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[email protected] NASA PM Challenge 2010 Used with Permission 1

Baselining the ScheduleWhat’s the Big Deal?

NASA Project Management Challenge 2010Galveston, Texas

February 9-10, 2010

Romeo Mitchell & Dhanu KothariProject Reset & Recovery - PR2 Consulting Limited

[email protected] NASA PM Challenge 2010 2

The Universe is hostile to the success of your projects.

What are you doing about it?Baseline Schedule ???


Scheduling … It’s All About People & Process

Classic Mistakes Category % Projects

1. Poor estimation and/or scheduling (Process) 54%2. Ineffective stakeholder management (People) 51%3. Insufficient risk management (Process) 47%4. Insufficient planning (Process) 39%5. Shortchanged quality assurance (Process) 37%6. Weak personnel and/or team issues (People) 37%7. Insufficient project sponsorship (People) 36%8. Poor requirements determination (Process) 31%9. Inattention to politics (People) 29%10. Lack of user involvement (People) 29%11. Unrealistic expectations (People) 27%12. Undermined motivation (People) 26%

Based on research by Prof. Ryan Nelson, McIntyre School of Commerce, Univ. of Virginia (7 years, 74 org, 99 IT projects)

Scheduling … What’s the Big Deal?

Lack of buy-in from the key stakeholders and the team

Lack of full understanding of the project Lack of clarity of the activities Failure to communicate schedule information Schedule is too complex Over estimating capabilities Moving forward with too many assumptions Schedule not being followed Lack of progress validation from the team Inaccurate schedule updates

Causes of schedule failure!

No confidence in the schedule Team members are not sure about task or action Team members are not sure about what to make of it The schedule key information is not getting through Too much data and too granular Unrealistic time and effort estimates Too many assumptions Lack of clear instructional guidance Team feedback not being solicited or acknowledged Inaccurate schedule updates


MediatorFacilitator

ImplementerCommunicatorChange Agent

Project Manager

• SOW, WBS, Milestones, Stakeholder• Dependency, Critical Path, Schedule• Risk Management, Expectation Mgt.• Change Control, Communication …

Project Management LanguageWalk the Talk!

PM Role as a Communicator


Business Goals

Project Scope

Project Goals

The project must be aligned with Business Goals and

Strategies to ensure management support

and commitment.

Scheduling Process & Managing Client Expectations

• Business Case• Return on Investment• Priorities & Risks• Sponsorship • Budget• Formal Approval

Project Objectives

90%

90%

90%

.9x.9x.9 70%

Alignment

ProjectCharter


Scheduling - Lesson 1… Know the Players

Sub-Contractor

Vendor

InternalStake-holders

ExternalStake-holders

Consultant

Mgt./ ProjectSteering

Committee

ExecutiveSponsor

ProjectManager

ProjectTeam

Client Team

Client

ProjectChampion

ClientOrganization

Team

BusinessStrategy

ITStrategy

Team Solution.Architect

Team

Absolute deadline schedule

Relative deadline schedule

Event driven

Mission critical schedule

Must be done by! Must be done on!

Can be completed between X & Y date!

Focus on output or results, not

process!

All activities are critical!

Understanding Schedule characteristics


Baseline Schedule: It’s a Journey!

InitiateProject

BusinessNeed

ScopePlan

ScopeStatement

ScopeDefinition

WorkBreakdownStructure

WorkPackages

ActivityDefinition

ActivityList

ResourceDefinition

ResourceList

ProjectCharter

SequenceActivities

DependencyDiagram

EstimateDuration

CriticalPath

EstimateResources

Resource& Cost

Estimates

Negotiate and Adjust for Time, Resource & Cost

Constraints

CostBaseline

ScheduleBaseline

PreliminarySchedule

The baseline schedule is a result of the planning process

IntegrateSchedules


Ten Steps to a Baseline Schedule1. Establish the Business Need (Strategy, Goals and

Objectives) 2. Prepare a Statement of Work (SOW) 3. Define the high level solution and approach 4. Plan the work and activities (WBS, Work Packages

and Activities)5. Sequence activities and identify dependencies6. Establish major milestones for the project. 7. Estimate the effort and duration for each activity. 8. Integrate the schedule based on time, resource and

budget constraints (iterative planning and facilitation)9. Estimate cost based on the schedule, prepare a

budget with run rate10. Obtain commitments … Now you have a Baseline

Schedule.


