens, is helping organisations such as NASA collaborate and manage projects at the International Space Station, as well as helping it develop the next Mars Rover mission scheduled for 2020.

By wea r i ng a headset, u ser s can experience a mixed-reality environment that overlays the real world with digital content, enabling them to interact with holograms and collaborate with other users.

“HoloLens is the starting point of being able to blend physical and digital reality together,” says Leila Martine, director of new devices at Microsoft.

“Cu stomer s a re te l l i ng u s it i s transformational.”

The space agency has been using HoloLens to help with projects at the International Space Station, providing virtual aid to astronauts. Using the system’s Remote Expert Mode, for example, the astronauts can use Skype to allow a ground operator to see what they see, and provide them with realtime guidance on the tasks they are undertaking.

“Astronauts are smart, but they do not know how to do everything,” says Martine. “If they are fixing things up on the International Space Station, they can call down to ground control to a Skype call. Ground control can see what the astronauts are looking at through

the HoloLens environment. They then can walk them through how to solve it.”

The ground control staff can “circle” parts that need fixing on the overlay, and the same pen marks will show up on the astronaut’s view of the situation.

When communication difficulties with the station arise, Procedure Mode gives the astronauts direct access to procedures and manuals which may be needed in an operation.

The software’s flexibility is also helping out on with projects on the ground – NASA is employing it in the design of the Mars Rover 2020, where the software is helping to identify potential errors in the system before launch, and is also being used to train staff who will be involved in the launch in three years’ time.

Microsoft is seeing a growing demand for HoloLens from companies undertaking projects in 3D modelling, says Martine. “HoloLens has been a really big starting point for any organisation that has been dealing with 3D modelling.

Design companies, architecture, engineering and construction were using different technology to figure out efficiencies, but now [they have a] new tool to do this.”

As the holographic projections are transparent, Martine explains, people on a project can physically walk around the design, collaborate about their ideas and get approval from a client on the project without having to be in the same actual space.

Leila Martine, director of new devices at Microsoft

For example, technology company Trimble has been using the HoloLens in 3D modelling to help improve collaboration and efficienc y in the construction industry. Trimble’s proprietary SketchUp 3D modelling software has been integrated with HoloLens so architectural models of buildings can be visualised in three dimensions using a hologram. Staff working on a project can look at the design, analyse the structure, share ideas about it and resolve issues in real time.

According to Martine, once a company has started using it for one project and understand how it can help them, they start using it for others.

HoloLens also has huge potential in training – Japan Airlines is already using it to train engine crews. “It is really expensive to train engine staff,” says Martine. “When an airline needs to train mechanics on an engine, they have to wait until a plane is available in a hanger.

They then have to fly in maintenance experts from around the world.”

Instead, the HoloLens mechanics can learn the engine structure through the simulation in the hologram, giving them practical experience of fixing it without the expense of waiting until a hangar is available. “If you can create an environment which is natural and you can have a conversation with someone, even if they are in San Francisco or China like they were in this case, that is a phenomenal advancement in technology,” says Martine.

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MARCH 2017 Publisher Bradley Scheffer | Editor Joanne Frearson | Production editor Dan Geary | Client manager Michele Taylor: production@business-reporter.co.uk | Project Manager Paul Aitken | Contact us: info@lyonsdown.co.uk

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Project management: what champion organisations do differently

T Mark A Langley

“Organisations are recognising the connection between project implementation and success”

HE PROJECT Management Institute’s 2017 Pulse of the Profession®: Success Rates Rise: Transforming the High Cost of Low Performance report shows that organisations are experiencing more success with implementation of their strategic initiatives. For the first time in five years, the per centage of projects meeting original goals and being completed within budget has increased. There has also been a significant decline in money wasted due to project failures. Organisations are wasting 20 per cent less money compared with a year ago; an average of £97million for every $1billion invested, or just under 10 per cent – the lowest number we have seen since PMI began tracking this metric in 2006.

While these improvements represent significant progress, it is important to understand that the definition of success is continually evolving as new business trends emerge. In an increasingly global and complex world, the traditional measures of scope, time and cost are no longer sufficient. When determining project success, we now look at not only the traditional measures but also at levels of maturity in benefits realistion – identifying benefits at the outset and ensuring that they are realised and sustained after the project ends. By evaluating project success through this wider lens, PMI has identified two new levels of organisational performance: champions and underperformers.

Champions are organisations in which 80 per cent or more of projects are completed on time, on budget, meet original goals and business intent, and also have high benefits realisation maturity. Champions waste nearly 28 times less money because more of their strategic initiatives are completed successfully.

By contrast, underperformers are organisations where 60 per cent or fewer projects are completed on time, on budget, meet original goals and business intent, and have low benefits realisation maturity.

The organisational progress captured in the most recent Pulse appears to be tied to the areas that PMI identified last year as critical for improvement:

• Investing in leadership and strategic/ business management skills for project managers, in addition to technical skills • A ligning the Enterprise Project Management Office (EPMO) to organisational strategy with the recognition that all strategic initiatives are projects and programmes • Engaging executive sponsors and ensuring they can commit to meaningful support of project teams.

Below are some key ways champions outperform underperformers in order to increase successful outcomes: Developing the technical, leadership and business management skills of project professionals. Thirty-two per cent of survey respondents consider both technical and leadership skills a high priority – a 3 per cent increase over last year. And champions are taking action: more than three-quarters (76 per cent) of them prioritise the development of technical skills and leadership skills, while almost two-thirds (65 per cent) prioritise strategic and business management skills.

The contrast with underperformers is stark: just 19 per cent of them prioritise technical skills, with 16 per cent prioritising leadership skills and 14 per cent prioritising strategic and business management skills.

Appreciating the strategic role of the Project Management Office (PMO) and EPMO often includes responsibility for aligning the project portfolio to strategy; monitoring progress and optimising delivery of strategy; navigating risk; driving benefits realisation; enhancing governance and accountability; and managing talent. The per centage of organisations with a PMO continues an upward trend – from 61 per cent in 2007 to 71 per cent today. Among organisations in our survey that have a PMO, half report having an EPMO. Champions recognise the strategic importance of the PMO – 81 per cent have a PMO, compared with 59 per cent of underperformers. Additionally, 56 per cent of champions have their EPMO highly aligned to the organisation’s strategy, compared with just 12 per cent of underperformers.

Leveraging actively engaged executive sponsors continues to be the top driver of whether projects meet their original goals and business intent. The best executive sponsors have detailed knowledge of a project and how it connects to business strategy. They use their position and authority to clear roadblocks, make quick and effective decisions, and influence executive leadership. More than three-quarters (77 per cent) of projects at champion organisations have actively engaged sponsors, compared with less than half (44 per cent) of underperformers.

The relationship between executive sponsors and project managers must be founded on transparency and trust, and must recognise that there is a high degree of interdependence. To accomplish this, champions cultivate a project environment that nurtures collaboration between teams and departments. This kind of culture regards executive sponsors as a critical project resource and recognises the value they add.

Caterpillar, Telstra, BorgWarner, Inc and Hanover Insurance are among those organisations that are focused on driving exceptional sponsor engagement. “The sponsors are a huge part of driving not just the initial project charter, but also team engagement throughout the life of the project. They manage the politics, break down barriers and stay engaged,” said Jeffrey Zircher (manager, global program management, Caterpillar Inc). “We are really trying to close our gaps with sponsor engagement – and we hope to do that with a healthy dose of training.”

