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| The Most Important 8 Factors to Ensuring Project Success |
Before we begin, let’s take a look at the factors that can make or break projects. As you move forward, keep these factors in mind so that your project will start out on a positive note. If these success factors do not exist in your organization, perhaps more up front work will be needed before you begin your project management journey.
Project Success Factor 1
In order for project management to be successful within an organization, it must have top down, senior-level or executive support. The project owner must support the benefi ts of the project, accept responsibility for funding and budget status, concur with project and charter requirements, sign off on risk plans, and be knowledgeable of the status of both planned and actual results.
Project Success Factor 2
Clients and users must have ownership of the project. This is demonstrated by providing resources, being involved in the project initiative, signing off on requirements once the plan is completed, signing off on the schedule, participating in the risk management processes, and concurring with scope changes.
Project Success Factor 3
Business processes must be fully known. The project manager and the team must demonstrate knowledge of business processes. Many projects are generated due to a business problem, and the team must understand that problem and defi ne how the project solution will change business processes. When there are changes, the impacts should be documented and fully understood by the client. Process improvement metrics must also be identifi ed so that it can be determined whether the project has met its intended purpose relative to the business problem.
Project Success Factor 4
Projects should be chosen based on a sound business plan that is completed for a particular stage or effort. The infrastructure and business solution units must be identifi ed and synched with the corporate plan and economically validated.
Project Success Factor 5
The project scope should be clearly defi ned and identifi ed in the project charter. Impact analysis relative to budget and schedule must be performed when scope changes occur, and the focus of the team must be limited to approved changes only. Owners must step up to the risks and benefi ts for all scope changes.
Project Success Factor 6
An effective change control process must exist that is followed by all stakeholders. The project manager must regularly review all changes and their impacts on the owner, who must approve change requests and associated funding.
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Project Success Factor 7
The business drivers must be fully identified and agreed upon by the owner and user community. In other words, the project must add value to the business. The solution elements of the project should be traced back to business drivers, with success criteria defined at the onset and benchmarked at each phase. A means to collect data should be established so that the metrics can be demonstrated.
Project Success Factor 8
There should be limited experimentation with new technology. Previous use must be demonstrated prior to commitment for mission-critical projects. Previous industry application must be demonstrated before application for customer-affecting projects. The appropriate technology group must agree to support the technology in a deployed state.
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