4 Steps to take when facing issues with a project!

As understood in PMP and CAPM Certification prep course - what steps do you take when you've hit a major snag – a potentially show-stopping issue or issues on your project – and you need to take action, notify your customer, and get the project back on track?

1.     Analyse and discover.

For the purposes of this essay, I'm presuming that the project manager and project delivery team found the flaws, not the customer. The team must gather and analyse the circumstance or challenges that are causing the project to stall at this point. Gather the team to brainstorm, list the concerns, and prioritise viable solutions or courses of action based on feasibility, cost / effort, and likelihood of success. In the coming steps, this will be critical information for your management and the client.

2.     Take it to management. 

Next, meet with your senior management or PMO director to discuss the issue and the possible solutions you and your team have discovered. It's critical to acquire their approval, especially if this is a high-profile project or the action plan is one that would cost the engagement a lot of money. They might even wish to participate in the consumer conversation, which leads us to the following step.

3.     Go to the customer. 

Next, As understood in PMP and CAPM Certification prep course -, you're in charge of all communication, thus it should be you who first contacts the client and informs them of the problem, assuming they aren't already aware of it. Allowing your supervisor to handle this duty could jeopardise the customer's trust in you as the project manager and leader in charge.Here's an intriguing fact: when I was the leader of the Las Vegas PMO for a now-defunct organisation headquartered in another state, and the firm was shutting down due to some issues with our CEO, it was I, not my vice president, who went to my clients to advise them of the situation. It was not a pleasant situation to be in, but it was necessary, and it resulted in the largest affected client offering me a leadership position with their company.

Hold a more formal conversation with the customer after that initial contact to discuss the situation in further detail and explain the potential courses of action that you and your team have come up with. Never bring problems to the table without also bringing potential solutions. Brainstorm with the customer about the most important corrective action from the list you and your team compiled, and make sure everyone is on the same page about the next steps.

4.     Implement. 

Finally, carry out the corrective action and continue to include it as a key status item on status reports and in weekly status meetings until you and your team have satisfactorily remedied the problem.

Need more insights on the same? Take on a project manager certification today!