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Blog poste by: Laurie Bowman, principal – project planning and control consultancy, Synchrony, 16 February 2018.

Complex projects are characterized by a huge variety of inputs and this creates a challenging environment in which to make decisions.

As human beings, we are naturally biased and often go on “gut feel”. This is fine if you are being chased by a lion, but in the complex world of project management, where there are multiple sources of data, the right course of action is not always so obvious.

This is where technology can play an invaluable role by tracking and measuring the key things that are important to the organization, namely, its strategic purpose and cultural values. Putting these guiding principles at the heart of every significant decision made will prevent random bias and keep the compass pointing firmly in the direction of overall goals.

To do so effectively, there are a number of elements to consider:

Measure what matters

This means setting out and measuring the key strategic benefits of the project and the organizational values in terms of internal behaviours. If the main objective is to improve safety, for example, then leading indicators of safety need to be tracked and evaluated throughout the execution of the project. Continually tracking the strategic purpose of the project in this way will help to shape the decision-making process.

Make it safe to fail

Complex projects often operate in uncertain environments so it is even more important to create a culture where failure is allowed. Teams working in these situations need to innovate, experiment and try new things, but this will only happen successfully if they feel safe and supported – even when things go wrong.

Use virtual models to analyze scenarios

Take advantage of the advanced technology available today. Whether using 3D modelling or Monte Carlo risk analysis, organizations can look at any number of virtual scenarios before committing to an actual decision. This offers a great opportunity to identify areas for improvements without making the investment up front. It’s simply a question of doing the analysis first and then choosing which way to go.

Mix up the team

Put together a diverse team to boost creative thinking. By actively bringing in new faces, organizations can avoid falling into the old way of doing things, stop “group thinking” and inspire better brainstorming outcomes. It’s always a good idea to mix up the group dynamics; young people may bring in new tech that others may never have dreamt of and experienced voices will help to broaden the options available and strengthen the decision-making process.

Educate and influence

Despite the availability of unbelievably powerful technology to help analyze performance, a major obstacle to fully realizing its potential is human behaviour. There can be an underlying mistrust of these types of tools, so helping people to understand the benefits and feel comfortable with the high level of transparency is essential.