Have you ever worked on a program where expectations have been set to management, before the work has been scoped, and the date just keeps on moving? I have. Many times. It’s awkward and uncomfortable. Here are my top tips for managing through this situation.

  1. Rebuild trust and alignment through transparency and credibility. There should be no real surprises with program delivery if your governance is on point, your status reports are transparent, and your risks and issues are being actively managed and communicated. If all of that is missing (which is often is if you’ve been brought in for a program save) get your stakeholders around the table and reset. The reset does not have to give all of the answers. Chances are you don’t yet have them, but it should set an expectation of when you will be able to provide these or what needs to change to get the clarity.
  2. Connect your delivery team to the why, and to what has been committed. Most people want to do a great job. It’s a lot easier for them to commit and support progress if they truly understand why the business is investing,
  3. Avoid overpromising. Revise your commitments to match the true pace of the organisation. You will win back your delivery team if you start providing realistic timeframes for them and prove that you’re willing to have hard conversations with leadership to broker an improved understanding around these. This will also allow you to deliver more consistently and build trust back again with everyone.
  4. Present options and trade-offs through governance forums. There are always ways for a program to move faster, but they often involve cost and resources that the business does not have readily available. Show that as an option but also provide an option B and C and let the business make the call.
  5. Proactive stakeholder management. If your status report is about to show red, make sure nobody is surprised by this. You’ll be surprised by how quickly you can get a dial to move, or produce a fast-track action plan, when your business owners are on board and connected to program outcomes.
  6. Clarity of communications. Get your story telling right for your audience. Keep your key messages crisp. Provide visual anchors so that your updates are easily digested and understood and cut through broader business communication noise.

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