Increasing attention to benefits realisation management. The discipline has intimidated many, because there is no single, widely accepted benefits realisation management process. Nevertheless, more organisations are establishing procedures for identifying benefits and monitoring progress toward achieving and sustaining them. In fact, according to our research, 31 per cent of organisations report high benefits realisation maturity.

The growing focus on talent management, executive sponsorship and the use of PMOs and EPMOs among champions and an overall increase in the value of benefits realisation management demonstrate that organisations are recognising the connection between project implementation and business success. As a longtime advocate for project management and its essential role in any organisation’s success, PMI is encouraged to see that organisations are increasingly taking actions to increase their ability to implement strategic initiatives and achieving their missions.

INDUSTRY VIEW

Mark A Langley is president and CEO of the Project Management Institute www.PMI.org/Pulse

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Highway patrol Joanne Frearson talks to David O’Connor of Highways England about how a new system is giving drivers earlier and more accurate warnings of extreme weather on the road

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ROJECT MANAGEMENT plays a big role in making sure England’s roads remain open during severe weather.

Road closures, business shutdowns and accidents can all be unintended consequences of a poorly managed road network.

Behind the scenes there is a highly calibrated operation that takes place to keep our road networks safe, no matter what the weather conditions are. Last year Highways England, the government-owned company which manages England’s motorways, launched its Severe Weather Information Service (SWIS) in order to better manage the nation’s main roads.

The system, developed by the Civica Group, takes into account all the critical information about what is happening to our roads and puts that data onto a single platform so people can see what is going on. David O’Connor, weather information services sponsor at Highways England, says: “Essentially what we are looking at is the ability to forecast a particular event, the ability to manage that event while it is actually happening and the ability to interrogate what has happened for that particular event for historical purposes.”

By using disparate sets of data, Highways England can get a story to drivers about what the various road conditions are like in certain weather events. O’Connor explains you can connect the dots between data sets that have been isolated from each other. “The quality of data is fundamental to what we do,” he adds.

The project uses information from fleet data logging specialists Exactrak to bring

0.5% The reduction in GDP caused by road traffic disruption during the winter of 2010/11

together critical information on weather forecasts, road treatment plans and winter fleet data to be able to provide people with real-time information on potential road problems.

O’Connor says: “The system can drill down using discreet pieces of software to understand what has happened at various points. During decision making, this gives us the ability to see the exact point on the network where, for example, salt needs to be spread in the event of bad weather. It really is a big assistance to drivers out there.”

The system shows where the winter service drivers are keeping to a specific route or if they are deviating from it. Says O’Connor: “It just gives us that assurance that we are eliminating as far as we can the risks that might arise from winter service conditions. Safety is the core value for us in terms of everything we deliver. We have a legal duty to keep the roads free from ice and snow where reasonably practical.”

Information about weather conditions is then relayed to various stakeholders, partner organisations, transport hubs and emergency service agencies. When severe weather takes hold, O’Connor explains, the communication aspect of the system is very important. “We can target specific partner organisations, highways, transport hubs and emergency services who are subscribers of information for this particular service.”

The system has only been up and running since late last year and so is in a relatively new stage, but O’Connor is pleased with the progress. “From a post-event aspect, there has been some really good feedback about the system’s ability to effectively mine the

data in a much clearer way than we have done previously,” he says.

Using a system such as SWIS to help manage roads can mitigate the economic consequences of road closures, explains O’Connor. He points out that disruption during the winter of 2010/11, which saw quite a significant amount of snowfall across

“This platform allows users to make decisions in a much more timely fashion, and to have a more holistic picture of a severe weather condition at their fingertips” – David O’Connor, Highways England

the UK, caused a drop in fourth-quarter GDP of about 0.5 per cent. “The general rule of thumb is around a snow day, or day which is impacted on by snow or severe weather, travel disruption is five times more than be a normal day where you may see a few delays here and there,” he adds.

“The actual cost of the disruption can run into hundreds of millions. This Civica platform allows our users to actually make those decisions in a much more timely fashion, and to have a holistic picture of a severe weather situation at their fingertips.

“We are able to mobilise our winter service fleet in a particular area half an hour earlier – it makes a difference in terms of

salt spread and impact to the environment.

As we open this up we can start to provide much more meaningful information via our messages.”

He explains the benefits to cost ratio for investment in a severe weather information system is about ten to one. “Effectively, every pound we invest adds £10 back. By connecting weather information to traffic weather management we can start thinking how we can help the organisation as a whole to manage and plan events in a much more co-ordinated fashion.

“There are likely to be significant benefits from this investment. I hope that we really push those forward as we integrate with more and more systems through the next few years.

“There is still an expectation from our road users that they can get in their car at any time of the year and drive the same way they always do. That is a big challenge for us in terms of influencing customer behaviour – driving in different conditions does make a difference.

“We can be proactive in terms of communications to our road users. We can also push some information while they are en route through various mechanisms. SWIS plays a part in the overall management of the strategic road network.”

Without effective project management in severe weather, England’s roads would obviously face closures, businesses would shut down and accidents could occur – with any luck, Highways England’s implementation of the SWIS system will add an extra layer of protection to the country’s transport infrastructure.

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London 2030: a capital view

Matt Smith looks at how London needs a joined-up, data-driven approach to life, work and transport if it is to keep moving into the 21st century

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ONDON HAS a wealth of history, but with an imminent explosion of innovative technologies that could transform the way we live, work and travel, all eyes are on the future.

Dr Enrica Papa, senior lecturer in transport planning at the University of Westminster, says the capital will face a number of key planning challenges in the coming years – not least a projected 1.4 million increase in its population to reach 10 million by 2030.

“The main issue will be, first of all, accommodating growth,” she explains.

“The population is going to grow, so where exactly do we locate new development? The second issue is housing. Then, of course, the environment and transport – how to ensure, due to an increase in the population, equ it y a nd accessibi l it y to a l l Londoners.”

Part of the challenge is planning exactly where this growth will be integrated. London is a dense crisscross of intertwined systems and developments, so the capital will have to decide carefully where to accommodate new residents and businesses where they can be supported.

“I think, in the long term, there is an issue of integrating transport and land use, meaning where to locate new developments in order to reduce the need of travel,” Papa explains.

“That means, for example, increased density in old station areas that are more connected. So a strong link between connectivity, accessibility and new development – this is related both to both housing and a number of other economic activities.

“So a strong interaction between land use and transport [is needed].

This would mean not just reducing the need for travel, but reducing the need for car use.”

Although much investment in transport is planned and Transport for London has published details of its designs for the decades ahead, Papa believes the different modes of transport in the capital need to work together more smoothly in the years to come.

“I still feel there is the possibility to improve and better integrate the bus and Underground systems, and also walking and cycling should be really integrated into the bigger network,” she explains. “It seems that transport modes compete with one another and this is not happening in other world cities where everything is integrated.”

New technologies will also bring their own benefits and challenges to London’s streets. Papa gives the example of autonomous vehicles, which could free up space with more efficient road use, but she warns against the adoption of technology for technology’s sake.

