HealthCheck Project Management Business Template
What is a HealthCheck?
When should you use it?
The Projects HealthCheck template provides a structured method for assessing the current status of the Projects area of your business based on industry best practices.
Make the use of HealthChecks part of your annual review of the critical areas of your business. However, ensure that your improvement actions are planned and monitored on a more regular (quarterly) basis. Note that for some teams, the HealthCheck will also form part of an external audit or compliance process driven by customers or industry regulators.
Why is it relevant? As industries become more competitive survival is about doing more with less whilst still delivering against customer expectations at a level that exceeds the competition. To achieve this you need to: 1) understand what ‘best practice’ looks like, and 2) understand your current performance – ideally against the competition.
Who needs to be involved? The HealthCheck is completed by all those that are responsible for performance in this particular area of the business, but ensure you seek the views of all those involved – even if you do not agree with them. Stakeholders may mainly be internal to the business, but ensure that you get an external perspective involving the views of key customers and suppliers.
How should you implement it? Plan the HealthCheck carefully and ensure that you get the right people involved early in the process. Gather information through face-to-face interviews where possible, although electronic checklists can enable you to involve a larger group. Gather evidence of performance as you go. Then consolidate the various views and look for areas of inconsistency across different stakeholders, and assess areas of concern. Finally, develop a clear action plan with ownership and timings for getting to green or for improving the score on an individual item.
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HealthCheck Project Management This is a case example based on a fictitious company called TVT – all the data is displayed for demonstration purposes only. For a detailed explanation of what each cell is used for please refer to the Virtual Consultant on the following pages.
ID
Category
1
Business Needs
A
Align to Business Imperatives
B
Evaluation criteria Score
Status
All current projects are clearly aligned to the business strategy and to strategic priorities
2
Green
Understand Consumer Requirements
All projects reflect customer and consumer needs within their objectives and supporting information, be they internal or external
3
Green
C
Identify links to other projects
The interdependencies between projects are highlighted in the projects’ charter from either a risk management or synergies perspective
2
Amber
2
Project Goals
Score
Status
A
Setting objectives
All projects have clearly understood, actionable SMART objectives
4
Green
B
Agreeing Key Performance Indicators
All projects have clear and agreed KPIs and Return on Investment (RoI) targets
4
Green
C
Establishing the business case
The organisation understands how important each project is to delivering value to the business and the business case has been agreed by all stakeholders
5
Green
3
Stakeholders
Score
Status
A
Identify Stakeholders
Project managers and their core teams understand the key stakeholders and have carried out some stakeholder analysis
4
Amber
B
Assess commitment
The commitment of project stakeholders has been assessed and the core project team is aware of the results
3
Amber
C
Influence supporters & resistors
A communication plan has been created in order to address the commitment, or otherwise, of project supporters or ‘resistors’
4
Green
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4
Workplan & Timings
Score
Status
A
Define Tasks& Priorities
All projects have a list of defined and identified tasks and the structure of the project is clear
4
Green
B
Identify Critical Path
The Critical Path has been calculated and the earliest finish date of the project understood
4
Green
C
Agree Milestones
Milestones against which progress will be checked have been set appropriately
5
Green
5
Issues & Risks
Score
Status
A
Identify Issues & Risks
A risk register or log has been opened and is used throughout projects. Risks are reviewed and prioritised at team meetings
1
Red
A
Agree corrective actions
Actions to address risks are identified and plans changed accordingly.
