How to make a success of your steering committee (COPIL): our advice

The steering committee (COPIL) is a major project management body.
It marks out the different phases of the project or program, encouraging decisions to be taken on the main key points.

A strategic role essential to project management and success

• What is a COPIL?

The steering committee is one of the main bodies created upstream of a project, along with the project committee, with which it is all too often confused. The steering committee is eminently strategic and essential to the smooth running of the project, since it is first and foremost a decision-making body that monitors and oversees the project’s progress. By meeting regularly, it monitors each major phase, anticipating as many risks as possible, and using its vigilance to resolve and unblock critical situations.

Whereas the aim of the project committee is to build and develop the schedule, and allocate activities, tasks and resources, the steering committee differs in that it is not intended to go into such detail. On the contrary, its aim is to guide, validate, approve and advance the various phases of the project. So the more upstream preparation, the better.

• A different CODIR meeting

Moreover, because of its sometimes similar composition, it can sometimes be confused with the Management Board. A CoDir has a strategic focus. It allocates resources to the project, while the COPIL, which is more operational, plays with them to make its decisions. These two committees don’t mix, and even if certain roles are found in both by definition, they are different meetings. In particular, the CIO and CFO, whose roles have a decisive influence on the terms and conditions of an IS project, are regularly represented on both committees.

• COPIL’s missions

What are the objectives of the COPIL? The steering committee has three main missions, which must be reflected in the agenda for each meeting.

1. The first is to monitor and guarantee the project’s progress, checking that it is in line with the defined schedule and deadlines.
2. Its second key mission is toarbitrate the major decisions to be taken, based on the blocking points that could have a lasting impact on the smooth running of the project. This may involve, for example, a budget or schedule extension.
3. Finally, its third mission is toanticipate risks by monitoring their probability of occurrence, and to plan possible solutions. It’s important to be clear about what a risk is. In fact, for some major projects, it’s not uncommon for a Risk Manager to take part in the Copil.

The COPIL ensures the governance of project or program management: Budget, Planning, Risks, Alerts, Communication. The COPIL does not deal with technical decisions, but with project management and any arbitration required (validation of major strategic orientations, resource allocation, etc.), risk managementapproval of major milestones).

• Stable composition and frequency

A COPIL is often organized by the Project Manager himself (or the PMO – Project Management Officer if there is one in the company, who can be the spokesperson) and the sponsor.

The committee is made up of a cross-functional team organized upstream of the project. Its participants are rigorously identified and do not change during the course of the project.

The COPIL is generally made up of the project manager or PMO (if there is one), business and IT experts, the sponsor, the customer and sometimes, depending on the project, the risk manager.

On the other hand, COPIL involves a series of meetings that are planned in advance, ideally over the entire duration of the project. Ideally, these meetings take place once a month to build momentum and prevent the project from getting bogged down; but the schedule can also be quarterly, or linked to the completion of a project phase, depending on each company’s own methodology.

Four classic mistakes that are easy to avoid

• Transform COPIL into a project committee meeting

This is one of the great classics facing the steering committee. A good COPIL meeting must be prepared in advance and contain only the arbitrations to be made concerning the project. The big mistake to avoid is going into operational detail, which is best left to the project committee (or CoPoj). Consequently, presenting a detailed Gantt chart with task interdependencies is neither the place nor the time for the Copil. If a Gantt schedule is displayed, it should only be to shed light on the progress of the project and facilitate decision-making. For example, it may be useful to extend the project duration from six to nine months. But that’s all.

• Putting your audience to sleep

The steering committee’s job is to oil the wheels, not the other way round. So the more fluid the presentation, the better. It’s not a good idea to read through your presentation and fill it with complex sentences punctuated by micro-details. On the contrary, the support must be clear and the verbal dynamic, different from the written word. The presenter, be it the project manager or the sponsor, must tell a story with key words that will help in the decision-making process.

• No surprise subjects or guests

Similarly, it is strongly discouraged to invite a surprise member, even if he or she is a member of the “Business” team, to take part in the steering committee. The steering committee is not an information session to promote a particular person. This can lead to frustration among some committee members, and above all to unnecessary confusion.

