Scapegoat Management

One of the KEY ( but often over looked ) skills of any project manager is Scapegoat Management, while not strictly covered in the Prince 2 manuals it should be given similar importance to that of Risk management, and in fact goes hand in hand with it; when the Risk gets to much, then its time to turn to Scapegoat management for a way out.

Following normal Risk management processes, a Risk is either mitigated and dies or becomes an Issue where it begins to have directly impact on the project/business/your personal life. It is at the stage of escalation from Risk to Issue that the sub process of Scapegoat Management (SGM) is instigated. However SGM should have been in place long before the Issue is created.

Selecting the Scapegoat

SGM starts in the early days of the project whereby the project manager identifies the likely candidates to be marked down as possible scapegoats. Selection criteria for the role of scapegoat include :-

1. Are they junior to me?
   1. Are they likely to get promoted to my level anytime soon
   2. Are they likely to get promoted over me anytime soon
2. Are they senior to me?
   1. Do they have a job I want
   2. Have they made my life difficult in the past
3. Do they hold a grudge against you?
   1. ( See 5 if they are also a PM )
   2. ( See 4 )
4. Do you hold a grudge against them?
   1. ( See 5 )
   2. ( See 3 )
   3. ( See 1.1 )
   4. ( See 2.1 )
   5. ( See 2.2 )
5. Are they paid more than me? ( Note, any project manager worth his salt will know this already )
6. Are they of sufficiently less intelligence that they won't see it coming?
7. For no reason what so ever, do you just dislike them with an intensity that keeps you awake at night thinking up new ways to cause them harm

Once selected its worth building a case against them, but this does not have to be project related, and in fact the wider and deeper the case against them, the more strongly they can be used as a Scapegoat.

However it is worth having 2 or 3 key candidates, as positions changes during a long project, people come and go, and some bastards end up getting promoted over you and by some wild fluke end up with significantly more power than you. These candidates should only be retained by the most experienced project managers as options for long term scapegoat selection.

Feeding the Scapegoat

There is limited benefit in suddenly presenting some unknown or unconnected individual as the reason for the current project failure. That is a sign of an inexperienced project manager, some one who will almost certainly become a scapegoat themselves in the not to near future.

Therefore it is key that the individual(s) selected should be slowly and quietly associated with the project. This can be done through a number of discreet methods.

• Perhaps seek their advice for a particularly 'difficult' problem
• Ask them to review an insignificant part of the project as some one external and therefore impartial
• Borrow their staff/resources for a short period, for a minor piece of work

Fattening the Scapegoat

Now they know about the project, and with the appropriate spin, will think that this is a project which has a high degree of success, a project that is good to be associated with and therefore, with any luck, they will ( eventually ) start to involve themselves with.

An astute project manager at this stage will also see the opportunity that the actual act of the candidate wanting to be more involved in the project can be used as evidence to senior management that the individual was in some way responsible for what ever has just happened.

However we are looking for bigger fish, and this method should only really be used as a last resort save to your own skin when all else has failed. The idea now is to feed them enough information so that they are 'perceived' as been part of the project and even seen to be taking on some responsibility, but not enough that they get wind of what is going on

Preparing for the Kill

Ok, its time to bail, the risk has gotten so bad that very shortly its going to be escalated to an issue and people further up the food chain will soon be asking questions that begin with "Who", and "Why" and ending with your name. However there must be enough time for you to get out and cover your tracks, but not enough time so that the chosen candidate has sufficient time to gather enough information to blame you back or get out himself.

Like much SGM work, the detail is in the planning and the sooner the planning begins and more complete the planning is, the easier it is to eventually sacrifice the poor sucker. Lining up the candidate has to begin subtly; a cross word here, a half heard comment there. It's about sowing seeds of doubt about the candidate with the people who matter, and the people who matter are those who gossip, the ones for whom Chinese Whispers is a way of life. These people have a connected network of associates that makes MySpace look like a noddy website. Once the seed is sown, it needs to be nurtured and watered, fed further gossip both real and imaginary, often contradicting. The key here is to cause confusion, but cause enough noise that people begin to associate the candidates name with a problem and how that problem is bothering you and stopping you doing your work.

Care must be taken at this stage not to allow the candidate to hear the gossip and if they do, not to find out that it originated from you. However this is an opportunity for furthering the kill. Feeling concerned for the candidate upon hearing the gossip, you spread, from them, gives an opportunity to push them into taking on more responsibility for the Risk, giving them the impression they are trying to resolve it.

Sacrificing the Scapegoat

Your exit strategy is pending, this now has to be quick, if its not and you are found with blood on your hands the game is over and you become the scapegoat, which for any seasoned Scapegoat Manager is unforgivable. The options are limited but can be well practised through ones career, ensuring that as the Scapegoats become bigger and juicier, the art of exiting becomes increasingly well greased.

If you are a contractor, the simplest form of get out, is basic and to unashamedly abandon the project, take a new contract. This can easily be sold as a new contract you couldn't turn down, more money, more responsibility, change of lifestyle, the excuses are endless.

A side role here is to foster a relationship with some heartless recruitment agent, who will overlook the fact you jump ship every 6 months for the sake of his commission, because lets face it, he'll probably jump ship from his agency before you. He'll then be keen to find you a new role as soon as possible to thus increase his commission.

If you are stuck in the permie mold, then unless you have been planning a new role for some time, the favoured option is to take sickness, the scapegoat has caused you so much stress that you need some time off, loose the mobile, disconnect broadband, go fishing.

Another side role that all good Scapegoat managers should practise is that of working the HR team. They are usually women, usually quiet pretty, and with a bit of charm, you can have them won over to your cause. This is a long slow process and should start the day you arrive. Consider it security investment !

Once you are off work, on a sick note, use the time constructively to find the new role while all hell breaks loose at work, and the scapegoat is placed firmly in the picture in your absence.

The final option, one which is open to both perm and contract staff is the promotion. If the spin is right, the project is still looking successful, so much so that management think that its fully under control and could be handed over to a more junior person ( and guess who you are going to suggest ). The act of handing over must be one where there is information overload; you will have so little time to hand over the project because you are urgently needed on a much more important one. Thus the final seeds of the scapegoat's demise are sown. Now when it all goes wrong you claim it was all working beautifully when you left and your provided an in depth handover. It's not your fault if the individual didn't understand.

Finally stay friends with the scapegoat, nothing throws the scent of a backstabber, like a back stabber who buys you a drink, or listens to your problems at the coffee machine, and you never know you might get the chance to use them again a second or third time now you know just how weak they are.

Good luck ..

This "If Only", has a more serious note, the IT industry ( like many industries ) is littered with the carnage of scapegoating, only through professional certification and then monitoring, management and enforcement of that certification can we move to be a more professional industry. IT needs an accountable framework of certification which provides customers with confidence of the level and capabilities of all individuals and organisations.