Driving Business in the Right Direction: Some Lessons Learned

Craig is based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada and has worked with ProjectManagement.com for the last six years developing the various HEADWAY processes (Project, Change and Portfolio). He has hosted a series of webinars and is a business intelligence subject matter expert.

  Lessons Learned   Strategy   Work Breakdown Structures (WBS)  

Last month, I was involved in a team that presented a three-year strategic initiative to the senior leaders and executive of our organization. It was a very successful presentation and, besides a few questions and clarifications, it went exceptionally well. We walked away with the go-ahead to proceed with the project.

The presentation seemed to go so smoothly, almost too easily. Normally, I would have expected rougher waters. However, on reflection, there was a list of key things that the team did from both a project management and good business practice perspective that helped to ensure that we received approval for this strategic initiative. I want to share some of the steps we took and the pitfalls we avoided.

First, the initiative had strong sponsorship at both the project and executive level. Both individuals believed strongly in the initiative and understood its importance to the business. They were open to discuss the challenges, risks and gaps to complete the project and were engaged from the start. They recognized the time they personally would have to commit to ensure that the project passed its first major hurdle: the approval of the executive presentation (which acted as the de facto project charter).

Also, we had a strong team in place. They were a dedicated group who understood the objectives of this project and the role they played in getting it past the…

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