“All the transport people are talking about autonomous vehicles, which is something I’m quite interested in, but at the same time I think that we should not be that fascinated by the new technologies, but really think in a strategic way. Our priorit y should be to reduce the need for travel, really reducing times and distances,” she says.

“Of course, I think they have a place in the future. It could increase the efficiency of the road system in a way.

Really, on the sharing economy of cars, that means we will probably need fewer parking spaces along our roads and highways.

“These new cars really are built on road efficiency optimisation. The drawbacks could be instead that we will not get rid of the cars for a really long period, because this is just another way of driving and giving priority to cars instead of other transport modes.

“It’s still not clear and I think this is another big challenge – how to manage, control and make this new technology really have a role in increasing the quality of our streets.”

The collection and analysis of big data and advances in IT will also help the capital to find extra transport capacity. By crunching the numbers, transport chiefs can get better insights into where to increase investment and improve facilities.

“This is fascinating,” Papa says.

“The huge amount of information which we can now access – I am sure it will change the way we move and we choose and make our decisions in terms of which transport modes and which routes [we use].”

She gives the example of Finland, where in some cities all modes of transport including cars, taxis, buses, trains and bicycles operate under a mobility-as-a-service model and are

“I think, in the long term, there will be an issue of integrating transport and land use to reduce the need for travel” – Dr Enrica Papa, University of Westminster

available through a single app, either via a monthly package or on a pay-asyou-go basis.

But while transport must be easy for Londoners to use, it is also important that their need to travel is kept to a minimum to reduce stress on the network. Papa sees businesses moving to more flexible, less central offices closer to their employees’ homes.

“There is the potential that a lot of businesses will move around, so London will not be so centralised anymore, but will be more like a city network,” she explains of this change in structure. “This will have a huge impact on how people move.

“This is something that is already happening in Amsterdam. Companies really try to accomplish more flexible work hours, also to reduce the cost of the working spaces in really expensive areas of the city. There are studies that demonstrate that there are some benefits but also some negative impacts in terms of social interaction and quality of life.”

Another big change for London’s workers has already begun with the introduction of the Night Tube, Papa explains. While it may currently be used primarily by late-night revellers, she says it’s just the first step in London’s transition into a 24-hour city.

“It is a challenge related to the night economy,” she says. “In the future we can imagine that all the global cities will be so connected that they will be in a way forced to work for 24 hours.

The offices of big companies will be connected, so people in Tokyo and people in London could have to work at the same time on a project.”

A lot could happen by 2030, but with careful planning and navigation of key issues such as population increases and transport demand, London could be transformed.

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Adapting to the changing workplace As project deadlines and budgets become ever tighter, and project management affects more roles, the revamped PRINCE2® helps adapt to the challenges

T

HE ROLE of project management is evolving to have a greater influence and impact within organisations, from strategy through to delivery.

So it’s only natural that PRINCE2, the most widely used project management methodolog y, evolves with it.

Projects are investments that a business makes to realise its strategy. It should therefore come as no surprise that organisations will demand a greater business awareness f rom its project managers. Our latest research, outlined in our report The Future Project Management Professional, showed that 90 per cent of project managers believe they need a much stronger strategic vision to remain successful in the future.

This means that project managers will need to take a more holistic approach to their projects, focusing not only on the outputs but whether the business benefits have been realised. For example, the delivery of a new CRM tool to a business will have little value if it’s not being used for its intended purpose.

There has also been a democratisation of project management skills across the organisation as more individuals take a projectbased approach to achieve their objectives. These individuals would benefit from project management training so that they can use established tools and methods to make them more effective in their approach to delivering projects.

This is why, set against the backdrop of this new environment and the changing needs of project managers everywhere, AXELOS has evolved PRINCE2. The updated version will launch in mid-2017.

PRINCE2 will now place a much stronger emphasis on how

The benchmark for project management SINCE ITS launch PRINCE2 has set the standard for project management, with more than a million people globally qualifying as practitioners in the past decade alone. It is used every day by hundreds of thousands of project managers across all sectors.

Any current PRINCE2 certificate will remain valid until the end of its five-year period and holders will remain eligible to join AXELOS’s PRINCE2 membership programme. A valuable online resource for anyone who wants to get the very best out of PRINCE2, PRINCE2 membership offers the latest news and information on the method, practical content, exam support videos, webinars and more. www.axelos.com/professional-development

to adapt the method to different organisations and project environments, regardless of its nature or scale. The update includes new ways to help practitioners put lessons learned from the training and certification into practice, whatever the circumstances, practitioner’s job title or their level of seniority.

The update has been shaped as a result of our continued engagement w it h a global community of practitioners, consultants and trainers. More than 100 experts have contributed to the 2017 update by sharing their real-life experiences of successfully delivering projects. In this way it has been developed to be a trusted source of practical, authoritative and relevant guidance that enables anyone managing a project to get the best out of PRINCE2 – and to achieve success for themselves and their organisation.

Although PRINCE2 has by necessity always been highly structured, its success is rooted in the fact that it works alongside, and supports, the realities of working life – where adaptability, scalability and flexibility are key.

In today’s workplace, the expectation to do more with less has become ever more prevalent. Not only are today’s project managers dealing with tighter deadlines and smaller budgets, they are

John O’Brien, chief content officer, AXELOS

constantly disrupted by new technologies which can prove to be game-changers in the way professionals work, across all sectors. Furthermore, customers and stakeholders continually revise their expectations.

The 2017 edition will respond reliably to the demands of today’s project management environment and its imperatives for versatility and agility, so that anyone with a project to manage – whether they are a full-time project manager or not – will find PRINCE2 even easier to adapt to the needs of any organisation and the project in hand.

But the core of successful project management – and of PRINCE2’s philosophy – remains the same: you need a clear picture of what you are trying to achieve, a consistent understanding of why it is worth achieving, and a well-gauged sensitivity to the risks involved.

There will always be uncertainties, and most projects will change between their start and end, but there are ways to manage the known unknowns. With a renewed focus on tailoring, PRINCE2’s refresh places increased emphasis on practical application and offers a wealth of real-life examples, with diagrams, hints and tips. It will enable practitioners to prepare to deal confidently with these

uncertainties and at the same time keep a focus on providing value for money and service for their clients.

In the coming months, the English version of the new guidance, Managing Successf ul Projects with PRINCE2, will be available, closely followed by the launch of the English versions of the new Foundation and Practitioner exams. From the launch of the updated exams, and until the end of 2017, candidates may take either the existing or updated English version of any PRINCE2 examination.

Then, looking further into the future, from January 2018 onwa rds a l l Fou ndat ion a nd Practitioner exams in English will be based on the updated version of PRINCE2, while existing exams in other languages will continue to be valid. AXELOS will begin development of the Dutch, German, Polish, French, Danish, Norwegian and Italian editions in 2018, with other languages to be considered in the future.

For us, when it comes to your method of training delivery, PRINCE2 leaves you free to tailor your choice.

INDUSTRY VIEW

For further information about the PRINCE2 update, visit www.

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A project spurring muchneeded redevelopment in North London Business Reporter talks to Donna-Maria Cullen, executive director of Tottenham Hotspur, about how the football club’s new stadium is kickstarting regeneration in the area THE BIG INTERVIEW JOANNE FREARSON

The capacity of the current stadium at White Hart Lane is 36,284.

