25 April 2008

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Tips for Team Members
In Your Hundred-Day Project Management Plan, Verify Goals

Project managers newly engaged in a project might well ask themselves is, “What should I do during the first 100 days to ensure that the project is successful?”
 
The first thing that a project manager should do is to verify that the organizational goal and reasons for the project objectives are still valid.

A validation process is followed to ensure that the reasons and motivation for a project are clear. Starting a project without a validation process is like starting construction of a large building without using blueprints. 

To validate the project objectives the following steps are recommended:

1. Review the project charter

1. Arrange an interview with the project sponsor to confirm:
1. The driving issues for the project are still valid
2. The stakeholder needs assessment is still valid
3. The overall project implementation strategy is still valid
4. The project time, cost and schedule objectives are still valid
5. The priority of the project in the implementation organization

1. Arrange a meeting with the project team to share the updated project information and confirm the strategy is aligned with the project objectives

This tip was inspired by a suggestion from Karen Zicht, of Tampa, Florida, USA, who has worked in project management for more than 15 years.

Once the need for the project has been verified, plan how you are going to achieve your objectives.  Follow the proven steps and processes in A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK^® Guide)—Third Edition to develop a complete plan. 

Write a project scoping document, including a detailed risk and need assessment. This is a critical component of all planning.

Make your project team one of the most important focuses of your effort. Take the time to select and obtain the right people, or you will pay the price later.
 
Try to look at the team as you would a home you were building. You must build the foundation with care and accuracy, as a mistake early in the process can cause critical problems and workarounds later on.

Take the time to ensure that team members know and understand each other. This will build trust and move them from being a group of individuals to a true team. 

Also, take time to clearly identify team members’ strengths and abilities, and assign them the tasks that will result in synergy — a situation where the power of the team far exceeds the sum of its parts. 

Thanks to Brian R. King, P.Eng, PMP, for contributing this tip for teams. Mr. King is president of Millennium 3 Inc. Training and Consulting, which is driven to help businesses, government and associations improve productivity in leadership and organizational development.  In January 2008 he was appointed CEO and president of LEI – Lafleche Environmental Inc. He is a PMI Global Registered Education Provider and was a PMI SeminarsWorld^® 2007 instructor.  He welcomes your questions or comments on this tip.