If you work in a management position, chances are that you have already encountered (or will encounter), the most deadly program of all. The “Toxic Program”. The toxic program is typically one that is defined in your local terminology as “critical” or “red”. Something has gone seriously wrong. And you have been “parachuted in” to recover the situation.
I’m using the term “program” loosely here (See: Program_management) because these tips are very useful in general. And good for recovering quite a few different toxic situations in any organisation. This could be called something very different elsewhere, depending on the organisation. I’ve heard terms such as “initiative”, “concept”, “project”, “new enterprise”, “strategy”, etc. Make no mistake, it’s still a program of some form of work. And that requires a well-defined road map that follows a framework.
Unfortunately management quite often use other terms to mislead, confuse. Or are simply ignorant of correct terminology. This allows them to escape the need for discipline and structure. Which is typically why these programs become toxic in the first place!
Practical guidance
Now I could give you a lengthy course on the virtues of structured program methodologies. But I personally prefer MSP, Managing Successful Programmes so will base recovery on this framework. But if you are reading this, I suspect you are looking for solid tips and guidance, and not abstract teaching. Bear in mind that many of these principles, DO’s, DON’T’s would be in place for a normal program also. So this is about discipline in a difficult program that is already in crisis.
It is vital to remember that individuals associated to the program will not be at their best. Tempers will most likely be frayed, people will be feeling hurt and emotionally scarred. There will animosity in some, active or passive resistance in others. Deliberate sabotage is also a possibility so be careful!
So having a professional bearing will work wonders. Be disciplined but friendly, conscientious & considerate. A non-aggressive but professional, methodical, assertive approach will be very re-assuring to the teams, and management.
So without further ado, let’s get started.
Don’t rush headlong in, expecting to save the world
So first off, let’s set some ground rules. Necessary to ensure we are both on the same page and understandings. Rules we need to agree on as follows.
- That the program is deemed to be something that can be achieved and not a “lost cause”. And to some extent, there is some form of benefit attached. How much, to be determined?
- We can presume the previous owner was most likely, a reasonably competent individual. Or they would never have been given the program in the first place!
- That the program is toxic/failing due to one or more gaps. Some examples could be soft areas such as expectations, communications, and understandings. Or hard areas such as costs, scope, timelines, resources, equipment, suppliers, etc.
Remember, it’s a toxic program of work that needs a structured approach to fix it. So start at the beginning. Find out what forms of collateral are in place and read, read, read. Evaluate any available collateral already in place. Issue logs, risk logs, registers, meeting notes, authentic program collateral, etc. Then prepare a list and evaluate the condition of the collateral. This initially will let you know where the gaps are.
Keep it simple (stupid – the KISS principle) and give each piece of collateral a rating of “Good”, “Average”, “Bad”, “Missing”, “Not Required”. Gather evidence by talking to the people currently associated, or were in the program (but left?). Take copious notes on all facts, thoughts, and opinions about what happened, what went wrong. Ask for opinions about gathered collateral on credibility and adjust your scores accordingly.
Your starting position
As a start, when you begin recovery of a toxic program, you need clarity on many levels. Creating good collateral to accompany the program IS NOT just a “paper pushing exercise”! It is a VITAL part of a recovery road map as it serves a number of key purposes. These include: –
- It provides you with a starting point in beginning the work;
- It provides a framework plan for “the next 4-8 weeks”, depending on what needs to be done. E.g. re-write collateral, create collateral, collate evidence, etc.
- It provides you and management an opportunity to level the playing field (in writing). And being honest in clearing up critical errors. This is especially important if there are problems in “softer” areas such as misaligned expectations. Or fuzzy roles & responsibilities. Or misguided communications strategy.
- Once complete, the understanding from the products will form the basis of a more extended plan.
- The completed products will clarify (immensely!) key aspects of a new plan. To include dependencies, risks, roles/responsibilities, key players, costs, benefits, timelines, etc.
If you cannot see the necessity of this approach, you may as well quit now. And ask your line management for urgent re-assignment to simpler work. I didn’t say this would be easy. But it can be done.
The collateral
The standard pieces of programme collateral that SHOULD be in place. Depending on the value and complexity, you should be able to “trawl” Google or Bing for sample templates. These would include.
- A Policy/Strategy/Vision document or statement (if available).
- A mandate – Short, clear management level statement (or document) on what the programme is being set up to achieve. How organisation will be improved as a result. How programme fits with corporate mission & goals / other initiatives. If one is not available or was never prepared, create one.
- Terms of Reference (TOR) – Defines program board (individuals, SRO, Board), Accountability, Roles & Responsibilities. Should also include (ideally), estimation of resources, terms used, duration’s, structure, meetings, etc. If one is not available or was never prepared, create one.
- Initial Plans – Preparation plan, how to get to a stage where you can define a program. If one is not available or was never prepared, create one.
- RACI matrix (Senior) – Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, and Informed (NB: I am not keen on RASCI so not used here. The “Support” designation is in my eyes, confusing and just muddies the waters with “Consulted”). If one is not available or was never prepared, create one.
