How to Use Project Planning for Best Effect

So how do you use project planning activity for best effect?

Here at EasyPM we have some simple thoughts to keep you on the right track and get more from your project planning activity.

First of all you need to create the plan. This is a skill in itself and often as a project manager, you will find yourself writing plans for activities you don't fully understand.

But before I talk about that, the key thing to remember is that you can use the plan as your key to execution. It is is your ticket to make it all happen. Just remember to get the ticket validated by the executives and project stakeholders. If you have the power to proceed on your own say-so then that is ok but most times on projects your "customers" are senior people in the organisation for whom you are running the project and you need them to agree that the plan is good and will deliver the required benefits.

So here are a few useful thoughts on how to use the project planning phase to your best advantage.

1. While building the plan, use it to educate yourself and understand what the project will deliver and how the promised business benefits will be delivered. The point here is that you will get to talk to experts and ask their advice on how activities should be structured, what they will deliver, who will do the work and the importance of the stages and dependent activities. Write it up and go back to them later to confirm your schedule of activities and resources.

2. Share the final plan with the team. Walk them through the whole thing and also their part. Make sure that the initial schedules are realistic and have some contingency for problems which will arise.

3. Use the plan to identify the cost of the project. Capture appropriate costs such as:

• Capital costs. For example computer hardware, buildings ... think of physical stuff.
• Revenue expenses. For example planned travel expenses.
• Run-rate costs. For example planned resource salary costs per day/week/month.
• On-going costs after completion. For example system maintenance

And so on. Depending on the project costing can be complex or simple. Either way, as project manager you must understand the cost variables and how costs will be accumulated through the project lifecycle.

4. Take time in the planning phase to think about risks, assumptions, issues and dependencies that will deflect the successful progress of the project as it proceeds under your strong project management skills. Make sure that you have these risks and issues captured somewhere, keep them under review and also add new ones to your list as they arise.

5. Use the plan to demonstrate to the project executives that the final product has been understood, broken down, resourced and scheduled and get them to sign off on your plan.

6. Review the plan regularly and update it with progress. The plan will change in some way through the project and there will be major issues to be resolved - guaranteed for most. Just don't assume that you have written it once, shared it and it all will happen as if by magic. It won't. Tasks will slip, people will let you down on delivery, some costs will soar for various reasons. Keep these changes in your sight. If you do, the plan will become your roadmap to successful completion.

The planning phase, as you can see, is more than just writing down the schedule of activities. There are great opportunities to achieve buy-in from the team and the project sponsors. Fundamentally, you (the project manager) can get to grips with the challenge you are facing, what it entails, who is doing it, how much it costs and issues that will prevent your success. With all of this in place, your armour is intact. Let battle commence!