Go big or go home

In the second of our two-part series on unfamiliar projects, we look at some key processes and techniques to focus on when the size of your project moves rapidly towards large scale and you are asked to build your first big and complex facility.

Project definition- these first steps are the key to final success

The first steps of project creation are formed in a process called project definition, what starts as description of a concept will evolve during the process into the basis of an execution plan. The principal purpose of having a clear project definition is alignment. Initially it focuses on the alignment of the stakeholders and investors and articulates the agreed purpose, performance requirements and expected impact of the new project facility. Whilst it starts as a strategic level definition it grows as it cascades down into the workstreams and sub-projects to become a clear, detailed and coherent set of performance expectations that are agreed and signed up to by all parties; particularly those who will be accountable for operating and supporting the facility.

It is worth spending extra time in the definition stage to be absolutely certain of how the facility should function and what it must deliver. This enables expected performance levels to be built into supplier contracts and facilitates the creation of clear and appropriate specifications. The amount of project definition required is (probably) directly proportional to the size and/or complexity of the project, particularly as it costs far less to get things right at the concept and design stage than trying to fix it later in the implementation stage.

Business readiness

Integrated with and running alongside big scale projects are business readiness projects that invest in preparing the organisation to be ready to operate the new facility successfully. These cover every operational aspect from recruitment and training for start-up and operation; to inbound and outbound supply chain logistics and everything in between. Thus most large scale projects become programs, where the build is just one of the critical parts (workstreams).

One workstream at a time

As the saying goes – “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.” While the scope of a large scale build can seem daunting, one of the first steps to take is to break it down into a number of smaller, discrete and more manageable projects that can be assigned to individual project and program teams. Each mini-project should have its own budget, schedule and deliverables that can be aggregated into the master schedule to identify interdependencies on the critical path. The first version of the critical path becomes the focus of an optimisation process that will run through the life of the project.

Competencies selection

One of the secrets to successful project delivery is ensuring that each mini-project manager has the competence, capacity and capability to deliver their scope. The same is true of the suppliers and contractors who, alongside demonstrated capability and capacity, must have construction and quality management systems to meet the project requirements. The choices made at this stage are critical as they immediately become the major determinants that determine the success or otherwise of the project.

As the project progresses it is essential that the principal contractor continues to demonstrate that they have created a construction management process that is detailed, responsive and effective (ask for a demo!) and a site construction manager with mastery of project detail and a personality that will get the job done in the right way to the right standard.  Systems like the Last Planner System help to coordinate the construction conversation between the different contractors and, properly set-up and motivated, can have a significant positive impact on the outcome. Again, the bigger the project the more investment is needed in systems like the Last Planner System.

Governance and Steering

A clear governance process needs to be designed and set-up early to manage emerging issues. Regular structured meetings should be held at frequencies appropriate to the cadence of the project. These meetings will vary from the shift handover or daily meetings focused on coordination, immediate problem-solving and escalation within a workstream or work-face; to the more strategic steering meeting. As the projects get larger more resource is required to continuously coordinate across workstreams.

Risk and Opportunity Management

An initial assessment of likely risks in each workstream is needed. This helps to calibrate the potential scale of project-related risk impacts for the business and enables the allocation of principal risks for mitigation. The identification, monitoring and mitigation of risk should be a defined project process that ensures relevant output is shared across the workstreams. The individual risks need to be calibrated to ensure workstream level risks are managed in the workstream and program level risk are escalated.

Often in big projects there are many opportunities and these need to be managed in the same way as the risks to ensure they are exploited and not forgotten.

Managing target dates and contingency factors

The project workstreams should have a common approach to cost contingency and target start and finish times. This is particularly important where there are significant interdependencies – with the potential benefit that if one work package finishes early then it allows the follow-on work to start early and equally it flags the increased cost if timings run late.

As part of the master schedule the ‘red-line’ needs of the business must be considered – this is the point where the delay to effective completion results in a significant impairment to the strategic purpose of the facility.

As outlined in the first part of this article (link) the more complex or unique a requirement, the bigger the cost and time uncertainty. The more known and standard an item, the less the need for contingency.

Contingency allocation authority and decision-making rights should be predetermined and made a fundamental part of the steering process, becoming a fixed item on the agenda. This helps to create business buy-in, via the sponsor, and ensures the right resources are available when needed.

In scenarios where speed of delivery is critical, consider using a proportion of any underspend or allocate part of any unspent contingency as an incentive to encourage and reward exceptional performance. Creating positive project motivators can have a powerful impact on outcomes.

Change control

Change control is one of the most important processes in a complex project. The purpose being to evaluate a proposed change to the scope in order to understand and manage the schedule and cost impacts, whilst ensuring the unintended consequences of the change are mitigated.

Summary

In summary, a large scale project is made manageable by breaking it down into a program of smaller-sized manageable projects, each with a clear project organisation structure and leaders responsible for the deliverables with clear reporting lines.

Spend time at the beginning of the project on clearly defining the objectives, scope, budgets, schedules and creating a risk management process. Then ensure you select your project team and contractors with the right competencies, capabilities and capacity to deliver. Create a clear governance structure capable of real time monitoring and making timely, level-appropriate decisions that allows effective management of construction activities, risk and change control.