When complete, the new ground is projected to hold 61,000 spectators

C

URRENTLY RIDING high in the Premier League, Tottenham Hotspur are due to play Everton this lunchtime at White Hart Lane, to a capacity of 36,285. But that’s just a small number compared to the attendance Spurs will (hopefully) be playing for when the new White Hart Lane stadium opens in August 2018, which will be able to seat 61,000 fans for a game.

The project for the new ground started nearly a decade ago and, once finished, will also feature a retractable grass field with an artificial surface underneath that can be used for hosting NFL matches – Spurs have sealed a deal with the NFL to host four of these per year, the first of its kind in the UK – concerts and other high-profile events.

It has been a big infrastructure project to manage. Its focus has not only been to improve the fan experience, but in the process also to regenerate one of North London’s most deprived areas and help to provide the locals with jobs.

“We did not just want to build a new stadium and not see the areas around us benefit,” Donna-Maria Cullen, executive director of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, tells me at the club’s new Lilywhite House offices, from where we can see work on the new stadium progressing next door. “Tottenham is the fifth most deprived constituency in the UK – 76 per cent of the inhabitants of Northumberland Park ward [where White Hart Lane is situated] claim socia l benef its. It is a n a rea which has a historical backlog of underinvestment.”

Cullen tells me it was initially difficult to get support for the stadium as there was no focus from local, regional and national government. She says the area “was not a good place to be” – particularly in the aftermath of the 2011 riots, which started in Tottenham and spread to the rest of the UK after protests over

the fatal police shooting of suspect Mark Duggan spiralled out of control.

“Tottenham had its second riot in 30 years. There was no investment going into any of the transport infrastructure,” she says.

The club explored different options for a new ground – including a bid for the Olympic Stadium in Stratford, which was eventually awarded to West Ham United. Plans for the new stadium in Tottenham were initially rejected because of concerns that it would impact listed buildings. It was not until 2011 that approval was finally granted by Haringey Council after the club made changes to the design.

The hardest thing in the management of the project, Cullen says was planning and finance. “The UK planning laws are a challenge for any business, but thankfully we have our planning through,” she say. “It is now about enough hours in the day for construction.”

The new stadium is an ambitious project – and for a club of their relative financial clout Spurs are punching above their weight. “We are also a business with a turnover, in a good year, of about £250million,” says Cullen. “The stadium costs in

“Tottenham had its second riot in 30 years. There was no investment going into any of the transport infrastructure”

the region of £750million.” Despite being no slouches on the pitch, the club’s relatively small Victorian-era ground means Tottenham have yet to match their performances in hard ticket sales. But when completed, the new stadium will be London’s largest club ground, and the third largest in the UK after Wembley and Old Trafford, putting the club on a level that better reflects their position. Says Cullen, “Every day, it is the revenues that are going into the club that allow us to invest in the first team.”

The project is being completed in three phases. Phase one was finished in 2013 and consisted of the building of the main Tottenham Hotspur offices, Lilywhite House, as well as a Sainsbury’s superstore next door.

The next phases of the project are still underway and include the stadium itself, designed by architecture firm Populous, new club store and museum The Tottenham Experience, an extreme spor ts centre, a 180-bedroom hotel with a rooftop bar, residential apartments, a community medical centre and a new public square which will be about the size of Trafalgar Square, says Cullen.

How Tottenham’s old ground is giving way to the new

Phase 1

New stadium build commences to the north of the existing stadium. The existing stadium remains in use at full capacity. © TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR

Phase 2

Out of season, the North Stand of the existing stadium is demolished and the new pitch is laid.

Phase 3

The partially completed new stadium is in use for one season with a capacity in excess of the current ground. The remainder of the existing stadium is demolished.

Phase 4

Out of season the remainder of the new stadium is completed, ready for the start of the following season.

@biznessreporter Main image: Tottenham’s new ground is already bringing thousands of jobs to a still deprived area; inset below right: Donna Cullen, executive director at Spurs

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Work on the new stadium is well under way – it is already taller than the existing White Hart Lane, built in 1898

Overall the project is expected to deliver just under £300million to the area annually, and create 3,500 jobs, but Cullen is expecting that number to increase. A big focus will be on getting locals to work in the new development. She says: “One of the things we have driven very hard on is that the jobs go to locals.

With Sainsbury we have pioneered a new partnership with Job Centre Plus, ourselves and the council.

Before the jobs became available, we were out there with a digi-van and at community recruitment fairs.”

The new stadium will also feature producers from the area, such as independent coffee houses and craft breweries, all of which have become a regular part of Tottenham. Bringing the NFL to Tottenham is also expected to have a direct economic impact on the boroughs of Haringey, Enfield and Waltham Forest next door, to the tune of £120million.

The anticipated 180,000 additional spectators per year are expected to bring in an additional £21.4million of spending to the area.

Says Cullen: “We have the only sliding pitch option for a stadium in the UK and it is also an ideal music concert venue. Its capacity is somewhere between the O2 and Wembley – it is a much needed side capacity.

There is a huge market for that middle size of 45,000 to 60,000.

Cullen says the project managers want to create a stadium that gives fans an “experience”. She says: “If you have been to White Hart Lane, it is about the proximity to the pitch, it is about atmosphere. Fans are no more than six to eight metres from the touchline. When you go and watch a match you want to be in the cauldron. You want to have the atmosphere.”

The club has been working with the same acousticians who manage U2’s concerts to optimise the sound within the stadium bowl and ensure the club maintains its tradition of having one of the most atmospheric homes in British sport. It is also giving people interested in the new stadium VR tours when

“The stadium will see Tottenham become more of a destination. People won’t need to leave to find a job or somewhere to live – this is actually where they can stay and do it”

they can become immersed in what the premium areas can offer them.

These include a glass-walled Tunnel Club, which offers guests a behindthe-scenes view of the players as they walk out onto the pitch, and a member’s club where members can dine with the players.

The project is already creating an effect in the area. “We have started something for Tottenham,” Cullen says. “We have also managed to create a future for the club by virtue of the increased capacity, and the revenue we will generate, and we’ve not moved away to do that. The new stadium is being built around the old stadium – there is definite sort of merge element to it.”

Investment has already gone into the transport of the area. “All three stations have seen upgrades, and of course Tottenham Hale is designated to get a Crossrail 2 station along with Northumberland Park. Tottenham Hale is 15 minutes from Liverpool Street, while White Hart Lane is about 18 minutes.”

As a result of such an enormous project, businesses should start to consider Tottenham as a place to start up, says Cullen. “Our stadium has triggered master planning to the east and west,” she says. “That will see Tottenham become more of a leisure destination, with new homes, new schools, new restaurants and mixed-tenure accommodation, so people do not leave to find a job or somewhere to live. This is actually where they can stay and do it.”

As a result of all this, new development property prices have certainly increased in the area. Cullen tells me she bought a flat off plan just over two years ago at £300 per square foot next to the Victoria Line station at Tottenham Hale, which is now worth nearly double that.

Much has gone into the development of t he new stadium by Tottenham Hotspur, but the massive project does also seem to have genuinely started to transform the area, and will go some way to regenerating what was once an extremely neglected area of London.

