Guide to successful IT Projects - Parts I - II - III
The Project Planning Phase
This questionnaire is a tool or checklist to evaluate
an IT project proposal and
to ensure that all factors influencing the success of a project have been taken into
consideration in the planning of it.
Section I
Intuitively, how do I feel about this project?
Dangerous |
Might succeed |
Likely to succeed |
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Why?
Section II - Support for the Business
Ask yourself: |
Yes |
No |
Not sure |
1. Is the project well aligned with the
business plans and the Information Management Plans (IMP)? |
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2. Has an adequate business case analysis
been performed and the results well-documented and available? |
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3. Is the business case based on the full
cost of the system from initiation through implementation and estimated annual cost of
operation? |
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4. Has the Project Sponsor, representing the
users taken accountability and responsibility for project scope and definition? |
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5. Have the requirements been reviewed and
approved by the Project Sponsor? |
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6. Are there formal, documented plans in
place to involve appropriate levels of users throughout the project (from requirements
definition, through evaluation and acceptance of deliverables, product and integration
testing to final acceptance and sign-off)? |
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7. Has the Project Sponsor ensured user
commitment and support? |
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8. Is the project justification based on an
ROI
with an attractive projected return? |
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9. Are the project specifications precisely
defined? |
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10. Is there agreement from all executives
that the project is essential (either to support something else you are doing or for
future positioning)? |
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TOTALS |
____ |
____ |
____ |
Section III - Accountability
Ask yourself: |
Yes |
No |
Not sure |
1. Are the positions of project sponsor,
project leader and project manager filled? |
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2. Are there clearly defined, documented and
understood responsibilities, accountabilities and authorities for each of these positions? |
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3. Is the matrix defining the
accountabilities, responsibilities and authorities appropriate for this project? |
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4. If there is a need for a project manager
representing a contractor, are there clearly defined, documented (beyond the contract) and
understood responsibilities, accountabilities and authorities for this position? |
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5. Has the project manager identified
adequate resources to allocate to the scheduled tasks at the scheduled time? |
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6. Does the staff have sufficient expertise
in the project domain? |
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7. Is the project sponsor at the correct
level in the organization? Will this executive be held accountable for delivering the
benefits outlined in the proposal? |
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8. Has the project team and the organization
successfully implemented a project of similar size, scope, cost or duration? |
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9. Is the project within the demonstrated
capability of the department and contractors? |
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TOTALS |
____ |
____ |
____ |
Section IV - Corporate Project Manager Discipline
Ask yourself: |
Yes |
No |
Not sure |
1. Have the project manager and project
sponsor managed a project of this size, scope and complexity previously? |
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2. Does the project manager (Crown's
and/or contractor's side) have sufficient control over appropriate project resources? |
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3. Does the project manager (Crown's
and/or contractor's side) have the freedom and ability to act when warranted? |
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4. Is the Project Manager prepared to
escalate issues when warranted, based on pre-determined criteria? |
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5. Is the escalation path clear and
documented? |
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6. Is the necessary information available to
support decisive action? |
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7. In the event of serious problems, are
required decisions apt to be taken? |
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8. Is the project independent of other
projects which are presently underway (i.e., not relying on the successful completion of
other projects)? |
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TOTALS |
____ |
____ |
____ |
Section V - Risk Management
Ask yourself: |
Yes |
No |
Not sure |
1. Was a formal process used to break down
the work and estimate task duration? |
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2. Are formal mechanism or tools in place to
monitor the project schedule? |
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3. Are costs allocated in accordance with
work breakdown structures? |
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4. Do team leaders sign off on cost &
schedule estimates and are they held to budgetary constraints? |
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5. Have all known management and technical
risks been assessed and are mitigation strategies in place for all identified risks? |
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6. Does the project approach pass reasonable
checks for what is to be accomplished? |
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7. Are all external interfaces that are not
under your control? |
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8. Can the project manager and sponsor list
the current top 10 project risks? |
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9. Is the technology being used well tested
and has project staff sufficient experience in using it and knowledge of it? |
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10. Is it reasonable to expect financial
stability for the duration of the project? |
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11. Does the project approach pass
reasonableness checks in terms of what is to be accomplished in the project? |
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TOTALS |
____ |
____ |
____ |
Section VI - 'Success Barometer' Rating
Totals Calculation |
Green |
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Red |
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Yellow |
Totals from Section II: |
____ |
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Totals from Section III: |
____ |
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Totals from Section IV: |
____ |
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Totals from Section V: |
____ |
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Colour Totals |
____ |
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Project total
Green total _____ x 15 = ______ ______
+ Red Total ______ x (-10) = ______ ______
+ Yellow Total _____ x (-5) = ______
PROJECT TOTAL = ______
Plot the project total on the viability/success scale:
Red Zone |
Yellow Zone |
Green Zone |
|--------|---------|---------|---------|---------|---------|---------|--------|---------|---------|---------|
-400
0
300
600
Dangerous |
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Might succeed |
Likely to succeed |
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How does this rating compare to the one from Section I based strictly on your gut?
