Writing a project plan
The project plan is one of the cornerstones of successful change efforts. Harvey Mackay
is quoted as saying; "Failures don't plan to fail; they fail to plan." With 2006
come new projects, improvements and opportunities. Prosci and the BPR Online Learning
Center offer a Project Planning
Toolkit that gives guidelines, checklists and a complete project plan template.
Establishing a context for the project plan
In a recent study with 327 teams, project planning was the second most critical
activity to the project's success.
The project plan (sometimes called the project prospectus at the early stages of a
project) is the definition document for your project. You use it to organize the project
and communicate project information to others.
When a project begins, the project plan may be only 5 to 10 pages, and targets the
project sponsors and newly formed team. At this early stage, it serves as a document of
understanding, and is key to ensuring that all sponsors and team members are working
together with the same objectives and scope.
As the project plan moves forward, detailed work plans are added, resulting in project
plans ranging from 10 to over 100 pages. The project plan then guides the project, and is
a critical tool for project management.
The project plan:
- serves as a document of understanding and negotiation with stakeholders
- is key to ensuring that all sponsors and team members are working together with the same
objectives and scope
- guides the project
- is a critical tool for project management
Customers of the Project Plan
- the users of the processes and systems
- those people who can approve the budget
- your project team
Suppliers to the Document
- the team leader or facilitator (typically the author)
- the project stakeholders
- senior managers or business leaders
Components of the project plan
- When writing the project plan, you need to do the following:
- Describe the project and define the project scope (what is the project about; what is
included and not included)
- Establish project objectives and conditions of satisfaction (why is the project being
done; how will you measure success)
- Develop the project approach (how will the project be accomplished - this section starts
small with an outline of the methodology, and grows as detailed work plans are added)
- Describe the required team structure (who will do the work)
- Establish a project budget for the design phase (how much will it cost)
Getting started
Answer the following questions about your project:
| The customers of our project plan include: |
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| The contributors to our project plan include: |
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| The author of our project plan will be: |
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| The completion date for our project plan is: |
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| Before we circulate the plan widely, it should be reviewed
by: |
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Reviewing the project plan
Adjust the tone of the plan for your audience. Most importantly, involve your
stakeholders by having them review drafts of the plan.
Share draft copies of the project plan with team members and stakeholders, and gather
their input. Don’t wait until every section is complete before sharing the content,
and your thinking, with others on your team and with stakeholders. The project plan will
be a critical negotiation and communication tool for the project.
Find out more about the Project
Planning Toolkit
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Resources:
Project Planning Toolkit
2005 Best
Practices in Change Management
Change Management Pilot
Change
Management Toolkit.
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