As a Project Manager and in life I am a “make it happen” person, but as a PM, I am constantly relying on others. Whether it be vendor-recommendations from clients, or new vendors I select myself, there are times when a vendor fails me. These situations are aggravating for everyone and can make emotions run high. Like many PMs, in the past few years, I find that I require teams with more diversified skills, and due to budget restraints they are more scattered across the globe. Because of this, projects get delayed, and quality suffers. Here are some tips that have helped me succeed despite my vendors:
1. Make the Process as Transparent as Possible to Your Stakeholders: Let your stakeholders know that you are trying everything in your power to make their project happen. Copy them on e-mails and tell them about your process. This shows them that you care about the project and can remove some of the frustration. It is not purposely making anyone look bad, it is just telling the truth.
2. Do Not Pay in Advance: Waiting for a final cheque can have a humbling effect on even the most unapologetic vendor. Paying them a deposit is standard practice, but do not pay them 100% in advance.
3. Apologize for the Vendor, Not for Yourself: Approach your stakeholders with understanding that the project is late, or not up to par. But, since you are not in complete control of the situation, you do not have to keep apologizing or taking it personally – you can only say that you will select different vendors in the future.
4. Escalate: This is an obvious one, but sometimes simply escalating the problem to their superiors or higher level people in your organization can create movement.
5. Don’t Look for the “I” in TEAM: Realize that thinking that you can control all situations is a pretty egotistical thing to think. Even though you are the PM, you are relying on other resources. Not getting too caught up in it can help you be more dispassionate and help you think more clearly. For more on this, see Bob Sutton’s classic blog post on why indifference is as important as passion.
6. Create Alternate Plans: If there is just one piece of the functionality that does not work, you can create an alternate plan and release the project without it. Then you can buy time for the difficult vendor, or find someone else to complete the project.
7. Let the Vendors Understand the Consequences: Let the difficult vendor know about your disappointment in how the process is going. Don’t be too hard on them, since you do not want them to give up. You just want them to know that this behaviour is not acceptable.
8. Know When to Exit: Sometimes you have to simply pull the plug and cut your losses. In this economy, it seems that a lot of creative shops are struggling to stay alive, making it difficult for them to complete projects that they have already committed to. Despite assurances, sometimes you have to simply pull the plug and start anew. This is another item that you want to keep open to stakeholders.
In the end, usually you just have to push through the project until the finish. You can blame a bad vendor for one project gone awry. But, if you keep working with the same vendor you can only blame yourself. “Fool me once, shame on you… fool me twice shame on me”.
Convert Innovations