How do you actually start to turn something into a project?
A good friend at work recently asked me for help. “How do you project-ify things?” She asked. Outside of meeting with her and coaching her through her first few projects, here are some of the things I shared with her.
Making a project: Why, how, what, when, and who
To turn something into a project, start by defining your goals (the why) and scope (how much/how long), create a detailed project plan (how and what) with a timeline and budget (when/cost), assemble your team (who, for what), and then initiate the project (decision from above or the team).
To fill in the blanks on some of these particulars, I recommend seeking answers to the following questions.
Questions to answer when defining a project
What are your goals and objectives? Why is this important?
Goals are your specific outcomes for the project, defined as: Specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART).
These are the results you want to achieve by doing the thing.
If you aren’t clear on this, then you shouldn’t undertake the project.
How will you know you’re successful? What are your measures of success?
Break down your goals further, or identify other KPIs that will be relevant to understanding success or failure.
Who should be involved and in what capacity?
Clarify stakeholders and roles.
Who should be involved and how?
Who will be responsible, accountable, consulted, or informed? (RACI)
What kind of budget do you need? What other resources do you need? How long will this take?
Define your budget or needs
Time, money, resources
Rationale
What are the major milestones, deliverables, or project dependencies?
What are the key milestones when something should be celebrated, measured, or communicated?
What is actually produced when you reach a milestone?
Do you need a Work Back Schedule (WBS)?
What would the overall timeline and schedule look like? How will you ensure that people are accountable for it?
Whether it’s a project timeline, roadmap, or Gantt, you need to map out as much as you can with what you have.
What kind of rituals or review cycles will you use to ensure the schedule is adhered to?
A Gantt chart can help outline key timelines and dependencies.
How will you communicate your plan, as well as any changes to it, once it’s in motion?
How many project-related meetings do you need to have? What are their goals? Could they be async?
How will you manage project status updates? Where will you share them?
What tool will you use to manage the project and communicate progress and updates?
I hope this helps some of the folks out there who are new to project management and looking to get started!
