Lavinia Buckley, the travelling project manager
“The way to work around those was basically really high level communication. We just had hundreds of meetings to make sure the people affected by the works were connected up to the people doing the works, and that the people doing the works could understand their needs, and the people who were going to be affected could understand what the builders had to do.”
The key to these relationships came from a set-up Buckley says she wants to copy in future projects. “It was actually a lesson I learnt from Baulderstone, the builder on the job. They set up a relationship working group, just an informal catch-up once a month to make sure any issues were aired,” she explains.
“It would never have occurred to me to put such a focus on the relationship but it was really successful. Everyone enjoyed catching up once a month and having a coffee and some biscuits. When you’re busy on site, to have these meetings to focus specifically on the relationship is really commendable. It was part of the project.”
The gatherings enabled the hospital, the builder, the design team, and the project managers to discuss their progress towards their project goals, a good way to recalibrate, says Buckley: “Because everyone’s coming at the project from different angles, through different organisations, and has their own motivations, it was good to articulate a common set of objectives.”
A little bit different
Relationships remain one of the main reasons Buckley enjoys project management. In addition to the diversity inherent in the discipline—”every day you do something a little bit different”—she admits to being quite sociable. “Every project I’ve been on, I’ve made a few good friends. Brisbane isn’t such a big place so when I start a new project it’s the same faces, but I think it’s nice to work with friends again.”
Not to forget that the types of projects she’s had a hand in also give her satisfaction. Although moving from an area such as transport to a hospital project meant she had to learn an entirely new set of jargon—”it’s like people speaking another language for a while”—Buckley says she obtains satisfaction knowing her projects directly improve the lives of people. “You know the benefit you are giving the community is quite real. It’s just really exciting to be part of something that affects so many people.”
And despite her ‘accidental’ beginnings, Buckley is now a strong advocate for certification. She’s completed PRINCE2 training, is currently studying a Masters of Project Management, and plans to become a Certified Practising Project Manager through the Australian Institute of Project Management. “I support the industry trend towards qualified project managers or accreditation. I think it will help improve the industry,” she remarks.
As for how much project management influences her non-work life, Buckley confesses to having a laugh: “My husband is a town planner and so are a lot of our friends, so we definitely talk a lot of shop, there’s a lot of talk about projects.” But at the other end of the spectrum is a love of fishing, which she and her husband do from their little boat, usually on Moreton Bay near where she lives.
However, sometimes life needs a little project management. Travelling back from the UK, she and her husband stopped off in South America to do some backpacking. “I was absolutely determined not to project manage it. Normally I just plan everything, but we didn’t arrange or book anything. Halfway on the flight over I started to panic that I hadn’t planned anything and I got out my iPod and started trying to learn Spanish. When we landed, we didn’t have anywhere to stay and there was a bit of a debacle,” is all she’ll say. “I learnt a lesson in that you do have to apply some project management to your life.”
And she predicts it’s likely there’ll be more project management to come. “Looking forward in my career—I’ve done transport, I’ve done hospitals—I’d like to get exposure to different sorts of projects. I’d like to think project management skills are transferable.”
