How can you manage ambiguity in a business services project?

Ambiguity in itself has an advantage to identify good leaders and good contributors. In a situation where ambiguity prevails, gives an opportunity to the known or unknown think tank personalities who will voice out their best opinions to overcome the situation. The best opinion comes from these personalities with good experience or complete understanding of the situation, digesting all possible scenarios. Provided the recipients are good listeners. Valued inputs while unheard, can go in vain. Not only the inputs, even the good/best players. :) The ambiguity situation may not arise again deeply if the SOPs are thought, understood and detailed high level.

I agree with this callout. I would add a section between this section and the next, titled: Build shared agreement on goals and metrics: Folks might have different success outcomes in mind which is disastrous. To avoid this: 1) Ask key people to define the success outcome. Have them stack rank their outcomes if they propose several criteria. 2) You can facilitate this by proposing a few data-informed options to spark a discussion. By asking for input, you are creating buy-in and clarity for all the people involved in the project. 3) Finally, in companies with competing priorities, lean into key decision-makers or decision-making tools such as RAPID to break stalemates, I saw this work very well at rapidly scaling companies.

I think one of the ways to avoid ambiguity is to not introduce it yourself. Stick to well communicated, pragmatic, clear objectives and solutions. Avoid over thinking things. When bailing the boat the colour of the bucket doesn't matter.

Ambiguity is inevitable and dynamic. In striving to reduce, understand and clearly structure a project or solution, the first question must be: What problem am I solving? This isn't always easy to identify and stakeholders often jump to what they feel the solution must be. But, defining what it is that we're actually trying to solve will force us to think together, reduce ambiguity, and ensure the solution is appropriate, efficient and right the first time.

Communication is a huge part of project success. It is important to figure out what is the best channel to communicate with individual major stakeholders, and it is worth going above and beyond just the weekly meeting and emailed minutes. Some people like when I pick up a phone or send separate email and give them quick personalized update with only the information, they are interested in.

Whenever team starts working on a project or a complex task, it's always required that our understanding of the work that we're going to perform, the timelines, inscope and out of scope tasks, and all other related details are clearly communicated to the customer at initial stage. Any other queries also should be highlighted in the start phase and all critical decisions should be agreed over calls with larger audience so that there are no new surprises in a later stage of work.

There are very few business services projects that DON'T have ambiguity. We live in an agile world and managing uncertainty is a reality. Communication means that everyone is aware of what's ambiguous, and as soon as clarity is reached, communication makes ambiguity a thing of the past.

Communication is a necessary skill required to have in the business field, when working with people and engaging with stakeholders. The ability to communicate effectively allows you to deliver timely , engage with your audience , share your views and clarify any concerns or confusion. Once you identify the cause of the ambiguity, ensure the team and stakeholders are aware. Communicate your findings and solutions via email, scheduling a meeting or in person meeting. I recommend using the communication channel or platform available to all parties involved.

A project plan is one method available for managing ambiguity and maintaining consistent communication with the project team, clients and stakeholders. The project plan, a key tool in documenting a project's evolution and progress, can be maintained through the project duration. It can serve to further capture and refine project attributes, such as goals, scope, deliverables, terms, changes, progress and challenges. Additionally, revised and shared regularly it also serves to provide consistent communication and elicit dialogue.

Conduct frequent retrospectives so the team has input into what is working and what is not. Schedule monthly prototype reviews (system or process) so the team and business partners are informed early and frequently which allows you to pivot forward to a more effective solution

Changes could be seen as 'structural' changes or 'style'. Had a really impressive Big 4 Partner at a client, they were thinking of kicking him out. I liked him, and he was excellent at his job - just rubbing people the wrong way. Had a sit down with his bosses, and made it clear I didn't think he did anything wrong, but it wouldn't matter. His style changed, and he was there another 6 months - to the benefit of their firm and the client. I felt guilty throwing him under the bus, but in the end I think it was the best for everyone, including him.

Agree, and that's true for most projects, adapt and change is the recipe for success. Change is inevitable in projects, but keep an eye on them incase there is misalignment of goals, objectives or expectations

Changes to a project are inevitable, and some can tremendously improve the results, but some changes are not worth implementing because they may negatively impact the project budget, timeline, or miss the agreed upon goals. In my experience, change management is best to be determined and agreed upon at the beginning of the project and it must be carefully managed to keep the stakeholders happy and accountable at the same time.

Feedback and the level of trust between the project team and the affected teams are linked. If trust is established the project team will obtain the feedback really needed to create something that will enable success. If the rappore/trust is not cultivated the feedback will not include the real information needed to create the desired level of success.

Getting outside perspectives from organizations who have had similar experiences is very valuable. Even when those experiences are from different industries and practices. Many clients I work with want to meet each other on a regular basis to compare notes on a selected topic of interest. The solution might come from someone outside of their immediate industry or focus.

I would agree with all the points here. I would add that - 1. Ensure that accomplishments are celebrated, and results are shared back on with the team transparently, regardless of hierarchy. Often, people work on projects and move on to other things, not realizing the impact they had. 2. Similarly, hold retrospectives, which are ways for the core team to check in on what went well, what failed, and what the team could do better. These are phenomenal examples of building a collaborative culture from the agile toolkit. It goes a long way in fostering creativity and knowledge sharing.

At the African Art Foundation, we had the goal to construct a robust, adaptable, and seamlessly integrated structure that would harmonize with our digital and structural initiatives. The ambiguity surrounding the definition and scope of stakeholders presented a major challenge. It made it difficult to determine who the key stakeholders were and how to effectively engage with them. We established grassroots connections using a network of zonal heads, academic liaisons, and student ambassadors and simultaneously, we compiled a comprehensive stakeholder list, categorizing them by their levels of influence and interest e.g. high-influence, high-interest; and assigning values to each category. Our Outreach Program was built on this approach.

