The Inescapable Truth of the Iron Triangle

Also a $50 bet that led to one of the best-selling children's books of all time.

On Productivity…

Ever heard of the Iron Triangle of Project Management? The triangle is designed to help you meet your project goals in the simplest way possible. With pain. Nothing but pain.

Who’s it for: anyone leading a project.

Why it works: it helps prioritize project objectives.

What is the Iron Triangle of Project Management?

The Project Management Triangle is a model that demonstrates the limits every project faces: time, scope, and cost. All three are interconnected. Changing any one aspect of the project triangle triggers adjustments to the other two elements…hence the pain. For example, increasing the scope of the project often requires more time and/or cost. To add to the pain, in most projects at least one element of the triangle is fixed.

To ensure the quality of the project you must balance each of the constraints effectively. Understanding the triangle helps project leaders visualize the trade-offs and compromises they need to make when trying to get things done

The Components of the Project Management Triangle

Like I said, the triangle is made up of three main components:

• Time: The schedule and deadlines.

• Scope: The range of activities and deliverables.

• Cost: The financial and resource budget.

Let’s dive into each.

Time

When managing time, you have to consider both the quantity and the type of time. You might have to make tradeoffs that mean extending deadlines, modifying team schedules, or reducing planning phases. If the budget is reduced or the scope expanded, you might have to make up for this by relaxing time constraints. This could mean missed deadlines, increasing working hours, or other schedule tweaks.

Examples of time might include:

• The project timeline

• Hours dedicated to the project

• Time set aside for planning and strategic activities

• Internal scheduling and milestones

Scope

Scope refers to the size of the project, in terms of quality and scale of what is being delivered. As the project's scope expands, it will inherently demand more resources and time for completion.

Examples of scope might include:

• Quality of the finished product

• Project complexity

• Capacity

• Degree of detail

Cost

Cost doesn’t always mean actual dollar amounts. Often referred to as “resources,” this point of the triangle includes all of the tools, equipment, and support required to complete your project.

Examples of cost might include:

• Budget

• Equipment and infrastructure

• Team size

• Opportunity cost

Managing the Project Management Triangle

So how do you juggle all this? Well like many problems, just being aware that these aspects are in play goes a long way. With that in place, here are a few key things to keep in mind:

• Communication: Keep everyone informed and aligned on project progress and changes. Spreading the awareness around helps maintain the balance. Make sure everyone is aware of the pain of change.

• Nice-to-Haves: Distinguishing between essential elements and desirable additions. This helps with score creep and chasing the bright shiny objects.

• Flexible Constraints: Spend time figuring out which of the three constraints (scope, cost, or time) has some wiggle room. These are dials you can if you need to.

• Manage Risk: Risk can be a timeline killer. Planning for potential issues to mitigate their impact on your project. Managing risk allows you to safeguard your project against timeline disruptions.

• Methodology: Select a project management approach that fits the project’s unique needs. For example, the Waterfall Methodology can be good for scope. Agile is great for time because it allows for rapid iterations and frequent reassessments of project timelines.

Conclusion

The Project Management Triangle is a straightforward framework that highlights the necessary trade-offs to ensure a project’s completion. Imbalance in any of the constraints can derail an entire project. In order to keep the quality of your project high and the crazy-making low, you need a mechanism that makes conspicuous what gets out of whack. It can be a painful experience, but embracing the power of the triangle often helps you get the job done.

On Leadership…

In 1960, a $50 bet between two men sparked the creation of one of the most beloved children's books in history. Bennett Cerf, the founder of Random House, challenged Theo Geisel, slightly better known as Dr. Seuss, to write a children's book using only 50 different words. (For comparison, Seuss's "The Cat in the Hat" contained 225 unique words.)

The result was "Green Eggs and Ham." Not only did the book achieve massive success, selling over 200 million copies, but it also stood as a testament to the power of a well-placed challenge in leading to groundbreaking achievements.

So, what can we learn from the success of "Green Eggs and Ham"? Here are a few things it teaches us about how leaders can motivate people:

• Set Clear, Achievable Goals: Cerf's challenge to Dr. Seuss was specific and clear: write a book using only 50 different words. Leaders can motivate by setting clear, achievable goals that provide a focused direction. This drives creativity and problem-solving within defined parameters.

• Encourage Creativity Through Constraints: The constraint of using only 50 words spurred Dr. Seuss to do something magical. As leaders, we can drive innovation by imposing constraints. That might seem counterintuitive but there can be nothing more daunting than the wide expanse of a blank page. Constraints can give your team members something to work with.

• Create a Sense of Challenge and Competition: The wager between Cerf and Seuss gamified the task. It’s ok to use healthy competition as a motivator.

• Show Your Faith: Cerf’s bet implicitly showed he had faith in Dr. Seuss’s ability to meet the challenge. Few things build more confidence in your team members' abilities than showing you have trust and faith in what they can do.

• Celebrate the Wins: The success of the book underscores the importance of recognizing and celebrating achievements. As leaders, celebrating successes, no matter how small, is crucial; neglecting to do so can kill motivation.

I love this story. I think it acts as a powerful lesson for leaders. One of our jobs is to foster an environment where challenges can lead to innovation. Limits and restrictions are always gonna be in place. But it's not about the scale of the resources but the depth of the drive that can lead to something truly remarkable.

On Gratitude…

I read to my daughter every night. We rarely miss an evening where she curls into bed, and I find myself flanked by my wife on one side and my little girl on the other. Regardless of how much we read—some nights it's chapters, other nights just a few lines before sleep claims me—it helps our day feel complete. Now that she's 18 and college-bound in the fall, I'm keenly aware that our nightly tradition is nearing its end. So I will savor each night I get until it is gone. This week, as we revisit "The Little Prince" by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, it seems fitting to conclude with this quote:

“It is only with the heart that one can see clearly. What is essential is invisible to the eye.”

Thank you for reading.