Unit 330 Project Management

1.1 explain the difference between routine and project work

General approach

The key difference between projects and routine work is the result. The project is intended to create the unique result in restricted environment (scope, time, money), while routine work creates the repeatable result.

One of the easiest examples is car construction and manufacturing. Develop new model - project, build manufacturing line - project, build cars in series - routine work (even if you know that you will build this model of the car only 3 years).

Disclaimer for “routine work”

Same time, if you think about “routine work” as “daily routine, activities which you do day by day” it can be different from the general approach. One example is the world of software engineering, where developers write code as a daily routine. They can call it “routine work”, but eventually it will be a project, due to they create the unique result.

1.2 describe the elements of project work

Projects come in all shapes and sizes from small, simple ones to larger and more complex projects.

Whatever the size or type of project, there are 5 essential elements that you must get right in order to achieve a successful outcome.

Whether your project is about improving an existing product or service, managing change or implementing a new system, the same basic considerations are required when managing projects. Get these right and you will manage a successful project. Get them wrong and your project will be thwarted by challenges, issues and problems.

In order to ensure that all your projects reach the required level of success, here are the 5 essential elements that need to be included:

1. Strategic Planning

The first stage of any project is to understand the need for the project and what it is trying to achieve. SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Timely,) objectives need to be established along with measures of success and key milestones where progress can be reviewed. Working as an internal project manager will require close liaison with key internal stakeholders and departments to establish their specific requirements and set commonly agreed objectives.

2. Product Development

The variety of activities that are deemed to be projects are wide-ranging and varied, and can include new products, processes and services. The development of any of these needs to be closely linked to meeting defined business objectives and adding value to the organisation. The benefits of a project

should be well articulated at the beginning so there is a clear link to the success of the project and the impact on overall business aims.

3. Communication

It is vital to sell the benefits of any project to those who will be affected during the project or by the project's final outcome. Implementing a new process requires that end users understand why the project is beneficial and potential buyers need to be convinced by the advantages of new products and services. In essence, communicating the message of why new or different is good will help counteract the typical human reluctance to change.

4. Resources

It is vital to ensure that adequate resources in terms of people, time, finances and equipment are in place. Internally, this could involve the IT department providing the appropriate hardware/software, Human Resources recruiting the necessary people or the Facilities department providing offices or other relevant support. There also needs to be allocated budgets and finance as well as appropriate timelines for project completion.

5. People

No project manager works in isolation. There are many stakeholders involved in a project who all have a specific role to play and who all have a vested interest in the project's success. The key stakeholders who drive projects and help make them a success include:

Sponsor: The project sponsor is the person who defines the business objectives that drive the project. The sponsor can be a member of the senior management team or someone from outside of the organisation.

Project Manager: A professional project manager creates the project plan and ensures that it meets the budget, schedule and scope determined by the sponsors. The project manager is also responsible for risk assessment and management.

Project Team Members: These can include subject area experts, members of departments, external professionals and new recruits. Anyone who can offer a positive contribution to the project in terms of their knowledge and capabilities makes a good team member.

1.3 outline the benefits of project management to an organisation

1. Improved customer satisfaction

It is not surprising that customer satisfaction ranks as the highest benefit. Whenever a project is completed within scope, time and budget, the customer is happy. And a happy customer is a repeat customer. Intelligent project management provides the tools for this relationship with your customer to thrive and helps to meet or exceed their needs and expectations. Ultimately, project management skills support organisations to serve customers in a better way than they were before.

2. Improved Risk Management

Nobody likes it when things go wrong. Sound project management includes the tools to assess and manage risk to achieve the best outcomes. Effective risk management identifies potential risks and provides the opportunity to manage and mitigate those risks. This leads to teams that are more confident, more competent and more skilled to achieve project goals – for themselves, the organisation and the customer.

3. Reputational integrity and competitive advantage.

Reputational integrity is about how people perceive your organisation and its values. It’s partly based on doing what you say you will, when you say you will, and this is linked directly to effective project management. Competitive advantage is the advantage gained by your organisation because it offers your customers and clients greater value, or unique value, compared to other organisations. Good project management practitioners take these aspects seriously. And the competitive advantage provided by sound project management allows organisations and their stakeholders to prosper.

