I panicked and said I was the manager

[Stovetopespresso]

I was told to manage a (failing) project by my line manager. I told the funders that I had taken over the project management. The stupid thing was I KNEW my boss had failed to recruit a 'real' project manager(ie with job title) but I was hoping they would accept me instead to , you know, manage the project. they went yippee great you've found someone. so wrong, I was just there to try to persuade them we could spend the cash differently and keep project vaguely alive.
now it's all gone t*ts up and we are trawling through emails. do I own up?

I don’t understand 100% what you’ve written, but if you were put in to manage the project then you were the project manager. It’s a role as well as a job title.

Was your role to manage the project? If so doesn't matter what your actual title was. Why are you trawling through emails?

You were asked to manage the project. Therefore you were the project manager. Lots of people are project managers without actually having any qualifications or official titles.

Why's it gone tits up? What are you looking for in emails?

Do they want the project manager held accountable or something?

Your message doesn't really make sense.

"We are trawling through emails." Who is "we"? Why are you trawling?

Do you own up to what?

thanks for the responses! @girlmom21 finders forgot to give us some cash and are now like aha you didn't employ a proj man so we're keeping it.

What does the contract say? Sounds like an excuse.

@MurielSpriggs we are trawling because we need 'proofing not being crap. not my choice of action!

@mynameiscalypso thanks that helps. I am new (can you tell?) and am panicking. what i meant was totally what you say.

@Chewieboora thanks yes I agree.

@Chewieboora yes also am fast learning i shiuldbdistance myself from sh*t storms which happened way before my time!
and to roll with the punches....

You're panicking over a project/manager/money issue and join here to post about it in a barely coherent fashion?

I don't understand why you'd do that. What are you hoping to achieve?

I would get a copy of the contract and see what it says regarding their shitty excuse (probably nothing) - presumably a stalling tactic by them. Don't make yourself a scapegoat!

@Clarice99

You're panicking over a project/manager/money issue and join here to post about it in a barely coherent fashion?

I don't understand why you'd do that. What are you hoping to achieve?

Kind of this.

Are you saying that some of the funds was to employ a project manager? The funders are now saying that as that hasn't happened the funds for that resource will no longer be forthcoming?

So they've funded the project, and they're arguing that they don't have to stump up the cash to cover the project manager role because your company didn't recruit one?

It's not uncommon for funders to start working through and seeing where they can claw back some costs, but its also not uncommon for companies to try and save themselves some money by charging for a service that they'd be providing anyway...

Were you 100% devoted to this project for its duration? If they give your company the money for the PM post are they going to be part-funding work for other funders because your company is, effectively, double dipping by giving the work to someone who's already on payroll and working on other things?

Were there any specifics in the contract about what the project manager was engaged to do? Can you argue that the funds were provided to cover x, y, and z tasks and those tasks have been carried out?

Was any of the funding provided to cover things like recruitment, employer costs (tax, NI, pension) or was it just salary/consultancy hours?

Go on facebook and search "fundraisers" and then join one of the groups, post in a coherent fashion there's usually a consultant or two who will take pity on you. For what its worth OP this happens all the time - I would say to the funder "this is a complete misunderstanding and its completely my fault, please accept my apologies - this is what actually happened, on this basis are you able to agree to honour the original grant" - but that should come from the head of department or CEO not the fundraiser or press-ganged project manager.

Whatever you decide to tell them I'd recommend getting someone else to read it carefully before you press send to make sure it makes sense!

@StaplesCorner thanks great tip. yes sorry I was unclear, wanted to spare the boring details but most seem to have got the gist of it.

I seem to be finding it hard to find my feet at this new place, it's that magic combination of bad planning and unclear thinking which may be rubbing off on me!

@gliblet my silly manager forgot to put any uplift in the bid. no I wasn't involved in it at the start by any means, just dumped on my desk with a 'sort this out'. i guess in the world of short term funding it's no big deal.
@MurielSpriggs thanks for your guidance I will check it over next time, my preview function isn't working at the moment if that's an excuse. the meeting is f2f tomorrow. I'm sure it will be fiiiine

@Hadalifeonce yes they advertised widely and interviewed loads but none was right. That happens I guess.

I'd back out of tomorrow's meeting and let your boss take the reins if it's their mistake and you weren't actually project manager. It sounds like you're a scapegoat here.

yes to be fair my boss has acknowledged that and isn't a coward. but need to learn new boundary techniques after years in public sector