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Text / Wang Buliu (WeChat Official Account: Programmer's Survival Guide)
The software projects we do in the industry can be divided into two categories according to the degree of time sensitivity: time-sensitive and time-slow.
Projects that are required to be completed before important leaders' inspections, group inspections, National Day gifts and other major events can be classified as time-sensitive.
Such projects usually:
1) Very short time. Usually it is 1-2 months.
2) Excessive pressure. If you can't figure it out, the negative impact and consequences to the customer will be extremely serious, and the acceptance will be indefinite.
But there is also a great benefit: customers attach great importance to it, and coordination of resources is exceptionally smooth. The project manager no longer has to spend time talking about upstream and downstream interface negotiation and joint debugging, saving too much trouble.
Such projects can usually go online in advance or on schedule.
Other projects can be regarded as time-slow, meaning that it does not matter if the project is delayed for a month.
The probability of successful implementation of this type of project is like winning:
1) If the customer is serious and responsible, congratulations, just follow the pace of the customer, and he will help coordinate everything. The difference with the time-sensitive type is that the pressure is not too great. Your pressure mainly comes from the customer, because he is driving you away.
2) If the customer is not serious, it will be miserable. If you want to push him away, you have to use all kinds of methods, all kinds of ingratiation, all kinds of inferior things, and even go to his leader to report the situation. Let you break your heart for this project, and the morale is lost.
Let's subdivide the projects, which can be roughly divided into four categories:
1) We are anxious, users are anxious
Such projects are usually highly valued by client leaders. We are tired, but the project is of great significance. After finishing it, we will feel very fulfilled. In addition, the initiative of the project can be in their own hands, and users will cooperate with us to actively eliminate obstacles and clear obstacles.
2) We are in a hurry, users are not in a hurry
This type is usually our new winning project, or replacing someone else's project. Such projects can exercise people best.
3) We are not in a hurry, users are not in a hurry
Clients are infected by the passion of the consultants, coupled with the long-term deep cooperation relationship, then allocate some money to try such innovative projects. Since it is an attempt, the new system and new functions may not involve customer assessment. If the customer does not urge, we do not panic, anyway, the settlement is due.
Of course, with the transformation of traditional industries and the degradation of consumption, such good things are rare.
4) We are not in a hurry, users are in a hurry
Most of these types are upgraded contracts, especially those projects that are settled on demand function points.
Our idea: the project has so much budget and the function is less.
The user's idea: Hurry up and go live tomorrow!
Users are anxious, usually like this: "Can you go online on time?" "Is this function finished? Hurry up!" "Why haven't hired anyone yet, I'm looking for your leader." "Not a promise Here are ten, the project is almost half done, why are there still two?" ...
The project manager can only nod constantly: I must add people, I must add people, I will find the leader, and I must go online on schedule. The inner monologue is actually: I am more anxious than you. In my dreams, I want to make these "broken things" and "ghost things" online as soon as possible!
The project team worked all day and night, worked overtime, and rushed forward, finally meeting the conditions for launching the project a few days in advance.
When reporting the good news to users, they may not be anxious: "It's okay to go online a few days later, you can test it more." "Let's go online in a while, I'm going on a short trip recently."
After all the difficulties and dangers, the system launch time is officially determined. This is an exciting thing, and the painful days of exhausting people are coming to an end.
Every project, no matter how big or small, is finished, will drain people's energy and will have a successful launch day.
Some projects have experienced countless 996 and 007, until the system goes online, weeping with joy.
In many projects, in the face of various dissatisfaction and difficulties from new customers, the project team went out early and returned late, persevering, and moved the other party with practical actions before seeing the dawn of the system going online.
After paying so much, now that we have reached the online stage, we must pay more attention to the online work. Our project managers do not fight unprepared battles.
In order to go online, we must make all preparations; as long as we succeed, don't fail!
If the system online is the only goal of the project manager, then the project acceptance is the ultimate goal of the project manager.
The general project process in the industry is: signing of orders-going online-3 months initial inspection-6 months final inspection-1 year maintenance.
As a large state-owned enterprise, our Party A has a strict procurement process, an effective project management system, and a complete audit mechanism. In theory, our project can be completed in about a year.
However, specific to the implementation level, it can be postponed indefinitely. It is common for general projects to delay acceptance for half a year.
The most popular scene of acceptance usually occurs in December. We are just like collecting debts at the end of the year. Customers will also show their benevolence and accept a batch of projects at will, so that we can have a good year.
Let's take a look at the reasons for the inability to timely acceptance.
1. No contract was signed.
In our industry, most of the projects are to work first, then sign the contract. Many projects are about to go online, or are already online, or even short of acceptance, and the contract has not yet been signed. Taking 2019 as an example, there are 64 internal projects that have not signed contracts.
They will pat your shoulder and say: This project will definitely be established, otherwise they will not ask you to do it. The process is going, so don't worry.
Or, throw a golden sentence lightly: You don't do it. Many manufacturers are waiting, don't rush.
