Do you know if your project is doing well?
I mean, really. How can you tell?
Because your customer hasn’t shouted at you yet? Clearly, that’s an unsatisfactory way to find out. So how can we do better?
CMMI claims:
The purpose of Project Monitoring and Control (PMC) is to provide an understanding of the project’s progress so that appropriate corrective actions can be taken when the project’s performance deviates significantly from the plan.
Did you read the quote? All the way to the end? There’s a big issue hiding there: the plan.
So I need a plan now?
Sure.
And you always have one. And so does your customer.
Project planning sounds very top-heavy, and sonmehow not suited to your situation. But the thing is: even if nothing was explicitly agreed on – everybody had some kind of idea in their heads. So a plan always exists, whether you recognise it or not.
So the first and very important step is to make your plan explicit. Put it in writing, think about it.
Most importantly, define measurable goals. A schedule will almost always be among them, usually for deliveries.
Project plans sound very top-heavy, but that’s just because “plan” does.
It can be a very simple thing, just five lines in a notebook. Start date, finish date. Plus, of course, the list of work products and features that will be delivered.
Just committing this base to writing and thus making it explicit may help you gain clarity.
The best-laid plans
These plans never work. Just accept that.
You will never be done on schedule. Either your work will be done too early (yeah, right) or too late. But to actually nail a delivery milestone, organically, just by working at your pace, lifting your fingers from the keyboard at the end and discovering that today is delivery day?
The important thing is to be aware of where you stand, so you can take action in time.
If you spot potential delays early enough, you will have more options to react. Talk to your customer. Change your schedule. Hire outside help. Get rid of distractions.
But if you wait too long to figure out your situation and how to react, all these options will be closed to you.
If, on the other hand, you notice that you will be done early, you may want to take action as well. Maybe it’s time to look for other projects to fill available time? Talk to your customer about tightening the schedule (both your delivery — and his payment!)?
What to do
Having a plan is nice, but it doesn’t actually solve anything on its own.
Periodically revisit it, and decide whether you can still achieve the goals st down in it.
If they are slipping out of reach, try to find the reasons for this, then come up with solutions (in this order!).
Make this a regular action, so you can be sure you stay on top of your commitments.
As a bonus, as you keep doing this the feedback loop you created will enable you to learn to plan better. This means less stress, happier customers and much more enjoyable working.