Dealing with a dysfunctional template library

So your PMO has a nice shiny template library. After a few months in operations, things start to go wrong. No one is using the template library. Even if templates are being used, it is used in the wrong manner. Reports produced and compiled from these templates are ignored, due to sheer volume, complexity or just plain misinformation. These are all signs and symptoms of a dysfunctional template library. If this sounds like your PMO template library, read on.

If you’ve got a dysfunctional template library, here are three prescriptions.

Appoint a template librarian

I can stress the importance of a good template librarian. Someone who knows what’s in the in template library and how to use it. Someone who is able to say ‘NO’ to new bells and whistles. Someone who is able to integrate new lessons learned into the library. Find one, give him/her authority and responsibility play the role successfully and in no time your template library will be seen as a crowning success.

K.I.S.S

Yep, I’m sure you’ve seen this acronym before. It’s short for Keep It Simple Stupid. I’ve seen unbelievably complex libraries filled with flowcharts, checklists and templates with all the bells and whistles that the PMO consultants have gathered from many man months of work.

Problem is, at the end of the day, when a project manager has been appointed to take responsibility of the project, and is shown the complex project management infrastructure he/she’s got to use, it’s typically not used. If it is used, the templates are usually partially used, or filled in with incorrect information. The information also takes a lot of resource time to compile and produce. Project managers looking to augment the existing templates find that they are so interconnected that making a small change in one template usually breaks many other templates. Bottom line is that, the template library will not get utilized.

Stakeholders, especially the project sponsor and manager are supposed to derive the high-level view of the state of the project using the templates from the template library. Complex templates do not allow this to happen.

Case study templates

Templates are important, but the content that goes in them are just as important. Even with pages of documentation of how to fill in a template, the most compliant and happy project managers are those who have access to previously filled in templates. Not only is it much faster to complete project templates using prior project templates, but also more educational. Project managers know where the pitfalls are in a particular organization. This is not something that one gets from a blank template.