Business Need (Strategy, Goals, Objectives)SOW (Statement of Work)

Solution Definition (RFP or Internal Work)Planning

(Definition, WBS, Work Package, Activities)Sequencing & Dependencies

(Network Diagram)Estimating (Effort & Duration)

Scheduling (Project Schedule)Cost Estimating

*** Baseline Schedule *** Execution & Change Mgt.

Finish

Follow the process to “Baseline” the schedule, thenUse automated tools to execute & monitor the schedule

IterativePlanning

Lesson 2 – Follow the Process

Danger Zone

Do Not Rush!

Scheduling non-technical attributes

Persuasiveness Imagery Culturally oriented Communicative Participative Opportunistic Deterministic

Non-Technical attributes are critical to influencing successful scheduling!

A technical schedule alone will not ensure a successful baseline and outcomes

Baseline Schedule - 7 Attributes

1. Persuasive: Should influence others to act and do the right thing towards a successful project outcome!

2. Culturally Oriented: Present it so that it influences action by triggering positive emotional responses!

3. Communicative: Getting the right message across simply and effectively

4. Participative: Getting all critical stakeholders involved in the scheduling decision process

5. Opportunistic: Should facilitate and influence to deal with uncertainty, while creating a productive window!

6. Deterministic: Understand and share criteria for creating an event-driven schedule

7. Integrated: Understanding integration points among schedule components and developing an integrated scheduleommitments

Integrated Schedule + Resource Commitments + Signoffs = Baseline Schedule

AssembleProjectTeam

ProjectApproval

HoldKick-offMeeting

GatherApps

Inventory

IdentifyHigh Pr.

Apps

Gather/Analyze HW Assets Info.

Upgrades, New & Refresh

Initiate Contract for Hardware Acquisition

Define COE forOffice, XP and Outlook

Define XPSecurityTemplate

Define XPUser Policies

Develop TestMethod for Apps

Set Up Test LabFor App.Testing

Conduct App Test

DevelopInstallScripts

Test & Finalize SWDistribution Method

Conduct User Test

PrepareSW Del.Object

ConductPilot

Migration

Install & Test Data Migrn &Backup Tools

Repeat process for Each App

Train Help Desk

Conduct UserTraining

Develop UserTraining

ConductUser

Migration

ConductPost Impln.Review

DefineMigrationProcess

PublishMigrationSchedule

ProjectComplete

An Example of a Project RoadmapHardware Planning & Delivery

Lesson 3 – Make it Visual

Focus on the Critical Path, Major Milestones, Deliverables, Dependencies and Activities


Lesson 4 – Make it Formal1. Project Charter2. Project Organization3. Work Breakdown - WBS4. Major Milestones5. PERT/ Dependency6. Detailed Estimates/ Schedule7. Deliverables/ Responsibility8. Resource Plan9. Financial Plan10. Risk Management Plan11. Project Quality Plan12. Project Control Plan13. Project Communication Plan14. Change Management Plan15. Acceptance Plan16. Contract Mgt. Plan17. Work Assignments18. Status Reports19. Minutes of Meetings20. Escalations & Issue Mgt.21. Sign-offs/ Completion Reports22. Business Benefits Validation23. Supporting Documentation

If it’s not documented,it doesn’t exist!