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Project management seals the deal with the royal stamp of approval As the Queen approved the document granting a royal charter to the UK’s membership body for those involved with project management, it verified what many already knew – that this is a profession whose time has really come

T

HE GRANTING of a royal charter to the Association for Project Management (APM) has put the official seal on project management as a valid and vital profession for the social and economic wellbeing of the UK and beyond.

This historic milestone marks more than recognition of the important contribution it makes across all areas of business, industry, government and not-for-profit organisations. It also paves the way for those working in project roles to achieve the ultimate stamp of professionalism.

From modest beginnings with a small number of enthusiastic exponents, project management is today accepted as an essential element for success, with increasing realisation of the need for a professional, project-orientated approach in an increasingly complex global and competitive world. This is underlined by the number of major businesses and bodies that supported APM’s bid for chartered status.

Data from a recent YouGov survey for APM has also revealed that a staggering 43 per cent of Britain’s workforce is involved in managing projects in some way. Of these, 11 per cent are project managers.

The evolution and development of project, programme and portfolio management has been reflected in the growth and influence of APM, both at home and on the international stage.

Widely held to be the UK’s fastest-growing professional body of modern times, it sets the standard through internationally recognised qualifications, competencies, knowledge and education and by sharing best practice through its network of members, at events and through its national awards.

The association currently boasts 22,356 individual and 597 corporate members, making it the largest of its kind in Europe. It is also a leading and very active member of the International Project Management Association (IPMA), which represents 60 Member Associations.

The royal charter is the culmination of nearly ten years’ work, and is a reward for an association that, for the past four decades, has championed the project management cause and the opportunities for those who practise it.

At its heart is the understanding that successful project management is not rigidly following a prescribed methodology. It is about building and developing the hard and soft skills, knowledge, experience and competencies that an individual needs to bring projects of all kinds to successful fruition.

APM president David Wasobo is a renowned project professional, engineer, and capital programmes director who has worked on some of the world’s most prestigious rail infrastructure programmes. On receiving the royal charter, he commented: “This is a significant moment in the history of the project management profession as a whole and of APM in particular. We are privileged to share this success with those who laid the foundations for the association and the discipline we now know as project management.

43% Percentage of Britain’s workforce involved in some form of project management

“To reach this point in a single generation is a remarkable achievement and a testament to the tenacity, resourcefulness and professionalism of all concerned.”

The driving principles behind the bid, which form the very bedrock of APM itself, will continue to guide the profession as it moves forward into a new era, led by the association. “We know that project management is the most effective means of delivering successful change, and we know that change, when delivered well, improves our economy and society,” said APM chairman John McGlynn.

“Our skills are needed more than ever and the royal charter provides the profession with a platform to raise awareness of those skills, improve standards and develop our practice for the benefit of all.”

Work has begun the next phase of this landmark project to establish the new chartered organisation. It will keep the APM name, will remain an educational charity and is due to become operational on April 1 this year, officially launching at the APM Project Management Conference in London on April 27.

For the individual project, programme or portfolio manager, it opens up a long-awaited opportunity to achieve that career pinnacle available to other disciplines – to become a chartered professional.

APM will be creating a register of Chartered Project Professionals who are committed to professional development and a code of conduct. The criteria for this will be rigorous and will be the subject of consultation during 2017.

“The development of the register of Chartered Project Professionals is a central pillar in our drive to raise standards of project, programme and portfolio delivery,” explained APM CEO Sara Drake.

“Our intention is to provide a register which offers clients, employers and the public confidence of quality across the rich diversity of skills involved in project management in the quantity needed by the profession and by society across all walks of life.”

At the other end of the career ladder, those following the APM route as they set out in project management will also benefit. Qualifications from and membership of a professional organisation is seen as a mark of competence.

This is strengthened if that organisation has received a royal charter.

The same holds true for organisations employing project staff who are qualified through and members of their chartered professional body. It offers customers confidence that the project professionals are experts in their field.

The royal charter is a significant achievement in the evolution of project management and those who make, and seek to make, a career in this field. For APM, the work will not stop there. Chartered status is the framework on which to build ever-improving project performance, higher standards, to raise the profile and value of the profession and as the basis for continued collaboration and research to develop the practice and theory of delivering successful change. It is an important step towards achieving APM’s vision of “a world in which all projects succeed”.

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0845 4581944 www.apm.org.uk ALL FIGURES, UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED, ARE FROM YOUGOV PLC. TOTAL SAMPLE SIZE WAS 2,052 ADULTS, OF WHICH 1,166 WERE WORKERS. FIELDWORK WAS UNDERTAKEN BETWEEN JANUARY 17-18 2017. THE SURVEY WAS CARRIED OUT ONLINE. THE FIGURES HAVE BEEN WEIGHTED AND ARE REPRESENTATIVE OF ALL GB ADULTS (AGED 18+).

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Inspector As one of the oldest breeds (he is unsure which, but it’s definitely old), Dogberry has a deep appreciaton for history.

So finding out about a new exhibition at the Museum of London, consisting of all the archaeological objects which have been unearthed during his favourite large infrastructure project, Crossrail, caused his tail to wag in anticipation.

By their very nature large projects such as this inevitably end up turning up previously undisturbed glimpses into the past, and Crossrail has certainly been no exception. Since work began in 2009, more than 10,000 artefacts have been discovered, spanning 8,000 years of human history in the London area. The pieces in the exhibition reveal stories of Londoners past, from Mesolithic toolmakers and inhabitants of Roman Londinium, to those affected by the Great Plague of 1665.

The discoveries covered a wide range of locations along the route of the project, from Abbey Wood, Canary Wharf and Liverpool Street to Tottenham Court Road, Westbourne Park and Acton.

“From east to west, the Crossrail project has dug through layers of London’s rich history, unearthing a wealth of fascinating stories and objects,” Jackie Keily, curator of archaeological

11

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BY CIARA LONG, ONLINE REPORTER

Dogberry

Sutton provides some fascinating insights into project management. He has a great selection of articles and videos as well as a list of books every project manager should read.

A plague burial pit is unearthed during the Crossrail excavations

Tech Republic

www.techrepublic.com/blog/ it-consultant

Project-management.com

www.project-management.com

The IT consultant section of Tech Republic’s blog gives an insight into the world of project management for IT specialists.

If you work in IT this blog is a handy resource on how to run a successful project in the industry.

Describing itself as “the ultimate reference for project managers”, this blog contains a comprehensive array of articles, book reviews and information about training courses. If you’re after a job in PM, there’s also a job board. collections at the Museum of London, told Dogberry. “The exhibition will take us on a journey from prehistoric forests and marshes to the marvels of 21st century engineering. It will include objects illustrating the human history of London, from Mesolithic times over 8,000 years ago, to the 20th century. Crossrail has enabled us to discover new and exciting stories of London which will be the centrepiece of this exhibition.”

The finds will sit against a backdrop telling the

engineering story of the largest infrastructure project currently underway in Europe, with key facts and figures presented throughout. Jay Carver, Crossrail lead archaeologist, said: “The Crossrail project has given archaeologists a rare opportunity to study previously inaccessible areas of London. This exhibition will bring together some of our oldest and oddest finds, and help us bring the stories of 8,000 years of London’s hidden history to light.”

