Jerry wants to get the symphony to adopt direct deposit for payment. The current system requires two signatures on a check that is often not ready until the Monday after the concert. The players are not happy with this arrangement, and sometimes they receive checks a week or more after the concert. To implement this new program, Jerry must get approval from the board and get people's banking information (some don't have bank accounts and must set one up). There is buy‐in from the players, but the conductor does not want to give up rehearsal time to allow Jerry to explain the changes and get people to fill out bank forms. The implementation is a little bumpy during the first concert, and there are a few checks that need to be written. Also, Jerry had not factored in sub‐players who might not have had time to fill out their bank info and get into the system.

Jerry slips and injures his arm. He can't play, but he can continue to work in his new position.

Linda apologizes for her recent slips in behavior. She is home more. Corey and Linda help Jerry at home. Laura becomes more involved in volunteer work and is not at home as much as she used to be.

“I don't see any fractures,” said the ER doctor. “But I believe you have torn your rotator cuff.”

This was the worst news. The absolute worse. A broken collarbone would have been better. At least that would heal, and I could go on playing. A torn rotator cuff could be a career‐ender.

“How bad is it?” I asked.

“It's hard to tell with the swelling,” the doctor replied. “We won't know for a few weeks. I'm going to refer you to an orthopedic doctor, who will be able to give you a better idea.”

“Will I need surgery?” I asked. My stomach was in my throat. I wished I didn't have to deal with this on my own, but Laura wasn't available because she was on the other side of town volunteering at the moment.

“Not right now. Again, we will know better when the swelling is down. We'll need to immobilize it, and you'll need to ice it for the next few days. You can take an over‐the‐counter anti‐inflammatory, or I can write you a prescription.”

My shoulder hurt. A lot. But I didn't want to have to take a heavy‐duty painkiller. I needed my brain to be clear.

“No, I'll be fine,” I said.

“The nurse will be in with your sling and discharge papers.”

“Thank you very much,” I said as he left.

I picked up my phone with my good hand.

“Call Laura,” I said to the AI.

There was loud music playing in the background when she answered.

“Where are you?” I asked.

“I told you I was volunteering today. And we are also having a surprise birthday luncheon for Sarah at Marty's Grill.”

I tried to disguise my anxiety and worries I was sitting in the emergency room with a serious injury, and Laura wasn't here with me.

“No, I don't remember you telling me that. I just saw the doctor,” I said loudly.

“I can't hear you,” Laura said. “Can you just text me?”

Before I could answer, she hung up, so we exchanged a series of texts.

There was a long pause.

I was thankful I wasn't talking on the phone because I might have said things I'd regret later.

Again, there was a long pause with three dots blinking.

I was livid and hurt that I had to face this alone and she wasn't here with me.

I took a few breaths to compose myself before the nurse reentered. I guess Laura was right; I was going to have to figure a few things out. This was bad, and I felt a wave of despair threatening to overtake me.

* * *

“Sam, thanks for meeting with me on short notice,” I said, sitting down in his office. It had been three days since my injury, and I was rethinking my moment of bravery in not getting a prescription for pain. It was keeping me up at night. I had to move to the spare bedroom because Laura was complaining I was keeping her up. The twin bed was a torture rack from medieval times.

“What happened?” he asked with a shocked expression.

“It's been many years since I've been skateboarding, and I am longer good at it,” I laughed.

“You went skateboarding?”

“Not willingly. Corey had left his board near the door of the garage. I was in a hurry and had not turned on the light on the way to my car. I stepped on the skateboard, and my arm went the wrong way when I fell. I've torn my rotator cuff.”

“Ouch, that sounds terrible,” Sam replied.

“It wasn't fun,” I said. “That's why I wanted to talk to you. I don't know how long I'm going to be out of play. I've already called Claudia, and she will be the principal for the upcoming season. She is fully capable. If I can play later in the season, I'll just sub in one of the other chairs.”

“What can we do for you?” asked Sam with a concerned face.

“I wanted to assure you – personally – that I will still be able to fulfill my duties as the personnel manager. In some strange way, not playing is actually a little blessing, so I can concentrate more on that job.”

“You know, if you need time, you can take it,” replied Sam.

While this was a tempting offer, I was afraid they would simply replace me. I had been working so hard I didn't want to give up now.

“I believe, for now, I will be fine,” I replied. “If something changes, I'll let you know right away.”

“Okay, but know that your health and well‐being come first. Are you sure there's nothing we can do for you?”

