Issue link: https://epubs.iltanet.org/i/7694
www.iltanet.org The Business of Law 9 controlling costs with legal Project ManageMent It's understandable that attorneys –– and many project workers –– seek the thrill of diving into execution. However, a modicum of planning not only sidesteps trouble but increases predictability and cost certainty. The "iron triangle" –– the tradeoffs among scope of work, schedule and resources (money and people) –– governs both planning and subsequent execution. There's no free lunch; changing one element affects at least one of the others. Break out the project into manageable tasks. Tasks should be between about 8 and 40 hours on most projects of a few months or less, and should revolve around outcome-determinative work. Foster longer tasks and you lack insight into task details, perhaps missing important aspects. Create tasks too short, and you introduce excessive process overhead. The next step is to assign the right people to the project's tasks. Consider tradeoffs, such as a partner costing three times as much as an associate but who is five times as effective. Schedule the tasks according to resource availability, deadlines and dependencies (when one task affects or depends on another). Create a budget to keep the costs of the work within client or departmental guidelines, and share it with the project/legal team. Budgets and task descriptions guide the team as well as the project manager, and help minimize the time spent on work that the client doesn't value highly. Consider what metrics and measurements you'll use to track progress. Keep in mind that accurate, appropriate metrics are your friend on a project, but misaligned metrics can cause significant damage. What you don't know hurts you. Create, and keep current, a worksheet that lists risks, your exposure (probability times loss), and what you can do to mitigate or counter them. Mind the gap. Watch for the legal gaps between the client's situation and the desired outcome; foresee gaps between what you know and what you need to know; and beware your own gaps, aka learning opportunities as a legal project manager. Common gaps include resources you haven't located or that may be unavailable; lack of agreement on "done" and the two or three must-do items; dependencies you can't fully track or understand; financial and budget issues; undecided items that need action now; misaligned assumptions, both project and legal; and lack of clarity around work processes, decision making, and conflict resolution. Finally, watch out for analysis paralysis. Too little time in planning leads to inefficient, costly projects. Too much leads to the same result. • The Third Stage: Execution Execution is the time for driving on the legal issues, for the attorney/project manager as well as the rest of the legal team. When execution overlaps planning, as it often will, execute simpler tasks first as you plan later tasks. Consider breaking projects into mini-planning/execution cycles, and, as always, communicate broadly. It's up to the project manager to deal with difficult clients, directly or through a client manager. Focus on their interests and how "done" will further those interests. When circumstances change or differ from what you originally believed, deal with reality –– now. Use change management to control the