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7 Productive Ways to Handover a Project

At some point in your career, you will need to transition a project to another person or team. The reason for the transition will vary but the steps for a smooth transition remain the same.  Make it your goal to give your replacement all the information they need to ensure they can carry out the project properly. Creating a transition process gets easier when you think about type of questions you would ask or the type of information you would need if you were the person that was going to take over your project? What would make you feel confident to take on this new project? Below are several plays you may currently use or want to borrow to handover a project to a new person or team.

#1. Create and document a project transition process. 

During a project transition, it is hard to think about the project in transition. Typically, you are preoccupied with getting it off your plate or focusing on the next thing. For this reason, you want to make sure key transition steps are not missed by documenting your process and reviewing it with key stakeholders to make sure it fits the needs of everyone involved.

#2. Ensure the project is current. 

Tie up any loose ends. If you can’t do that, write down pertinent notes and make sure you share this information at your official transition meeting.

#3. Create a transition package.  

Centralize all project documents and information. Some people consolidate everything in one folder on the network and share it. Others create a spreadsheet of the relevant documents and create a hyperlink that points to where they reside. Whichever way you choose to do it consider including some or all of the following items:

  • Project plan document
  • All documents involved in initial project plans
  • Change requests throughout the project
  • Communication and document templates
  • Financial Reports, Invoices, SOWs, etc.
  • Process documents, SOPs, protocols, etc.
  • Copies of all project deliverables
  • Updated project status reports and minutes
  • A list of project contacts and their roles
  • Copies of project emails

#4. Plan how you will make yourself available. 

An overlap time between yourself and the new replacement is highly recommended. Define what that overlap time will be and how you plan to communicate expectations. Be available for them via phone or email for at least the first couple of week. Even if they don’t reach out to you, you need to reassure them that there is somewhere to go to if they get stuck.

#5. Schedule a transition meeting. 

Have a formal meeting to pass all information over to your replacements and all other identified stakeholders. Don’t rush through this meeting. If needed, share the information in chunks over time to reduce overwhelm and ensure information retention.

Plan to review project status updates and task status updates. Outline some of the project methods and ways specific actions are implemented. Suggest next steps for the new replacement. Share your transition package location and share the process on how you want to handle questions about the package and any other information you share.

#6. Have a culture conversation. 

Take the time to update your replacement of some of the cultural nuances of the project. This may be at a separate more informal meeting. Meet to discuss the different personalities on the team, overall politics, and project culture. Your replacement can definitely draw their own conclusions but your cultural insight will give them some foundation to work with as they begin to determine how they will work with the team dynamics.

#7. Transition your relationships.

Help your replacement manage the project relationships. This is the perfect opportunity to introduce the new replacement to team members. Start copying your replacement on emails with your client or team members.  Save all of your emails in a folder and send them over is another option. Involve them in a couple of conference calls between your client and/or team to give them some knowledge on status updates. You could propose that you take over the first conference call and then ask them to lead the second to reflect the transition.

All the above are great work plays to make sure those involved in a project transition are at ease in what can be a highly stressful and difficult situation.

Do you use any of these approaches? What other approaches do you use to handover a project? Comment below and share your ideas.

6 Signs You Need More Leader Sensitivity

The words of a leader carry a lot of weight with the people they manage. Certain words lift someone up while others simply demotivate. Here are 6 common phrases you might hear from an insensitive leader. These are plays you want to remove from your leadership playbook, if you want to influence and have greater impact in your leadership role.

Insensitive Play #1: You should know this.

It would be nice if there was stage in life where everyone became all-knowing. Unfortunately, that is not the case. Whether you are young, old, new, or seasoned, there will be times when you just don’t know. So, if you encounter someone on your journey who you feel doesn’t know as much as you think they should. Throw them a grace line. Share information, educate them with a humble spirit and hope it sticks for future reference.

Insensitive Play #2: You are lucky to even have a job.

The positive aspect of this statement is that whoever uses it is trying to have focus on gratitude opposed to lack. There are people out there that would love to make an income doing anything but a statement like this also discredits someone’s feelings of dissatisfaction. In addition to sharing how you think they are blessed, also share statements that make them feel that you empathize with their feelings of dissatisfaction and/or need for more. 