As an expert in digging for things, Dogberry extends

his enthusiastic offer to the Crossrail team to help out with further excavations, and looks forward to the exhibition in the meantime.

Bob Sutton: Work Matters

www.bobsutton.typepad.com

Stanford-based organisational behaviour professor Bob

Wrike

www.wrike.com/blog

MeisterTask (iOS, Android) MeisterTask

allows you to create a project, add team members, assign tasks, follow each other’s progress and see what your focus should be each day.

Freedcamp (iOS) Whether you’re holding a

wedding, leading a work project, or all points in between, Freedcamp will help you stay organised and on top of things.

The Wrike blog’s main focus is making teams more productive. It’s easy to read, well illustrated and contains great tips, stories and new approaches to work management, collaboration and productivity.

Showing future generations the path to project management excellence

60% B&FC project management graduates awarded firstclass honours, compared with the national average of 16 per cent

B

LACKPOOL AND The Fylde College (B&FC) is the UK’s largest provider of the Higher Apprenticeship in Project Management – and we are proud of the many successes of our graduates.

Our Project Management School of Excellence is transforming the industry through applied education and specialisation, developing talented and experienced graduates capable of optimising operational performance and generating tangible business benefits.

The School of Excellence maintains close ties with some of the world’s most prestigious companies, winning the Queen’s Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education Excellence 2015 for its work with BAE Systems.

Through that link, our students work with international colleagues on high-level projects, including the multi-billion-pound Eurofighter Typhoon programme, ensuring the jet remains at the forefront of the combat aircraft market.

We have been highly successful in providing bespoke education which has been co-created with industry partners, including Rolls-Royce and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Two of our former students recently became the first ever college-based students to be commended at the international Undergraduate Awards, otherwise known as the junior Nobel Prize.

Our BSc (Hons) in project management – which is awarded by UK top-ten university,

Lancaster University (2017 league table) – has produced more than 200 graduates to date, with around 60 per cent receiving first-class honours compared to a national average of 16 per cent.

At last inspection, B&FC received more commendations than any other UK higher education institution from the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education and we have the ability to deliver our awardwinning programmes nationwide.

We are APM-accredited in two-day and five-day corporate project management training courses and are in constant dialogue with leading UK employers to ensure our training continues to deliver maximum benefits for business.

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Agile’s role in the project management framework

O Stay agile, take risks and don’t be afraid to fail

O Mark Simmonds

RGANISATIONS ACROSS the globe are targeting improved agility. It is increasingly accepted that businesses need to be agile to succeed, and that agile approaches are best suited to today’s fast-moving world.

What has made agile a leading business aspiration? Where does its power lie? In days gone by, organisations could plan ahead, detailing how they would achieve strategic goals. Today, the pace of change is too fast to know how a business’s market and its working environment will look in future. The only certainty is that change and organisational transformation will be an essential part of its success.

The power of agile is in its ability to offer a disciplined yet flexible approach to managing change in a fast, dynamic world. The robust governance framework it provides sustains a steady focus on the strategic vision, but allows the flexibility needed to ensure this becomes reality. In an agile organisation, detail evolves as empowered teams respond to the changing context all around them.

Innovation at the heart The world stage is shifting daily, whether due to social or political impacts or the increasing momentum of technological developments.

Businesses can no longer afford to “do what they did last time” and expect it to work. Innovation now needs to be at the heart of every business – for products and services, and ways of working.

Innovation requires a change in culture for many organisations as embracing new ways introduces high risk, including the risk of failure.

Fail fast and move forward With innovation comes a willingness to experiment, and accept a

level of managed risk. agile organisations are not afraid of failure. They accept the necessity to continually correct course in the light of new conditions: • W here there is a risk of failure, then fail fast with time to respond or even cancel the project and spend your money elsewhere • Don’t design everything up front.

Instead, set off in the right direction and focus on those things that are of most value to the business • Deliver frequently, with regular stakeholder feedback • Focus on areas of highest risk, testing to prove whether ideas will work • Build teams that are empowered to make decisions • Inspire and lead, to create an environment where innovators can thrive

Customer Focus People not processes are at the heart of agile. To ensure business change is always focused on delivering customer value and business success, it’s essential the right people are engaged at the right time, and in the right way. By creating a framework for collaboration and communication, agile ensures that innovation and ideas are never stifled, and can always become reality.

The agile Business Consortium is a not-for-profit membership organisation that promotes, supports and enables agile business by providing advice and guidance through an accredited range of agile frameworks, products and services.

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Mark Simmonds is a former director and current member of the Agile Business Consortium www.agilebusiness.org

RGANISATIONS ARE increasingly embracing agile as a technique for managing projects. A full 71 per cent of organisations report that they sometimes use agile approaches to their projects, according to the Project Management Institute’s 2017 Pulse of the Profession®: Success Rates Rise: Transforming the High Cost of Low Performance report. In the past year, one in five projects has used agile approaches, and another one in five has used hybrid or blended approaches.

Champions – organisations with 80 per cent or more of projects completed on time and on budget, meeting original goals, and having high benefits realisation maturity – have a keen focus on using agile approaches to projects. Fifty-five per cent of champions use agile, versus 24 per cent of underperformers – organisations with 60 per cent or fewer projects completed successfully.

Organisations such as Teradyne and Michelin are committed to being more agility-focused. “The first and foremost challenge we have is trying to integrate agile into our existing project management framework,” said Kevin Giebel, engineering manager at Teradyne. Giebel has set pilot projects with project managers who

have implemented agile approaches elsewhere. The team will evaluate how agile fits in with the organisation’s project management framework.

At Michelin, the organisation’s project managers, along with a steering committee and project sponsor, select the best approach for each project together. “We believe that agility could also be used in everything we do,” said Phillipe Husser, senior partner of progress direction. “The world is changing very quickly around us, so much so that we cannot afford anymore to have projects taking two to five years to deliver, because, during this time, the initial requirements have changed.”

A large majority of organisations report greater agility over the past five years. More than half attribute the improvement to critical change factors, such as the need to innovate, a leadership mandate, and shifting customer demands.

Nearly half also credit their greater agility to the enhanced skills and experience of project managers.

Agile is proving to be a valuable tool for organisations as they look to increase the success of their projects and programmes.

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UK construction, like European construction, must embrace driven piling

W

ITH THE government committed to almost unparalleled infrastructure spend, recognising the benefits it brings to economic growth and stability in the wake of Brexit, UK construction must start embracing the many benefits, in particular environmental, of precast driven piling and challenge the misconceptions the technique may have. Aarsleff Ground Engineering Ltd is championing this perception change and growing rapidly as a result.

Much of mainland Europe consider precast driven piling the norm for many project types, yet despite its many documented advantages, the UK shows very little enthusiasm for the technique – favouring bored methodologies in preference. Much of this bias comes from familiarity with existing techniques and an unwillingness to explore new ones.

However, with the scrutiny that will be placed on new infrastructure projects with regards to their environmental impact, driven piling may at last get the status it deserves.