“There is one thing,” I said. I was almost embarrassed to ask. “Can you break the news to Fernando? He doesn't take bad news well, and I just don't have the bandwidth right now to deal with him.”

Sam grinned. “No problem. I know how to deal with him.”

“I really appreciate it.” I stood up. “I'd shake your hand, but …”

“Get on out of here,” Sam chuckled.

* * *

It had been a week since my fall, and I just ached. I didn't want to complain, so I kept my discomfort to myself. I was afraid I was taking enough Ibuprofen to burn a hole in my stomach.

“It's going to be okay, Dad,” said Linda.

She had been a champ this week. She helped with cooking, and helped me get around. She even drove me places after school. She had only recently gotten her license and was a good driver, but I kept my eyes closed most of the time.

“I hate that you took off school to take me to this appointment,” I said.

“I know you're nervous about the surgery, so I wanted to be there for you,” she said. “I told my teachers I'd be out today, so I already have my work.”

This seemed unfair to me because it should have been Laura taking me to the appointment. She made an excuse to help her parents move stuff around, and she had already promised them twice and couldn't say no a third time. It wasn't worth the fight, but it was something I would bring up in therapy.

“I really do appreciate it,” I said. “I talked to your counselor yesterday, and she said you've made a miracle turnaround on your grades. You have no idea how happy that makes me.”

“You were right, Dad,” she said, as we pulled into the parking lot.

“Wait … wait … can you say that again in the mic?” I said jokingly.

“Seriously, Dad. I know I've been a real pain. And my friends weren't helping any. I see how hard you're working for us, and I know it's been affecting your time at home, so I figured it was time for me to be more responsible.”

“That, and your grades are attached to your driving privileges and going out on the weekends,” I reminded her.

“Yeah, but that isn't my motivation. I'm mad at Mom for how she's been treating you lately, and now with your hurt shoulder, you need help.”

“It isn't your responsibility,” I replied.

“Maybe it's not, but I want to help.”

I gave her a hug across the seat.

“Are we ready to do this thing?” she asked.

“No, but let's do it anyway.”

* * *

“So, Sam tells me you aren't playing this season?” said Fernando with a slight scowl as he stared at me across his desk.

“I had an accident,” I replied. “I saw the orthopedist yesterday, and we talked about options. We're going to let it heal and try some physical therapy to get it back into shape. I might still need surgery later, but this seems the best way forward. What that means is that I won't be able to play next season. Claudia will do fine in my position. I'll bring in one of the alternates to fill the hole in the section.”

“That sounds fine,” he replied.

“I wanted to talk to you about the new system for paying the musicians,” I said.

“I'm going to stop you right there,” Fernando replied. “I am not involved in any of the money stuff. You will need to talk to Sam and the board about all that.”

“Yes, I understand that,” I replied. “But I could use your support. I need to talk to the musicians at the first rehearsal about making sure they get me their tax forms and the direct deposit information so that they can be paid.”

“So, are you saying they won't get paid if they don't?”

“No, we're going to do this gradually, the first few concerts. I'd like most if not all the musicians on direct deposit by the end of the season.”

“Okay,” he replied. “Is there anything else I can help you with?”

This was my dismissal, and so I took the cue.

“No,” I said. “I just wanted to touch base with you.”

“In the future, I'd prefer you come to me with personnel changes rather than going through Sam. I am fine with your decision, but you need to let me know right away.”

“Yes, of course,” I said and moved as quickly as I could out of his office. He was a great conductor but just not a people person, at least not to his musicians and staff. The donors loved him, and he really knew how to turn on the charm when he wanted to. I wished he could use that charm when talking to me.

* * *

“I'm sorry I had to reschedule,” I said to Dr. Richardson. “This has been a rough couple of weeks.”

“Not a problem at all,” he replied. “Is your arm healing?”

“Yes, but I'm afraid it's going to be a slow process,” I said. “I am taking it day by day.”

“I hated to hear you won't be playing this upcoming season.”

“Like I said to Sam, this might be a small blessing. I can work on my project management skills.”

“I'm glad to hear it,” Dr. Richardson replied.

“I got the approval from the board to move forward with the direct deposit. I'm taking it slow.”

“What has the response been?”

“There are two distinct camps. There are those who feel that we should have done this years ago, and they're thrilled that their funds will be available to them on the day of the concert. And then there are those who feel like it will mess up or that they don't trust technology. Included are those musicians who don't even have a bank account. I was amazed at this.”

“How have they been getting along without it?” Dr. Richardson asked.