Agree! holding some workshops or brainstorming sessions is helpful. This also brings people together and builds relationships

Collaborating brings interested and impacted stakeholders together, to share ideas, knowledge and develop the conversation further, and more importantly, it also helps to build common agreement on the way forward in such ambiguous situations. Bringing multiple perspectives into one room (so to speak) will help uncover and clear out confusions that would otherwise lie in the minds of individuals separately.

A good description of a need should be functional and minimally prescriptive as to the how. In this way, flexibility and creativity can be applied to the solution either making the solution better quality, easier to implement or both. Also, create low-cost prototypes or mock-ups for feedback. Some of the work itself is known to be "throw-away" but it will allow the customer to hone in on the ideas and approach that make the most sense to them, ultimately incorporating the best ideas (best as defined by the customer) in the final product.

Sometimes we are more focused on the problem instead of thinking of a solution which in turn prevents us from seeing the available and viable options. Also, it’s worth bearing in mind that the solution does not always need to be very complicated. Focusing on the value and the application of the proposed solution(s), and thinking outside of the box allows us to come up with more applicable ideas which fit the purpose.

Depending on the project and stage, a proof of value (PoV) or proof of concept (PoC) could be helpful. Also using the correct methodology could be the answer. an Agile methodology is designed for frequent scope change

Landing different scenarios and assigning probability to each one based both on data+experience can help a lot to manage ambiguity and align it with the stakeholders.

Be unconstrained in your thinking, it is natural to think about constraints but if you get people to park the constraints and utilise unconstrained thinking the options become endless and the creativity flows. Just don't forget to go back and then add the constraints when the unconstrained thinking is complete. The lotus blossom technique is a good way to get some real out of the box thinking.

Ambiguity is part of an project, and simply part of the modern business world. We are dealing with extremely complicated problems that are more than just quantitative as we try and predict and deal with emotional responses of ourselves and our business partners. Acceptance of ambiguity is critical to managing our own emotions and stress. We have to understand that many of these things are out of our control and also that we can achieve a level of success without knowing everything.

Keeping a calm and focused mindset allows for better decision-making and problem-solving during ambiguous situations. It also positively influences team dynamics, fostering a resilient and adaptable work environment.

There is an opportunity in every threat.. look at the ambiguity as a positive thing and how it can help you and your team to build resilience and strengths and even becoming closer. Learn to embrace it, talk about your feelings with whoever you feel comfortable or preferably as a team. It helps us as human to feel that we are not alone in hardship and there is a mutual understanding about how we feel.

As long as the project can be re-scoped or adjusted for any changes that arise from the ambiguity — and you’re communicating frequently about any changes to your team and client, and vice versa — it’s helpful to remember that the nature of project work is that you’ll get to a finish line. Some ambiguity can feel like a distraction or delay, but often it can result in a better end product because the ambiguity is likely a concern the client has that they don’t know how to articulate. Take breaks when it’s difficult to focus on the end goal, and come back to the work when you’re able to be open-minded to the possibility of a better outcome for all.

Once again, we have here another completely generic discussion, this time about managing ambiguity. There is nothing specific in the 6 points that points specifically to "business services projects." Instead, it relates to basically most projects no matter what is the domain. Although the advice in the 6 points is generally excellent, I wonder why someone picked any specific domain for the discussion title, when it in fact applies to all domains.

Had a deal that we spent months on designing a contract - every scenario.....except for the one that happened. Which never occurred to anyone involved. The lesson, do your utmost to layout every scenario, but then be prepared for the ones you missed. And get ready to try to resolve it when it looks like you are headed into unknown territory. Also, make sure everything is in writing. CEO of our partner firm on this deal, "I don't know what I signed, but that's not what I meant." Uh, yeah. I was very happy with how this one ended.

Technically speaking Organizations try their best to avoid ambiguity by including the right Terms & Conditions in the executed contract. For example - 1) Scope creep without any change to the written contract leads to ambiguity. 2) M&A/Liquidity challenges can only be anticipated in the contract in the form of steps to be taken by either parties to provide required clarity Beyond some of the examples provided above, if either the buy side or sell side feels there is ambiguity in any one aspect of the contract, then the best option is to discuss the same and arrive at a common understanding and document it via an addendum/CR.

Any Business Services project may face varied levels of ambiguity. This is common and part and partial of many projects. While nodding in agreement with the points above, I’d like to share a few more points which can be helpful: 1. Clear definition and communication of project objectives to stakeholders would help make informed decisions in situations of ambiguity. 2. Openness to flexibility, adaptability and continuous learning will help course correct in the event that decisions or assumptions made in ambiguity deems untrue. Maintaining an agile environment and way of working can be highly beneficial. 3. Tracking and communication of decisions and assumptions taken and the basis for the same will help with future referencing too.

Facing ambiguity in a project also requires inquisitiveness and openness in order to be prepared for what might happen. Ask questions and get feedback from multiple sources as you consider the path forward. Be open to a variety of perspectives and think through more than one avenue of preparedness. You can't always know which path will be correct, but you can mentally prepare and "pave more than one path" in order to be ready.

Feedback Loops: Implementing feedback loops at key project milestones to gather input and adjust the project strategy as necessary, fosters transparency, adaptability and encourages continuous improvement to include: 1. Team Morale can receive a boost as team members feel their contributions are valued and their concerns are addressed 2. Immediate feedback can ensure teams remain focused, reducing scope creep, while enhancing stakeholders satisfaction, and 3. Quality Assurance can be driven with early identification of challenges for timely course of correction