"Neue" Lessons Learned aus IT-Projekten - PMI Munich Chaptertreffen am Jessy Magerl, PMP NCR Teradata EMEA Program Management Office

Lessons Learned Process

Lessons Learned Process: Objectives Determine what went unusually well and what went wrong >In Presales >With regard to project management >Technically >With regard to damaged relationships Capture what can be learned from both successes and failures Dessiminate these learning so that the lessons need not be learned again

Lessons Learned Approach Involve the whole project team to ensure that the complete picture is taken into account Establish the sequence of events >Define the timeline, milestones, critical events, etc. >What were turning points in the project and why? Capture the learning in the following form: >What was the experience? >What does the team recommend for the future?

Lessons Learned Approach Proposal Development Project Estimating, Planning or Administration Project Scoping Data Quality Functional or Technical Performance Acceptance Testing Organizing the Project Team Project Communications Contract Management Managing Contractors Managing Risk Managing Change Control Selling Follow-on Business Tools Used to Support the Project Innovations to Raise Project Profitability Customer Satisfaction Survey / Questionnaire Review a Lessons Learned Checklist to ensure that diverse aspects are covered:

Approach to Damaged Relationships Address the open issues Usually, one or more fundamental misunderstandings are at the heart of bad relationships >Unexpressed and unmet expectations >Unclear responsibilities >The impression that one person does not (want to?) understand the other Start a conversation with the following assumptions: >Each person gave the best they could at that moment, given their perspective of the situation >Nobody ever tries to harm the project/the other person on purpose

Approach to Damaged Relationships Determine if both parties want to resolve their differences Uncover common ground between the persons, i.e. >Commitment to the project >Commitment to quality >Commitment to a specific approach >... Discover something you can acknowledge the other person for (without giving up your position) Define the fundamental misunderstanding that caused the relationship to derail.

Some recent general Lessons Learned

Competition Competition has increased dramatically and the rules of the game have changed >Aggressive pricing: Management is prepared to „give away the shop“ to win business >Even in accounts where you have excellent relationships based on previous business, you may have to engage in competitive bidding processes >Decisions take longer to make than they used to >You may have to experiment with international labor sources / outsourcing

Confusion / Lack of Direction The Speed of Change has increased dramatically >You can no longer expect to have a smooth project >Quick reaction to change is more important than Earned Value >Projects are getting more and more messy >Reduce the size and duration of your projects Project owners are at the mercy of political pressures and organizational changes >The customer organization is changing at a rapid pace - the people you dealt with yesterday may be gone tomorrow - >Decisions are harder to get (everybody is „avoiding mistakes“!) >Decisions are revised quickly >It is not useful to insist on „doing it right“.

Personell Aspects There is no longer time to train somebody to do a specific job >YOU have to keep expanding your knowledge and skills (and be willing to invest your own time and money!) >You are expendable, especially if you don't perform! >When working on smaller projects, being the PM is not enough: you have to provide added value through Technical expertise Business consulting skills Selling follow-on business

Personell Aspects Social Skills are essential >Being a "team player" is a prerequisite but not enough It is insufficient to just do your best; the team must succeed and you have to meaningfully contribute to the team You have to support the team's development, display tolerance to other people's weaknesses, and intervene in case of people problems. Increasing your level of responsibility increases your value to your employer >Resisting change is not the answer! Learn to feel at ease in situations you cannot control Learn to work as a team – even with your customer (create „win/win“scenarios)

Lessons Learned Dissemination My question to you: "How can Lessons Learned be organized so that they are really useful for the next projects?" The problem: how can a project manager, under high pressure to get his next project started, retrieve pertinent Lessons Learned?