Peter WrightProgramme Manager| BAE SystemsSouthport, Merseyside, United Kingdom
In our business we have multiple Programme and projects all running in parallel, we utilise Prince2 but tailor it to the business and we are going through a transformation change to align all programmes to the Business Priority objectives. Also to ensure all projects are either aligned to a programme, or in the case there is no overarching programme they align to one of the business priorities (otherwise why are we doing it of course)
Many of us here have been in numerous businesses all with their own filing structure and I have yet to be in a business where one structure fits all, but I would be grateful of your advice/knowledge and suggestions on the best way to structure the folders to enable efficient filing.
As you may see our two main folders are not currently linking the projects to the programmes but I am conscious that this may add too many layers for character length issues in some systems etc.
S:\_Talk Talk Technology\Programmes\PROGRAMME NAME\PROJECT NUMBER & NAME\ Sub Folder\SubSub Folder
For the Project Files I am also proposing using something like the following for the Sub Folders(SubSubfolders):-
(We do not create anything that will require disposal as such, so this will not be required for our business as a final stage/folder)
Grateful for any thoughts on god easily understandable and accessible folder structure for filing that are being used in your businesses today.
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Elizabeth HarrinDirector| RebelsGuideToPM.comLondon, England, United Kingdom
I haven't come across a standard set of filing conventions that work for every project and every programme, so good luck if you choose to go down that way. It is very efficient housekeeping, and it should mean that you can find everything you need, so that is useful.
My advice would be to delete folders (or don't create them) if they are empty. It's really annoying to navigate to a folder only for there to be nothing in it.
I also personally keep at the top level a folder called 'Financial & Contractual' which I use for business cases, financial reports, budget tracking and all that. You might have this in your 01 Project folder, but I find it useful to split it out.
I don't think it is necessary to link the projects to a programme and create another level of hierarchy. After all, you could end up moving projects around at some point and that will mean all the shortcuts set up will fail.
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Graham RudkinDirector of PM/PMO| Hi-Gram Management Services LtdHull, East Yorkshire, United Kingdom
Perhaps you might be better with an electronic data management system, this could be configured to force people to enter relevant metadata about the document being saved, then using this metadata will allow the system to show documents in a structure that can be configured for individual users. Not my greatest area of knowledge but been involved in some scoping exercises for such tools and think it might help by looking at what's on offer other than windows explorer file structures. Let me know if you want to here more and i'll try and find some info i could post.
Graham Saving Changes...
Bill BiglerProject Scheduler| Booz Allen HamiltonCentreville, Va, United States
I like a relatively flat file structure whether it is in SharePoint, a file cabinet, or something else. What is your basic data classification unit? Usually I use the project number and name. For any other grouping of files; such as programme, portfolio,etc.; above the project, I use views or in the case of hard files a sheet that lists the files to be included in a programme. For each project, I put in the phases, stages, or whatever you call them of your project lifecycle, plus a folder for archiving, communications, and reporting. If the project has a lot of work products, both deliverables and other generated documents, then those folders can be subdivided. I had one project, which required hardcopy documents, that used a file drawer for each stage of the life cycle and second cabinet for the communication, archiving, and reporting. Saving Changes...
Wai Mun KooPMO Director| Intergraph PP&MSingapore, Singapore
I agree with Graham that an EDM system that supports metadata and comes with security control and check-in/check-out feature will be appropriate. In some situations, you will need to control the access of certain files to restricted group of people and you will also need to collaborate the editing and versioning of the documents. Metadata entry will allow you to group and search the documents in a more flexible way too. Saving Changes...
Peter WrightProgramme Manager| BAE SystemsSouthport, Merseyside, United Kingdom
Thanks for your posts
I should have included this in the post but EDM's are not in scope, Sharepoint etc have all been removed form the budget so we are trying to make do with folders & files. Saving Changes...
Graham RudkinDirector of PM/PMO| Hi-Gram Management Services LtdHull, East Yorkshire, United Kingdom
Peter, Best of luck, it's never easy trying to do the best with limited resources or support, all i can suggest is to get the team together and at least try to get them to agree to whatever structure you settle on, at least that way they may use it more than any imposed structure. It may help in the end to paraphrase and share this qoute with your project sponsors?
"If you think it's expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur." Red Adair
Many years ago, when PRINCE2 was starting, I had a CD which explained a Common Filing System for PRINCE2. As I was teaching project management and systems and software engineering, I specified each project team use the following structure
span class="ql-ui" contenteditable="false"/spanQuality Records (Shared)
Management Documents Plans and Progress Scope Control Staffing Work Packages ... Technical Documents Requirements Acceptance Criteria Designs Test Cases Drawings, diagrams, charts and photos ... Quality Records Walkthroughs, Inspections, Assessments, Audits CAIRO - Concerns, Assumptions/Constraints, Issues, Risks, Opportunities Tracking logs Requirements traceability Evidence to be used in any Court Case ... Saving Changes...
"Nearly every great advance in science arises from a crisis in the old theory, through an endeavor to find a way out of the difficulties created. We must examine old ideas, old theories, although they belong to the past, for this is the only way to understand the importance of the new ones and the extent of their validity."