Insensitive Play #3: Just figure it out.

It’s convenient if an employee can take the time to figure out something themselves by asking questions, reading materials themselves, etc. However a good manager knows that part of their role is to guide and direct. If you are trying to develop self-sufficiency skills, you can say, “This is something I would like you to handle yourself, using resources X, Y, and Z.

Insensitive Play #4: I don’t have time for your performance review but you are doing fine.

Employees need specific feedback even when they are performing well. High performers especially need feedback because it is their nature to want to grow.  Make it a point to tell them what they are doing well, what they could do differently, or stop all together.

Insensitive Play #5: That is a dumb idea.

Great ideas can only be nurtured in a safe environment where people can feel safe to make suggestions. Whether you agree with an idea or not, work to preserve a team member’s self-esteem. Their idea may not be ideal at the time but they may be the source of something brilliant in the future.  

Insensitive Play #6: Just do what I tell you.

Nobody wants orders barked at them. If you groom your team to just follow commands, you are creating a team of robots that cannot think for themselves. This type of leadership stifles accountability and innovation. It causes people not to think beyond what is required and removes feelings of ownership for their projects. Instead, inform team members of what is required from them, allow them to share their concerns, and work towards mutual agreement and respect.

Can you think of other signs of an insensitive leader?  Comment below and share your ideas.

5 Effective Actions to Engage Everyone in a Change Initiative

Leaders can always rely on change to be a constant. If you are envisioning a change soon, chart a clear course and get the right building blocks in place.  What follows is a list of ways to help you manage change and engage the entire organization in the process.

Begin at the top.

Teams that have one voice are best positioned for success. Without it, there can be downstream commitment ramifications. The CEO and the leadership team should be at the center for modeling strength, support, and direction for any major change initiative. They should embrace the direction of change, be ready to model the changes, and be ready to motivate and/or challenge the rest of the organization.

Create ownership. 

Ensure ownership by involving everyone. Push responsibilities for the change strategy (from design through implementation) across the different layers of the organization.  Make sure change leaders are aligned to the company’s vision, equipped to execute their specific mission, and motivated to make change happen. Make sure all leaders are willing to accept responsibility for making change happen in all of the areas they influence or control.

Consider the cultural landscape.

Early on in the change process, define cultural factors that can influence acceptance or resistance to the change. Understand and account for culture and behaviors at each level of the organization. Identify the core values, beliefs, behaviors, and perceptions that must be taken into account for successful change to occur. These insights will serve as the common baseline for designing essential change elements, such as the new corporate vision, and building the infrastructure and programs needed to drive change.

Create a solid case for change and communicate it often.

Getting employees to think and act differently requires more than just systems redesign and process change. Too often, leaders make the mistake of believing that others understand the issues, feel the need to change, and see the new direction as clearly as they do. Typically, that is not the case. That is why it is best to create a formal change case and a supplemental communication plan.

To ensure an effective communication strategy, solicit the input and feedback of all your stakeholders. Outline who should receive communications and how the organization will provide the right information at the right time.  Make sure the communication plan communicates how employees’ work will change, what is expected of them during and after the change program, how they will be measured, and what success or failure will mean for them and those around them. Have leaders reinforce the core messages through regularly timed communications that leverage a variety of communication methods (i.e. email, training sessions, videos, newsletters, and town hall meetings, etc.) throughout your change efforts.

Don’t lose sight of the emotional component of change. 

Change can be a very personal journey and can be unsettling for people at all levels of an organization. The impact leaves employees feeling uncertain and resistant. Dealing with these issues on a reactive, case-by-case basis puts speed, morale, and results at risk. Create a formal approach to managing change that includes how you will manage and react to emotions.  

Having an established system for carrying out change programs will help employees understand the necessity for change and help leaders motivate the organization to follow the new direction in the midst of challenges that will come along the way.

What approaches do you use to manage change efforts?  Comment below and share your ideas.