' Preview File Edit View Go Tools Window Help I' ? K >l: "5 l; was: E- Wed 11:02 AM Surandre Q a O O O 3 PM Text Eooluadf (page 139 of 530; v - V' 'l 'AJ 1 V ED E Q Search J m Dr. Elattuvalapil 5reedharan, India's Project Management Rock Star The capital of lndia, Delhi. is a city of amazing contrasts. Home to 17 million people. many living in abject poverty. the city boasts some o'l the country's leading high-tech centers for industry and higher learning. Traffic snarls are notorious, and pollution levels are high as the city's 7,500 buses slowly navigate crowded streets. Like other urban centers in lndia, Delhi desperately needs enhanced infrastructure and a commuter rail system. Unfortunately. India's track record for large-capital projects is poor; there are many examples of projects that have run well over budget and behind schedule lre'fer to the Dulhasti Power cases in this text). A recent example highlights the continuing problems with managing infrastructure projects in India. Delhi launched a multiyear project to host the Commonwealth Games in the fall of 1010, a sporting event bringing together athletes from 71 territories and countries associated with the former British Empire. Unfortunately, problems with sanitation, inadequate construction, numerous delays, and poor planning left the country with a very visible black eye and reinforced the popular vimthat large-scale infrastructure projects in India are, at best, a chancy venture. The good news isthatall is notas bad as it seems. Delhi recently completed the first phase of a huge project. the 52.3 billion Delhi Metro. The rail line planned forthis phase, covering nearly 40 miles. was nished three years aheado'f schedule. So unexpected was this circumstance that it lead BusinessWeek magazine to label the project's leader, Elattuvalapil 5reedharan, "a miracle worker." So what has been the secret of Sreedharan's success, espe- cially in a land where so many be'lore him have failed in similar ventures? First, he says, is the importance of accountability. \"One of the biggest impediments to the timely completion of infrastructure projects in India today is a lacko'ffocus and accountability.\" Poor performers are not held respon- sible for failure to hit their targets, so where is the incentive to be on time? According to Sreedharan, his organi- zation took a different approach: \"The organization's m' ' n and culture include clearly defined objectives and a vision, which was to complete the project on time and w in the budget without causing inconvenience to the public.\" Sreed haran also has almost an obsession with deadlines. Every officer in the Metro project keeps a digital board that shows the number of days left for the completion of the next target. Another critical element in his ' Preview File Edit View Go Tools Window Help .I' ? * '1? Cl 'mox- Wed11:02AM Sirendra Q 5 EE 0 D O E] PM Text Bookndflpageilm nrsso) ., ' " "H Q ' Q iii VF'MTextBook lv EVE QSearch J 113 Chapters! - leadershipandrhepmjeel Manager I success has been meticulous advance planning. Shreeharan said. "All tenders (bids) trom contractors are decided very fast, sometimes in 18 or 19 days. ll]t is essential to lay down the criteria for settling tenders clearly in advance.\" Finally, Sreedharan is adamant about transparency and constant communication with all project stakehold- ers. Under his watch, the project maintains open mmmunication with all contractors, updating them about plans and holding lrequent meetings and workshops. A unique feature 0'! the Delhi Metro project is that it has held nearly hundred \"community interaction programs\" {ClFs}, which are open forums during which local residents are given the chance to discuss aspects of the construction that could affect them. The CIP meetings are designed to allow advocacy groups. neighborhood organizations, and other stakeholders to share ideas, air grievances, and ask questions as the project moves fomard. Regarding the questions tmm CIP meetings, Sreedharan comments, "Most of them are resolved on the spot, while necessary action and remedial measures are taken on the rest.\" Sreedharan's team has used this transparency and open communication approach to allay the concerns n'faffected 139 groups and spur their cooperation with the project rather than their antagonism. The total project is designed to be rolled out in tour phases, with a total coverage oi 152 miles when finished. The final phase is due to be completed in 2020. The Metro project is currently in the midst of its phase two goals. Sreedharan, over 10 years old, is unsure how much longer he will personally supervise the project. but he has no doubt about the secrets to success as a project. manager. \"I believe that there are three basic qualities for a success- ful life," he notes, \"punctuality, integrity and good morals. and professional competence. The future of India will be in good hands it these qualities are assiduously nurtured by the youth of our nation."16 Leading and Time Orientation Recent work on the concept of time orientation has some interesting implications for project leadership behavior. Time orientation refers to the temporal contest or space to which an individual is oriented. Specically, researchers have long argued that each ofushas a naturaltendencyto focus on one ofthree time orientations: past, present, or future. This temporal alignment has the etfect of inuencing our behaviors and causes Incl) of us to perform some tests well. while making others more diicult. For example. if your time orientation is futureidirected, it is easier to engage in planning. 0n the other hand, you may\" nd it harder to do tasks such as performance appraisals because they require you to be able to recapture past events. The ability Dfproject managers to engage in temporal alignment with the tasks they face is an impor tant slcill that they need to develop. Tahle 4.4 identies some concepts in temporal alignment and skills that have signicant implications for project managers. Temporal alignment includes ve ekmenls: time line orientation, future time perspec- tive, time span, polychronielmonodironic preference. and time conception. The temporal skill: and. abilities needed to perform certain tasks include time warping, creating future vision, ehunkingtime, predicting. and recapturing the past