A Trial to Improve Program Management in Government Bodies Through Focusing on Program Resource Management: Cases from UAE

Abstract

Improving a program management in government bodies is a critical aspect, and this research paper demonstrates a thesis on Program Resource Management and its process to the success of government bodies’ roles. The qualitative methodology in this paper studies the program management several aspects in terms of resource management and its effect on the success of the government sector's programs in UAE. The study covers program management's impact on the sectors and issues in government sectors in relation to the lack of professionals and its effect on the availability and clarity of the senior management career paths. The research paper addressed the main problem in program resource management and its wide effects. Similarly, the data gathered to cover the same thesis to compare and analyze the government bodies’ key results and finding. The researchers have been addressed the impacts of resource management on the program management in the government sector. Since resources are always allocated and utilized with a proper record being kept in the government sector, this research analyzes the issues in the government sector. It was estimated that the program managers lack a professional community within the federal government that can provide support and a voice on issues affecting the development of program management in the sector. This give rise to several concerns which are need to be addressed and the research will be on providing a solution to this problem. Alongside that, the research pointed out that the government-wide job series for program managers that spans business functions with a career path that extends into senior career executive management ranks is full of flaws. There is a lack of credibility and quality at the level of the management which manages the resources. The research also allowed the researchers to carry out the SWOT analysis on program resource management. This will allow to identify the major threats and the opportunities which the field has for the young aspirants in the future. The researchers’ main focus is on to identify the major problems in the program resource management. The aim has been to identify these issues and then propose proper and sustainable solutions for them to ensure employees and management make better use of the resources either in the program or project. The issues like managing resource allocations, choosing the right career path and lack of training and development are a few to name which the research has discussed in detail. The aim has been to evaluate these issues by ensuring that they are analyzed from the perspective of the employees as well as the management.

Appendices

Appendix

Appendix 1: Interview 1 (Emirates Group)

• 1. There is no guarantee of success in large-scale, complex change initiatives.

  However if program management is undertaken by:

  • 1. Well-trained,

  • 2. Experienced professionals

  • 3. Supportive infrastructure

  • 4. Proven standards and practices

We believe that success will be more consistently achieved

How organizations can ensure these 4 factors?

Emirates Group, it can ensure these factors through effective management strategy where the top management provide the right leadership focused on these factors. The top leadership of the group should be equipped with the capacity to coach their direct reports and to facilitate supportive infrastructure and ensure change implementation through proven standards and practices. They should be in a position to engage in conversations with individual team members to find ways of making sure that these 4 factors are taken care of adequately thereby increasing the possibility of success of the change initiative.

Emirates Group can ensure these 4 factors by clearly defining the change and aligning it to the set goals and objectives. Doing so will provide an opportunity for the organization and its leaders and team members to critically review the aspects of the change initiative to ensure they integrate these 4 factors, thereby contributing to the success of the change process.

Emirates Group can ensure these 4 factors through effective communication. They should determine the most effective means of communication for the team members. The communication strategy should take into account aspects like the timeline regarding how change will be communicated incrementally, which channels to use and what would be the key messages.

Emirates Group can ensure these 4 factors is through effective training to provide knowledge, skills, and competencies needed for efficient operation as change is rolled out.

• 2. Program management is not consistently recognized as a management discipline that is essential to government performance, success, and results.

What solutions for improving government-wide capability for project and program management

The solutions include ensuring consistent, senior-level support the discipline of program management in Emirates Group; program management should be made an integral part of accomplishing the organization’s mission rather than being considered as a technical or administrative specialty focused on the implementation; and, program management staff to be consistently involved in the planning for change initiatives.

What Implementation for improving government-wide capability for project and program management

The implementation for improving government-wide capability for project and program management is that which entails executives and stakeholders clearly understanding their roles and responsibilities. It also entails ensuring consistency across the government in both the development and training of the involved personnel, especially program managers.

What recommendations for improving government-wide capability for project and program management

• (i) The development of government-wide program and project management policy should be done using an integrated approach.

• (ii) The leadership should support program management, as active support from top agency leadership has proved to be a critical factor in the success of change management initiatives. Such support is vital in facilitating the alignment of diverse groups within the organization.

• (iii) There should be clearly established roles and responsibilities of agency’s stakeholders in the program management processes to promote accountability and achievement of set goals.

• (iv) Program management should be integrated into performance improvement, goal-setting, and strategic planning process.

• 3. There is no consistency across the government in the training and development of program managers. How this can be resolved?

Considering that competent and experienced program managers are the most critical determinants of successful program, it is important to resolve the problem of lack of consistency across the government in their training and development. In the case of Emirates Group, it can be resolved first by making sure that the program manager job series have a clear career path and policies to support the career development of program managers. The problem can also be solved by making sure that the Emirates Group comply with the policies guiding the certification of personnel in program management. Besides, Emirates Group should have systematic approach to program managers’ training and development.