“They would just cash the checks they received. Now they'll have to open up a bank account for the first time. There were so many that I asked First Bank of Middle Village to come in to help set up accounts for the musicians. We've arranged a day the musicians can come in to meet with people from the bank, and they're giving them good rates because they're sponsors of the symphony.”

“That is a brilliant idea.”

“I have to say, learning more about project management has changed my way of thinking. I'm looking at all sides of projects and coming up with solutions as challenges arrive. In this case, it's reducing the musicians' anxiety and, at the same time, removing the barrier of them having an excuse not to use direct deposit. Many other symphonies and musical organizations, including the choral society here, are moving to direct deposit, so it's really helping the musicians beyond our organization.”

“You are so right, and it adds to the value for the musicians to be a part of the organization,” said Dr. Richardson. “I'd give you a high‐five, but …”

We both laughed.

He brought out a new stack of papers for me to study. At first I was overwhelmed by the idea of homework and learning so much, but then I began to look forward to it. I was applying what I was learning, and the results were amazing.

“Today I'm going to talk to you about governance, which is the process of putting policies, procedures, and processes in place to guide organizational, operational activities and change. Governance should provide a streamlined approach and process. If governance becomes a bottleneck, then there's something wrong with the design of the governance processes. So the goal of governance is to make things run faster, not to become a bottleneck.”

He slid over the stack of papers. (See Figure 6.1.) “I want us to review the five processes that make up the portfolio governance process group, and those processes are to develop a portfolio management plan, define the portfolio, optimize the portfolio, authorize the portfolio, and provide portfolio oversight. I believe this lesson is timely because you ran into a couple of issues concerning governance when you were setting up the direct deposit.”

“Like the last time we met, I've created a mind map that outlines the five processes. It also provides the detailed inputs, tools, and techniques needed for operationalizing each of these processes.” (See Figure 6.2.)

The more he went over the different aspects of portfolio management, the more it made sense. I only wish I had met with him before I had started my position, but I was glad to have the guidance now.

“As I stated earlier, governance is the process of putting policies, procedures, and processes in place to guide organizational and operational activities and changes. Governance warrants the achievement of an organization's objectives by strategically aligning daily activities, setting direction, providing guidance on decision‐making, and monitoring performance.”

“That's a lot to digest,” I said.

“Let me tell you a quick story,” Dr. Richardson said. “Before I was a professor, I was a planning and programs manager for an international law firm. In addition to being in charge of the project program and portfolio management groups, I also oversaw the governance processes. We had at least six or seven boards and committees. The boards were able to make decisions, and committees could provide input but could not make decisions – much like your orchestra committee, which takes the issues of the musicians to your board.”

I nodded in understanding.

“We laid out a process where we orchestrated all of the boards where it was very clear that one board fed information to the project review board, the project review board would feed information to the monthly IS committee, and then both of those committees fed information to the IT strategy committee – and so on. On the board that the CIO chaired, there were operational committees, and in addition, there was a change board and a service board. And because we had a really detailed plan of how it was all orchestrated, it allowed the organization not to be bogged down in governance, but it really was a governance process that enabled execution and reduced the chaos that happens when you don't have a good governance process in place.”

I thought about how lost I had felt with decision‐making. In the case of asking the bank to come in, I took the initiative to set it up, but then Sam said I should have gotten board approval in place. There was a lack of process and no clear understanding of how projects were to be handled within the organization.

“I always think of good governance boards as the traffic cop who's directing traffic in the middle of the street, letting certain cars go while other ones have to stop,” continued Dr. Richardson. “That, to me, is what a good governance process is like. It provides control and speed limits more than bottlenecks and red tape. Are you following me so far?”

“Yes, and this helps me think of ways to add some governance to what I do,” I replied. “It will make what I'm doing so much clearer to me and to those I interact with, both inside and outside the organization.” (See Figure 6.3.)

“Great, let's discuss the PPM governance framework. The key business components that governance must address are the IT process optimization, alignment between IT goals and business goals, enterprise architecture capability engagement, demand management, IT performance management and tracking, portfolio program, project oversight, and board committee development and monitoring. And so, the governance boards establish direction, oversee strategy execution or the execution of the strategy of managing risks, and ensure compliance with the policies, procedures, and standards. You have to have a solid framework for implementing your governance process.” (See Figure 6.4.)

“Makes sense,” I replied.

“The governance framework provides the structure to enable decisions to be made regarding IT and business investments. Governance provides the process that defines what decisions are made, who makes them, how results are measured when they are made, who's held accountable for those decisions, and how decisions are made and monitored. Every organization has an IT governance structure. The question is, is the governance process defined, or is it ad hoc?”

