Vol.8 Nemawashi - Behind-the-scenes management? (1)

About 8 years ago when I was responsible for a IT project as PMO (Project Management Office), I was surprised by a Japanese phrase told by a German CIO, the owner of the project.
"Nemawashi. It's very important!"
Yes, he said the Japanese term "nemawashi" indeed.

Nemawashi is, from my perspective, an effective method for conflict management in the business environment in Japan where many companies are managed under sectionalism. So it will work well for implementing a cross-functional project without critical problems.involving members from various sections.

In the nemawashi process, cordination is fully done before meetings , so decisions are made with no discussions and arguments with sharing implicit knowledge by participants in a meeting. Once I kept a doubt on it saying, "Is it really important to do such nemawashi process?" However, it is a fact that project can be got stacked up if no decision is made in a important steering committee of a cross-functional project where conflicts of interests are more or less expected. Project-wise, no decision should be avoided and replanning by a wrong decision leads a loss of time and cost.

In the listed companies, schedule cordination is done with top managers no later than 1 month before a steering committee. At the same time, pre-agreement should be made by anticipating about the topics which can bring a conflict in a meeting, by checking feasibility with project members in advance and by preparing solutions to prevent arguments. Even if a meeting would have absentees, make time for explanation in advance to get certain agreement or to have an asignment of substitution. This onemawashi process is all for exerting every effort a project can to gain the best outcome by the steering committee. It sounds easy, but actually not, you know.

PMO should make a trustful relationship with stakeholders and solve conflicts on neutral ground. Therefore "We do all effords to make the project succeed." At that time, this was the common value among the PMO members I worked with.

(Ito)