You’re a project manager with a PMI Certification. It's the afternoon of Friday. This is the current state of your project:
Your crew is two
days behind schedule.
Because the project
is so vital and the deadline is so important, team members working on critical
path activities have committed to stay late tonight and work both Saturday and
Sunday to get back on track.
Your sponsor just
texted you to inquire about the status of the project. Your sponsor is unaware
that the squad is two days behind schedule. She took a two-week overseas trip
and is just getting back into the office. When she departed, everything was
fine. That'll teach her to take time off!
As learned while
preparing for a PMI Certification - you consider the following options:
1.
Because
you are convinced that everything will be fine, tell her everything is good.
Why would you want to disturb her? You assume her SMS is only a check-in,
informing you that she has returned from her holiday and has not forgotten
about the project. Everything will be alright when she is truly ready to pay
attention.
2.
Respond
by saying you'll meet with her on Monday to catch up. Then, on Monday, you can
give her an update on the project's status and let her know what's been going
on. At that point, the team may or may not have done the required work and will
be back on track, but you may brag about how hard they worked all weekend. Of
course, you secretly hope they'll get back on track.
3.
Ignore
her text until later in the weekend, and then send her an update once you're
back on track. A SMS is not considered a formal communication in your corporate
culture, according to your thought process. In reality, you may have texted
your sponsor and received no response for up to 24 hours. You believe you have
a good reason to wait. This way, you'll be able to see how much you got done
tonight and tomorrow. Your hope is that the team completes the work as
scheduled, and you may text her to let her know everything is well.
4.
Tell
her the truth about the situation and the strategy — we are now two days behind
schedule and will be working the weekend to get back on track. Of course, this
results in a lengthy text. If she prefers texting, find a method to be succinct
while yet being reassuring. Otherwise, give her a call or send her a quick
email.
Which of the
options do you prefer: one of the options above or none of the options above?
What would YOU do in this situation?
Need more
insights on the same? Enrol
in a Project Management Professional training program today!
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