• 4. Organizations executives and VIP stakeholder’s governance role requires clear understanding of:

The role of how programs are derived from strategies

And how programs are delivering strategy benefits

The roles and responsibilities of the program manager

How this can be ensured by training and development?

Training and development within the Emirates Group would ensure that organizations executives and VIP stakeholders have clear understanding of their governance roles by providing them with clear guidance on their roles and responsibilities within the program management processes. It would also enhance their skills, competencies, and knowledge regarding the various aspects of their governance roles, such as how programs are delivering strategy benefits.

• 5. Program managers lack a professional community within the federal government that can provide support and a voice on issues affecting the development of program management.

Give us your opinion in regards to your organization

While in most cases program managers lack a professional community, Emirates Group has made efforts to create a professional community. The efforts have been informed by the need to ensure that program managers work in collaboration with other professionals within the organization rather than working in relative isolation. It has created an environment where program managers are able to participate in discussions of policy, thus allowing their voice to be heard in building and improving program management capabilities within the organization.

• 6. A government-wide job series for program managers that spans business functions with a career path that extends into senior career executive management ranks.

Give us your opinion in regards to your organization

Emirates Group has made considerable efforts in establishing job series for program managers with a career path extending into senior management ranks. It has put a policy in place supporting the career development of these professionals. As they progress to senior ranks across a job series, their levels of responsibilities also increase.

Appendix 2: Interview 2 (Water and Power Producer Companies)

• 1. There is no guarantee of success in large-scale, complex change initiatives.

However, if program management is undertaken by:

• 1. Well-trained,

• 2. Experienced professionals

• 3. Supportive infrastructure

• 4. Proven standards and practices

We believe that success will be more consistently achieved

How organizations can ensure these 4 factors?

Well, all the employees must complete the Position Qualification Requirement (PQR) that includes all the essential competencies for every job. The same is assessed in written instinct tests and finally with assessment interview and any failure will lead to repeat the exercise till reaching to full understanding and passing all the previously mentioned assessment method. This PQR has different levels for every position in order to be confirmed for the targeted position/designation.

Regarding the experienced professionals, keep in mind that the members of the project are all having not less than 15 years of experience in a relevant field particularly in power and water sector. The members had worked in numerous power and desalination plants that are having different designs and complex changes.

Actually, there is a big supportive infrastructure; one of them was mentioned in the first interview which is using a stable standard simulator. This simulator can be feeded with all the necessary data in order to provide the feasibility of the project in terms of dividends, loses, capability to handle the capital and operating budgets. Additionally, EWEC and ADPC are very professional entities that compares the bid of any open or floating tender in terms of cost effectiveness, innovation, simplicity, flexibility and prompt support to the power grid and water network in case of shortages to achieve sustainability of resources.

I believe this is really very important point, as we keen on to follow the federal law of power and Abu Dhabi financial law references in order to move on a solid foundation. Besides that, we do follow the Power and Water Purchase Agreement which is a standard agreement and was signed and agreed between all the shareholders to manage technical, training, financial and management requirements in which all are compliant with. Regarding a standard practice, we do refer to the International power and water practices in the Middle East and Europe. This benchmark is regularly implemented between the 10 different Independent Water and Power Producer companies (IWPP) in UAE (From Fujairah till Al Dhafra). Not all that but also in Middle East and Europe as mentioned via attending the yearly user summits that takes place in different countries in the world.

• 2. Program management is not consistently recognized as a management discipline that is essential to government performance, success, and results.

• What solutions for improving government-wide capacity for project and program management

In fact, removing or delaying less priority projects and focusing on the projects that directly supporting the power and water demand that ensures security of the network grid is much better!

Allocating different teams for different projects in which everyone team is dedicated for one project from the day one kick off till handing over the projects. These dedicated teams must always respect the time via starting and completing the projects on time with minimum delays.

• What solutions for improving government-wide capability for project and program management

The capability part can be improved via increasing the capital budget of the project that needs to be handled by capable people. Those people must be result oriented, working as one team, understand the project well, know the quick wins via using simple, effective and innovative methods to during project execution.

• What Implementation for improving government-wide capability for project and program management

Use the management pioneers’ methodologies to organize the projects and achieve the targets for instance, Deming wheel and KiZAN continues improvement. Furthermore, to use the right management tools, for instance fish bone diagram that illustrates the cause and effect actions to identify the bottle nicks and the remedial solutions. Finally, use the skill matrix, SWAT analysis and Pareto diagram that all can guide and lead the project to the desired targets as per the planed duration and achieve the necessary quality.

• What recommendations for improving government-wide capability for project and program management

Always listen and refer to the department of finance yearly governmental budget that gives a clear limitations or priorities of the country’s/government every year requirement. Basically, it gives the overall country’s vision and mission toward the right project requirement, to avoid objecting and rejection of the projects after putting all the efforts and resources for years. Additionally, I do recommend that all the EMDs/CEOs of different sectors gather every year twice or tries to discuss the main agendas pertaining to development of the country in order to use all the experience brains to improve all sectors simultansly.

