#4 The PM’s Secret Weapon

The year is 1742. A Spanish ship cuts through the Atlantic Ocean waves. Inside the ship, Captain Rodriguez is sitting at his desk, diligently writing something in a big book with leather covers. The sailors exchange glances, wondering what important matters their captain finds worthy of such focused documentation.

"The main sail has a small hole on its right side," writes the captain. "If we don't fix it by tomorrow morning, the ship will slow down, and we might drift in the wrong direction. Torres needs to sew up the sail before sunrise."

Why was this simple entry so crucial?

What made the difference between reaching the Americas on schedule versus drifting aimlessly for extra weeks?

The answer lies in the power of documented accountability.

The logbook turned a simple observation into a task with a deadline and a person in charge.

No room for confusion, no space for excuses.

All thanks to the Logbook. The term "logbook" originated from the "log-line," a device sailors used to measure ship's speed.

Can we classify such an expedition as a project?

Yes!

Has project management taken some good practices from ship management?

Yes again!

Introducing the Action Log!

The PM uses it to capture ad-hoc events that take place and are relevant to the project. For me – critical during the Execution phase. This is when uncertainty transforms into events. Events that often create obstacles, challenges and issues for the project. And, if not managed in an organized manner, they create crises.

Tip #1: Always have one!

Preferably, create an Action Log at the beginning of the project but not later than the Kick-off meeting.

Here is a recent example from a project I was managing. A new machine had to be installed in the production area. One of the key tasks was to make a test to ensure that not only the machine is working, but the whole process around it, starting from production planning to final delivery.

When I approached production planning, the manager, Ricky, told me he doesn't see the machine in the ERP system.

"That's strange," I said. "The machine is physically here, but invisible to our planning system?"

We agreed this needed to be discussed with IT. After a few days of silence (and my growing concern), I contacted the IT department directly.

It turned out Max, the IT responsible, couldn't do much about it as they were using an external IT service company to make these ERP changes.

But no one was taking action!

The project was at risk, due to this funny task.

I asked Max to have this done, but he casually mentioned, "The external consultant only comes to the factory every Thursday."

Today was Friday! Arghhhhhh!

We had just missed him by a day, meaning a potential week-long delay for something that should take minutes to fix.

I immediately logged this into our Action Log:

After clearly documenting exactly who needed to do what and by when, I followed up again on Wednesday with an email, pasting the specific row with Max's name from the Log so he could visually see his commitment.

The next Thursday, as if by magic, everything was fixed. The machine appeared in the system, production planning could proceed, and our project timeline remained intact.

No heated arguments, no escalation to senior management - just the quiet power of documented accountability.

Just as Captain Rodriguez's log entry ensured the sail was mended before it could threaten the journey, the Action Log ensures each task finds its owner and reaches completion before it can derail your project.

No drifting, no excuses, no missed deadlines.

Tip #2: Always define the 3 elements: Action – Owner – Due. And don't miss any!

But to use the force of the Action-Owner-Due Date, the PM cannot stop at logging. We need to put active communication to ensure:

• The owner is clear with the task, with the due date and… with the fact that he is the owner. Don't assume that and never put someone's name without their understanding and buy-in.
• The owner is then chased closely. Although you may have written an excellent log, the meeting is over and the owner of the task may be thinking "Phew, the meeting with this PM is over... Great, time for a vacation!". You need to ensure this is not how an action on the log is perceived by the owners.

Tip #3: Activate the invisible hand – you need to make them know that they will be followed-up and reminded and chased about what has been written in the log. Just as the email I sent to Max on the Wednesday.

You need to follow-up elegantly and see if things will be closed by the date. Or if there are any secondary blockers. The person needs to know that you are there...in the dark and will come after them.

Tools to use

In modern days, the ancient logbook from the ship has transformed into a digital table. The terms you can encounter are more than one – action log, issue log, Actions & Issues log and now, commonly known as the RAIDD Log, standing for Risks, Actions, Issues, Decisions and Dependencies. 

How am I using it? I enjoy simple things so I create it in MS Excel or Google Sheets.

I know many of you will immediately jump out of your seats when you hear MS Excel.

Today, there are countless software solutions that embed the action-owner-due mechanism. Trello, Jira, Notion, Monday, Tuesday, etc. They are great tools that enable a PM to do many other things as well (we will talk about it more in another article).

But we know that once the action-owner-due date has kicked in, the team and stakeholders start singing the same song.

And the right tune has to be… logged. 😊