The Naked Alliance Manager (AM)

Contributor: Mr Wayne Seaward
Posted: 10/22/2009  12:00:00 AM EDT  |  0
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Tags: AGM | Alliance Manager | alliancing | alliance contract | alliance contracting | advanced people systems | wayne seaward | alliance team. human | culture | team | ALT | alliance general manager | trust | leadership

INDUSTRY SPOTLIGHT: Five minutes with Wayne Seaward, Senior Organisational Development Consultant, Advanced People Systems

Alliance IQ interviewed Wayne Seaward, Advanced People Systems recently. In this interview, Wayne gives an insight into some of this experience on the human aspect of alliance contracting. In particular, he focuses on the role of the alliance manager.

What is your background before becoming involved in alliance contracting?
Prior to focusing on the alliance industry, I held executive consulting positions within corporate consulting organisations as well as senior management roles within national organisations.  This executive consulting experience and my membership on a number of boards and executive committees in turn provided me with broad leadership and governance experience within a number of industries.

In 1991 an opportunity arose to join the Australian Quality Council as the Project Director for a consulting program that had the task of deploying quality management and leadership best practice into all industry across Australia.  The AQC was not dissimilar to the IQPC. From this role I moved into executive consulting and leadership roles within the consulting, learning and development industry managing both national and internationals organisations.  With my executive management, change management and consulting experience it was an easy step to working within the alliance industry. 

What is your background in alliance contracting?
I have worked as an Executive Consultant, Facilitator or Coach within the Alliance and ECI environment for both owner participants and non-owner participants.

Within this environment I have facilitated components of the selection process for owner participant’s organisations, on other occasions I have facilitated Bid Teams preparation for non-owner participants.

I have also worked within both Alliance projects and ECI projects: I have coached several successful projects from the initial launch workshop through to the completion of the project or in the case of the ECI Projects up until the D&C phase started.

On several occasions I have had the opportunity, to deliver a short-term consulting or coaching programs on topics such as:
 Alliance 360 Heath check analysis and feedback reports

I have also delivered one off workshops from launch workshops, VFM, Innovation and R&O Workshops through to ‘Lessons Learned’ workshops at the completion of the project.

Within this environment I have worked across the water industry, road and rail industry this work has given me exposure to around 18 major infrastructure projects.

What trends do you see in the marketplace currently?
That is an interesting question; there have been several changes that I have seen over the past 12 months.

Twelve months ago most of the RFP in the market place came from the water industry, now we have moved back to road and rail projects.  The non-owner participant organisations are becoming more sophisticated in their approach to Alliances.  This sophistication is stretching and in some cases challenging the role of Alliance Project Manager.

Even the title is changing to Alliance General Manager; I believe the pace of this trend will increase in this post GFC environment with the focus on a better understanding of Value for Money outcomes and the need to tap into the discretionary effort of the AMT and WPT members.  It will be critical for the project managers to understand their impact on their overall projects performance.

I also believe the number of alliance now in the marketplace will stretch the resource on owner participant and non owner participants.  There are only so many people to go around.

Focusing on the human aspect of alliance contracting – what do you believe are the key challenges in relation to alliance teams?
That is a good lead on from the last question, I believe the AGM has the single greatest potential to influence an Alliance culture and in so doing the performance of the project overall.

Many good intentioned AGM’s miss the opportunity to create the environment needed to achieve outstanding performance and leverage the discretionary efforts of their team.  This can be the difference between a good alliance and a great alliance.

I believe, the culture of an Alliance is routinely created from the verbal and non verbal messages expressed by the AGM and Management Team about how people are expected to behave, what is important, what is valued and what people have to do to fit in and be rewarded.

Most alliance cultures, in our view, are formed unconsciously by the AGM and Management Team and habitually sustained by the WPT and other stakeholders.

In working within numerous alliances and ECI projects, I have observed that in most alliances the AGM and AMT are often unaware of the messages they display and express.

It is my point of view that culture is something that can be powerfully influenced and created by the AGM and deployed through his or her management team.

The culture of an alliance powerfully shapes the identity and behavioural norms for the WPT and key stakeholders.  It influences the whole team’s enthusiasm and impetus as well as the input of their discretionary effort.  I believe we have a long way to go in this area of high performance within our industry.  Alliance General Manager and Alliance Management Team understand the objective side of a project very well (The systems, structure process, projects plans and schedules) but I believe are still challenge when it come to the subjective side of their role and how it impact on the performance of the project.  There are great opportunities within this subjective area still untapped.