• 3. There is no consistency across the government in the training and development of program managers.

How this can be resolved?

I addition to the yearly selected training courses by the employees based on the yearly appraisal, direct supervisor recommendation, the management shall select and enroll all the managers together to the one course that needs a real competency/certification in order to be specialist. In the same program to assess the managers in an either examination or interview or (both).

• 4. Organizations executives and VIP stakeholder’s governance role requires clear understanding of:

The role of how programs are derived from strategies

And how programs are delivering strategy benefits

The roles and responsibilities of the program manager

How this can be ensured by training and development?

The training department shall use a tool named primavera that organize the project and send daily and then monthly update report to the sectors that shows the work progress in detail. Implement a KPI for individual stakeholder managers that assess total number of completed projects on time and as per requirement. In addition, to have weekly and monthly meetings to ensure alignment between the strategy and the role of the program.

• 5. Program managers lack a professional community within the federal government that can provide support and a voice on issues affecting the development of program management.

Give us your opinion in regard to your organization

In our case since we’re a private sector subsidized by the government as we own 40% of the project while the government own 60%, we don’t face problem. The reason for that is that it is a must for every stakeholder to provide transparency via having regular meetings. These meetings’ agendas are related to all aspects of the project and how construct bridges of supports in technical, administrative and financial terms.

• 6. A government-wide job series for program managers that spans business functions with a career path that extends into senior career executive management ranks.

Give us your opinion in regard to your organization

In my point of view, this is a good approach that we are implementing not only to do the job in order to be completed on time, but also with the desired quality. Having a career path extended into senior career executive can lead to have the same understanding that consequently will produce the right project specification, as per all the procedures and agreements.

Having this approach can eliminate or minimize deviation of the project requirement from the tasks breakdown. This basically the right plan in order to retain the brains and having them to be loyal toward the work. This can generate proactive approaches and techniques to balance and align the program managers’ ways of working into the senior staff way without misstatements that can effect negatively on the project progress or sometimes to the failure to complete the ongoing project.

Appendix 3: Interview 3 (The Executive Council of Dubai)

• 1. There is no guarantee of success in large-scale, complex change initiatives.

However, if program management is undertaken by:

• 1. Well-trained,

• 2. Experienced professionals

• 3. Supportive infrastructure

• 4. Proven standards and practices

We believe that success will be more consistently achieved

How organizations can ensure these 4 factors?

We can achieve that by scheduling consistent form of training for employees to undergo job related education programs in order to sustain an up-to-date level of experience of the relevant work With Experienced professionals, if grouped in teams with similar skills sets, can perform better especially when a suitable leader is involved in managing employees from different sectors and entities While being able to work under a well-structured framework gives employees incentives to be more productive and maintain a higher quality of work ethics mostly beneficial for group of teams with lower skill sets. The practices builds bridges between members to acknowledge the importance of following standards allowing for a constant skill growth.

• 2. Program management is not consistently recognized as a management discipline that is essential to government performance, success, and results.

• What solutions for improving government-wide capacity for project and program management

• What solutions for improving government-wide capability for project and program management

• What Implementation for improving government-wide capability for project and program management

• What recommendations for improving government-wide capability for project and program management

Setting goals and standards for projects. i.e. Dubai Government and Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid's vision has become the key benchmark unit for setting quality standards in executing projects.

The vision is followed by implementation. Again, His Highness’s vision would not reach out without the energy put for implementing wide scale projects up to the completion.

Consistent improvements. With the ever growing age of technology, the overall government services should coop with the latest technology to service the public faster and easier.

Public awareness, the public should be more responsible to sustain the projects by caretaking and appreciating the projects to promote longevity and quality of projects. A simple example, never to throw chewing gums on pavements which can last stuck to a long time effecting the overall visuals of the street.

• 3. There is no consistency across the government in the training and development of program managers.

How this can be resolved?

It is impossible to create a nationwide consistency for such practices. In Dubai there are almost 60 entities. Each holding different functions and services.

• 4. Organizations executives and VIP stakeholder’s governance role requires clear understanding of:

The role of how programs are derived from strategies

And how programs are delivering strategy benefits

The roles and responsibilities of the program manager

How this can be ensured by training and development?

To ensure proper exposure of the learning programs to the intended project managers. The topics of the programs should be relevant to the nature of works being exposed to the project managers. Executives should review the curriculum modules for each course.

• 5. Program managers lack a professional community within the federal government that can provide support and a voice on issues affecting the development of program management.

Give us your opinion in regard to your organization

The lack comes because of the absence of dedicated proper research and development program to become solely assigned to support the project managers. A simple solution is to use team based project structure (horizontal style) with members from different entities and backgrounds.