2
Amber
C
Manage change requests
A change management process is in place for all projects and changes to the scope and plan of the project are managed by the project manager at regular meetings
2
Amber
6
The Team
Score
Status
A
Select project leader
The project manager (leader) has content and process experience relevant to the project in hand
3
Amber
B
Build the team
The team has a balance of skills and complements those of the project manager. The team has a common agreed goal
2
Amber
C
Agree roles & responsibilities
The roles and responsibilities of the core project team are clear and understood by all
3
Amber
7
Critical Decisions
Score
Status
A
Identify decisions
All decisions and their reasons are recorded for audit purposes
1
Red
B
Agree decision making process
The process by which issues are decided upon in the project is understood and authority levels are agreed
1
Red
C
Gaining buy-in
All stakeholders are informed of major changes in the project (scope or plan) and their input is sought and potential conflicts addressed
2
Red
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8
Resources & Budgets
Score
Status
A
Identify Resource requirements
Resources (consumables, materials, skills etc.) are identified up front
4
Green
B
Specify quantity and quality
All resources identified have clear quantitative and qualitative standards attached
5
Green
C
Agree budgets
All project budgets are understood and total project funding upfront is agreed with Project Sponsor and/or Finance Director
5
Green
9
Project Leadership
Score
Status
A
Right Skills
The project manager and project sponsor have the right process and content skills and complement each other
4
Green
B
Right Thinking
The project manager understands not only the process of delivering a project but understands the bigger picture and where the project fits, in order to be able to make the right decisions when appropriate
4
Green
C
Right Commitment
The project manager and sponsor are committed to the successful delivery of the project and its business outcomes, despite any personal reservations
5
Green
10
Communications
Score
Status
A
Upward
A process and platform exists for communicating progress and escalating issues to the Business, the Project Review Board (PRB), the Project Sponsor and/or Customers
4
Green
B
Sideways
A process and platform exists for communicating project and resource issues to other Project Managers and Functional Heads
5
Green
C
Downwards
A process and platform exists for communicating with the project team, suppliers and/or project specialists as necessary
3
Amber
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Audit Summary For each element of the checklist add up the scores of the 3 related questions and divide by 3 – this will give you an average score for that specific element. See example below. Element
Score
0
1
2
3
4
5
Improvement Actions
Business Needs
2.3
Need to improve effective linking between projects in the overall portfolio
Project Goals
4.3
Stakeholders
3.7
Workplan & Timings
4.3
Issues & Risks
1.7
Need to formalise the use of a structure Risk Register on all projects – consolidated across the portfolio
The Team
2.7
Need to focus on the skills of the Project Leader and key members of the team (gap analysis)
Critical Decisions
1.3
Need to formalise the process of capturing critical project decisions
Resources & Budgets
4.7
Project Leadership
4.3
Communications
3.9
Need to ensure earlier involvement of stakeholders in project planning in order to gain commitment
Need to improve effective communication of project issues and outcomes to all stakeholders
In the TVT example above, the managers conducting the Audit have identified that the weakest link is that of the Critical Decisions used (average score 1.3). The plan would therefore be to focus attention on and improve this area within the business first until it was no longer the weakest link. Once the senior management team has increased confidence that the Platform (in this example) has improved, the next stage would be to focus on the Issues & Risks (1.7) and Business Needs (2.3) areas.
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Virtual ConsultantTM The Virtual ConsultantTM provides a step-by-step guide to completing this business template. It is worded as a series of questions designed to make you stop and think about this topic in a challenging and creative way – as if a business coach or consultant was sitting next to you.
HealthCheck Use the following checklist to assess the current state of your team: Consider each criterion in turn and use the following scoring system to identify current performance: 0 – Not done or defined within the business: unaware of its importance to project management 1 – Aware of area but little or no work done in the business 2 – Recognised as an area of importance. Some work done in this area 3 – Area clearly defined and work done in the area in terms of project management 4 – Consistent use of best practice tools and techniques in this area across the business 5 – Area is recognised as being ‘best in class’ and could be a reference area for best practice Then reflect on the lowest scores and identify those areas that are critical to success and flag then as status ‘Red’ requiring immediate attention. Then identify those areas that you are concerned about, and flag those as status ‘Amber’ implying areas of risk that need to be monitored closely. In your project management framework the whole Project management Process is only as good as each individual element. If one ‘link in the chain’ is weak then the Project management Process within the company will not operate to optimum efficiency and there is an increased risk of failure. The action plan therefore should be to focus attention and resources on the elements of greatest weakness first, and then to move the whole framework to a level of excellence. This approach optimises the use of resources and sets up a process of continuous improvement.
