Best Practices Process

Digital Templates

Requirements & Scope: Top Down Planning

4pm.com Achievement Network

We’ve based our Best Practices methodology on driving projects to measured business outcomes not pointless activities. Therefore, we begin our planning using the Best Practices scope interview and questioning techniques with executives to unearth the business results they expect from the project.

As the scale of the project expands, so does the methodology. Best Practices adds additional techniques for more complex project environments with multiple stakeholders. For larger customer/client projects, Best Practices expands further and adds techniques for assessing echelons of achievements in complex project situations.

Broad-brush Project Plan

4PM Broad-brush Project Plan

The next step in initiating the project is a Broad-brush project plan that is usually less than two pages long. In addition to the scope & achievement network developed above, it contains order of magnitude estimates of time, resources and cost for each of the high-level deliverables and the project as a whole. We also assess the risks we face on each of those high-level business achievements. Next, we identify the key assumptions for the project and then design an authority and accountability structure based on the achievement network. All these elements come together in a one or two page broad-brush plan for sponsor review and approval. As the scale of the project expands, each of the preceding elements can expand including more sophisticated risk analysis and mitigation, team development, procurement planning and quality control/assurance.

Work Breakdown Structure

4PM WBS Decomposition

In Best Practices, we do not develop the normal “To Do” list which is impossible to track or keep current. Instead, we develop a work breakdown structure that is concise and supports a management style of holding people accountable for their results rather than micro-managing all their activities. Building a Best Practices work breakdown structure takes more thinking and skills because we decompose the high-level achievement network down to the level of the "right size" assignments for each of our team members. Our students get lots of practice on this technique in our courses because it is so important for project success. The Best Practices approach yields commitment and accountability from team members and easier tracking and updating of the project plan. It allows project managers to quickly know the status of their project rather than spending hours updating the plan.

MS Project Scheduling & Optimization

4PM Techniques for MS Project

PMs can use Best Practices with a wide variety of project management software but most of our clients and students use Microsoft Project® so all our textbooks and courses include detailed instructions for using this software. The methodology includes techniques for building dynamic project schedules that make it easy for project managers to analyze alternative ways of doing the project and assess options for recovering if/when the project encounters problems. The Best Practices methodology also includes techniques for optimizing the project schedule and resources. These techniques get more sophisticated as the scale of the project expands. Optimization always includes the analysis of trade-offs between project scope, duration and budget, so the project manager can tailor the project plan to meet the executives’ or clients’ needs.

Status Reports: Spot Problems Early

4PM Variance and Problem ID

All the preceding steps from the development of measured achievements to a lean work breakdown structure and a dynamic software model allow project managers who use our Best Practices methodology to spot problems early when they’re small and most easily resolved. The measured achievements provide unambiguous checkpoints that allow PMs to compare where they are to where they should be. In tracking, we apply the Best Practices trade-off techniques to assess options for recovering from variances.

Best Practices is a straightforward methodology that minimizes paperwork and meetings and focuses on business results and accountability. We've designed Best Practices for organizations where many project team members are working on multiple projects. It also supports enterprise project management, portfolio management and the effective allocation of resources based on the organization's priorities and the business value projects produce.

See also Application of Best Practices Methodology for:

• Enterprise Project Management
• Consulting Projects
• Project Portfolio Management

We teach the Best Practices Methodology in all our courses and certifications.

We can tailor Best Practices to fit the culture and environment of your organization.