When you identify the benefits of project management it validates the effort you put into learning project management skills.

Everyone manages projects. But a lack of project management skills can hold careers back. So it makes sense to develop the skills to make you a good project manager or team member. Our online courses will help you achieve this outcome. If you’re a busy professional who needs to meet continuing professional development requirements and boost your career opportunities, then have a look at our online courses on Project Management and Risk Management. They provide a flexible and cost-effective way to learn essential skills by providing anywhere, anytime access and a supportive online community. Course facilitators are available to help and verified Completion Certificates are issued after successful course completion.

These three benefits consistently emerge in the top group:

1. Increased customer satisfaction ranks as the top benefit of good project management, and 61% of respondents place it in their top three.

2. Improved risk management follows, selected by 48%.

3. Increased reputational integrity and competitive advantage ranks third and is selected by 39% of respondents.

2.1 define clear goals for a project

he very first step in all projects: business, home, or education, is to define goals and objectives. This step defines the projects outcome and the steps required to achieve that outcome. People, including project managers, do not spend sufficient time on this step or complete it incorrectly thereby ensuring an unsuccessful project completion.

Poorly defined goals and objectives, or goals without objectives, pushes a project into overruns, territory battles, personality clashes, missed milestones, and unhappy clients.

Goals and objectives must be clear statements of purpose. Each with its own purpose that drives the end result of the project. Goals and objectives MUST be measurable.

Goals are the "WHAT"

Goals are broad statements applied to a project. Goals are the "what" of the process. In other words, "what" will the project accomplish? Projects may have more than one goal, but many objectives per goal. Do not confuse goals with objectives.

Examples:

Website development goal: Visitors will be convinced that global warming exists

Insurance company: The Medical Insurance department will increase provider options by 10%

Physicians office: Patients will not wait longer than 1 hour to see a physician

Objectives are the "HOW"

Objectives are specific statements that support the goal. Every goal will have one or more objectives tied to it. In essence, the objective is the "how" of the process.

Always start an objective with an action verb. This ensures that the objective is measurable and that the projects end-result is addressed through the action of the objective. Each objective becomes a measurable milestone as well.

Examples:

1. Goal: Visitors will be convinced that global warming exists.

Create a table comparing the costs of addressing global warming today verses 100 years from now

Illustrate the effects of global warming in a photo gallery

Identify and address the "myths" of global warming

2. Goal: The Medical Insurance department will increase provider options by 10%.

Identify provider options and costs

Survey the customer to find out each options value

Compare options to competitors

3. Goal: Patients will wait less than 1 hour to see a physician.

Evaluate personnel requirements

Purchase new appointment scheduling software

Setup appointment confirmation schedule

Keeping goals and objectives in the forefront of every project ensures that the project and the team are on the same page throughout the projects life cycle.

Whether in education, business or are running a household, clearly defined goals and objectives will support the projects successful result.

2.2 describe project resource requirements

In project management, resources are required to carry out the project tasks. They can be people, equipment, facilities, funding, or anything else capable of definition (usually other than labour) required for the completion of a project activity. The lack of a resource will therefore be a constraint on the completion of the project activity. Resources may be storable or non storable. Storable resources remain available unless depleted by usage, and may be replenished by project tasks which produce them. Non-storable resources must be renewed for each time period, even if not used in previous time periods.

Resource scheduling, availability and optimisation are considered key to successful project management.

Allocation of limited resources is based on the priority given to each of the project activities. Their priority is calculated using the Critical path method and heuristic analysis. For a case with a constraint on the number of resources, the objective is to create the most efficient schedule possible - minimising project duration and maximising the use of the resources available.

2.3 use project planning tools

2.4 create a project schedule

Step 1: Write Down Your Tasks

First, you’re going to work out what it is that you have to do. It might sound obvious, but this is the stage where you are likely to forget a couple of activities, and once the project schedule is produced, you won’t remember to add them in until you realize that no one has done them.

The best way around this is to involve the team in constructing the list of tasks. You could start off the list with everything that you know needs to be included (like all the broader project management activities such as risk management meetings and key reporting dates). Then get the team together to add to it.

