Tailoring

By Mileta Novakovic

Introduction

Tailoring of project management processes or a methodology to the project is one of the critical moments during the project life cycle. Every possible methodology mentions this activity and stresses its importance but only a few of them actually explain how to do it. Some authors say: “Use your judgment!”, and others: “Get your whole team and discuss it”. What if you do not yet have your team as you are in the project’s initiation phase and you need to come up with the first set of deliverables?

Sorry, this is a job for the project manager, at least in this phase. The project charter determines the project objectives and sets out your goal. The deliverables, unless specifically demanded by the stakeholders, are only the stepping stones that will bring you to the project objectives. A project is not about producing the deliverables. Here is one example: if you have a business process documentation project where the objective is to capture only the business process do you need to have design documentation and system testing? Of course not.

There’s a vast gap between the theory and practice of project management. The variety of project sizes and objectives makes it very difficult to have a methodology or approach that can fit all of them.

Before we start let us clarify few practical assumptions:
 

1. The budget for the project is determined ahead of time – usually by the business case, usually an “educated guess”, or as a result of a feasibility study.
2. The start and end date of the project are given before the project starts – quite a frequent case, you are “time-boxed” before you even start.

How to Tailor Project Management Processes

Here are practical steps on how to tailor the processes to the project needs:
 

1. Methodology: Learn your methodology and the project management processes which are the standard in your organization inside and out. This is a must.
2. Project Objectives, WHAT: Start with the project charter and focus on the project objectives.  You will know exactly what is expected from the project and what the sponsors will give money for.  If this step is not clear, spend some more time clarifying these project objectives until all the project stakeholders have the same and clear vision, including you.
3. Matching: This is strictly work for the project manager.  The team does not exist at this point, so the project manager is the only one qualified to perform this crucial task.  Spread out all processes and potential deliverables in front of you (write them down on stickies) and focus on the project objectives.  For each project objective, create a vision of how it will get done.  Step by step, select appropriate steps (stickies).  Repeat this process for each project objective.
4. Consolidation and Elimination of Duplicates: As you now have a nice pile of the deliverables and processes for each objective, sequence all of them chronologically.  Determine the common processes and deliverables and eliminate duplicates.  You will probably need some business requirements, designs, testing or implementation.
5. High Level Schedule: As mentioned before, the business case has already defined how quickly the project needs to be completed as well as the allocated budget, so now is the time to confirm those assumptions. Estimate the time to complete each process based on your experience or you can use any estimation technique. This is your first high level estimate so do not worry if you do not have all the elements for a precise estimate.. You will have plenty of time to eventually correct the schedule during the planning process.  If you find that the list of processes and deliverables cannot fit the project timeline, then you need to change something:

   < >try to combine some of the deliverables, e.g. on bigger projects you have separate analysis and design documents, so combine the two,combine system and integration tests,involve users during the system test and make the user acceptance test shorter.Project Charter: Complete the charter and obtain approval from the stakeholders for the project.

6. Detailed Project Plan and Schedule: Once the team is hired and after you create a detailed project plan with a schedule, review it with the whole team. My experience is that the best approach is to provide the schedule skeleton and ask your team leads to provide the detailed activities within their jurisdiction. This schedule is created from the top and the bottom at the same time.  During this process you adjust or correct your tailoring approach.
7. Project Controls: Adjust project controls to the size of the project as well:
   • risks can be reviewed during separate sessions with the stakeholders or can be reviewed during regular steering committee sessions, or can be just included in weekly/bi-weekly status reports;
   • project’s change control should be strictly followed on all projects, but do you need a separate review board to make the decisions regarding the changes or can the steering committee handle that task as well?
   • if the project is small the sponsor can approve the changes and you do not need the board.

Conclusion

The tailoring of the methodology does not mean skipping certain steps. It means combining them with others in order to save time and money. The tailoring will make or break the project. With proper tailoring you will deliver your project on time, within budget and with the proper scope.

Projects are usually already “boxed” when you step in as a project manager. The project objectives are also fixed, at least at the beginning of the project. You are also responsible for the quality of deliverables. Consequently, the only option you still have is to tailor the project management processes to the needs of the project. You can achieve that by following the presented steps.

Your goal as a project manager is to achieve the project objectives. The project management processes are only a tool. This tool can and should be creatively adjusted to the available resources.

About the Author

Mileta Novakovic is a senior program and project manager with more than 25 years of experience.  His industry expertise includes government, retail and distribution, insurance, air transportation and high tech.