Obtaining the project team members will need a carefully thought-through strategy irrespective of whether the organisation is a full-time team or a matrix team. The mobilisation requirement for the senior team members should be noted on the ORP Roadmap. A fully detailed mobilisation and demobilisation plan will need to be
developed and the origin of all staff defined. Some of the resourcing considerations are:
Open Resourcing:
Open Resourcing is the prime mechanism for staffing positions in OUs that require a Shell resource from outside the OU. The OU with such a vacancy broadcasts its requirements on the Shell Wide Web, eligible candidates apply from wherever they are currently working and the OU selects the most appropriate candidate. The global electronic system JOBS provides the framework for the system. Care is needed over the time that it can take to get selected candidates into the team.
Matrix Organisation
If a matrix organisation is used then are all skills and competencies available? Can individuals find sufficient time to perform their defined duties in accordance with the schedule? How will leave cover be provided? What are the reporting lines for getting the work done? What authorities, if any, does the project coordinator/manager have?
Opportunity Project/Organisation
If a full-time team is needed then which positions should be filled with Shell staff and which with contract staff? How are contract staff going to be obtained – a tendered service contract or through agencies? How will they be retained for the full duration of need? Will there be a requirement to take design or construction contractors’ staff into some positions (e.g. commissioning)? What is the lead-time for obtaining staff? What effect will the internal policy of the OU have on recruitment?
Alliance Organisation
If an alliancing contract is entered into what are the contractual provisions concerning provision of contractor’s staff to the project team? Are there certain positions that should be reserved for Shell employees? Is a philosophy of “best person for the job” to be adopted? How are checks and balances to be provided for? Is there still a need for agency contract staff?
Select Team Members
The main criteria for selecting an opportunity/project manager is to assign a person who will be capable of planning and implementing this particular project, on time, within budget and according to specification. Selecting the right person is critical for the project’s success. For major activities, an effective opportunity/project manager should have.
• experience
• leadership and strategic expertise
• technical expertise
• interpersonal skills
• proven managerial ability
In Phase 1 – Identify and Assess, and Phase 2 – Select, there will be a stronger emphasis
on conceptual thinking abilities in both the leaders and their staff. In Phase 3 – Define;
Phase 4 – Execute, and Phase 5 – Operate, there will be a stronger emphasis on the ability to plan and execute. However, neither traits should be considered mutually exclusive. For the other opportunity/project team members, there would normally be a shift in emphasis towards technical expertise with a lesser (but in management positions, still important) requirement for leadership/strategic skills.
For people being chosen to perform in a opportunity/project team environment the
following characteristics are desirable:
- commitment to the project goal and its completion
- ability to communicate and share responsibility
- technical competence
- task oriented
- ability to understand and work within schedules and with resource constraints
- ability to work as part of a team
- ability to work outside and across functions
- knowledge of Project Management principles and tools
Staff continuity is a very important factor for success. A major activity or project can quickly grow so complex that capturing all information in a concise format allowing easy familiarisation by new staff becomes virtually impossible. Retention of key staff who take early project decisions through to implementation will ensure these individuals will do their utmost to make their decisions stick and work.
New staff cannot be expected to have the same degree of ownership, and will be more receptive to (or may even trigger) change in the scope, with the knock-on effects which can result in time delays, cost overruns and irritation between the customer, project team and the contractor(s). Therefore it is important when appointing key staff that limitations in their extended availability and mobility as well as promotional opportunities in the project are properly addressed.
Some lessons-learnt from recent reviews which concern organisational issues are given below:
- ‘customer’ staff should be seconded at an early stage into the project organisation as empowered decision makers, to provide input regarding customer requirements, and to facilitate a smooth handover upon completion of the project;
- a project execution team taking over responsibility from a separate study/planning team should critically review the progress status and, if justified, restate the objectives. Handovers are best performed at formal review milestones with the recipient of the project as part of the review team;
- key members of the Opportunity Team should transfer to the Project Team and key members of the Project Team transfer to the Asset Team to ensure continuity;
- where a team is involved in modifications to operational installations or has a close interface with an operations base, it should be established within that operations base, and should report to that asset holder;
- to improve motivation and efficiency, all team members should be given an outline job description which defines their responsibilities, reporting relationships and how their performance will be measured.