ACHIEVING THE IMPOSSIBLE?

Running for fast-track project execution

By Professors Carlos Cordon, Ralf Seifert and Research Associate, Franois Jger (August
2007)

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ACHIEVING THE IMPOSSIBLE? | Running for fast-track project execution

A new factory in less than a year! Impossible! In most organizations, projects play an
increasingly prominent role and practitioners readily admit that companies are running
more and more projects in parallel. These projects exist in a multi-faceted organizational
context with many different stakeholders. Few organizations show a conscious effort to
systematically improve performance in project management, to establish project
management as a career path, and ultimately to compete on distinct project execution
capabilities. We hear, Our company is running more projects today than ever before, We
have relatively little central visibility, 50% of projects run without a special budget, "Twothirds of projects specify goals that are not explicitly measurable/quantifiable, etc.
Here we illustrate how Novo Nordisk Engineering (NNE) went through a fundamental rethinking of its business through the development of fast track projects. Speed to market is
decisive in the pharmaceutical industry. Patents protect drugs for 20 years. Yet, taking into
account discovery, development and clinical trial time, the period of market exclusivity
could go down to less than one year in some cases. The company succeeded in reducing the
time needed to deliver a pharmaceutical factory from over three years down to 11 months
winning the 2005 pharmaceutical Facility of the Year award at the New York Interphex
exhibition. Not all drugs require the construction of a new plant, but when necessary,
gaining two years because of shorter construction time offers significant financial returns.

The challenge
By understanding the business of its customers, NNEs new CEO, Hans Ole Voigt, knew that
reducing time-to-market was of significant value to both NNE and its customer. He pushed
his organization toward a customer-driven strategy of being able to deliver a new factory in
a very short time-frame less than one year. This seemed like an impossible goal since
plant construction took 30 to 36 months on average. As this seemed like an impossible goal,
the majority of the employees thought he was crazy.

Customers not ready to play

NNE had to find a company willing to invest in a fast-track project. Both NNE and its client
would be moving into unknown territory. There was significant risk. Although the project
could go very well, it could also go really badly, which would mean costs up by 20% to 40%
or delays in project delivery.

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ACHIEVING THE IMPOSSIBLE? | Running for fast-track project execution

Fast-track projects meant a lot of pressure on the client, too, and some were just not ready
to play. NNE would challenge a clients specifications to stick to its process. The client had
to adapt to these changes because many linked changing specifications to an increase in
cost and time. To ensure fast decision-making and client agreement on proposed solutions,
the Project Management Team (PMT) included an executive from the client company. The
challenge was to build trust between NNE and the customer.
In addition, there had to be a willingness from suppliers to take risks, a commitment to be
part of the project team and a co-location with the rest of the project team.

Simplify and speed-up

Modular technology was used to simplify and speed-up the project. Modules were
constructed in parallel and tested on suppliers premises.
Although speed was crucial, it was not to be achieved at the expense of quality. Each project
had a quality activity plan, describing the quality goals agreed with the client, as well as
methods to achieve goals.
The need for speed left no time for politics, and NNE adjusted its HR strategy accordingly
turning Program Management in a function inclusive of a career path. Different PMTs
managed each project within the fast-track process. An internal coach from HR led
workshops to simulate critical situations. The focus was on communication training. From
the beginning, project managers had to identify employees who could make a difference.

The secret of success

NNE continuously re-evaluated its process, gradually reducing the time needed to build a
factory. In addition, they changed the way customers bought facilities away from the lowest
bid approach. Project focus was shifted from specification-driven to time-driven. Trust had
to be created with the customer by sharing risks. An investment in team building was made
and a company culture focused on project execution. Customers and suppliers were made
part of the implementation team fostering information sharing between all parties involved
in the construction.
Reflecting on how far they had come and how they had managed to overcome the
employees initial skepticism, Voigt commented: A lot of barriers in peoples minds are just
not real. Our job is to push those barriers.

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ACHIEVING THE IMPOSSIBLE? | Running for fast-track project execution

Professor Cordon is Program Director of the Program for Executive Development (PED). He
teaches on the Breakthrough Program for Senior Executives (BPSE) and the Orchestrating
Winning Performance (OWP) programs.
Professor Seifert is Program Director of the Mastering Technology Enterprise (MTE)
program. He teaches on Mastering Corporate Resources (MCR), Building on Talent (BOT)
and the Orchestrating Winning Performance (OWP) programs.

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ACHIEVING THE IMPOSSIBLE? | Running for fast-track project execution

RELATED PROGRAMS

PROGRAM FOR EXECUTIVE DEVELOPMENT - http://www.imd.ch/ped

Building Global Leaders - Preparing the global executive of the future
Program Directors Martha Maznevski and Allen Morisson
- Learn to drive performance in a fast-changing global environment
- Discover how to build a better business: gain skills, create networks and inspire
others
- Reach your leadership objectives with personal coaching
- Get ready for IMD's Executive MBA degree

MASTERING TECHNOLOGY ENTERPRISE - http://www.imd.ch/mte

Preparing Technical Managers for the Challenges of General Management - Preparing
technical experts to lead
Program Director Ralf W. Seifert
- Prepares technically trained managers from technology or knowledge-based
industries to be company leaders
- Gives you a deeper understanding of the business functions, processes and
challenges the technology enterprise faces
- Helps you grow personally, develops your leadership potential, boosts your selfconfidence and teaches you how to use cutting-edge management tools to lead
organizational change

IMD - www.imd.ch

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