Being a quality manager, I take a pro-active role when projects are discussed. Today, I would like to give you a phrase that can help you relieve some of the stress you may be having. I hope to teach you some simple facts about project management. It is one of things that is so simple, you will instantly recognize it to be a universal truth.

Do you find you need more time to do a project? Or that by starting late, or not having the right tools, or not having enough help, the project didn't come out as nice as you had planned? Well it has been happening for centuries, and I will tell you a fable that describes the discovery of this universal truth.

In the Tenth Century, lived a king who wanted to hold a grand dinner and invite all the known leaders around.

He called the Head Artisan and described what table settings he wanted -- gold, with carved jewels. The Artisan did some sketches and agreed to meet again in a few days to discuss the production schedule.

The artisan showed prototype settings, and a schedule showed that the settings would be finished in November

"This will not do, I want to have the party in November." said the king.

The artisan revised his schedule for production, and recommended that they meet at regular intervals to check progress. The king reviewed the prototypes, which the Artisan had simplified because of the shorter deadline. The king said he had to do the project as originally stated, and meet the October deadline.

The king reminded him who was king and who wasn't. The Chief Artisan withdrew.

Things of course got behind. Not enough jewels. Not enough knives and forks completed. The king demanded that the artisans work harder. The Chief Artisan protested, but the king again reminded him of their relative positions. The king demanded additional reviews, even more frequently than already agreed to.

Next review, the King wanted to visit the shops. The artisans were a bit nervous, but they knew their arts and mostly continued with their normal efforts.

"What is that man doing?" asked the king.

"He is sharpening his tools, O King."

"A waste of time. No wonder you are accomplishing so little. Tools are to be sharpened at night, not on the job."

"As you wish, O King," sighed the Chief Artisan. They parted until the next review.

At the next review, more work was complete, but upon inspection, they were rough, not fine, as were the earlier plates. Due to the use of dull tools, as you commanded."

"We did not command you to do poor work, Artisan, We commanded you not to waste time!"

"O King," the Artisan explained, "just as Your Majesty cannot have a good party without good food and settings, my artisans cannot create good art with dull tools."

The king agreed to let the tools be sharpened on the job, but they must work overtime to make up for it.

At the next inspection, he saw that quality was improved in the carving , however, he counted the stacks of completed work and found that while quality was up, not as much work was completed.

"What are you doing wrong now, Artisan? Must you yourself be punished?"

"We ordered that your artisans work overtime," roared the king, "has there been no improvement from this?"

The king decided to consult his Wizard, who had been his mentor and sounding board since his youth.

Before he could summon a messenger, a loud explosion and a cloud of smoke announced the arrival of the Wizard. It was said that the Wizard always knew when people thought upon him.

"Majesty, I have long studied these problems and can offer some insights.

There are four, and only four, Aspects of work which we must consider. And these I call Quality, Resources, Scope, and Time.

The Wizard went on: "I call the work Your Majesty demands, the sum of all tasks, Scope."

"Resources: the number of artisans/"

We demand the work must be of the highest Quality.

Then it must take more Time," answered the king thoughtfully.

If Scope and Quality change not, and Resource is reduced, then Time will stretch out. Wise you are."

If Resource and Scope remain the same and Time is reduced, then Quality must inevitably be reduced."

I now realize that even I, your king, cannot dictate all four of these Aspects.

"It is so, O King. Here is my solution. We cannot much change our Resources, and the Time is given. Your Majesty must have the highest Quality, which leaves us with only Scope to vary."

If I hold Resource, Time, and Quality to myself, then Nature controls Scope.

And yet if I hold Resource, Quality and Scope, then Nature must control Time. Is this your lesson?"

If you tell your wishes regarding three, the artisan can estimate the value of the fourth.

They worked together to determine the revised scope, developed a list of resources needed, and set the dates for specific phases of the project. Needless to say, It was a success.

If you would like to get the full details of the story, the fable of the kings dinner can be found on a site called Xprogramming.com.

Now, isn't what the wizard said just as true today as it was in the 10^th Century? Of course the fable was made up, but any job that you do, whether it be your work, cooking dinner, or driving in your car.

You can name three, but the fourth one is determined by the first three.

(Draw on Board)

So, if you feel that someone in management is asking you to do something that is impossible, or something that is beyond the scope of your normal work, and specifies that there is a time factor for the completion of the job, and that it must be done by you, be sure to tell them what the missing part of the picture is. It is, of course, Quality. A rushed job will create a poor quality output.

I have repeated this story often enough now so that when project changes are discussed in meetings all I have to say to remind them of the universal rule is say:

Q,R,S,T - Choose any three, the fourth is a push.

Think about those letters, and what they mean, and I am sure that they will go to the top of your alphabet too.

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