- Program Brief (presuming the above collateral in place) – At minimum, it will reflect: –
- The Vision-what will the organisation look like once you have delivered the programme.
- Benefits-what type, when they will be delivered, how to measure them. Ensure you also clearly call out “dis-benefits”.
- Risks & Issues-Programme level, known constraints, assumptions or conflicts. Be clear on what the impacts are.
- Estimates-costs, resources, timing, effort.
- If one is not available or was never prepared, create one.
These are essential products that MUST exist. And you must be crystal clear on their use, before you can begin defining and recovering the toxic program. Otherwise, how do you really know what you are expected to deliver?
Good documentation of course needs no alteration. Average means accept it, but with risk. Bad or missing will need to be accomplished (or re-accomplished). Archive any “Not Required” documentation.
Useful tips to help you along
- DO: ask for a very clear charter from your Director/VP level stating that YOU, are now in charge and Responsible for delivery. And that this charter needs to be sent out to all senior level stakeholders, owners. You must have this as you will need to make decisions, secure support. Stakeholders need to recognise your ownership, to ensure you get the support you need.
- DON’T: let your management rush you. It’s obvious you’re expected to work professionally and promptly. But there is a vast difference between working efficiently versus rushing headlong into a second disaster. Set good timelines and be honest with your management as to why you need the time. If they still try to rush/push aggressively, be careful. They are not giving you adequate time to prepare, so push back assertively. Begin a Risk log and clearly capture the risk, who made the decision, business impact. Then ask the person rushing you if they are comfortable being the “Risk Owner”. (NB: This is to help protect you!).
- DO: Prepare for good meetings, in advance, for Responsible & Accountable owners, so you can get everyone “on board”. Circulate the collateral, in advance, and get feedback. Don’t wait till the day before to arrange a meeting. And push the owners to ensure they accept the meeting invite. If they don’t attend, pick up the phone and pester them (politely). Persistence is a virtue in corporations. Chronic absences of essential people should be captured in the Risk log.
- DON’T: Be bashful on asking your upper management for assistance in coercing support as needed. I have seen this often in past. Where for example, a Vice-President (VP) who persistently skips my meeting invites, tends to be more “cooperative” with other VP’s/Presidents. Their support may be vital in moving the toxic program from Red to Green!
- DO: Encourage people to speak out, especially in one to one discussions. You will learn things. Ask what they think went wrong. And listen! When you are talking, you are not learning!
- DON’T: accept “fluff” when you have hard questions that need answering. E.g. you need to know what the budget is and the answer they give you is “I think it’s somewhere around £500K but I’m not sure”. Or you need to know how many people will be in the team by skill set. And they respond with “oh, I have a nameless team that will help out”. You need to know Accountable owners. A response of “Oh don’t worry about that. We’ll work it out as we go along” is not acceptable.
- DO: learn to “dig in your heels”. Be honest, forthright, and concise in your analysis. And in what actions or outputs are required from others. If they cause a delay, then you tell them the plan will be delayed. No excuses. If you are in charge and you honestly think you are making the right decision, stick by it. Don’t let others “railroad” you into accepting decisions you know are wrong. If you are overruled by your direct Line Management, so be it. Capture this as a decision against a RISK you have diligently entered in your Risk Log.
- DON’T: accept blame for others’ mistakes, but don’t become a “blame caster” either. For example, if someone has “dropped the ball” after agreeing a suspense date. You can call this out in a “politically polite” manner with a positive spin. E.g. “the costs forecasts were delayed due other priorities but we expect to recover them by end of week”.
- DON’T: be arrogant and act like you walk on water. If you make a (minor) mistake, admit it, apologise and move on. Don’t dwell on it. Try not to make major mistakes as too many of these will mean you are also going to be replaced! Take your time as you must, to ensure you are making the right decisions.
- DO: ensure your scope is very tight. And don’t accept “scope creep” without proper evaluation and change control. If for example you know you are rolling out a new system to 200 sites, this will form the basis of your plan. If 6 weeks later, they decide its 400 sites, register this into a Change control log. And ensure EVERYONE is aware a new plan will be delivered. And that it will be reflecting new timelines, impact, costs, and resources as required.
- DO: call in other experts as needed. You are managing this. That doesn’t necessarily mean you have to do everything yourself. If for example you need an infrastructure specialist to provide cost estimates, get an expert here. Your plan will be much more credible if backed up with expert advice.
- DO: review collateral from other programs of similar nature. Especially if they are complete and there is a “Lessons learned” area. Its good practice and can often save an immense amount of time and energy. You can avoid or fix potentially difficult areas up front. Ideally, this should also include not only “What went wrong” statements and analysis. But also positive statements of “What went well” so you learn best practice.
What next?
Modelling this on an MSP framework, we can hopefully presume you have begun a “road to recovery”. And that the team are on-board to recover of this toxic situation (toxic program). The next instalment of these Survival Guides will take you to the next step of Defining a programme. In the meantime, you may find it useful to pick up a book from Amazon, read about MSP. It would be good learning to familiarise yourself with the overall methodology, framework, terms, and definitions. Further useful tips can be found here (Essential job skills ).
Look for my next instalment. Coming soon!