“In the symphony, I believe it is more ad hoc.”

“Precisely. Productive and profitable organizations have a well‐defined and well‐managed governance process. The policies, processes, and procedures are key when you're rolling out a project portfolio measure office or governance structure. And these things should include determining roles and responsibilities, identifying and documenting the process for governance and the IT portfolio management process.”

Again, I thought about my rolling out the new direct deposit plan. Dr. Richardson was right; if there was a more defined governance process, I would not be floundering around so much or be so worried about violating some protocol, even though there didn't seem to be any well‐defined protocols. I felt I was walking on eggshells at times.

Dr. Richardson pointed to the next page in the stack. (See Figure 6.5.)

“Remember, the project portfolio process or office is a hub and not a bridge. Determine and define the governance compliance triggers so that you know when a process or a procedure has been violated and determine and establish the organizational model required to support and sustain the project portfolio capability.”

It was like he was reading my mind.

“One example of a good policy or process or procedure is when I worked with the international law firm,” he continued. “I had developed a handbook that included a list of all the steps and processes, and procedures for managing small, medium, and large projects. It also explained how the business and the IT management and leadership team were to interact with the project review board, and when to submit project requests.”

“Yes … yes,” I blurted. “I need one of those.”

Dr. Richardson chuckled. “I can help you with that.”

“That would be fantastic,” I replied.

“My project managers did not fear stepping away to go to the bathroom. They didn't fear not being able to go to lunch because they knew no one could come up to them and just assign them a project; they had to follow a process. So, as work was divvied out, they were able to remain focused on their work, and the business knew that if they submitted their requests to my office, they would get a response because all those projects were presented to the project review board on a weekly basis.”

“This portfolio governance model provides an example of only one kind of model that can be used in an organization where you have a separate governance process, the management role, and then resources, services, and the overall organizational structure. The IT group itself can be divided into this, and as you can see, senior leadership will play a part in identifying and defining the portfolio governance model because the areas that we're looking at and that are a part of this model are things that fall under the manager's and managing director's purview.”

I looked at the chart as he continued.

“The good news is that, as the personnel manager and in essence a portfolio manager, you get a seat at the table and get a chance to work with them day in and day out as you help them support and manage the portfolio.”

“Here's another example of a portfolio governance operational model. (See Figure 6.6.) We have resources; we have the overall environment or technical environment; we have the governance and administration where we have the boards and committees and contracts and budgets and metrics. And then we have a portfolio center of excellence where it's responsible for education and training. So there are multiple types of governance processes that are out there, and you have to define one that fits the culture that you're working in and that fits the future direction of where your organization wants to go as far as managing its project portfolio process and overseeing all of its portfolio assets.”

“This might take some time,” I commented.

“Yes, of course. But it is a goal you can begin to work on with the symphony to develop over time,” replied Dr. Richardson. “I've added a couple of other templates in your packet that you can look over later. One is called the portfolio management plan, and the other one is called the portfolio review meeting agenda. The review meeting agenda is used when managing the portfolio review board. And the portfolio management plan is a document that you build out when you're first establishing your portfolio management office. Basically, it's a plan that you use to govern and manage how you're going to manage the portfolio overall.”

“Those will be helpful,” I said.

“As a project manager,” Dr. Richardson continued, “you're responsible for on‐time delivery of a project, keeping within the scope and on budget. You're also responsible for managing multiple projects and then delivering the benefits that all of those products being worked on together should be able to deliver as well as managing your limited resources. But when you become a portfolio manager, one of the main roles or jobs that you have is to constantly look at the portfolio and see if you can optimize the portfolio. And optimizing the portfolio is one of the key activities for the PML and to add value to the business. It's the core concern that optimization is the delivery of a strategic value while reducing the cost of delivering that value through streamlining the use of resources. That's money, people, information, and equipment while increasing the speed at which the benefits are produced. Right now, you are doing a bit of both roles. But, as you begin to create a framework, you will have a much easier time managing your resources.”

I was overwhelmed with all of the duties I had on my shoulders at the moment, but every project was a little easier as I began to understand how project management works. (See Figure 6.7.)

