Column5 CEO David Den Boer once told me, “Behind every checklist there is a dead body. “ As a military veteran, he knew that safety procedures were often put in place in the aftermath of a tragic accident that unfortunately involved the loss of life. The military is well known for their rigor, strict definition of procedures, and processes that deliver consistent and repeatable results. Isn’t that what we all strive for in delivery of our EPM projects? You can accomplish this result without enduring fatalities along the way.
What typically causes projects to go “sideways” are the small steps that are performed so often without consequence, we may feel comfortable skipping them on a project. Unfortunately, the project will not likely derail until much later in the project lifecycle, after you thought you had successfully traversed the landmines efficiently by skipping those pesky procedures, steps, and best practices.
Here are some of the common downfalls of a less than stellar experience for our clients (project results):
- Moving forward with a project without escalation when the project profile indicates high risk.
- Applying a waterfall methodology when agile would be a better fit based on the client’s culture and experience.
- Not documenting and gaining agreement on each scope change no matter how small.
- Skipping peer reviews on all key deliverables e.g. Design, Development, and Testing.
- Surfacing bad news too late in the project cycle – share your worries early and often with your Project Manager.
- Creating a Design Document not containing sufficient mockups or detail to start and complete development.
- Requirements that are not fully documented and mapped to the business process.
- The Business Case and Objectives of the EPM Project are not fully understood. The team knows they need to build logic, reports, and input schedules, but do not have line of sight of the business issues the project was commissioned to solve.
- Full traceability does not occur – requirements to business process, design to requirements, and test cases to requirements and process.
- Know what the definition of “done” is – always ask for proof source.
Checklists and methodologies are based on experiences, both good and bad. Project Management Methodologies are important because they allow us to deliver repeatable and consistent results to clients. Fast Start Templates ensure your EPM Project is positioned to be delivered in the most efficient manner without risk of rework, delays or overruns. Leverage the collective knowledge and experience of Column5 and increase your chances of success!
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