2. The customer packs all the systems into one big project.
In this case, customers must wait for other manufacturers to have the acceptance conditions at the same time before the customer will give the acceptance.
Just like home decoration. You look for a lighting store, and you look for a door and window store. After the lighting is installed, I will check out with you. You said that when the doors and windows are installed, we will calculate together.
Lighting and doors and windows are two different businesses in the two stores, and they are now closely linked. Is it a very absurd logic?
In the reality that there are too many monks and porridge, this kind of logic is reasonably established in this software industry.
Customers may have their own considerations. What can we say, it's very speechless.
The direct consequence is: customers save trouble, we suffer.
At present, this is the case in 4 projects with a final inspection lag of more than three months. There is a system, because of this "continuous sitting" system, the two-phase upgrade contract has not been finalized.
The above projects that have been "seated" continue to be delayed...
3. The customer leader has changed.
There is a rule in the industry. Every two, three, four or five years, Party A will make a major internal adjustment or personnel change.
This is when our colleagues on the sales front are most anxious. For us, it may be an opportunity or a disaster.
For some projects, the final inspection meeting will be closed. Suddenly, people changed! I don't recognize what I did before!
The new leader must have his own ideas. The project was not accepted anyway, so he slowly came up with a conclusion: suspend acceptance, re-evaluate, and start over.
Our project manager must be petrochemical instantly.
4. There are too many function points in the contract.
In order to get the project in the early stage, various functions were added to the technical specifications. If the customer relationship is good, the basic functions are almost completed and accepted. It will be troublesome if you encounter more serious customers. We never want users to take the contract attachments and bid documents one by one with us.
The current iron triangle (marketing, sales, delivery/R&D) formed by each region is to decide how big the new project pit is, how to avoid it, and take precautions in advance.
5. Too much work.
The page is not beautiful, it takes a long time to enter the system, the processing process is complicated, and the system goes on strike at two ends in three days...
In this case, the user just wants to help with the acceptance, but is also powerless.
Ashamed, I also took over such a project, bit the bullet and continued to optimize, and it took two years to complete the final inspection.
6. Customers are faulty.
It seems that the cases that cannot be accepted can be classified into this category, which is a universal reason.
An interesting rule: Provincial enterprises with small scale, low income, and low level of informatization have more requirements and a long delay in acceptance.
It is true that some customer executives are hesitant to mention this demand and the other demand, but they will not be accepted, but the request made by the vast majority of users is reasonable.
After all, everyone is doing information construction work. Customers can also understand us and will not raise a lot of change requirements too outrageously.
We still have to find out more from ourselves.
If we run into an industry where there is no information technology, we don't need to specialize in any innovative architecture or project management, and directly master the skills of "drinking, singing, playing cards", and we will basically get the acceptance.
Let's talk about some common problems that project managers have in acceptance.
1. Think that acceptance is not your own business
Psychologically, I always feel that this is a matter of sales and products, and has nothing to do with me. You just need to bring the project.
There is no need to worry about this problem, because the newly implemented project management assessment method and the existing bonus distribution system can bring everyone back to reality.
2. Sorry for debt
Many project managers look for customers to check and accept it as if they owe others hundreds of dollars, with a guilty conscience. I am also worried about angering customers.
In this case, you may have to change your thinking first:
1) He owes you money, what a guilty conscience.
2) If the customer is angry about this, they will be angry. If the client doesn't pay you salary or bonus, what will he do? If a customer complains to the area for this matter, the area will deduct your performance? Think too much, the region should encourage and support your bravery. In addition, you are not alone in the fight, there are sales mediation and regional support.
3. Think more about empathy
Now that the acceptance stage is reached, the functional work has been basically completed, but the customer will always find some corners and corners and ask you to modify it, but the acceptance will not be given. How to do?
At this time, you should think more about his purpose? Is it to build quality products with us, or to delay the construction period for some reason? Then ask the customer to chat privately to confirm your guess, and then sum up with the sales and regional leaders to formulate the corresponding solution.
Don't keep changing the features and requirements without being bored!
Experienced a project from start to end, and the cycle of a new phase of the project, as a project manager:
1) We know how to lose the politeness of the human relationship and sophistication, keep an eye on vague explanations, and guide customers to make conclusions that are beneficial to us when we negotiate interfaces with other manufacturers;
2) We will let all project team members see themselves so disgusted that they don't want to eat, knowing that you are progress in addition to progress, and will do everything for the online acceptance.
3) In the face of customers, we do our utmost to flattery, slacken our beards, try to get a stamp, swear bragging rights, whitewash peace, and everything.
4) We endure the pain in our hearts, we are unable to complain, bear it alone, suffer for a long time, know ourselves cold and warm, grow strong, take responsibility, and be confident and strong.
We will become the closest person to the real world. Thank you project managers.
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Today is the 22nd /100th day of continuous writing .
* About the author: Wang Buliu (WeChat: wbliu85), the little pawn who started running life at four o'clock in the morning.