Lather, Rinse and Repeat...

 

Have you ever read the instructions on a bottle of shampoo?

The very nature of projects makes the thought of such simple instructions laughable, right? If it were that simple, organizations wouldn't need project managers, project teams would become a thing of the past, birds would sing, flowers would bloom and all would be good in the world. Unfortunately, nothing about managing projects is that easy.

That being said, I know of a project manager in the medical industry with an interesting story. His teams are sent around the world to help operating rooms keep track of their surgical instruments and keep patients safe from infection. Although the installation procedure for the software and other equipment they install is not the same in every hospital, they have established a standardized procedure for every project. By capturing and templating best practices, they have created a best-case scenario for every project—making it possible for every installation to come off flawlessly, regardless of who is doing the installation.

About a year ago, Gartner described how they see repetitive work fitting into the project management landscape. Although what we traditionally call "projects" isn't repeatable work, in most projects there are building blocks that tend to repeat. Project leaders who are able to capture and template those building blocks are able to streamline the planning process when new requests come in, create a more predictable and efficient environment for project teams and ultimately enjoy a higher level of project success. In the above mentioned Gartner report, Audrey Apfel and her colleagues suggest that our role as project leaders should be to move from managing projects to managing value and change. I agree.

Are there similarities that exist in your projects from one to the next? Are there areas where applying a template makes sense? Would doing so improve team performance and the likelihood of project success?