What does this tell you?
Recommendation
Approved (GREEN ZONE)
Approval withheld pending the following (YELLOW ZONE):
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Approval denied because (RED ZONE):
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
The Project Implementation/Execution Phase
This questionnaire is a tool or checklist to evaluate the progress of an IT
project and to ensure that all factors influencing its success are being closely monitored
during its execution
Section I
Intuitively, how do I feel about how this project is progressing?
Should be halted |
Continue with caution |
Proceed with confidence |
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Why?
Section II - Support for the Business
Ask yourself: |
Yes |
No |
Not sure |
1. Has the Project Sponsor, representing the
users, taken accountability and responsibility for keeping the project within scope? |
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2. Has the Project Sponsor ensured user
commitment throughout the project (from evaluation and acceptance of deliverables, product
and integration testing to final acceptance and sign-off)? |
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3. Have the business goals for the
organization changed and if so, is the new system still aligned with the goals of the
organization? |
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4. Has the business case been reviewed and
revalidated at each scheduled gate? |
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5. Has the business case been reviewed and
revalidated whenever there was significant change to the project or business function? |
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6. If the business case has changed, has the
proper project re-approval by the department been sought? |
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7. If project specifications have changed
significantly, have these changes been well documented and approved by the appropriate
stakeholders? |
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TOTALS |
____ |
____ |
____ |
Section III - Accountability
Ask yourself: |
Yes |
No |
Not sure |
1. Do status/progress meetings occur
regularly? |
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2. Are issues raised and dealt with? |
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3. Is this project on time and on budget? |
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4. Are changes in scope being managed? |
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5. Are adequate staff allocated to the
scheduled tasks at the scheduled time? |
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6. Is the matrix defining the
accountabilities, responsibilities and authorities still appropriate for this project? |
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7. Have all key players lived up to their
accountabilities and responsibilities? If not, has this been addressed |
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8. Are the contractor's project
management activities reviewed by the Crown's project manager periodically? |
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TOTALS |
____ |
____ |
____ |
Section IV - Corporate Project Manager Discipline
Ask yourself: |
Yes |
No |
Not sure |
1. In the event of serious problems, has the
necessary information been available to support decisive action? |
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2. In the event of serious problems, have
required decisions been taken promptly? |
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3. Are the procurement, contracting and
security issues being dealt with? |
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4. Is the project maintaining a positive
image (i.e., there are no rumours that the project is in trouble)? |
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5. Is the project manager avoiding
premature, inordinate and inappropriate use of contingency funding? |
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6. Is the project manager maintaining
sufficient control over appropriate project resources? |
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7. Is the contractor providing complete
information on project performance and progress? |
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8. Are project managers going to others in
the organization for relevant knowledge, skills and experience for advice and support? |
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TOTALS |
____ |
____ |
____ |
Section V - Risk Management
Ask yourself: |
Yes |
No |
Not sure |
1. Have any new risks surfaced and are they
being addressed properly? |
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2. Is it still reasonable to expect
financial stability for the remainder of the project? |
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3. Have there been minimal changes to the
organization or the business since project initiation? |
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4. Are the formal mechanism and tools used
to monitor the project schedule adequate? |
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5. Are the team leaders being held to
budgetary constraints? |
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6. Does the management approach continue to
ensure coordination of all sub-projects, ensure communication among different sub-project
teams and address shared horizontal issues? |
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7. Are internal/external peer reviews being
held as scheduled? |
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8. Are oversight reviews by a senior
steering committee being carried out at each gate? |
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9. Are regular review sessions held to
review the continued relevance of the project, project performance, and to raise concerns
about actual/potential problems? |
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TOTALS |
____ |
____ |
____ |
Section VI - 'Success Barometer' Rating
Totals Calculation |
Green |
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Red |
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Yellow |
Totals from Section II: |
____ |
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____ |
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____ |
Totals from Section III: |
____ |
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____ |
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____ |
Totals from Section IV: |
____ |
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____ |
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____ |
Totals from Section V: |
____ |
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____ |
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____ |
Colour Totals |
____ |
|
____ |
|
____ |
Project total
Green total _____ x 15 = ______ ______
+ Red Total ______ x (-10) = ______ ______
+ Yellow Total _____ x (-5) = ______
PROJECT TOTAL = ______
Plot the project total on the viability/success scale:
Red Zone |
Yellow Zone |
Green Zone |
|--------|---------|---------|---------|---------|---------|---------|--------|---------|--------|---------|
-400 0
300
600
Should be halted |
Continue with
caution |
Proceed with confidence |
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How does this rating compare to the one from Section I based strictly on
your gut?
