One of the key tenants
of PRINCE2 and Project Delivery is to be very clear on what needs to be
delivered, by whom, when, and against what criteria.
A “product
description” or “deliverable detail” should describe the item, possibly
including format, content, specification depending on whether is a intangible
item (eg review, report, policy, process) or tangible item (eg a PC, house, oil
rig) .
It might also
detail the author, owner, and approver (or equivalent which might be architect,
builder, QS, owner) and the acceptance process so that there is clarity on what
is or is not acceptable.
If you do all
this there is a risk you spend more time describing the product and process
than you actually spend developing and delivering it. However the other risk is that you spend time
developing and delivering something that is not suitable, feasible, acceptable
or agreed.
It can be tricky
to get the balance right.
There are plenty
of good guides and template, particularly for PRINCE2
PROJECT MANAGER V PROJECT LEADER
Often a client
knows they have a need, but are not 100% clear on the solution or indeed the
components and criteria necessary to satisfy their needs.
A Project
Manager is someone who can deliver exactly what is required, on-time,
on-budget, to-specification with low-risk and high-communications
A Project Leader
is someone who can help the client develop clarity on exactly what they need.
This may be by workshop, facilitation or prototyping. Once that clarity is there
developing and delivering is much more straight-forward.
CLARITY V COMPLEXITY
As noted above,
the level of detail that goes into describing and documenting what is required
can either add clarity or complexity. Too little detail and there is ambiguity
of product, roles, responsibility, time-scale or cost. Too much detail and “…it
all looks too difficult..”
One approach is
to use a database and then switch-on or off the elements that you and the
client feel need documentation.
This then allows
you to dial-up or down the clarity v complexity ideally to the point
where everyone is singing from the same hymn sheet and that hymn sheet has both
words and music necessary for each project participant.
Below is an
example of some headings which you might consider.
DELIVERABLENAME: This
is the name, title or short description identifier
REQUIREMENT: It
is important to briefly outline the need, so as to be clear what the
requirement is that needs to be satisfied.
PURPOSE: It is also useful to clarity the
purpose. Whilst the need is what needs to be delivered, the purpose is why.
To…[be faster, cheaper, better, safer, compliant]
INSCOPE: It is useful to be clear what is
included, and what is not included. If there are changes of requirement having
a clear scope will help assess the impact of changes on time, budget, or
quality of output or outcome.
OUTSCOPE: It is useful to be clear what is included, and what is not included.
Taking the time to say what is not included may be useful to managing
stakeholders who want to extend the work or scope to satisfy their own ends.
This “scope-creep” can push up costs and add to time, without adding value to
the outputs or outcome.
CRITERIA: It is useful to be clear on
acceptance criteria, which may be passing an audit or standard ISO or SOC or
perhaps satisfying a key output or outcome, possibly measured by KPIs
GUIDANCE: You might want to refer to
relevant guidance including laws and regulations, or policy, procedures and processes
FORMAT: If it is intangible the output
may be a report, certification, perhaps in a .doc, .pdf, .xls or other format. If
it is tangible the output may be described in a specification eg bicycle,
moped, motorbike, car, van or bus.
CONTENT: If it is intangible the output
may be a report headings: Introduction; Executive Summary; Method; Report;
Recommendations. If it is tangible the output may be described in a
specification eg blue-prints, architects drawings, technical details.
AUTHOR: The supplier
OWNER: The customer
APPROVER: The authority
METHOD: In some cases the process is as
important as the outcome. This is true where there are many stakeholders,
different views, change or cultural implications. Being clear on the approach
is useful. It might be simply gather agreed information and inputs (including
existing policy, process, paperwork); Meet agreed stakeholders; Draft report;
Consult; Review; Finalise report
DAYS: Estimating days is always
difficult because the availability of people and resources can speed things up
or slow things down. Try however to give a realistic indication of time, based
on sensible assumptions about the availability of data, people, process and
technology. It is also important to differentiate between time on the clock (“I
spent 5 hours on this”) and elapsed time (“it took 5 days to meet everyone and
get everything done”). Finally, if time is related to cost, then this needs to
be clear: Is time per hour, per half-day, per day or fixed for the deliverable?
LIMITATIONS: It
is important to outline any risks or limitations. For example progress and
content may be dependent upon availability of people and data, and consequently
subject to variation. [Albeit within the control of Owner/Approver as regards
resources and priority] Other constraining factors may be time or budget.a
NOTES: You might want to include
additional notes or comments.
Doing all the above may be onerous but in some cases may
be worth the invested of time and thought.
In an effort to simplify you might combine elements. For
example requirement + purpose. You could combine criteria + guidance + format +
content.
I recommend you talk with the client or customer and
agree the best approach to ensure mutual understanding and a shared commitment
to delivery.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Tim Rogers is a Qualified Change Practitioner and PRINCE2
Project Manager, with an MBA in Management Consultancy. Past projects have
included the incorporation of Ports of Jersey and Operations Change and Sales
Support for RBSI and NatWest. He is a tutor/lecturer for the Chartered
Management Institute.
CONTACT
TimHJRogers@AdaptConsultingCompany.Com
+447797762051 Skype: timhjrogers TimHJRogers@gmail.com
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