The way to create budget

zhangbs 发表于 2006/12/1 21:15:00

It is a story, always happens before, now and in the future.
It was a normal afternoon, I came back from a walk-around in my house to my desk. A new email alert in inbox. It is from my manager. I open it and with my expect a new task is assigned. It always his way, short statement and no very clear request or question, you need to guess the meaning behind the words.

To me,
From him,

Hi! ,
Is it the budget of xxxxx?

I need to read all the attachment to understand the whole story and make clear his request. they are email flew from Australia to Japan and China, and back from China, Japan to Australia, every body "reply all" and had their comments. I kept reading them, from the first to the 20th. Yes, I understand.
A new opportunity and sales needed a proposal from organization. A team was leading a proposal, they followed the process, fill the documents, request execution team to input the information and discussed with sales. A lot of people was involed, experts, process operator and, managers. My manager was told the the estimation of 20% of execution project manger 's work load. The budget was being in approval process.
I know it was not new to me that I, the execution project manager is involved at the last moment and there is no time and no room for me to argue about the budget is what we need to perform the delivery. Cause too many people has their value in, time and energy, customer is not patient to wait our feedback. I was not either wondering why my manager saw this and keep silent until he transfer it at the last moment. The situation make me must say "yes" or keep silent.
A mail is drafted shortly to describe my view. There is too simple work statement to make me judget if the budget is enough or not.
I did not expect my mail should change something, I just show my idea and I can not commite anything in such situation.

Things happened as my predicted. The very low workload is commited by him though he saw my email. I was involved and be put responsibility in the next day. A announcement said I was assigned as the PM of this project when contract sign. It was always a double blade sword to speak up or no speak up. If there is no voice from me, that means it was accepted by me, the execution project manager, if I speaked up, I think some people will not be happy cause the budget is their talent and if it is approved by operator, they kicked the ball off, it will be a relax status to them. No one like to see the ball in his/her own garden. A proposal PM has been assigned before my assignment. He approved the budget without understanding customer requirement as well as the work of statement. Why? He thought he will transfer this ball to the next one, execution PM and this PM needs to handle it. Every one stand on chain of process but no measurement to judge if he/she had a quality work. The risk or unclear items will be  hiden and transfer  to the  execution  PM at  last.
I reply to all by my assignment email to initial a conference for my understanding the customer requirement and work of statement. I did not say anything about my concern to the budget. There is no use to discuss it before my understanding of the work. I was just proposal pm's attendee in my conference, he claimed to me, he was just "droped" in at the end of last week,and he was assigned to support budget approval. I realized it is a game, as the process needs a PM to approve and a PM is assigned to approve it in the very cut situation without any or necessary measurement to his assignment. As my expected, he can not understand the customer requirement and work statement,  when I began to review them item by item, he kept silent or repeat the written sentence to my question. Then told me who wrote the what and who wrote what. I really understand his position, he can not tell anything to me. So we discussed to involve the person who wrote it and set another call to review it. Good approach! anyway, I tried to make clear the work more than gave up.

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Re:The way to create budget

north america发表评论于2006/12/2 0:45:00

It's a good essay. But some sentences don't make sense to me probably because of my knowledge. Pardon me to say that. Anyway, I should learn soemthing from you.

Thanks!

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