• Put personal issues ahead of project interests

We can’t stress this enough: the steering committee is the place where decisions are made to ensure that the project runs smoothly. It is not, therefore, an arena for settling a dispute between two opposing visions, professions or interests. If need be, these discussions take place upstream. It is therefore essential to set the framework and operating rules well in advance at the first COPIL meeting, and if necessary, to reiterate them at subsequent meetings. The role of the project manager is therefore crucial in ensuring that the interests of the project are protected from any excesses, and it is for this reason that it is necessary to prepare everything.

Three tips for a successful COPIL

1 – Anticipate, structure and communicate

A COPIL is prepared point by point in advance. It all starts at least 48 hours before the scheduled date (more depending on the topics on the agenda). The project manager and sponsor identify the problem areas and the solutions to be proposed, then ask each member of the steering committee to discuss them. Each item on the agenda must have been discussed and addressed in advance, to avoid surprises and wasted time. In this way, any objections that may arise can be prepared for, so that they don’t come up during the meeting on the big day. This enables the project manager and sponsor to prepare the best possible action plan .

Then, the sponsor and the project manager finalize and compile the various elements in a document that will be sent to each COPIL member.

2 – Set the scene!

A COPIL takes place once a month or so, and should last between 45 minutes and an hour on average, so it’s not the time to give a detailed history of the project. A COPIL that lasts 3 hours sends the wrong signal in terms of organization and operation. Focus, pragmatism and simplicity are the key words to keep in mind when preparing a COPIL. The agenda should include a maximum of 5-6 decisions to be taken (depending on the size of the project), and should have been validated and communicated to committee members in advance. The meeting should be fast-paced , focusing on the essential decisions and any bottlenecks. During the presentation, the project manager or sponsor should lead the meeting by outlining the main points:

• reminder of decisions made ;
• progress made with appropriate key figures (KPIs) ;
• decision points.

“A COPIL is not intended to be exhaustive. During a COPIL, we only deal with the points that really require arbitration and a decision”, explains Stéphane LAVIELLE, Customer Success Manager at Abraxio (formerly Accenture Project Manager).

To ensure good time management, it’s even advisable to appoint a “time keeper” who has the right to end a conversation that’s dragging on to ensure discipline and keep the meeting moving.

3 – Managing disempowerment

It is important to clearly identify the role of the project manager, who must demonstrate leadership. His role is not to decide or arbitrate – that’s the role of the COPIL – but to ensure the right conditions for ongoing alignment between all project stakeholders. It must also ensure that everyone takes responsibility. For example, if the COPIL is unable to reach a decision on a major issue, it must record in writing in the minutes that there was no consensus.

In addition, every member of the steering committee originally planned must be present at the meeting. If someone starts wanting to be replaced, this is often not a good sign. It may mean that the person in question disagrees with the project or feels out of place. This absence can be detrimental to the smooth running of the project and sometimes to the committee’s atmosphere. It is therefore essential to create a link with each member to prevent this type of risk.

“When things start to get too political, you have to get back to basics,” continues Stéphane LAVIELLE.

Essential tools for a smooth COPIL process

• Agenda and minutes

The agenda is generally prepared between 48 hours and 5 days before the Steering Committee meeting. Depending on the project, it is advisable to prepare the agenda as far in advance as possible, to allow time for consultation with each committee member. Ideally, decisions are already taken by the time the committee meets. The agenda should therefore include a reminder and analysis of the planned schedule, a risk assessment, corrective actions in progress, decisions taken and those still to be taken. Everything is communicated to participants in advance of the meeting.

The minutes should be sent by the project manager as soon as possible after the meeting, within 24 hours. All decisions are recorded point by point, including any arbitrations that could not be made.

• A steering tool

A tool such as the dashboard, which makes it easy to visualize the budget, resources and schedule, and to compare key KPIs, can be useful to use during the steering committee meeting. In this respect, it is advisable to avoid opening several windows simultaneously during the presentation, as the risk of getting lost is too great. The best thing to do is to prepare a budget view with key figures, and a macro view of the schedule, to give an overview of the project’s overall progress and provide material for making the best decision.

In conclusion, more than a simple meeting, the COPIL is above all an essential steering lever for the smooth running of the project. Properly used, it can unblock critical situations and avoid major strategic errors that could harm the project and impact the company’s overall performance. This makes it all the more essential to guarantee the project’s ongoing alignment with the company’s objectives.