“If there are projects that you have within your portfolio that you know if you really focused on those that they would deliver benefit to the organization much faster, then you as the portfolio manager should have the authority to fast‐track or have those products focused on because your focus and your job are to optimize the portfolio to deliver the highest level of value while reducing the cost and risk to the organization. Now, the project portfolio management governs decision process; it's basically looking at the life cycle of your portfolio. There are different types of meetings and different types of decisions that you should be having as part of managing the portfolio. So you should have strategic planning meetings, you should have portfolio office meetings, and then you have the projects and programs that you are overseeing that are a part of your portfolio. I know this sounds like a lot right now, but as you grow into your role, you will be prepared.”

“Yes, thanks to your guidance,” I replied.

He showed me the next page. (See Figure 6.8.)

“As you can see, some meetings for portfolio strategic planning focus on the C‐level group, which usually happens annually, like your initial budget meeting. Nowadays, because of the speed of business, it may happen every six months or even every quarter. The portfolio office meetings where you are recalibrating the portfolio and approving projects into the portfolio and aligning it and so on, those happen quarterly. And again, depending on the business that you're in, that could even happen monthly. And programs are basically day‐to‐day operational work, and it's how the project portfolio gets executed. It's through the projects and programs, and those are weekly meetings that are being executed and discussed. And this lays out who are the stakeholders, the decision‐makers and what key decisions are made, how frequently they're made and what are the meeting inputs.”

“This is helpful,” I said.

“Let's move on to project portfolio management governance project review board process. Take your time studying this process. This shows you how projects build through the project review board and the portfolio review board to be approved within an organization.”

He pointed at the page. (See Figure 6.9.)

“Here are the objectives of the project intake process. Let's talk about how you set up a streamlined standard process for intaking in new projects and looking at them against the portfolio. You have to identify project ideas that can contribute to the commencement of the strategic objectives; you reduce the number of projects so that you have an optimal size based on the company's capability to deliver.”

“That is tough right now because some of these projects need to happen while others can wait,” I said. “But it still feels like I need to complete a lot of projects in a short amount of time.”

“You'll get the hang of it, and next year you'll be more prepared. The thing that kills most organizations is when they take on too many projects and struggle to deliver on them. The business and the people they are rolling these projects out to can't absorb all the change. I think you have a good pace right now, even though it feels like a lot. Sometimes to speed up, we have to slow down. We also need to eliminate products that are not feasible anymore. Sometimes you start a project, and you invest money into it, and then technology changes. This was the process that allowed my project managers at the international offer to feel very comfortable going out to lunch, going to the bathroom, and doing whatever they had to do because they didn't have to worry about someone chasing them down in the hallway so that they would have to get a new project and hide away. It freed them up to do their job.”

“That will be a nice feeling,” I said.

“Imagine kids going onto a school bus – their parents line them up one by one to enter the bus so they don't all run to the door at the same time. And because they have these heavy backpacks on, they get caught, and they're not able to get on the bus as quickly, and parents have to come and pull them back and put them back in line. Even though the straight line seems like a slow process, it actually lets them get on the bus much faster because of the way it's organized. And the whole concept of the theory of constraints, especially around portfolio management, is to reduce bottlenecks. Because bottlenecks reveal issues within the system that prohibit throughput and inventory and operating in an optimal manner.”

I thought about some of the bottlenecks I was running into just this week.

“The theory of constraints is a solution for planning, scheduling, and managing the performance of a project environment,” explained Dr. Richardson. “It is applied in both single projects and multi‐project environments, where resources are shared across several different projects concurrently. The longest string of work is a schedule taking into account all tasks, resources, and dependencies. The goal is to reduce the demand to within a reasonable limit of the organization's capacity to meet the demand.”

I was thinking about all he said and looked at the copious notes I had taken.

“That should do you,” said Dr. Richardson.

“Yeah, I'd say so,” I replied.

“Please take care of yourself,” Dr. Richardson said with a concerned look. “Without your health and well‐being, what do you have?”

He had a good point. While I was concerned about my shoulder and my future as a bass player, I was more concerned about my wife and family. I needed to make time to work on it, and I hoped that Laura hadn't pulled too far away from me.

Dr. Richardson's Tips

• As a project manager, you're responsible for the on‐time delivery of a project, keeping within the scope and on budget. You're also responsible for managing multiple projects, and then delivering the benefits that all of those products being worked on together should be able to deliver, as well as managing your limited resources.
• Here are the objectives of the project intake process. You have to identify project ideas that can contribute to the commencement of the strategic objectives; you reduce the number of projects so that you have an optimal size based on the company's capability to deliver.
• The theory of constraints is a solution for planning, scheduling, and managing the performance of a project environment. It is applied in both single projects and multi‐project environments, where resources are shared across several different projects concurrently.