Use their specialist knowledge to ensure that every element of the project is comprehensively planned. You may find it easier to do this with a few short meetings over a couple of days to allow people to reflect on what needs to be done. It’s amazing what you’ll remember on the commute home, so plan in some time to update the project schedule before it is finalized.

Be sure to keep project scope in mind as you’re working on your tasks. Tasks are one of the main culprits for taking projects off-track. As you do this, also estimate the resources these tasks are going to demand, to further assist in your scheduling.

Step 2: Establish the Order of Tasks

One of the key things when working on a project management schedule. After all, you wouldn’t drive off without putting your seatbelt on first, and project scheduling is the same. You can’t schedule everything to start at the same time. For one thing, your project team would be too busy to do it all!

There’s more about adding tasks to people in Step 5 below but for now let’s look at managing the links between tasks.

A Gantt chart is a graphical representation of a project schedule and it shows you the links between tasks. These are called dependencies and are normally marked with a black line. Your project management software will probably draw the links in for you if you enter the dependency information – in other words, which tasks need to be done before or after this task.

Elizabeth Harrin has an excellent article on managing different types of task dependencies, if you want to learn more.

Work with your team to plan out the order of tasks. It’s easier to do this on sticky notes and a big piece of flipchart paper before you start typing it into your software. Remember to highlight any dependencies related to external teams, too, as well as client and vendor dependencies. It’s not uncommon to invite representatives from key groups to these meetings to establish the clear dependencies for the overall project at the outset.

Step 3: Create Some Milestones

A project milestone is a particular point in time that marks the completion of something or another significant moment on the plan. For example, the end of a phase, the start of a product build, or a date that the factory is available for manufacturing to begin.

Put milestones on your project schedule in appropriate places, and link them to the relevant tasks. You’ll want milestones to appear regularly on the schedule as they will help you identify if you are still on target to complete all the work on time. Milestones are a great way to make project scheduling less of a hassle.

Step 4: Calculate the Timescale

Once you have a list of linked tasks with milestones, you can add in any fixed dates. For example, many project management applications will automatically schedule your project to start today, but you might be planning some work that won’t start for a few months. So go through the dates and make sure that they are all as you would expect. You can alter them manually or add in any additional dates as required.

This is also the point to review how long each task will take. Software will generally set the task duration to whatever the default is, which could be as little as one day. Make sure that each task lasts for the right amount of time by manually changing the duration.

Step 5: Allocate People to Tasks

Your plan is nearly complete! But first you have to add in the details of the people doing the work. This is important because if you don’t work out who is doing what when you might inadvertently book an individual to work on too many things at the same time.

Go through the task list and allocate your project team members to the appropriate tasks. Ideally you would have gotten informed estimates from your team before putting them into the planning tool, as usually team members get alerts when new tasks are assigned to them. You also might want to check out Devin Deen’s excellent video on how to get realistic estimates and schedules for more in-depth advice on how to get proper estimates from your team.

Check that you haven’t got anyone overstretched or anyone sitting around doing nothing. If you have, look at changing the order or dates of tasks to better fit the times that your resources are available. This analysis can take a while, so check to see if your software has a report that will do it for you.

Step 6: Review Regularly

It’s impossible to create the perfect project schedule on the first attempt. Your schedule will also change as the project evolves, especially if you make amendments to the project scope. Have a formal review at least once a month, although you’ll probably be looking at and tweaking your plans much more frequently than that.

A final tip is to make sure that any stakeholders, and the project team, know that your schedule is likely to change so that they don’t expect that the document they get given on Day 1 is the definitive version! However, you should always aim for the schedule to be as accurate as possible, and knowing that changes are likely is never an excuse to do a poor job at the start.

The project management schedule is an essential piece of documentation for the project manager and the whole team. It sets out exactly what is to be done in what order, by whom and is the guide that the team follows to get the project done. Knowing how to create a schedule is a core skill for any project manager, so hopefully this six step guide will help you build the perfect schedule for your next proje

2.5 identify project communication needs

Best practices for communication in a project

The right time to think about project communication is when you’re in the planning phase of your project. In fact, adding communication process development among the first few tasks of your project can signal to the team that communicating effectively is the job of every team member and is key to the project’s success.

