3M mapping

When embarking on any assignment, the size of the task can seem daunting. As the range of ideas and tools offered in this book highlights, the large number of possible actions can mean that you are faced with endless choices. One way to deal with the seeming fog is to "chunk" the engagement into different sizes; to break down the action in two ways, first by stage and then by magnitude. To help this way of thinking, it can help to deconstruct the work into the following chunks:

• Meta: a simple but focused definition of the purpose of the stage being addressed. What is the core outcome to be achieved and how does it link with the other stages in the life cycle? For example, your core purpose at the client stage might be to focus solely on the development of an emotional relationship, and to leave the commercial aspects to someone else. Alternatively, your goal might be to use the time as an education process, to bring your client up to strength on the ideas and methodology that will be used.

• Macro: At this level, once the purpose is defined you can start to think about what broad actions need to be taken. If your meta-level definition of the clarification stage is to deliver a detailed and robust analysis of the client's IT network, then you will start to define what specific tools need to be employed, what primary tasks have to be created and who will own each element. This is project planning in its simplest form, where some people might develop a comprehensive project plan, but others might only need a basic list of actions. The approach will depend upon the context of the engagement and skills and knowledge of the consultants.

• Micro: Finally, it is important to understand some of the small but important issues that must be covered. These might be simple things like ensuring that the right people are invited to the process reviews, or ensuring that the company name is spelt correctly. The important thing is to understand the client and consumer filters, and be very clear as to what seemingly small things will actually be important to them.

Once the engagement has been broken down into these three areas, then you can consider the total life cycle against a simple stage map in Fig. 13.1. Imagine the consultant who is asked to manage the refurbishment of a company's main office. The board had commissioned the contract on the anticipation that the refurbishment would also increase the company's ability to use more teleworkers. The consultant's role was both to deliver a new office environment within six months and a targeted increase in the number of teleworkers within a year.

In planning the project, the consultant decided from the outset that three of the seven stages would be key to his success: Client, Confirm and Closure. He understood that the client's basic value-added motivation was driven by cost reduction. As such, there had to be clear and demonstrable evidence of the benefits. This was also linked to a clear contract that set out the end-deliverables. At a meta level he would need to ensure that a clear sense of purpose existed between himself and the client in these three stages shown in Fig. 13.1.

For the macro actions, the consultant's supposition was that from the outset he needed to get very close to the client. This type of project is one laden with misunderstanding, supposition and ambiguity and as such he wanted to ensure a close and highly interdependent relationship. The initial macro issue was to run a client workshop, where he could pull together the client and consumer representatives to understand their formal and informal issues.

At the micro level, there were a number of core actions that could be identified from the outset. In the Client stage the consultant decided to pay careful attention to the different decision makers within the client unit. At the Create stage, he initiated a number of searches across other industries to identify where similar projects had been successful. Finally, he knew that cost justification of many of the proposals might be difficult, so he wanted to ensure that all project proposals and decisions were built around the value-add model outlined in the Close stage. Fig. 13.1 shows how this idea has been expanded, with different action for different levels of focus in the cycle of change.

This example shows how the framework can be mapped out from the very start of the change. Clearly, it is not practical to specify in advance how all of the Seven Cs tools can be used. The trick is to pick the appropriate models and clearly plan when they will be used and what benefit will be gained from their application. In taking this approach, it will help you to take a more long-term view of the change and give the client confidence that you have the right amount of control over the total life of the project.

In mapping out the various actions, the consultant can achieve a number of positive outcomes:

• It allows the opportunity to talk through the total picture with the client. In doing this, it helps to start the journey towards the development of a shared schematic picture of what will happen.

• It helps to take the focus off the task and content and to get the client to understand the transformation process. Too often, commercial and political pressures conspire to force the client, consultant and consumer to go for the quick operational fix and to forgo the long-term view. If the key players can appreciate the process view then it might help to take some of the urgency away from the short-term issues.

• The development of a close working relationship with the client is underpinned by the development of a shared language. The 3M model helps you to develop a language that bridges your process needs with the client's operational goals.

Although the 3M framework is clearly just a simple reworking of the project planning process, it does deliver an increased focus on the relationship between the core stages in the assignment and the more important action.