1st Edition

Program Management in Defense and High Tech Environments

By Charles Christopher McCarthy Copyright 2016
    288 Pages 37 B/W Illustrations
    by Auerbach Publications

    288 Pages 37 B/W Illustrations
    by Auerbach Publications

    Program management in a technical environment is as much art as it is science. Effective program managers are able to combine management and leadership skills for the good of the program and the people entrusted to them. This book illuminates the entire life cycle of the program—from the customer’s original concept to successful completion. It includes many helpful ideas and insights into why programs and program managers can fail. Much more importantly, it provides insights about how program managers can succeed.

    Program Management in Defense and High Tech Environments is organized as a chronological "tale" of a program life cycle, with "side trips" that cover the important concepts of leadership, claims and claims avoidance, earned value measurement (EVM), communication basics, negotiations, and coaching. The book begins with an overview of program management, discussing the role of program managers, their required skills and experience, and the types of programs and contracts.

    The remainder of the book provides more detail on the program manager’s role and the environment in which he or she works. Understanding that academic explanations of program management activities can be dry, the author uses true-to-life stories to present the nuts and bolts of the work. These stories illustrate the science of program management and the art that is necessary for success.

    The book discusses many of the common program pitfalls. It explains how to detect and avoid scope creep—the unintended expansion of program scope. It details both internal and external scope creep and stresses the importance of constant vigilance to prevent cost overruns and schedule delays.

    Program Management in Defense and High Tech Environments is a comprehensive guide for early- and mid-career program managers to understand what they need to do to be successful. It is also a valuable resource for later-career program managers who want to learn through other program managers’ successes and failures.

    Overview: Program Management in the Department of Defense (DoD)/High Technology Environment
    Role of the Program Manager
    Qualifications, Experience, Talents, and Skills
    Types of Programs
    Types of Contracts
    Organizational Overview—Departmental Interfaces
    Summary
    End of Chapter Questions

    Learning the Ropes: Understanding the Culture, the Customer, and the Program Capabilities
    The Program in the Company Culture
    The Program and the Customer (And His or Her Culture)
    The Program and the Team
    End of Chapter Questions

    Identifying Opportunities
    The Program Manager’s Knowledge Is Key
    Program Manager Opportunities
    End of Chapter Questions

    Pre-Proposal Work
    Using Pre-Proposal Efforts to Develop a Winning Proposal
    Other Considerations
    Summary
    End of Chapter Questions

    The Proposal Process for a "Typical Program"
    The Important Pre-Proposal Period
    To Bid or Not to Bid
    Developing the Strategy—Getting Started
    "Price to Win"
    Leading the Proposal Team
    Building the Team
    Proposal Preparation—Storyboarding and Team Dynamics
    Pricing
    Pricing Strategies and Risk Management
    Reviews
    Business Reviews—The Sign-Off Process
    Noncompetitive Proposals
    Winning and Almost Winning the Contract—Final Negotiations
    Contract Refinement
    But What if You Lose?
    What if You Lost for the "Wrong Reason"?
    End of Chapter Questions

    Planning the Program and Starting Work
    The Management Part
    The Leadership Part
    Sourcing
    Outsourcing Work Packages
    Outsourcing Product
    Building the Program Culture
    End of Chapter Questions

    Running the Program
    Leadership Styles
    Making Progress and Monitoring Progress
    Monitoring Progress—Metrics
    Focusing on Quality
    Managing the Customer
    Identifying and Avoiding Performance Traps
    Getting "Stuck" and Getting "Unstuck"
    Customers as Motivators
    Keeping Senior Management Engaged
    Detecting Trouble and Determining What To Do About It
    When Problems Get Really Bad
    Countervailing Forces and Priorities
    Detecting and Avoiding "Scope Creep"—Internal
    Detecting and Avoiding "Scope Creep"—External
    Scope Creep—In Summary
    Monitoring Versus Controlling
    Cost Control in the Trenches
    Monitoring Schedules—Program Reviews
    Leadership and Caring
    Program Changes and Continuity
    Managing External Changes
    Celebrating Victories—Confronting Defeats
    Dealing with Individual Performance Problems
    Diagnosing and Resolving Problems
    Celebrating the Success at the End of the Program
    Summary
    End of Chapter Questions

    Claim Identification, Claim Management, and Claim Avoidance
    Late GFE
    Defective GFE
    Delayed Approvals or Contract Actions
    Inappropriate Disapprovals or Comments
    Noncontractual Direction
    Flawed Technical Specifications
    Defective Information
    Claims Against You
    Other Considerations in Claim Management
    Summary
    End of Chapter Questions

    Leadership Models
    Leadership: Getting People To Do What You Want Them To Do
    Summary
    End of Chapter Questions

    Communications
    Communications among the Team
    What About Communication outside the Team?
    Communication with the Customer
    A Critical Communication Skill
    Summary
    End of Chapter Questions

    Earned Value Management
    Applying EVM Theory
    Summary
    End of Chapter Questions

    Negotiations
    Contract Negotiations
    Customer Negotiations—Ongoing Contracts
    Internal Negotiations—Work Budgets
    Support Groups—Negotiations with Support Groups
    Supplier Negotiations
    Subcontractor Negotiations
    Summary
    End of Chapter Questions

    Coaching
    Recognizing Influence in Coaching
    Determining When to Coach
    Summary
    End of Chapter Questions

    Inheriting a Program Already in Progress
    Becoming a Member and Leader of the Team
    Importance of Continuity
    Fresh EAC
    Summary
    End of Chapter Questions

    Biography

    Charlie McCarthy, having graduated with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Manhattan College, joined a large electronics company. His second assignment on their Professional Development Program became permanent, and Charlie began his "first career" as a systems/digital design engineer. For most of his career, his work has been in nuclear instrumentation and control systems, for both commercial and government power plants.

    As much as Charlie loved electrons and diodes, he loved working with people more, and gradually grew into technical and project leadership roles. Charlie’s technical and analytical interests and his interest in people found a happy overlap in program management. Along with growth in experience and technical competence, he earned a master’s of science in electrical engineering from The Johns Hopkins University. He has successfully managed a wide range of projects and programs, from those with one or two people to large, complex hardware and software programs involving over 50 engineers and operations personnel.