It’s important to know how to develop a project from these initial – and often rather vague – ideas into something more concrete.
2.1 Every masterpiece starts with a sketch
Projects don’t grow on trees, nor emerge out of thin air. As more companies adopt a project approach, they are recognizing early on when a work area should become a project: a peak in business activity with defined beginning and end points, requiring a multi-disciplinary team to carry it out.
Recognizing, initiating and developing a project idea are essential skills for any aspiring project manager.
1 Like trees, projects need strong roots. Make sure your project idea is grounded in the needs of your business, or it will be unlikely to command much support. Similarly, make sure it plays to your organization’s strengths – in other words, that it is practical and makes good use of your capabilities (as well as those of your suppliers).
2 Ideally, your project should be the solution to a business challenge. For example: how can we launch this new product succesfully? How can we cut costs and maximize opportunities
one minute wonder Before developing a project idea, ask three key questions:
• What does research show our customers or end users need? How will they make use of it?
• Why is this the right project (and is it at the right time) for our organization? How does it fit with our strategy, and with currently available resources?
• How are we (and our suppliers) going to deliver what customers need? What particular skills do we have that make this project the right choice?
for collaboration between teams? How can we improve e-communications with our customer base? All these challenges can be the inspiration for a project, such as a marketing plan, a team merger, or a new website.
3 Make sure you have the necessary support in place to get started. Try to view any criticism of your project proposal as constructive – it will help you identify potential risks and pitfalls, and to work out how to reduce the likelihood of these affecting your project.
4 If your project idea doesn’t get off the ground, don’t be discouraged. The cost of ‘closing’ your project at this stage is probably very small; this is rarely the case later on, so, by testing your idea before starting, you are likey to have saved a significant amount of money. Treat it is a learning experience and move on. Besides, without creative ideas, there would be no innovation!
Sometimes turning an initial idea into something more coherent requires a little creative effort. In the process-driven world of projects, this can seem difficult. However, that needn’t be the case. There are a number of tools you can use to turn a bright idea into a well-defined outline of your project.
Visual planning
‘Mind maps’ – diagrams representing ideas and tasks – can be very useful for brainstorming initial project ideas. They can range in complexity from simple spider diagrams to lavishly illustrated versions. They work by engaging both sides of the brain in ordering and prioritizing ideas. They are easy to produce on a sheet of paper or company whiteboard; there are also a number of mind-mapping software packages available (some are even free).
To create a mind map, identify a starting idea or goal, say ‘plan a launch party’ for your company’s new clothing store. Write this in the middle of a sheet of paper. Then identify the ‘basic ordering ideas’ (perhaps catering, invitations and publicity), around which individual activities can be clustered on the paper. Then identify individual tasks or smaller work areas coming off different lines of activities.
Non-visual planning
Not everyone thinks visually. Some people have an auditory preference (they like to think in words and sounds), while others prefer kinaesthetic communication (they respond best to concrete ideas).
When discussing your project proposal, try listening to the metaphors people use (‘it sounds like’, ‘it feels like’ and so on) to determine their preferences. This will help you structure your communications accordingly: for example, people with an auditory preference may find it easy to use a mnemonic to recall the key features of your project. (In Secret 1.3, the phrase A Project Is Managed is an example of a mnemonic). Those with a kinaesthetic preference may find it easier to be given a ‘walk-through’ of your main ideas.
Allowing all ideas during planning
Sometimes an initial project scoping meeting can become adversarial, with several points of view being made. Often it is the most skilfully (or forcefully!) argued approach that is adopted, which may or may not be the best one. You can resist this by using your role as Chair to ensure everyone has their say, and by using a structured questioning approach.
For example, you could invite participants to analyse a proposal from three perspectives:
• Dreamer. What are the possibilities here? What new things can we create?
• Critic. Is this idea really workable? What about the risks and downsides?
• Realist. What steps need to be taken to turn these ideas into reality?
This is known as the ‘Disney model’, after Walt Disney, who often used this approach. It will give you a measured view of the proposal, and help prevent a planning meeting from descending into adversarial arguments.
Once you’ve sketched an outline of your project, the next step is to document the key points of your project. You will need this in order to get the necessary approval to proceed.
This needn’t be a detailed plan of how you’re going to achieve everything connected with the project, but should be designed to give your stakeholders (especially those concerned with approving the necessary budget and resources) an idea of what’s in store. This document is known as a project brief, scope document or strategic outline case (SOC). Even if you have already been given approval to go ahead (sometimes called a project mandate), there are several reasons why putting together a SOC is important. These include:
1 Information. Ahead of a more detailed plan, it gives you a chance to inform your colleagues of what’s coming up (though this is no reason not to consider more informal means of communication, such as a staff newsletter).
2 Approval. If you haven’t yet received a mandate to carry out your project, presenting a ‘business case’ for your project is a necessary first step. This gives those responsible for approving the necessary expenditure the information they need in one compact document. Your SOC can be circulated in advance of a meeting, where you will have the chance to present your ideas and answer any questions.
3 Reassurance. By outlining what your project will and won’t deliver, and the resources required, a SOC may help allay fears or concerns that