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Logan Mathews, Director, Project Management Office, Michigan Department of TechnologyLogan Mathews merges his experience and expertise in project management to offer solutions that best cater to the needs of the public. Through his strategic planning, change management, and performance improvement initiatives, he improves efficiency, reducing costs and effectively tackling challenges.
In an interview with Govt CIO Outlook, he shares his insights on project management strategies and developments in the public sector.
What challenges does the state of Michigan currently face regarding project management, and how do you deal with them?
Implementing an effective governance model is the biggest challenge in project management, and Michigan has taken proactive measures to solidify the simplistic governance model to reflect phenomenal standards. Having a system to quickly adjust and implement solutions based on the legislation that dictates a large portion of policies is essential. While the private sector follows a speed-to-market concept, the public sector must also ensure that the tax money is used judiciously. We need to develop systems that could help us save money and implement solutions simultaneously. The state has been doing exceptionally well in ensuring this by developing strategic approaches.
What are the innovative project management tools that the department utilizes to foster data-driven decision-making?
In 2019, we implemented Clarity, a project management tool within the state of Michigan, using which the enterprise project management office significantly modernized the process of handling IT projects. Michigan uses a State Unified Information Technology Environment (SUITE) incorporating waterfall hybrid and agile project methodologies. Within that sphere, we have been enacting numerous agile transformations as well. Combined with our project management tools and methodologies, the state’s posture has been dramatically enhanced as we can adopt a concrete approach to providing better results.
“An overarching agile mindset and a serious commitment to work are necessary for a success rate consistent with the organization’s goals.”
The tools we use, like Azure DevSecOps, have proven beneficial in improving the development and operations landscape. We also use design tools like Figma and make the products more user-friendly for the clients by designing mock-ups and wireframes. Our designs are human-centric as we keep the end users in mind. An overarching agile mindset and a serious commitment to work are necessary for a success rate consistent with the organization’s goals.
How do the developments in project management strategies influence the direction and approach of Michigan's growth activities?
Implementing the Organizational Change Management (OCM) framework is one of the biggest developments that could vastly improve the system. Change in an organization is quite impactful, and so is change fatigue. It must be taken very seriously by organizations, public and private alike, and tackled efficiently, as it can affect every department in an organization. It is imperative to ensure that everyone affected by the change is heard. Failure to do that can put project adoption rates at risk, and its residual effect could grow exponentially. With many state organizations embracing OCM, it becomes easy to take on internal and external challenges and ensure that the bottom-up approach meets the top-down management approach.
What are some of the legislative changes that you think have enhanced the project objective, scope, and deliverables?
Everything that we do is driven by the changes in the policies, and the impact of it differs for every agency within the state. Something that is not necessarily a legislative change but has opened numerous possibilities that didn’t previously exist in the market is the expansion of its power apps rolled out by Microsoft. These have automated the time-consuming check-in and checkout process for editing, reviewing, and updating documents or deliverables. It is now an automated flow that connects Microsoft Teams to SharePoint.
What is your advice to the budding professionals in the public sector?
Solidifying and simplifying the governance model to something that can be executed even at the lowest levels of management is crucial. Not exceeding the completion time and cost are principles that must be prioritized. It can boost your agency’s credibility and strengthen the public's trust that the tax money is used judicially. It is also essential to be as agile-driven as possible and ensure that a microservices approach is utilized to build flexible solutions.
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