The following sections detail four questions to consider about how communication will be handled through the life of your project and how to compile your answers into a communication plan that works for everyone.

With whom do you need to communicate

You need to communicate with everyone who has an interest or holds a stake in the success of the project, that is, the project stakeholders. Think about who those stakeholders are. They’re likely to be at various levels in the organization, and some might be external to your organization. Here are some possible project stakeholders:

Project team members. These people are doing the actual work of the project.

Project portfolio manager. If yours is a larger organization that runs a lot of projects at once, you migh need to communicate with a portfolio manager.

Resource manager. As with a portfolio manager, if your organization is largely project-based, you might need to work closely with a resource manager who ensures the people with the right skill sets for te various projects are available.

Executive management. Upper management typically needs to know how the project is going, especially in terms of schedule and cost.

Sponsor or customer. There might be a sponsor or customer who’s different from management and who’s paying for the project.

End user representative. This person represents the ones who the project is likely to benefit or otherwise affect when it’s completed.

What kinds of information do they need?

Because the first rule of communication is to know your audience, you get the most return on your communication investment when you tailor your communication to what each set of stakeholders need to know.

For example, project team members need to know the tasks they’re assigned to and who is depending on their tasks to, in turn, do their work. They probably also need to occasionally see the full project schedule to maintain a good sense of scope and focused direction.

Unlike team members who need the vital details, executives or project sponsors require a very high-level summary of how the project is going. They are most concerned with performance against the project schedule and budget, and want to know whether the project is on track to fulfill its goals.

Look at your list of stakeholders and think about the project from their points of view. This will help you determine what information to exchange with them, and what form that communication should take. Also, talk with your stakeholders and find out what and how they prefer to communicate.

How often do the different kinds of communication need to happen?

Try to strike the right balance: too little communication and the project risks more mishaps than it should; too much communication and annoyed stakeholders feel the efforts are busywork which interfere with the time to implement or oversee the project.

Weekly status reports and timesheets are something of a standard for project team updates to the schedule, although often 20-minute daily “stand-up” meetings are preferred. Likewise, sponsors and customers might also want a weekly summary of project schedule and cost performance. If you’re checking in with a portfolio manager or an end-user representative, maybe the communication can be monthly or even quarterly.

Every project and its communication needs are different. Carefully consider the frequency of communication with the different stakeholders on your project. Again, talk to your stakeholders about what they need and be willing to make adjustments to fit the project and its people.

What technology will be used to exchange information?

Understand the organization’s technology resources available to you and your stakeholders. Periodic face-to-face meetings and exchanging information by email are often the norm. But meeting with a tool like Skype for Business might be essential for geographically dispersed stakeholders and can include audio, video, screen-sharing, and a virtual whiteboard. Instant messaging (IM) can be more immediate and to the point than email, and can help stakeholders more quickly get the information they need. With a tool like Yammer, your team can connect with each other in a private social network. You can share information, chat about process, solve problems, and make decisions.

Whatever you decide, try to use the technology tools that everyone is comfortable with. But don’t be reluctant to try a new technology if it fits the needs of the project and the team, or to return to an “old-fashioned” method of communication if that’s best. The point is to facilitate better collaboration in your project team.

Create a project communication plan

After you’ve identified your stakeholders and determined what types of information exchanges are needed with them and how often, you’re ready to create the project communication plan. It doesn’t need to be elaborate. It can just be a one-page summary or a simple table which distills what you’ve learned and sets the stage for good communication throughout the project lifecycle.

Post the communication plan with your project so that all stakeholders have access to it at any time. Revisit it periodically. Changing conditions in the project might warrant a change to your regular communication strategies. Moving between project phases, for example, from planning to execution or from execution to closing, might also call for different communication needs.

2.6 assess potential risks to the successful completion of a project

1.Identify events that could happen throughout the life of the project that would adversely impact it. An adverse affect is one that would cause the project to come in over budget, miss the deadlines or fail altogether. These project risks can come from a broad range of factors, including human, operational, reputational, procedural, natural, financial, technical, political and others. An operational risk, for example, could be how a disruption in supplies would impact the project, while a natural risk could stem from a natural disaster.

