Messenger or Manager: A BTL BriefBlog Episode

The Scenario: The project manager is providing a weekly status report to the project sponsor

• PM: The vendor told me yesterday they will miss their delivery date by a month.
• Sponsor: Just a month ago I gave you the money you asked for to get the project done. What's the issue?
• PM: The vendor is telling me it's more complex than they thought. They can't deliver.
• Sponsor: What??? I gave you what you asked for and now you're telling me they can't get it done?
• PM: That's what they're telling me.
• Sponsor: What are you doing about it?
• PM: Well, we have a weekly status meeting and will discuss again next week.
• Sponsor: Have you escalated to their management?
• PM: No.
• Sponsor: So you're telling me that we just have to accept it?
• PM: Well, I can try talking to them again.
• Sponsor: Get them on a call, and include me.
• PM: Ok.
• Sponsor (thinking to himself about the PM): Delivers bad news, no plan to address, I thought he was a PM; he's just a messenger.

The Message: It's good to provide early warning to potential issues, but it’s bad when you don’t provide the next steps you're taking or what help you need. This labels you as a messenger rather than the manager you’re expected to be.

The Consequence: Issues without next actions or asks gives the impression you're not taking ownership of the issue and you're expecting someone else to manage through it.

The Take-Away: Don't be an issue messenger. Define the issue, articulate what next steps are, and be clear on what and when you expect others to do to help squash the issue.

Lonnie Pacelli  | Building Thriving Leaders™ | See me on Amazon