Cement producer implements effective project management methodology to improve operations

A multinational cement producer had more than 150 projects in the United States. Its structure, accountability and management tools were not up to the task which had led to cost overruns and delays. The company needed to rapidly implement an effective methodology for project management.

Context
A regional cement producer was developing more than 150 investment projects in the United States. However, it lacked a corporate Project Management Office, had limited follow-up tools, and low levels of accountability. Each year, real OPEX and CAPEX spending significantly exceeded expectations and several projects faced delays, excessive costs, and reduced impact. It was necessary to implement a new project management model.

Opportunities detected
After revising the company’s situation, the Matrix team worked with an internal team to identify critical problems, such as difficulties securing commitments from the executive team, low adherence to follow-up tools, and limited communication between the executive team and middle-level management.

Four targets were established: they agreed to prioritize the most important projects according to the company’s needs; to define processes and tools to identify, prioritize, and manage projects; to structure the governance system for a new local PMO and its relation to the corporate PMO; and to improve communications between regional and corporate offices to enhance investment management.

Proposed actions
The Matrix team established a pool of projects under development and separated strategic projects from continuous improvement ones. Descriptions of each project were drawn up and business cases established including the amount involved, estimated investment, and expected impact, and an implementation roadmap was designed.

The necessary PMO objectives, attributes, bodies, and functions were defined and supported during the first few months of operation.

In terms of corporate governance, the roles of all participants were defined. Leaders and sponsors were identified together with their attributes, as well as key follow-up committees.

The methodology was defined together with tools to facilitate the filtering and prioritization of projects. In addition, six specific tools were designed to support project management and follow-up.

Impact
A rigorous process for project management was implemented. A culture of data-based project evaluation was introduced, and a management structure with clear accountability was put into place. The tool kit standardized evaluation methodologies, prioritized efforts, and guaranteed project implementation.