Six leadership lessons from an expert on major projects

Jonathan Simcock is an expert on major projects who stepped down as Chair of the Submarine Delivery Agency at the Ministry of Defence last year. He has been involved in the largest UK government projects since 2007, when he took over what became the Infrastructure and Projects Authority. The author of new book The Delivery Gap: Why government projects really fail and what can be done about it, he says that “closing the delivery gap is an imperative – as important as any of the other challenges of statesmanship”.

So why did he write his book? “This mindset that [major government projects] never work is really unhealthy. I wanted to get under the skin of what really is going on here,” Simcock told APM Podcast recently. “Good people are struggling in a system that’s failing, and it’s to do with the incentive structures that drive tendencies and behaviours that lead to failure.

“It shouldn’t be OK to allow a business case to go forward with estimates that are undercooked where everyone sort of knows that, but it is what is needed to get the project going. This isn't a criticism of individual project people, it's to do with the system,” he said.

In The Delivery Gap, Simcock gives advice on how the delivery of major government projects can be improved – but he also shares career and leadership lessons for project professionals coming up through the ranks.

Career lessons to a younger self

When asked what career advice he would give to a younger self, Simcock said: “The first thing is to stick with it. Second is that, while we've come such a long way with professionalism in the last 20 years, [the project profession] is more than a collection of niche technical capabilities, like scheduling or cost estimating or risk management.”

This means viewing yourself as an equal among others who are senior in government or business – to have that “parity of esteem”, as he calls it. This starts with you as a project professional, he explains. It means speaking up when things seem unclear or unrealistic.

“I know it's easy to say and it's hard to do [but] you have to step up and say so. There's an element of courage that I would encourage people to adopt.”

Having courage

Courage really matters. One of the conclusions in The Delivery Gap is that good people in public-sector projects are struggling against perverse but powerful systemic pressures and incentives.
“So, my first piece of advice is about having the courage to resist these pressures,” says Simcock. Here are more words of wisdom:

1. Listen to your gut

“You are likely to find yourself in a situation where everyone else seems to support, or at least acquiesce to, something you don’t think is right. Stand your ground until you are sure you agree.”

2. Be honest with yourself about your motivations

“When you are making, supporting, advocating or delaying decisions, be clear with yourself about why you think it is the right thing to do. Whose interests are you putting first?”

3. Keep close to the real deliverers

“Everyone has an opinion, but the further people are from the sharp end of delivery, the easier it looks. Counter that by listening to those who are in the muck and bullets.”

4. Distrust explanations that you don’t understand

“People who can't explain what they mean in plain English are sometimes not really clear in their own minds about what they think.”

5. Don’t start a project that you don't know how to finish

“Sometimes the pressure to start spending money feels irresistible. But starting before you are ready almost always ends up costing more and taking longer.”

6. Always choose pragmatism over perfection

“A complex approach to delivery is not something to be proud of or to revel in. Complex approaches never go the way you expect and hope. Simplify as far as you possibly can (but no further!)”

The Delivery Gap: Why government projects really fail and what can be done about it is published by Emerald Publishing. Look out for APM Podcast’s recent interview with Jonathan Simcock wherever you get your podcasts.