Reducing unwelcome surprises in project management

• Autores: Tyson R. Browning, Ranga V. Ramasesh
• Localización: MIT Sloan management review, ISSN 1532-9194, Vol. 56, Nº 3, 2015, págs. 53-62
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • Unknown unknowns - often called unk-unks - are lurking in every project, just waiting to emerge, surprise and derail plans. Project knowledge comes from learning about the project its overall context, its goals and objectives, the process for achieving them, the people, tools and other resources to be deployed, and how all of these affect one another. Many so-called unk-unks aren't really unkunks at all. Rather, they are things no one has bothered to find out. Indeed, there are two kinds of unknowns: unknown unknowns (things we don't know we don't know) and known unknowns (things we know we don't know). (See Converting Knowable Unk-Unks to Known Unknowns.) Every project has some of both. The techniques of conventional risk management apply only to the known unknowns. Yet some unk-unks are knowable and can be converted to known unknowns through a process of directed recognition. This article provides an overview of the targets, methods and tools the where, why and how of directed recognition. Several characteristics of a project's subsystems and context make surprises more likely.