What does this tell you?
Recommendation
Project should continue (GREEN ZONE
Project should halt until the following have been addressed to my satisfaction(YELLOW ZONE):
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
The project should be halted because(RED ZONE):
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
The Project Completion and Review Phase
This questionnaire is a tool or checklist to evaluate the success of a completed
IT project and to ensure that all the factors have been evaluated and that any lessons
learned are documented and fed to the continuous learning loop. It can provide valuable
information during the project wrap-up session
Section I
Intuitively, how do I feel about how this project completed?
Bombed |
Moderate success |
Great success |
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Why?
Section III - Support for the Business
Ask yourself: |
Yes |
No |
Not sure |
1. Were the clients involved throughout the
project from evaluation and acceptance of deliverables, product and integration testing to
final acceptance and sign-off? |
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2. Were all types of clients represented in
the project? |
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3. Did the clients carry through on their
commitment to the level of effort required of them? |
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4. Was the client satisfied with the final
deliverable? |
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5. Was the final product aligned with the
goals of the organization? |
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6. Did the project remain within the
predefined scope? |
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7. Were any changes to project
specifications documented and approved by stakeholders? |
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8. Was the project consistent and compatible
with the department's information and technology direction, strategies, architectures
and infrastructures? |
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9. Was the business case reviewed and
revalidated at each scheduled gate? |
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10. Was the business case reviewed and
whenever there was significant change to the project or business function? |
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TOTALS |
____ |
____ |
____ |
Section III - Accountability
Ask yourself: |
Yes |
No |
Not sure |
1. Were all issues resolved in a timely
fashion and to everyone's satisfaction? |
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2. Did the project finish on time and within
budget? |
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3. Was the project adequately staffed during
all phases? |
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4. Were issues with respect to weak or
poorly performing personnel quickly and adequately addressed? |
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5. Was a project wrap-up session held to
document 'lessons learned'? |
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6. Did the project sponsor assume the
responsibility for realizing the benefits predicted for the project? |
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7. Did the project leader assume the
responsibility and accountability for all aspects of the project (internal and external)? |
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8. Did the project achieve all its defined
objectives? |
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TOTALS |
____ |
____ |
____ |
Section IV - Corporate Project Manager Discipline
Ask yourself: |
Yes |
No |
Not sure |
1. In the event there were serious problems,
was the necessary information available to support decisive action? |
|
|
|
2. Were required decisions taken promptly? |
|
|
|
3. Did the project maintain a positive image
throughout? |
|
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4. Did project managers avoid premature,
inordinate and inappropriate use of contingency funding? |
|
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5. Did the project manager maintain
sufficient control over project resources? |
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6. Did the department make use of an
apprenticeship program to provide valuable experience to junior project managers? |
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TOTALS |
____ |
____ |
____ |
Section V - Risk Management
Ask yourself: |
Yes |
No |
Not sure |
1. Were all risks identified and managed
properly? |
|
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|
2. Were the mechanisms and tools used to
monitor the project schedule adequate? |
|
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|
3. Were team leaders held to budgetary
constraints? |
|
|
|
4. Was there adequate communication to all
involved personnel throughout the project? |
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5. Did the contractor provide necessary
information on project performance and progress? |
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6. Did the project reviews (including
internal/external peer reviews) occur as scheduled? |
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7. Was there enough time, money and
resources to get the job done right? |
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8. Were there adequate contingency plans for
potential problems (i.e., no problems arose for which there were no contingency plans)? |
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9. Had the project complexity been
accurately determined before start-up? |
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10. Were all changes analyzed quickly and
brought to management's attention in a timely fashion? |
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TOTALS |
____ |
____ |
____ |
Section VI
Totals Calculation |
Green |
|
Red |
|
Yellow |
Totals from Section II: |
____ |
|
____ |
|
____ |
Totals from Section III: |
____ |
|
____ |
|
____ |
Totals from Section IV: |
____ |
|
____ |
|
____ |
Totals from Section V: |
____ |
|
____ |
|
____ |
Colour Totals |
____ |
|
____ |
|
____ |
Project total
Green total _____ x 15 = ______ ______
+ Red Total ______ x (-10) = ______ ______
+ Yellow Total _____ x (-5) = ______
PROJECT TOTAL = ______
Plot the project total on the success scale:
Red Zone |
Yellow Zone |
Green Zone |
|--------|---------|---------|---------|---------|---------|---------|--------|---------|--------|--------|
-400
0
300
600
Bombed |
|
Moderate success |
Great success |
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How does this rating compare to the one from Section I based strictly on
your gut?
What does this tell you?
Recommendations for Similar Future Projects
(based on lessons learned from current project)
1.
2.
3.
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