INTRODUCTION
In this simple guide to project management I will use the analogy of the Project Management Office being like Air Traffic Control for projects and change. The Project Management Office [PMO] will want confidence that any significant project or change is clear about passengers and crew (participants), fuel (budget), destination (outcome) and route (plans). For each initiative we want to be able to give it a thumbs-up or guidance on what is required for permission to take-off or indeed a safe journey: on-time, on-budget, to-specification, low-risk and high-communication.
This simple guide is based on a blend of Waterfall approach (plan before action eg PRINCE2) and Agile (work it out as you do eg SCRUM)
ATC STEP 3 THE PROJECT INITIATION DOCUMENT PHASE
Project Initiation Document (PID) - At this step we need a written down detail of your implementation plan: e.g. roles, goals, tasks, owners, actions, timescales.
Key question are we trying to answer: How will we deliver and implement this?
Process: Consult with the appropriate stakeholders, who will actually participate in the project. Write it all down on template and get agreement from your manager or Executive Sponsor.
HOW WE BEGIN
At this stage we are at the considering the quotes, specifications, proposals. This is the time when we deciding what we want, can afford, and are able to achieve, but not yet committing to how or when.
CASE STUDY
Jane now needs to think: How will this be done? Who will do it? When should it be done? There are all important questions before we commit to beginning.
CLARITY WRITTEN DOWN
Question 1 Question to answer: How will we do this?
Question 2 Why do we want to do this? How is it going to change the business?
Question 3 What is the project not going to deliver? (It is important to be clear about what is out of scope. What things are important, but not going to be delivered?)
Question 4 What are the roles of the people delivering the change?
Question 5 Who will check & approve the outputs of the project?
Question 6 Who will the project outputs be handed-over to? When?
Question 7 Any training or support required?
Question 8 Who is building/supplying it?
Question 9 How many days will this take?
Question 10 Who is checking it & signing it off?
Question 11 How many person-days do you need? When do you need them? (week/period/year)
Question 12 Funding Plan How much money do we need & when? (What funding do we need and when do we need it? Understanding this will help us plan & allocate funds.)
Question 13 How much do we expect to spend?
Question 14 When do we expect to spend it?
Question 15 Which elements of the project deliver the benefit/income?
Question 16 How much benefit / income do we expect?
Question 17 When will we check the benefit has been received?
Question 18 Risks and Dependencies What do we need to keep an eye on? (What could impact the success of the project? What unintended impacts could the project have?.)
Question 19 Who should manage this risk?
Question 20 What does this change impact? How critical is this dependency? (from minor to game-changer)
USEFUL LINKS AND REFERENCES
About Agile
https://www.guru99.com/waterfall-vs-agile.html
About Waterfall and the leading approach to Waterfall which is PRINCE2
https://prince2.wiki/
ABOUT THE BLOG
This is a series of coaching blogs that eventually will become a book. By blogging each item I hope to share each element in easy to read bite size chunks, maybe invite some people to subscribe to see the next posting and hopefully encourage some comments, feedback and suggestions which will improve the content for the blog and eventually the book. All comments and feedback are therefore welcome.