What key opportunities do alliance managers miss, at the front end of an alliance?
Great question, where will I start?

Most managers do a great job and are keen to hit the ground running at the front end of a project.  There are a few opportunities that I believe are missed at this stage of most projects.

It is always interesting to me how quickly a winning team leave behind the lessons learned from the selection progress.  It seems obvious that most alliances hit the ground running but leave developing alignment and culture to chance or even an external facilitator coach and one workshop. It not about the workshop but the subjective side that is overlooked.  The launch workshop output papers are rarely understood but the AGM and the AMT or rarely get deployed.

When I have been asked to review an alliance several months into the project, that is having challenges, it is usually easy to identify the culture has been left behind in the rush to get the to right TOC.  It is important to manage the development of the right culture.  By the right culture, I mean culture that is aligned with the projects objectives, vision and the personality and behaviours of the AGM.  If it (the culture) is aligned with the coaching organisation of the external consultant’s expectation it will struggle to work or underpin the projects success.  Every alliance is different and the culture that will deliver High Performance outcomes against each KRA for the project need to reflect the AGM’s and the AMT’s attitude and beliefs not the alliance 101 beliefs of their external consultants.

Most alliances also seem to leave behind the basics, develop strong relationships (one on one) monthly reporting structures, meeting regimes, role clarification until later in the project.  I believe there are many opportunities within these small areas.

For example it usually takes several months before the first full documented monthly report is developed and delivered to the ALT.  They may seem simple but there absence in the first 4-5 months all adds costs and waste and misinformation into a project.  

What are the key differences between project management and alliance management in general?
I think the sophistication of the industry; the size and complexity of the projects are driving the changes that are needed within this important role.

The need for community engagement, environmental management, the scope of work and the number of key stakeholders that are involved in many of the alliances, now in the market place, are increasing the expectation and demand on what was, a few years ago, a project manager’s role.

For projects to be successfully, as well as, to be seen as successful, the person in this role needs to have had exposure to a broader general management environment.  The role is becoming more and more about the leadership of people and good corporate management then about pure project management.  You could say it is more about the hearts and mind of the project team then about the nuts and bolts of the project.  The AMT will look after the nuts and bolts.

Building major infrastructure projects within an alliance environment…it’s about the people, their relationship and how they are led.

What tips can you offer to assist alliance managers in their performance on the job?
Trust the process, I believe the strategic intent of alliances is sound and full of potential both for the organisations involved and the individual who are lucky enough to be involved in there formation and deliver.  I also believe alliances are not for everyone or every situation.  Having the wrong people on the bus (an alliance) or even in the wrong seat on the bus can have a major impact on the performance on an individual project.

Tips for management team:
1. As I said before but it deserves repeating; trust the process.
2. Seek out coaching opportunities whenever you have the chance
3. Learn about yourself throughout the alliance
4. remember the basics
• Leadership is about the people / management is about the systems
• Remember your time management
• Deliver on your accountabilities
• Take responsibility for your accountabilities
• Brief your direct reports well – give consistent feedback - regularly
• Own the project’s vision walk its values
• Question every wheel
• Seek your own feedback – act on it
5. Set stretch targets for both you and your teams. Achieve them
6. Enjoy the journey

Do you believe the legacies of alliance contracting are being extrapolated back into the participant organisations post the alliance?
I believe there are a few good examples of how this is happening within non owner participating organisations but there is a gold mine of opportunities in this area.

Like most industries the knowledge from past project stays with the individual that have worked within the particular project.  This first hand experience is invaluable.  IQPC has a role to play here, and is doing a good job with your conferences and workshop, facilitating lessons from organisation to organisation.

Owner Participants also have a key role to play in disseminating the lessons from their past and present project to others in the industry, we need to set benchmarks or even develop a benchmark project to identify lessons learned and distribute the findings freely.

We all have a lot to learn from past projects, there have been over 300 in Australia and New Zealand, I would put it to the industry:  What have we all learned, is it documented?

What is the future for alliance contracting in your opinion?
I believe the future for alliance contracting looks good although we may see the model change and new flexible models emerge.

The pressure being placed on margins may have a longer term impact but I would not like to predict how.  In the smaller states of Australia the owner participants staff resource issues may also impact on the uptake of alliances or ECI’s models.

Alliance Contracting IQ thanks Wayne for his insights and his time! For more information on this subject you can also visit www.collaborativecontracting.com.au

Click here for information about Mr Wayne Seaward