A number of technical papers and research projects published both here and in Europe support driven pilings

10% Aarsleff piles use 10 per cent less concrete, and five per cent less steel, than cast in-site vertical piles

advantages. Technically precast piles present an alternative, robust and cost-effective piling solution for many civil engineering and infrastructure projects, especially over existing methods currently deployed. From the reinforcing steel that gives the reinforced concrete pile its strength, most of which is from recycled sources, sustainability is engineered into driven piles. Aarsleff’s piles are manufactured off-site at its sister company Centrum Precast Solutions, which is a fully quality-controlled environment. Waste is managed, recycled and innovation of the concrete processes

has led to a vast reduction in cement use.

Off-site pile manufacture has also been recognised as offering further environmental benefits, and not least in the ability to provide “just-in-time” deliveries minimising disruption to the local neighbourhood.

A precast driven pile, dependent on geology, will typically mobilise higher values of shaft adhesion, often allowing the use of shorter piles than those of a similar section size, formed using wet concrete placed in the ground. This too brings considerable material savings, especially on large developments and an

associated CO2 saving from cement manufacture and from the associated reduction in fuel use through fewer on-site machine-hours. This benefit may well be even higher when the variation in acceptable design factors of safety is taken into consideration. In addition, precast concrete piles displace soil as they are driven, so there is no bore spoil to handle and remove from site. Not having to remove bore spoil from site saves a considerable amount of CO2 and cost from a reduction in traffic.

Aarsleff is part of an international group of companies with offices all over Europe, and as such can pull on vast knowledge resources to offer piling and ground engineering solutions to the UK construction sector. The wind farm sector uses precast driven piles almost exclusively, where the benefits of “raked” piles are gaining momentum. Other sectors are following, but many more, especially those actively involved in infrastructure projects, need to embrace driven piles – the benefits and advantages are clear.

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Jump-starting productivity with a new approach Comprehensive cloud-based platforms support complex projects, dramatically improve productivity and eliminate time wasted on reporting and status meetings

L

IKE MANY multinational firms that have grown through acquisition, leading education assessment provider GL Education found itself in a common predicament: managing its complex educational assessment projects was becoming increasingly difficult.

With each business unit relying on different processes and tools, and projects that often spanned years, teams and continents, it was nearly impossible for project managers to stay on top. The lack of visibility made tracking and allocating resources a guessing game. The result: a tremendous amount of time was wasted just trying to figure out what was going on.

“We had very little visibility into projects,” says Natalie Egan, group programme manager at GL Education.

“Reporting used to be an absolute nightmare. I’d say we spent 48 hours every month just on reporting – and even then, we knew we had lots of duplicated information and that what we’d reported was already out of date.”

Moving past spreadsheets Like many modern enterprises, GL Education recognised that its

conventional approach – a combination of Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Project – needed a major overhaul. The lack of integration, process inconsistency and disconnected tools were a major hindrance to employee productivity. And, with each new acquisition, the problem only multiplied.

Aiming to restore order to its project management chaos, GL Education began investigating alternatives. What they discovered is an entirely new approach to managing work that not only accelerated GL Education’s productivity, but also promised to change the face of project management across every industry.

Working faster, working smarter Bringing an agile and real-time approach to project management, a new solution called enterprise work management (EWM) is transforming the way companies get work done.

Led by cloud-based EWM platform provider Workfront, this new approach centres around a single, comprehensive solution that serves the entire work lifecycle with complete visibility over real-time status, resource budget and timeline. With EWM, teams like

GL Education can consolidate every facet of project planning, execution, delivery and evaluation – from work request and task assignment to collaboration and reporting – onto a single dashboard in which everyone works. No more lengthy email trails, lost sticky notes or hours wasted compiling reports or sitting in status meetings.

In fact, by deploying Workfront, GL Education saw productivity soar by 80 per cent thanks in large part to its project managers no longer having to track down project updates. With Workfront’s real-time reporting, the

company has cut report preparation time by two full days and eliminated status meetings altogether. Now, the entire team – from project managers to senior leadership – can have complete visibility into progress, resource allocation and budget versus actual.

That means more time and effort gets devoted to getting work done instead of talking about it.

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W

HAT DO embedded sensors, unmanned aerial vehicles, 3D printing, big data and building information modelling have in common? They’re all part of the digitisation of the construction industry. Decades of entrenched practices and processes are giving way to modern technology and methods, as the construction industry is currently in the early stages of transforming itself. Long one of the least digital of all industries, ranking above only agriculture and hunting, construction will be a laggard no more.

The change comes at an opportune time. Time and cost overages plague the industry. McKinsey & Company report that large projects typically take 20 per cent longer to complete than scheduled and are up to 80 per cent above budget.

And, portending even more complexity, the average project size continues growing. Tack on the likelihood of labour restrictions and shortages in the near future and the demand for more environmentally friendly structures and practices, and the need for greater efficiency and less waste becomes clear to everyone.

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Project managing the construction industry’s digital makeover

Change management begins here Project management software finds itself on the front lines of the construction industry’s evolution. Not only does it significantly impact efficiencies, it ensures accountability as well. Properly implemented, collaborative project management software with clearly defined workflows, controls and engagement protocols can deftly manage changes in a company’s processes and procedures, especially when interacting with external supply chains. In a real sense, change management begins here.

Project management platforms are not the shiniest tools in the construction industry’s toolbox currently, however.

That honour belongs to building information modelling (BIM), a threedimensional representation of an asset’s design, with the potential to become five-dimensional by linking both costs and scheduling with the 3D virtual imaging. It’s worth noting that the I in BIM stands for information, a testament to the critical role that data and documents play in a project’s viability. The volumes involved can be enormous.

BIM and the project management platforms it integrates with require putting away pen and paper and embracing real-time collaboration over cloud-based networks. The upsides include mobile anytime access, greater transparency, better quality and fewer mistakes. Across the board, we can anticipate vast improvements over the inefficiencies the construction industry currently offers.

Government playing a leading role Some may be surprised to learn that the UK government is not only encouraging the construction industry’s digital transformation, but is actively

“Construction’s disruption won’t be all gain with no pain. But staying the course is no longer working” – Steve Cooper, Aconex

leading it. Beginning in April 2016, BIM Level 2 compliance became a requirement for companies to bid on centrally procured public projects. As the leading player in the funding of large-scale infrastructure projects throughout the UK and with so much invested in their outcomes, the government chose to cast its vote for greater cost controls and more reliable completion dates. Officials see the potential for digitisation to increase UK engineering and construction firms’ competitiveness across the globe. Other countries have also taken notice, and BIM adoption is growing in Germany, France and elsewhere.

There’s also a sustainability issue at play here. Collaboration technologies including BIM and project management platforms benefit the environment through improved logistics planning – meaning shorter journeys for transport – as well as less rework due to mistakes.

Doing a job right the first time reduces wasted time and resources.

Design and build is only the half of it Digitisation promises not only substantial savings in a project’s design and build costs, but similar savings throughout the asset’s life cycle. A familiar risk in preparing a conventional project for handover is the fact that design and construction information is constantly changing and equipment may need replacing. If these changes aren’t accurately tracked and accounted for prior to handover, the receiving operations and maintenance (O&M) team can end up with incomplete and even useless

documentation. This can have a material impact on the asset’s owner, whose revenue and profitability stream is delayed by the time it takes to obtain all of the project information required to operate the newly built asset.