2.Transfer risks to external stakeholders where possible. If you have identified supply chain issues as a potential risk, you might consider transferring that to a company procurement or operations specialist.

3.Prioritize the risks that you have identified. Rank each risk in terms of impact, how likely or unlikely it is that it will actually happen and how well you can control the event if it does happen. When assessing a risk's impact, consider how it could affect the project's scope, budget and timeline. Where appropriate, determine how much each risk would cost the company if it did occur.

4.Calculate risk exposure based on impact, probability and controllability. Rate each on a scale that you determine, such as insignificant to critical or high to low. While it is human nature to put more emphasis on risks that could cause more damage to the project, if it is an insignificant risk with a small probability of actually occurring, you should focus on other risks instead.

5.Put risk avoidance and mitigation strategies into place. Start by reviewing your project's scope and eliminating any pieces that are not essential to a successful completion. As you narrow the scope, you may find that many of the identified risks are no longer relevant. For risks that have a high level of controllability, make plans for how you can reduce the risk of them occurring and minimize their impact if they do occur.

6.Create contingency strategies, sometimes called "Plan B." Assign each risk to one team member who will watch for indicators or symptoms of the risk throughout the project. This will help you to recognize developing risks early on, giving you the opportunity to put contingencies in place before they become critical. Identify what those contingencies are, or how you will counteract the risk's impact as it happens.

2.7 explain actions to minimise risk

Accidents with machinery, tools or materials – Machinery should be guarded correctly, with the appropriate controls fitted (including emergency stops and interlocks). Routine inspection and an effective defect reporting system will also help reduce misuse and minimise risk. Adequate training for all equipment is the best way to ensure your employees are using machinery in the appropriate way.

Slips and trips – Ensure floors are in a good condition, adequately lit and with designated walkways. Good housekeeping standards and appropriate footwear are also essential to minimise the risk of slips and trips and documenting a cleaning programme for any spillages will also be of benefit.

Struck by object/person – It’s important to identify the potential sources and causes of incidents and introduce appropriate control measures, which may include traffic control, good housekeeping and effective machinery guarding.

Lifting – Eliminating the need to lift wherever possible is the most effective way to minimise risk. If lifting does need to happen providing personal protective equipment, lightening the load and reducing repetitive movements will all help to minimise the risks associated with lifting. Ensure at least two able bodied people are available for lifting people or weights above a certain amount.

Fall from height – Proper planning of proposed work with assessments and controls of the risks is essential. If safer ways to carry out work can be implemented, then always choose these. Deciding on the provision of alternative equipment (e.g. scaffolding instead of a ladder) could mean the difference between a serious accident and a successful, claim-free project.

Fire (Arson) – Adequate security, such as getting an expert to check locks, shutters and windows and maintaining electronic security systems (intruder alarms and CCTV) are effective ways to minimise the risk of arson. Using enclosed and lockable waste skips and bins will also help prevent risk.

Fire (Gas or Electrical) – Ensuring that all systems are installed by suitably qualified contractors (preferably NICEIC approved, or a member of the Gas Safe Register), plus regular inspection and testing will minimise the risk of electrical or gas fires. Establishing controls on the use of portable appliances is also important and sometimes an insurance requirement.

Fire (Processes and Storage) – To minimise risk of process and storage fires, ensure appropriate cut outs or limiters/thermostats are installed where pre-heating is required. Reviewing the layout of storage to reduce the likelihood of combustible materials being kept near a heat source will also minimise risk. Fire detection and protection systems are vitally important and where possible, segregate process areas from storage areas.

Water damage – Ensure areas with water pipes are kept above freezing point to prevent frost damage and lag any external pipe work. Evaluating whether gutters, downpipes and storm drains can cope with heavy rainfall and making the necessary alterations will also minimise the risk of water damage. Drains and gutters will also need to be inspected and cleaned out regularly. Finally, ensure any vulnerable stock is stored at least 150mm above the floor.

Burglary/Theft – You can improve the physical security of your premises by installing electronic security systems such as CCTV, intruder alarms and security lights. Improving perimeter security, installing barriers and screens and using security personnel and contractors will also minimise the risk of burglary or theft.