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HealthCheck Project Management Use the following blank template to address an issue or opportunity within your business or team
Form 1: Detailed Audit ID
Category
Evaluation criteria
1
Business Needs
A
Align to Business Imperatives
All current projects are clearly aligned to the business strategy and to strategic priorities
B
Understand Consumer Requirements
All projects reflect customer and consumer needs within their objectives and supporting information, be they internal or external
C
Identify links to other projects
The interdependencies between projects are highlighted in the projects’ charter from either a risk management or synergies perspective
2
Project Goals
A
Setting objectives
All projects have clearly understood, actionable SMART objectives
B
Agreeing Key Performance Indicators
All projects have clear and agreed KPIs and Return on Investment (RoI) targets
C
Establishing the business case
The organisation understands how important each project is to delivering value to the business and the business case has been agreed by all stakeholders
3
Stakeholders
A
Identify Stakeholders
Project managers and their core teams understand the key stakeholders and have carried out some stakeholder analysis
B
Assess commitment
The commitment of project stakeholders has been assessed and the core project team is aware of the results
C
Influence supporters & resistors
A communication plan has been created in order to address the commitment, or otherwise, of project supporters or ‘resistors’
4
Workplan & Timings
A
Define Tasks& Priorities
All projects have a list of defined and identified tasks and the structure of the project is clear
B
Identify Critical Path
The Critical Path has been calculated and the earliest finish date of the project understood
© SofTools, 2009. For more information on related products and services, visit www.Fast-Track-Me.com or contact us at:
[email protected]
Score
Status
Score
Status
Score
Status
Score
Status
C
Agree Milestones
Milestones against which progress will be checked have been set appropriately
5
Issues & Risks
A
Identify Issues & Risks
A risk register or log has been opened and is used throughout projects. Risks are reviewed and prioritised at team meetings
A
Agree corrective actions
Actions to address risks are identified and plans changed accordingly.
C
Manage change requests
A change management process is in place for all projects and changes to the scope and plan of the project are managed by the project manager at regular meetings
6
The Team
A
Select project leader
The project manager (leader) has content and process experience relevant to the project in hand
B
Build the team
The team has a balance of skills and complements those of the project manager. The team has a common agreed goal
C
Agree roles & responsibilities
The roles and responsibilities of the core project team are clear and understood by all
7
Critical Decisions
A
Identify decisions
All decisions and their reasons are recorded for audit purposes
B
Agree decision making process
The process by which issues are decided upon in the project is understood and authority levels are agreed
C
Gaining buy-in
All stakeholders are informed of major changes in the project (scope or plan) and their input is sought and potential conflicts addressed
8
Resources & Budgets
A
Identify Resource requirements
Resources (consumables, materials, skills etc.) are identified up front
B
Specify quantity and quality
All resources identified have clear quantitative and qualitative standards attached
C
Agree budgets
All project budgets are understood and total project funding upfront is agreed with Project Sponsor and/or Finance Director
© SofTools, 2009. For more information on related products and services, visit www.Fast-Track-Me.com or contact us at:
[email protected]
Score
Status
Score
Status
Score
Status
Score
Status
9
Project Leadership
A
Right Skills
The project manager and project sponsor have the right process and content skills and complement each other
B
Right Thinking
The project manager understands not only the process of delivering a project but understands the bigger picture and where the project fits, in order to be able to make the right decisions when appropriate
C
Right Commitment
The project manager and sponsor are committed to the successful delivery of the project and its business outcomes, despite any personal reservations
10
Communications
A
Upward
A process and platform exists for communicating progress and escalating issues to the Business, the Project Review Board (PRB), the Project Sponsor and/or Customers
B
Sideways
A process and platform exists for communicating project and resource issues to other Project Managers and Functional Heads
C
Downwards
A process and platform exists for communicating with the project team, suppliers and/or project specialists as necessary
Form 2: Audit Summary Element
Score
0
1
2
3
4
5
Notes
Business Needs Project Goals Stakeholders Workplan & Timings Issues & Risks The Team Critical Decisions Resources & Budgets Project Leadership Communications
© SofTools, 2009. For more information on related products and services, visit www.Fast-Track-Me.com or contact us at:
[email protected]
Score
Status
Score
Status