|
17 "Must-Ask" Questions
for Planning
Successful Projects
by Adele Sommers
Why do some projects proceed without
a hitch, yet others flounder? One reason may be
the type and quality of the questions people ask at
the very start. Below are 17 insightful queries that
can expose the uncertain aspects of your project, and
thereby help you avoid expensive surprises later on.
1. How Would You Describe Your Project?
 Explain
as expressively as possible the ultimate, "big
picture" vision and purpose of your completed endeavor.
How will it look, feel, taste, sound, perform, increase
productivity, help your customers, or otherwise benefit
human kind?
2. What Are Your Goals and Objectives?
What are you trying to accomplish? List the project
goals and objectives in terms that are clear, concise,
achievable, and measurable. Example: "Produce a
four-hour video training series on self-defense along
with a training resource guide and database, to be accessible
by college students on the Internet by May 2006."
3. Who Will Benefit From Your Project?
Examples of audiences or beneficiaries include: Clients,
customers, customers’ customers, local communities,
wildlife, students, and specific population segments.
4. Will You Be Creating Any Products?
Examples include: Books, publications, studies, reports,
manuals, video, audio, multimedia productions, tools,
instructional materials, graphics, software and information
systems, Web sites, databases, widgets, and special
equipment.
5. Will You Be Providing Any Services?
Examples include: Providing telephone support, business
software training, day care, statistical analysis, copy
editing, and customer satisfaction surveying.
6. What Methods Will You Use?
For example, will you start by researching your audiences’
needs? Will you use phases for design, development,
implementation, pilot testing, and rollout?
7. What Kind of Schedule Do You Anticipate?
Will your project or program involve an incremental
implementation process that might occur over many months
or years? If so, what long-term phases are you anticipating?
Are there critical milestones within these phases? Can
you create a detailed schedule for near-term tasks you
will be performing?
 8.
Will You Need Any Partners or Collaborators?
Many types of projects will benefit from teaming up
with partners who can offer complementary strengths
or a long-term track record in an important area. Do
you anticipate joining forces with other organizations,
consultants, or agencies to complete the project? If
so, what experience, expertise, credibility, funding,
or other benefits will each party bring to the table?
9. Will You Need Specific Information
or Advice?
Do you plan to seek information and help from subject
matter experts or other advisors? Will you need to perform
research, and if so, what sources will you tap? Examples
include Internet resources, company documentation, service
reports, trouble logs, customer feedback, surveys, focus
group data, evaluation forms, census data, libraries,
and formal studies.
10. Will You Need Special Systems or
Equipment?
Some projects require setting up a technology infrastructure
to create or deliver the products or services. Examples
of items in your infrastructure might include: Servers,
networks, computers and peripheral devices, and multimedia,
sound, or video systems.
11. Will You Need to Use Special Tools
or Templates?
Some projects require using a certain set of software
tools or a specific set of templates or techniques.
It’s important to specify these at the beginning
so that everyone will be clear about what’s required.
 12.
How Will You Evaluate Project Success?
How will you measure the progress and effectiveness
of your project? Will you collect information on how
you are carrying out your stated objectives (process
evaluations), and how well you are serving the needs
of your target audiences (outcome evaluations)?
13. Who Needs to Review and Approve
Decisions?
Will there be a clear process for submitting items for
review and approval, and a set timeframe for receiving
comments back? What protocol will be used? A key consideration
is whether there will be a single responsible party
with the authority to reconcile differing opinions if
a review team can’t reach a consensus.
 14.
How Might Your Project Evolve over Time?
Why should what happens in the future be so important
today? One reason is that implementing downstream opportunities
can be hindered or helped by decisions that occur at
the start. It’s not unusual for a short-lived,
"one-time only" effort to take on a life of
its own by adding unexpected phases, variations, and
versions — so why not plan ahead?
15. Who Will Be Responsible for What?
This aspect is especially important when multiple parties
will contribute to the outcome, and even more so when
they are dependent on one another. For example, your
detailed schedule for Task X might specify that "Completing
Task X depends on Person Y in Company C providing the
ABC Results by such-and-such a date."
16. What Risks Should You Plan to Manage?
Nothing is more difficult that anticipating, flagging,
and managing potential risks to a project as a whole,
or to the successful completion of your part of it.
After all, no one wants to admit potential failure,
right? However, risk is a normal part of everyday life,
and with proper attention, we can manage it!
17. What Open Issues Remain?
What issues and concerns remain after all topics above
have been considered? You and your team may be keeping
a running list of unanswered questions and unknowns.
What are these items, and how and when do you think
they will be resolved? Do they present risks until they
are answered?
~~~~~
By thinking through the questions above,
you can achieve your project goals with much less guesswork
and far fewer problems than you may have experienced
in the past.
Copyright 2005 Adele Sommers
Want to include this article in your newsletter
or Web site? You can, as long as you include this
blurb with it: Adele Sommers, Ph.D. is the creator of
the award-winning "Straight Talk on Boosting Business
Performance" success system. To learn more about
this step-by-step program, and to access her many no-cost
articles and resources, visit LearnShareProsper.com.
|
In
my last newsletter, I promised I would tell you a
story about an unusual deer. The Central Coast of
California where I live is definitely deer country.
Each year, the newborn fawns emerge in the spring
and tag along after their mothers all summer and fall,
foraging on the wild grapes, apples, and leaves in
our area. 
A
Quick Reminder...
