The steering committee: the key to the success of all your projects?
The steering committee (COPIL), which brings together decision-makers and managers from different departments, contributes to the success of projects. This meeting provides an opportunity to review the progress of operations, remove blocking points and discuss decisions to be taken.
But for COPIL to be a success, you need to know its objectives and scope of action.
Who makes up the COPIL? What is its purpose? How does it work? We'll let you in on all its little secrets.
Definition of the steering committee
The steering committee, also known by the acronym COPIL, is a body charged with overseeing the smooth running of a project.
By bringing together members of the company and the "spokespersons" of the customer who initiated the request, decisions are taken in concert, and responsibilities for the successful completion of assignments are shared. As a result, the COPIL is integrated into project governance operations.
💡 Note: this meeting is generally held in the context of projects with major stakes, counting on a large number of interlocutors and interdependencies between them.
What is the role of the COPIL?
The primary purpose of the steering committee is, quite simply, to ensure the proper management of the project. It facilitates collaboration between the customer and the company, so that they can all move forward together in the right direction, and ultimately achieve their objectives on time.
The COPIL plays a number of different roles at various stages in the life of the project:
- defining project objectives and the means to be deployed to achieve them,
- appointing teams,
- planning with stages, milestones and deadlines,
- validation of the project manager's decisions and strategic choices (project scope, budget and resource allocation, etc.),
- analysis of progress and results, using metrics,
- maintaining alignment between the current project and the initial objectives, etc.
💡 Please note: sometimes, when organizations have a large number of projects or complex projects, the steering committee focuses more on operational matters. The strategic vision then becomes a matter for the management committee, or CODIR.
Who sits on the steering committee? Composition and roles
Given the importance and stakes of this body, who makes up the COPIL?
👉 The steering committee is made up of members capable of arbitration, who have responsibilities in the project.
The project sponsor
The sponsor lies between the customer and the service provider. His main mission? To support and supervise the project manager.
In the first instance, the project sponsor explains the customer's needs and then drives the whole project forward. It is then up to the project manager to make the final decisions.
☝️ The project steering committee operates under his authority.
The prime contractor, or project manager
The project manager leads the project. He assists the teams in carrying out the project and provides them with instructions.
At the same time, he reports on the project's progress to the COPIL.
☝️ The project manager is responsible for leading the committee, and then for implementing the decisions made.
Other committee members
Next, the steering committee is made up of a cross-functional team, made up of representatives of the various professions involved in the project, selected according to need:
- technical manager,
- marketing manager
- sales manager
- production manager
- financial manager, etc.
Thanks to their varied expertise, on both technical and functional aspects, these members contribute to a more global and accurate vision of the project. Their feedback is also taken into account to make informed decisions.
How does the project steering committee work?
It all starts with COPIL programming. There are no predefined rules for this, depending on the size and complexity of the project. But traditionally, the steering committee meets monthly, or less regularly if the need doesn't arise.
💡 Before the meeting, it's a good idea for the project manager and sponsor to get together. Insofar as the sponsor makes the final arbitrations, it's best that he doesn't discover important facts, such as blocking points, during COPIL. As for the project manager, he must prepare the ground ahead of the project steering committee meeting to ensure that it runs smoothly.
Then comes the meeting itself, which ideally lasts 1 h 30 or 2 h. The project manager leads the COPIL. He reports on the project's progress, using dashboards. He or she then focuses on the various points on the agenda, opening up the discussion and moving operations forward in the right direction.
☝️ He or she must be sufficiently pedagogical to negotiate and obtain the approval of the participants for the arbitrations made by the sponsor.
Finally, after the steering committee meeting, the project manager draws up a report, which is sent to the other participants, ideally within 24 hours. This document records all decisions made during the COPIL.
Project steering committee documents
The project steering committee relies on a number of documents to frame discussions and provide clear information:
- The agenda: participants read this before the COPIL meeting. It sets out the main objective and the various topics to be discussed at the meeting. This document helps avoid digressions, which can lead to confusion and time overruns.
- Dashboards and reports: the project manager uses project dashboards and reports to present the main metrics relating to the project. They must be as synthetic and visual as possible, to facilitate understanding by the various stakeholders.
💡 In this sense, software can be a great help. For example:
- AirSaaS, the governance solution for maintaining control over your entire project portfolio. The platform gives you real-time visibility of key project data (points of attention, weather, delays, etc.). It also speeds up decision-making with its Kanban view. We particularly appreciate its flash reports, which bring together in a relevant, visual way all the elements needed for COPIL arbitration. All in all, AirSaaS is a useful tool for fostering collaboration and streamlining project management.
- Project Monitor, a project portfolio management tool that provides you with real-time updated data on the progress of your various projects in just a few clicks. What's more, Project Monitor lets you create project sheets. Customizable in terms of content, form (respecting your graphic charter) and format (Word or PowerPoint), they are the perfect medium for presenting key information useful to the smooth running of the COPIL. You can even draw inspiration from the templates in the library.
Project success factors
Despite the skills and good will of all the members of a project team, the success of a project depends on good coordination and solid communication.
Consequently, steering committees are excellent cohesion factors. The discussions that take place there shed light on many elements, defuse conflicts and blocking points, and allow ideas to emerge.
However, the COPIL is only effective if its power is real, and if the decisions taken are deployed in operational actions. In short, it must create a real dynamic among all the players involved, to ensure the ultimate success of the project.
Article translated from French