1 LaCrosse PMI Chapter Meeting A discussion about the Introduction of PM within your business 4/20/2011 Jim Strong Mayo Clinic DLMP PMO Director

Page 2 Today’s agenda  Adding Value to the PM process at your business  Basic project parameters or questions that need to be asked  Review seven subjects for discussion and consideration Sponsor / Proponent / Champion Scope Schedule / Key Milestones Risk Resources / Resource Managers Issues / Action Items Status  Exercise - Capture group thoughts on how to deal with these subjects in your business or work area  Summary and discussion of the ideas we’ve generated today

Page 3 Adding Value to the PM process at your business “What’s so special about PM methodology? Everyone does projects at my company (or in my work area) and they seem to do okay without applying all the formality associated with applying a PM and / or all the associated overhead” “Projects are a fun break from by typical job” “The project will get done when it gets done, if we try to go faster, we’ll jeopardize quality” “As a functional manager, I can get recognition from the business leadership if I can pull this off, why should I relinquish this opportunity?” Perception is Reality……..

Page 4 Are you familiar with any of these Questions? Where do you begin the project? What is the team planning to deliver or achieve? When will this project be completed? Is there a stated due date by the customer? What is the acceptance criteria? What are the team member roles or responsibilities? Are there any significant activity dependencies? What major obstacles or potential issues (risks) that could impact the team? How should the team communicate between its members or to a vendor / contractor? How should the team keep the key stakeholders or decision makers appraised of the activity?

Page 5 Sponsor / Proponent / Champion Take advantage of the sponsors key role in bringing about the change that the project is launching Meet regularly, even if there are no major issues confronting the project team Keeping the sponsor informed prepares them for helping make the best decisions when the situation does arise

Page 6 Scope It’s as important to nail down what is not in scope – also helps manage project expectations Key “boundaries” need to be established – getting definitions for data usually contained in a project charter is key to project planning Can we phase in the new capability or asset to gain some early project achievements?

Page 7 Schedule / Key Milestones Did you allow buffer in schedule? (under commit, over achieve) Is the business counting on this new capability or asset at a specific time? Show the progress toward completing key milestones helps the project team, sponsor and key stakeholders to have a better feel for progress and when the business change is available Helps establish accountability

Page 8 Risk What don’t you know now? What are your key dependencies – can you control them or not? Are the any opportunities that you can take advantage of in conjunction with the project that position your business even better than just completing the project?

Page 9 Resources / Resource Managers Get to know the resource managers well Keep the resource managers in the know about the project status Gain commitment from the resource manager on how much the resource will be available for how long Identify the process for letting each other know about business priorities that may divert key resources Be aware of competing interests between functional groups Types of Skills Level of Expertise Quantity

Page 10 Issues / Action Items Document and Track them! Assign person responsible Target date for update or closure Escalate if team can’t make decision or see their way through

Page 11 Status Publicly display project info? Overall schedule Highlight key milestones Trend charts (issues, % complete, etc Weekly s to sponsor / team / key stakeholders? If the project is key to the business, communication of successes can provide more positive reinforcement or “cheerleaders” for your team n n n n a b c d e f g h Project Cost Project Progress TODAY

Page 12 Exercise 10 – 15 minutes Using the post-it notes at your table; write down your ideas relating to each of the seven topic areas It’s okay to share your ideas or brainstorm with other folks at your table

Page 13 Discussion and Summary Did the discussion today help you? Did you discover a different way of looking at how to provide value to your business or work area? How will you apply this different way of looking at your PM role when you return to work?