Learning From An Old Dog (Part 1)

Michael R. Wood is a Business Process Improvement & IT Strategist Independent Consultant. He is creator of the business process-improvement methodology called HELIX and founder of The Natural Intelligence Group, a strategy, process improvement and technology consulting company. He is also a CPA, has served as an Adjunct Professor in Pepperdine's Management MBA program, an Associate Professor at California Lutheran University, and on the boards of numerous professional organizations. Mr. Wood is a sought after presenter of HELIX workshops and seminars in both the U.S. and Europe.

 

They say an old dog can't learn new tricks, but what can we learn from old dogs? Over the last 30 years I have had my share of project successes and failures. One thing I have learned is the importance planning plays in setting the stage for the outcome a project will achieve. Planning needs to be calibrated to the size and complexity of the project being pursued; it first and foremost must be practical.

What follows are a few of the insights this "Old Dog" has learned about practical project planning and management. These insights are presented in two parts or sets. The first set pertains to project planning while the second set focuses on the project management process.

Insight No. 1: Make Project Plans Easy to Follow and Manage
The goal of project planning is to create a project plan that clearly communicates the effort, timelines and resources that must be deployed to achieve the project's goals. While most plans contain these components many fail to be:

• Easy to Follow (by users, team members and senior management). If you want your plans to be read and understood, then eliminate complexity from the presentation.
• Easy to Manage (by those who have to manage the effort). Make sure the processes that will be used to keep the plan current and accurate are streamlined and efficient.

Remember the goal is to create a project plan …

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