Lesson 5 – Make It Easy

R : Responsible for the Deliverable A : Accepts/ Approves the deliverableC : Must be Consulted I : Needs to be Informed

Work Pkg # N- Deliverable 1- Deliverable N

Work Pkg # 2- Deliverable 1- Deliverable N

Work Pkg # 1- Deliverable 1- Deliverable N

Work Package/Deliverable

Manage Deliverables with the “RACI” Chart

RA CI

I

I

I

I

R

R

R

A C I

AC

C ARA C

R A C

$

$

$$

$

$

MM/DD


Lesson 6 – Communicate & Sell

Communication Challenges 5 Ps - People, Personalities, Politics,

Protocol, Perceptions 4 Is - Inadequate (Too much, Too little),

Ineffective, Irrelevant, Instantaneous 3 Cs – Culture, Content, Closing

Acid Test: Will the communication helpto move the project forward?


Psychology of Denial

Org.Culture

FilteringInfo.

Failure toSpeak Up

SuppressBad News

Shootthe

Messenger

Communication Challenges

Psychology of Denial

WillfulDeception

&WishfulThinking

Lesson 7: Make It Work For You

How We Communicate

Non-Verbal E-Devices Visual AidsWrittenVerbal

• PDA’S• Data Devices• Intranet/Internet

• Project Servers• Web-based Rpt.• Cell phone• Pager

• Body Language• Expressions• Hand Shake• Posture• Eye Contact• Listening• Dress/ Attire• Interest/ Attention

• Project Kickoff• Client Review• Project Review• Performance Review

• Status Update• Presentations• Project Selling• Conference Call• Phone Call • Interviews

• Project DocumentsRequirements thru Final Assembly, Test & Operations

• Manuals for User, Operations & Trng.

• Change Requests• E-Mail Messages• Management Reports• Contracts• Agendas• Meeting Minutes• Status Reports• Newsletters• Promotion/ Publicity

• Graphs• Charts• Slides• Pictures• Posters• Video Clips• Logos

Leverage the different modes & styles


Lesson 8 – Integrate the Schedule

1. Business Case & Project Charter2. Project Organization Chart3. Work Breakdown Structure4. Dependency Chart & Critical Path5. Major Milestones, Work Packages,

Deliverables & Updated Schedule6. RACI Chart (Responsibility Matrix)7. Risk Assessment & Risk Plan (Top 3 Risks)8. Financial Plan with the Six Measures

(TBC, CBC, CAC, CEV, ETC, VAR)9. Change Order Requests (Most Critical)10. Status Reports, Issues & EscalationsIf you are not using these, then what exactly

are you using to manage your project?


Lesson 9 – Make It Personal

Client interface responsibility Focus on individual deliverables Awareness of stakeholder expectations Continually sell the project Manage internal & external politics

- Budget, Buy-in, Approvals, Resources- Dept. Goals, Priorities, Commitment

Insulate the Team from Organizational Politics & Management Issues


Lesson 10: Make It Fun …Enjoy the Politics

“Having the organizational savvy to get your ideas and

recommendations accepted”

Good politics . . . the art of meeting members’ needs, solving problems & communicating

recommendations

It’s the ability to influence project directiontowards its intended outcome.


Scheduling: Avoid the Ratholes

Project Management is equated with speed and proficiency in using a Project Management tool

The planning process is confused with the “doing” activity

Lack of time for planning is an acceptable excuse in the organization

There is no team or client involvement in the planning process

There is no consensus nor common understanding of the requirements


Best Practices for Baselining

Learn and use the Business, Technology and Project Management languages

Follow the planning, estimating, scheduling process – the schedule is the final product, not the starting point!

Get your team actively involved in planning. There are no tools that will do the thinking for you.

Invite the client to participate in the process. Participation and involvement leads to “buy-in”

Invest time and effort into the scheduling exercise – after all, what’s critical is how you arrived at the schedule, not the schedule itself.


“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up the men to gather up the wood, divide the work and give orders. Instead, teach them to yearn for the vast and endless sea.”- Antoine De Saint-Exupery

What are you communicating?What is your team yearning for?

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