I am a great fan of structure when managing my sport or my work: it allows me to make the best of by time and resources, and gives me the means and ends to measure and improve performance. It is therefore inevitable that I would be a sportsman (I enjoy Triathlon and Rowing) and a project manager (I am a PRINCE2 Project Manager with an MBA).
However too much paperwork and bureaucracy subtracts from the aim, and too little leaves people unclear about their role, goal and priorities and wastes resources. I good friend once used a farming analogy and said 'are you weighting the pig, or fattening the pig' because simply weighing it does not achieve the goal just as writing a training programme does not make you fit.
Additionally if you are writing truing plans (or project plans) for other people KISS (keep it simple SMART) is key to clear understanding. If it is clearly understood than success is more likely. Goals should be SMART - Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Results-related, and Timed)
Recommended link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keep_it_simple_stupid
Recommended link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMART_criteria
So here is my version of the 5 day course and 350 page PRINCE2 manual in a few lines...
Recommended link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince2
PROJECT: Give the project a title that makes the goal clear
SUMMARY: Provide a summary of the goals, roles, budget and time-scale of the project. This can be done in a couple of sentences, which I often include in the top-line of every update report to ensure people stay on-track, by reminding them the target: on-time, on-budget, to-specification.
BENEFITS: Explain money and non-money benefits - why are are we doing this?
Get the key people involved to sign-off their agreement. Who are the key people involved? Well a representative of the person providing the money (Finance Dept?) a representative of the person providing the resources (Supplier Company?) a representative of the person receiving the project (End-User Dept?) a representative of the person overall in-charge (Executive/Sponsor?). Then communicate this to everyone involved.
(1) BACKGROUND -
(2) PROPOSAL -
(3) BENEFITS -
(4) RISKS - Of going ahead: . Of not going ahead:
(5) COSTS -
As above, get the key people involved to sign-off their agreement.
Recommended link: http://www.betterprojects.net/2006/02/risk-and-assumptions.html
(1) PROJECT SCOPE - what is the goal, what is included and what is excluded
(2) DELIVERABLES - what items, documents, testing needs to be delivered
(3) WHO DOES WHAT - identified experts, accountabilities and stakeholders
(4) TASKS AND TIMESCALES - logical order of stages, tasks and milestones
(5) BUDGET - including capital/purchase costs, revenue/running costs and project/installation costs
As above, get the key people involved to sign-off their agreement. Then communicate this to everyone involved.
(1) WHAT'S DONE (tasks done and things delivered since last report)
(2) ISSUES (note of any issues, risks, and what decisions have been, or need to be made by the 'key people')
(3) WHAT'S NEXT (next phase tasks, responsibility, budget, deliverables, dates)
(4) FORECAST (update on time, budget and quality, to confirm project still viable)
Circulate to all the key people, plus others as required. Keep communications going, it is vital.
(1) WHAT WAS THE OUTCOME - Did the project achieve its aim on-time, on-budget, to-specification. Might be useful to compare to the original BREIF, and BUSINESS CASE as well as decisions made and recorded in the UPDATE DOCUMENTS. This provides a good audit trail for the project.
(2) ANYTHING OUTSTANDING - There may be some outstanding tasks, be clear about managing these.
(3) WHAT WENT WELL - Note and praise successes
(4) WHAT SHOULD BE DONE DIFFERENTLY - Note and acknowledge feedback and criticism which will help improvement.
As above, get the key people involved to sign-off their agreement. Then communicate this to everyone involved.
Some interesting links I have found
Recommended link: http://www.betterprojects.net/p/resources.html
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