Project Management Synthesis (or PMS for the PM)
AN·A·LYZE verb (used with object), -lyzed, -lyz·ing. (from Dictionary.com)
1. to separate (a material or abstract entity) into constituent parts or elements; determine the elements or essential features of; e.g. to analyze an argument.
2. to examine critically, so as to bring out the essential elements or give the essence of: to analyze a poem.
3. to examine carefully and in detail so as to identify causes, key factors, possible results, etc.
One who analyzes is an:
AN·A·LYST noun (from Dictionary.com)
1.a person who analyzes or who is skilled in analysis.
There are many types of analysts:
BA Business Analyst
CSBA Certified Software Business Analyst
AFA Accredited Financial Analyst
CRA Chartered Certified Risk Analyst
CAPA Certified Asset Protection Analyst
CITA Certified International Tax Analyst
And so on…
There are no Project Management Analyst (PMA) jobs, titles, or positions that I’ve ever run across. (If you see one let me know. I’d be very interested in see what’s in that job description.) While there are no formal job descriptions for this portion of your project manager position it is a key activity to your success that will contribute to your being an outstanding Project Manager. A PMA must understand all the INPUTs to their projects that will have an influence on the OUTPUTs of their project (or deliverables). Recall that you must analyze, to examine critically, so as to bring out the essential elements, all inputs necessary to determine which ones are important enough that they will have a material affect on the outputs or deliverables of your project. What does this mean? This is a Six Sigma approach applied to project management. Things like risks, assumptions, constraints, and stakeholder identification are all INPUTs to your project plan. In Six Sigma process development these are refered to as KPIVs or Key Process Input Variables. These and other input variables have a bearing on the final OUTPUTS of cost, quality/scope, and timing of your project. The quality side of these inputs are called CTQs, Critical To Quality. They are the independent variables that directly affect your OUTPUT or desired deliverables.
Yet, being a PMA is only a portion of the key activities required to becoming an above average project manager. To deliver your schedule within the triple constraints you must bring all the elements together into a cohesive whole or synthesize your KPIVs to be able to tell a story on how to get from your key inputs to your desired outputs. You must become a Project Management synthesist (PMS).
SYN·THE·SIZE verb (from Dictionary.com)
1.to form (a material or abstract entity) by combining parts or elements
Every team will create a different project plan and schedule, given the same inputs, based on the team’s skills, training, and experience. It is your job as the PM to synthesize and create the vision, plan, and schedule that is achievable. Let me repeat-It is your job as the PM to synthesize and create the vision, plan, and schedule that is achievable. While this may seem to be stating the obvious I’ve seen PMs put together project plans that were not realistic from the get go. When queried, the response I got was “Manufacturing wanted it this way!” (???) This PM did not create and synthesize a plan into a cohesive whole. What they planned for was eventual chaos and failure. In other words outputs didn’t match the stated inputs. Even before project execution began you could review this plan and read the words “Defeat” across it.
As PMs our roles are to create and describe a vision of how to get from A to B, create a plan and schedule in a reasonable level of detail, and communicate this vision and plan to all core team, extended team and management. With a core team of 15, extended team members of 30+, support functions, suppliers, and management you will have easily over 100 people in which you will have to communicate your vision. I once had a boss that accused me of being “repetitive.” While he meant that negatively I took it as a complement because it is my job to make sure everyone understands project goals, plans, and how you get from A to B. You can give a message 100 times to a group. Some get the message the first time, others don’t or won’t get it after the 100th.
Make sure you understand all the KPIVs for your project then synthesize those elements into a cohesive whole. Bring it all together to create the vision and paint the picture. When a project fails it can be traced back to either one or more KPIVs were not properly identified therefore its affect on project outcome was not controlled or one of the KPIVs changed and as an independent variable had a material affect on the outcome. Outputs are driven by KPIVs make sure as a PMA/PMS you understand both.
ALL3PM 
Great tie in with 6Sigma principles! Synthesis is probably the toughest part of a PMs job, especially with stakeholders that are not directly involved but can impact project outcome. Looking forward to your next blog entry!
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