135 lines
3.4 KiB
Markdown
135 lines
3.4 KiB
Markdown
# Ownership and Delegation
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Duration: 30--40 minutes
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## Definition
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**Project ownership** means one person is accountable for driving a
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project toward its agreed outcome. The owner does not need to perform
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every task.
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**Delegation** transfers responsibility and appropriate authority while
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keeping enough management visibility to ensure the outcome.
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## Simple Mental Model
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> **One project, one clearly accountable owner.**
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The owner manages the project. You manage the owner, priorities,
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escalation, and portfolio.
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## How It Works
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A project owner should increasingly:
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- Draft the project brief
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- Clarify outcome and DoD
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- Propose scope and milestones
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- Identify dependencies and risks
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- Coordinate contributors
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- Maintain status
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- Surface scope changes
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- Escalate blockers
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- Drive closure
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Your role:
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- Approve and prioritize
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- Challenge the plan
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- Confirm commitments
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- Coach
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- Resolve priority/authority conflicts
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- Escalate organizational blockers
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- Review outcomes
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Delegation can increase progressively:
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1. Research and report
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2. Recommend a plan
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3. Act after approval
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4. Act and inform
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5. Own the outcome within agreed boundaries
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Accountability must come with enough authority to coordinate and
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escalate.
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## Example
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Instead of writing the Umami plan yourself:
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> Draft the outcome, DoD, scope, milestones, dependencies, risks, and
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> proposed forecast. We'll review it together Friday.
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The owner proposes eight weeks. You challenge assumptions and agree on a
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commitment. They maintain the project afterward.
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## How It Fits Into the Bigger Picture
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Everything learned so far becomes information the project owner manages.
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This is the transition from:
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> Amadou manages every project
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to:
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> Amadou manages a system in which people can own projects.
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## My Company / Real-World Context
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You do not have a PMO assigning PMs to your work. Integrators, analysts,
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QA, or other team members can own projects depending on capability and
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subject matter.
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Project ownership also develops employees beyond ticket execution.
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## CTO Perspective
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Broader technology leadership requires an organization that can operate
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without you personally coordinating everything.
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The goal is:
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> I know the portfolio and intervene where needed.
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not:
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> Nothing moves unless I chase it.
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### Questions to Ask
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- Who is the single owner?
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- What can they decide without me?
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- What must come back to me?
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- Are they maintaining the project or am I?
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- Are they escalating early?
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- Am I coaching or taking the project back?
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- Does accountability match authority?
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## Meeting Scenario
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**Situation:** An owner finds a Product request that changes scope and
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immediately asks you what to do.
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**Possible response:**
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> You've identified the scope change correctly. Before I decide, tell me
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> the impact on the milestone and what options you recommend. Bring me
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> the trade-off, not only the problem.
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## Key Takeaways
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- Every project needs one clearly accountable owner.
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- Owners drive outcomes; they do not perform every task.
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- Owners should draft and maintain the project brief.
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- Managers validate, challenge, coach, prioritize, and escalate.
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- Delegation increases with capability.
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- Accountability must match authority.
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- Developing owners makes the system scalable.
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## Related Concepts
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- \[\[Portfolio Management\]\]
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- \[\[Meetings and Follow-up\]\]
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- \[\[Status Reporting\]\]
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- \[\[Project Health\]\]
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