Collegiate Project Services
Higher education isn’t our business…it’s our passion.
Latest posts by Collegiate Project Services (see all)
- Is Your Project In Trouble? A Checklist - May 10, 2016
- 5 Ingredients for Project Success - April 14, 2016
- 4 Common Barriers to Systems Change - February 9, 2016
Whether you’re developing a strategic plan, undergoing accreditation, or implementing an ERP system, institution-wide projects and initiatives require a strong foundation for project success.
You have set your goals and created timelines for your project. You have leveraged your stakeholder buy-in. You have developed a detailed budget that accounts for every last dime. So what could go wrong?
Anything and everything. Even the best planned projects will encounter problems along the way. These hurdles however, do not mean that your project is doomed to failure. The key is to identify these challenges early and take the appropriate steps to get your project back on track.
Critical Factors for Project Success
We surveyed our top project managers to compile the following list of five of the most critical factors for successful project completion.
- Budget
- Scope
- Schedule
- Teamwork
- Communications
These five factors are highly interdependent, and a problem with one or more of them can be like a crack in your home’s foundation. A crack in the foundation could lead to a crack in the wall, which in turn could lead to the eventual collapse of your house. A problem with one or more of these success factors could signal your project is at risk.
To help ensure the success of your projects, you should continually monitor and manage these factors.
BUDGET
Getting off budget is one of the fastest ways to get your project off track. This fact is true regardless of whether you are over budget or under.
Spending too much too soon might mean that your funds may run out before the project is complete.
On the other hand, spending too little too late may be an indicator of other problems, like missing deadlines.
One way to see how your budget is measuring up is by looking at budget consumption – the amount of budget you planned to spend divided by the amount you have actually spent. Compare that number to the percentage of your budget that you planned to spend. If the difference between the two percentages is between -10% and 10%, you are probably on track. If not, you need to find out why.
Solutions to Managing Your Budget
Careful monitoring and regular reporting are crucial to effectively managing your budget and avoiding problems. However, if problems occur, begin by determining the reason your budget is off. Then pull your team together to discuss options for getting your project back on budget.
If you’ve already spent too much, review what tasks have yet to be completed and consider what items might be truncated or eliminated completely.
Regularly monitor your budget.
If you’re under budget, review the task list and determine what has yet to be done. Look for items that could possibly be combined that can bring you up to speed. For example, if you’re behind on training, consider adding additional sessions per week until your team is caught up.
When it comes to your budget, the sooner you identify and address potential problems, the closer you can keep to your project schedule and the more likely you are to successfully complete your project.
SCHEDULE
Frequent changes to your project’s schedule are clear signs that your project could be in trouble. When tasks are not completed on time, scheduled go-live dates may have to be pushed back, additional funds may be needed, and you may be asked to change the overall scope of the project.
Solutions to Managing Your Schedule
Your project team must carefully monitor the project schedule. If you notice that your project is beginning to get off schedule, gather your team to explore your options.
First, determine why you are off schedule. Do you lack resources? Is your team’s workload to heavy? Perhaps team members are still unclear of their duties.
After you identify the reason, the solution needs to be efficient and effective. You may want to re-evaluate deadlines and possibly submit a scope change request.
By exploring all of your options for getting your project back on schedule, you are more likely to find the best solution.
SCOPE
Scope addresses the overall goals or deliverables of the project. Too many change requests throughout the course of the project may indicate that your project is experiencing scope creep.
If your project is off budget or off schedule, you are likely to see scope change requests to compensate. Some teams attempt to make up for missed deadlines and incomplete tasks by using time allotted for future assignments. Or they use newly identified budget concerns as a reason to change the overall scope of the project.
Solutions to Managing Your Scope
In order to keep scope changes from putting your overall project in trouble, consider the following:
- Ensure you have a strong scope and change management plan
- Communicate the plan and the processes to all stakeholders
- Evaluate change requests more thoroughly
- Prioritize requests and move lower priority items to a second phase
- Explore alternatives to the scope change with a business process change
Managing scope creep is a critical component for project success.
TEAMWORK
Nothing will wreak more havoc on a project than teams and departments experiencing communication problems and low morale.
Classic symptoms that indicate teamwork problems include team members not attending meetings, meetings being regularly cancelled, constant finger pointing between teams and team members, and team members showing high levels of stress.
Solutions to Managing Teamwork
Many teamwork problems can be effectively managed from the beginning of your project through communications, teamwork and meeting skills training, and identification of needed skills and resources. However, if you find teamwork issues after the project has been underway, several activities could help.
First, celebrate interim project successes. Long-term projects have many challenges but they also have a lot of successes. By celebrating each success, team members get a sense of accomplishment and validation for their hard work.
For team meetings, add variety to your agendas, find creative ways to make team meetings more interesting, and use your successful meeting tools to make sure that meetings effectively use your team members’ time.
Finally, you may need to reset the tone and reiterate the vision of the project. Remind everyone of what the successful completion of the project will bring to the institution and bring back the enthusiasm that was present at the beginning of the project.
COMMUNICATIONS
Effective communication throughout the lifespan of your project will help keep your project on track. However, often in the midst of the work of a project, communications efforts take a back seat. People are busy, and they forget to ensure that communications are occurring regularly and that they are reaching the right people.
Solutions to Managing Communications
Developing a detailed communications plan for your project will help you manage communications from the very beginning.
Using effective communication tools such as meetings, websites, newsletters, memos, and announcements will keep team members aware of what progress has been made and what still needs to be done.
One of the best ways to get your project communications back on track is to revisit your communications plan. Communications are also important when addressing roadblocks. Team members need to be able to clearly understand what challenges are standing in the way of success and, within the appropriate venue, be free to voice their thoughts on possible solutions.
Five Critical Success Factors for a Solid Project Foundation
Budget, scope, schedule, teamwork, and communications; when these five factors are firmly in place your project will have the foundation it needs to be the success you and your team have worked so hard for.
Nice, well done!