Effectively dealing with the evolving nature of project information requires adherence to a digital best practice of allowing engineers to capture, review and organise O&M documentation as the asset is being constructed. Later, when O&M team members require this information, they can simply approach an asset with a tablet, click on the tag associated with it and gain immediate access to its information.

When tested in the field, troubleshooting has begun in seconds and maintenance response times have been reduced by hours per incident. The anticipated labour savings are substantial, as the number of engineers required to prepare for project handover can be significantly reduced.

Multiplying these reductions over a matter of months and years may result in savings of hundreds of thousands of pounds on large facilities.

The personal and personnel aspects of going digital Any mention of labour costs raises the troubling spectre of impending labour shortages in the industry. In 2015, the latest year for which statistics are available, 22 per cent of construction workers were above the age of 50. For an industry that relies on overseas labour and the free movement of people, the short- to medium-term outlook is at best uncertain.

One ray of sunshine is the prospect of the industry’s digital transformation inciting the interest of a younger, more computer-literate, home-grown workforce. Unmanned machinery and off-site manufacturing will alleviate some of the pressure to put more people in the field.

So too will more efficient planning, visualisation, co-ordination and collaboration. Industry experts envision a future where construction is characterised by connected systems of sensors, intelligent machines, mobile devices and new software applications. This future is growing nearer.

No gain without pain Accelerating project completion times and reducing cost overages are now essential for an industry that has been reluctant to change. Construction is paying the price for being too slow to invest in its future.

McKinsey & Company report that less than 1 per cent of construction revenues have been allotted for R&D in recent years, compared with approximately 4 per cent for automotive and aerospace. “The construction industry is ripe for disruption”, they conclude.

Construction’s disruption won’t be all gain with no pain. But staying the course is no longer working. Faced with the tasks of applying digital technologies and collaborative platforms to secure a more promising future, it’s time we get started.

INDUSTRY VIEW

Steve Cooper (inset) is general manager, UK & Ireland at Aconex www.aconex.com

March 2017

AN INDEPENDENT REPORT FROM LYONSDOWN, DISTRIBUTED WITH THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH

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The debate What is the key to delivering projects – being on time or on budget?

Philip Martin

Mike Acaster

Alex Shootman

Mark A Langley

C

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CEO Cora Systems

LARITY ON the organisation’s capacity is key. Projects generally fail because not enough resources are allocated, or the same resources are allocated to different projects simultaneously, or simply because the manager planning budgets has no idea what a project entails and naively allocates only 25 per cent of time needed to deliver it.

Bottom-up resource management involves a detailed project plan to which resources can be allocated – for example, the planning is already done, but this invariably ends up in a fight for resources with other projects.

Top-down resource management, however, facilitates resource planning through resource pools. What skills are required to do this project and for how long (you need a project manager for six months for 50 per cent of their time, say)? Various skill requirements can be bulk assigned by project to provide management with an accurate picture of resources required for the year ahead. This leads to a realistic set of project estimates and a clear view on capacity for the year, and helps deliver a realistic programme plan rather than falling behind on estimates of an unrealistic one.

PPM portfolio manager Axelos SEE TIME and again that there are two key elements in projects that are delivered on time and budget. The first is getting timely decisions; many projects fail because delays have been caused by a poor and unclear decision-making process. Good decisions happen when there is clarity over who the decision maker is, enough information is collected to make an informed decision and delegation (or management by exception) is in place.

The second is clarity of business purpose and intent. Although it sounds simple to ensure projects have a clear direction and goal throughout, many struggle as the goalposts are shifted. And while we live in a world where business requirements will change, it is important to ensure the project is properly scoped with a prioritised list of requirements rather than an endless wish-list.

The focus should always be on why the project is required, what is the problem that is trying to be solved and a clear vision of what is required to solve it!

INDUSTRY VIEW

www.AXELOS.com/PRINCE2-2017

President & CEO Workfront

URKY WORK processes and poor communications produce late, over-budget projects, while accurate work measurement and tracking combined with clarity in stakeholder communications yield on-time, on-budget projects. Here are three ways successful teams excel at delivering projects within their organisations: Knowing how long work takes and costs: on-time, on-budget teams thoroughly map their workflows, accounting for every task and subtask. Then they track, over multiple projects, the effort and cost of each activity and continuously refine their estimates.

Knowing your team’s bandwidth: on-time, on-budget teams track, in real time, what each team member is working on, when it will be finished, and what is next in their respective queues, a task usually beyond the reach of spreadsheets.

Communicate deadlines and changes: meeting deadlines starts before kickoff by getting stakeholders and approvers to agree on the deadlines for the tasks that will apply to them. All projects have changes, and communicating alterations reduces unplanned or unnecessary work.

INDUSTRY VIEW

INDUSTRY VIEW

pmartin@corasystems.com www.corasystems.com

+44 (0)1256 807352 www.workfront.com/businessreporter

President & CEO PMI

HEN ORGANISATIONS embark on projects and programmes, they do so with a clear mission: to add value, advance strategies, and increase competitive advantage.

So, the more mature they are with project management, the more likely they will achieve their goals. Completing projects and programmes successfully – on time, on budget, meeting goals – is essential. But just as important is a focus on expected business benefits.

A broader view of performance includes an organisation’s benefits realisation maturity level. This more inclusive measure of project success provides insight into what elite organisations – those we are calling “champions” – are doing and how others can continue on this path to progress.

INDUSTRY VIEW

For more information, see www.PMI.org/Pulse

Future-proofing warehouses to enable business growth

P

ROFESSIONALS IN the transport and logistics sector are seeing a number of new changes in the ways warehouses, distribution centres and the entire supply chain operate. More facilities and larger spaces mean more disparate teams, requiring high-speed mobile communications via strong wired and wireless networks to ensure everyone can be in contact wherever they are. Additionally, new industry regulations, such as the European Food Law, call for more accurate product tracking and tracing. Furthermore, the growth of omnichannel transactions creates the need for increased inventory control, flexibility and faster, more accurate fulfillment.

As a result, the industry is shifting its view of warehouses from commoditised links between endpoints of the supply chain to a powerful asset that can drive profitable growth. As Sean Collins, regional director for UK&I and BeNeLux at Extreme Networks, points out, network solutions that give teams

visibility into how their warehouses are running can help identify opportunities to drive greater efficiency and productivity.

However, there are a number of elements that firms need to consider to enable this.

Positive change with technology Changes in the frequency and size of shipments can affect workflow efficiency and productivity – driving many new technology requirements. A shift towards more value-added services will mean organisations need to seek partners and vendors with a broad portfolio to address changing needs. Additionally, expanding the size or number of warehouses can have a big impact on technical planning, staffing requirements, and remote support capabilities. A move to more but smaller warehouses may put pressure on the IT network and require more standardisation within a company’s own operations.

Adapting business management processes Organisations need to think strategically about how to protect themselves against new and evolving industry risks by turning factors driven by regulations into factors that also drive more value for the business.

The best way to measure this is to develop an ROI model that takes into account top- and bottom-line results. In the warehouse industry, ROI models have often been measured purely on cost savings, but as warehousing changes, so do the models used to drive investment decisions. It’s important to also take a broader view of how improvements in warehouse operations can also enhance top-line performance.

INDUSTRY VIEW

MarketingUKI@extremenetworks.com www.extremenetworks.com