No Surprises

Beth looked at Philippe. Philippe looked at Jim. Jim looked at Beth. When they realized what they were doing, they all chuckled. "You. No you. No you," said Beth. "Seriously," she continued, "someone has to tell him."

Jim was more serious. "It's a suicide mission. You know how he always says 'no surprises' in all caps. I don't think I'll be the one."

Philippe had an idea. "There must be some way to spin this so it isn't so awful sounding," he said.

Beth, Jim, and Philippe are trying to figure out a way to break some bad news to somebody who evidently has a well advertised "no surprises" policy. They might find a way this time, but "no surprises" is a risky way to run things. Here's a little of what can go wrong with a "no surprises" policy.

Too broad a message

If your policy is "no surprises," then you're saying that you don't want any good surprises either. Probably you don't mean that.

It's an unattainable goal

Surprises are inevitable in projects. Operations and projects differ in that projects are unique and first-of-a-kind. Surprises are the essence of project work.

When a surprise does happen, you have a new problem

If your policy is "no surprises," and a surprise happens, you have two problems. Not only do you have to deal with the surprise, but you also have a violation of policy. Because policy violations usually require disciplinary action, the policy itself creates a problem.

People find workarounds

A "no surprises" policy
could create some
unpleasant surprises

Above, Philippe is about to suggest that they slant the truth to avoid the surprising bad news. Slanting the truth is almost always a bad idea.

Instead of "no surprises," why not ask for what you really need? Some possibilities:

No surprises — really

If this is what you need, then unique, first-of-a-kind projects aren't within your reach. Instead, move into an operational role, where everything you do is like something done before. Surprises are less common in operations.

Keep me so well informed that I know whatever you know

This would be nice, if it weren't micromanagement. It's so intrusive that it's irritating for everyone involved. And if two people in an organization know all the same things, one of them is redundant.

If it's a surprise to me, it should be a surprise to you, too

This is more reasonable, and it's what you probably need, too, provided you allow for the pace of events exceeding anyone's ability to keep you up to date. Allow a reasonable time lag between others' learning of the event and their passing it along to you.

There will always be surprises, and here's one: The trick for dealing with surprises is not to avoid them, but to get really good at recovering from them.  Top    Next Issue

Are your projects always (or almost always) late and over budget? Are your project teams plagued by turnover, burnout, and high defect rates? Turn your culture around. Read 52 Tips for Leaders of Project-Oriented Organizations, filled with tips and techniques for organizational leaders. Order Now!

Reader Comments

Alex S. Brown (www.alexsbrown.com)

At first read, I was surprised that your column was against a "No Surprises" policy. I often emphasize this point to my own staff.

The more I read, though, the better I understood. The column makes good points about overly controlling, impossible policies. When I need "no surprises" on a project, I mean something like the "if it's a surprise to me, it should be to you" version.

The way I explain it is, "If I am going to hear about something on your project and it will surprise me, I want to hear it from you first. If you are not sure whether I will be surprised or whether I will hear about it, err on the side of caution: tell me about it. If you are sure I will be surprised, tell me about it as soon as you can." People take a couple of weeks to figure out what is important and what is not, but it seems to build an open relationship quickly. Also, because it emphasizes "You tell me about it," people know that I want them to tell me about bad news and quickly.

I bet the fictional manager in your story also suffers from the "shoot the messenger" syndrome. No matter what official policies you have, people will never tell you bad news if you punish the people who bring the news. Personally, I just ask them for solutions, and give them help and support if they need it. So far, it has worked well for me.

Thanks for another thought-provoking column. — Alex

Your comments are welcome

Would you like to see your comments posted here? rbrenubcqSvusyBsQaEDwner@ChacfhuriyFKgDguTpuYoCanyon.comSend me your comments by email, or by Web form.

About Point Lookout

Thank you for reading this article. I hope you enjoyed it and found it useful, and that you'll consider recommending it to a friend.

This article in its entirety was written by a human being. No machine intelligence was involved in any way.

Point Lookout is a free weekly email newsletter. Browse the archive of past issues. Subscribe for free.

Support Point Lookout by joining the Friends of Point Lookout, as an individual or as an organization.

Do you face a complex interpersonal situation? Send it in, anonymously if you like, and I'll give you my two cents.

Related articles

More articles on Personal, Team, and Organizational Effectiveness:

Coincidences Do Happen

When we notice similarities between events, or possible patterns of events, we often attribute meaning to them beyond what we can prove. Sometimes we guess right, and sometimes not. How can we improve our guesses?

When We Need a Little Help

Sometimes we get in over our heads — too much work, work we don't understand, or even complex politics. We can ask for help, but we often forget that we can. Even when we remember, we sometimes hold back. Why is asking for help, or remembering that we can ask, so difficult? How can we make it easier?

Email Antics: I

Nearly everyone I know complains that email is a time waster. Yet much of the problem results from our own actions. If you're looking around for some New Year's resolutions to make, here are some ideas, in this Part I of a little catalog of things we do that help waste our time.

Mudfights

When we steer the discussion away from issues to attack the credibility, motives, or character of our debate partners, we often resort to a technique known as the ad hominem attack. It's unfair, it's unethical, and it leads to bad, expensive decisions that we'll probably regret.

The Reification Error and Performance Management

Just as real concrete objects have attributes, so do abstract concepts, or constructs. But attempting to measure the attributes of constructs as if they were the attributes of real objects is an example of the reification error. In performance management, committing this error leads to unexpected and unwanted results.

See also Personal, Team, and Organizational Effectiveness and Personal, Team, and Organizational Effectiveness for more related articles.

Forthcoming issues of Point Lookout

Coming June 4: White-Collar Contractor Sabotage

Modern firms in competitive, dynamic markets draw on many types of employer/employee relationships, including contractors. By providing privileges and perks preferentially among these different types, they risk creating a caldron of resentments that can reduce organizational effectiveness. Available here and by RSS on June 4.

And on June 11: More Things I've Learned Along the Way: VI

When I gain an important insight, or when I learn a lesson, I make a note. Example: If you're interested in changing how a social construct operates, knowing how it came to be the way it is can be much less useful than knowing what keeps it the way it is. Available here and by RSS on June 11.

Coaching services

I offer email and telephone coaching at both corporate and individual rates. Contact Rick for details at rbrenubcqSvusyBsQaEDwner@ChacfhuriyFKgDguTpuYoCanyon.com or (650) 787-6475, or toll-free in the continental US at (866) 378-5470.

Get the ebook!

Past issues of Point Lookout are available in six ebooks:

• Get 2001-2 in Geese Don't Land on Twigs (PDF, )
• Get 2003-4 in Why Dogs Wag (PDF, )
• Get 2005-6 in Loopy Things We Do (PDF, )
• Get 2007-8 in Things We Believe That Maybe Aren't So True (PDF, )
• Get 2009-10 in The Questions Not Asked (PDF, )
• Get all of the first twelve years (2001-2012) in The Collected Issues of Point Lookout (PDF, )

Are you a writer, editor or publisher on deadline? Are you looking for an article that will get people talking and get compliments flying your way? You can have 500-1000 words in your inbox in one hour. License any article from this Web site. More info