Completing projects on time and on budget can be very challenging. People can be the biggest roadblock to a successful project. I’ll talk about how to deal with people in this video. Last week I met a network architect engineer who is in charge of a large project for a division of a multinational and we chatted about managing people and projects over dinner. He said that the biggest challenge to delivering projects on time and on budget was people. I agreed with him and explained that the solution is getting people to respect their commitments and agreements. In fact this is also the foundation of building trust and without trust you cannot have teamwork. Teamwork is essential to solve problems that affect multiple people and cross departments. Otherwise people just wait for the problem to be solved and thus do not assume responsibility to be part of the solution. Getting people to keep their commitments requires these elements to be put in place by all managers. I say all managers because these management practices will form the culture of the company, so it needs to start from the top.

1. People need to understand that when they make a commitment they are actually forming an agreement. Sometimes these agreements need to be put in writing in order to drive accountability.
2. People need to know how to respond and communicate when they cannot keep their commitments or agreements. Other people are usually dependant on them and need to be informed ahead of time if something is not being done as scheduled. Otherwise conflicts can arise as well as a breakdown in trust.
3. People need to learn how to confront each other when agreements are not being met. People often fall into the trap of who’s to blame when things don’t get done as expected. This can be very destructive for workplace relationships and trigger mistrust and conflicts.

How do leaders and managers create a culture where people understand the importance of keeping agreements? Leaders and managers must first walk the talk themselves. They must demonstrate what is expected from everyone in the organization. This makes it much more credible when people are asked to behave the same way. Leaders and managers must coach their employees on keeping their commitments and forming written agreements for larger scale activities or problems. Follow-up and reinforcement along with feedback will cement the correct behaviors. Training and development to raise people’s awareness of the notion of personal responsibility and accountability is always a good thing to form the foundation for developing a responsible attitude and organizational culture.