3.1 describe different methods for monitoring projects

Methods for Monitoring a Project

Time sheets

Once project development commences, the management has to track the progress of the project and the expenditure incurred on the project. Progress can be monitored by using the schedule and milestones laid down in the plan

The earned value method, discussed later, can also be used. How much time different project members are spending on the defending activities in the project. They are used as mechanism for collecting raw data and to obtain information regarding the overall expenditure and making us ready for ambit different tasks and different phases at any given time.

Reviews

Purpose of reviews is to provide information for project control, a definite and clearly defined milestone. It forces the author of product to complete the product before the review. Having this goal gives some impetus and motivation to complete the product.

Cost-Schedule-Milestone Graph

A cost-schedule millstone graph represents the planned cost of different milestones. It also shows the actual cost of achieving the milestones gained so far. By having both the planned cost versus milestones and the actual cost versus milestones on the same graph, the progress of the project can be grasped easily.

Earned Value Method.

The system design usually involves a small group of (senior) people. Having a large number of people at the system design stage is likely to result in not-very cohesive design. After the system design is completed, a large number of programmers whose job is to do the detailed design, coding, and testing may enter the project. During these activities, proper monitoring of people, progress of the different components and progress of the overall project are important.

Unit Development Folder

The project plan produced after the requirements are a macro-level plan. Even if this plan is prepared meticulously and accurately, if proper control is not exercised at the micro level (at the level of each programmer and each module), it will be impossible to implement the project plan.

3.2 outline reasons for reviewing projects during and after completion

What is a post project review?

One of the features of a project is that it has a definite start and a definite end. Sometimes the start and end may not be very clearly defined (!) but one can usually get a rough idea when a project started and when it is over. Something that does not have this sort of finite lifespan is not really a project. However, it is possible to break up any activity such as ongoing software maintenance and support into a series of clear projects - typically ending a project when a software release is put into production and starting a new project for the next release or upgrade.

A post project review is a very useful and powerful way of adding a continuous improvement mechanism. Most activities can be divided into a set of discrete projects as mentioned above. This continuous improvement mechanism helps make each succeeding project more successful (and frequently less stressful to all participants). Post project reviews typically involve the project team and major stakeholders meeting together and reviewing what went well and what went badly during the project. This input can help participants make the right decisions and plans so that the next project runs better. It can also help clear up misunderstandings and other issues.

For example, on a post project review that I once conducted, the Quality Assurance (QA) team was upset as they felt requirements changes had been approved and made without their input during the project. Based on this feedback this was corrected in subsequent projects by ensuring that a representative from the QA team was always present when discussions on requirements needed to be done. This put them in the loop as well as gave them an opportunity to bring up potential impacts on the QA deadlines. It is important to ensure that all participants in the post project review understand that it is not a time for assigning blame or making personal attacks. The idea is to praise each other on jobs well done as well as find ways to do things even better. One must be careful that a post project review does not degenerate into a finger pointing exercise or shouting match.

The elements of a good review

As mentioned previously a post project review's primary purpose is not to apportion blame but to identify areas for improvements and ways to improve them. Before you plan a post project review identify your primary goals and what you want to take away.

Identify items that were done well: For example maybe time estimates were very good, developers and quality assurance teams worked well together and so on.

Identify items that could improve: Maybe system documentation was not ready on time; developers had disputes with analysts, etc Basically these are items that need some improvement that can be realistically achieved with some degree of effort.

Identify items that are broken: These are quite serious and may require a complete rethinking on how they are done. Possibly some processes may need to be dropped or changed. Maybe continually changing requirements requires the team to change to a more agile development methodology. Two people who get on each other's nerves may need to be reassigned so that they do not have to work together.

Decide action plans: Get input & agreement on action plans to improve items that need improvement and ways to fix items that are broken. This will make it much easier to implement long-term changes as well as help build a strong sense of commitment and team spirit in the team.

3.3 monitor a project against plan

6 steps to ensure effective project monitoring

1. Monitor project throughout

Monitoring is only useful if it is built into the execution phase at the beginning. There is no point to a monitoring activity if all the work has been completed already and all the resources wasted. A system needs to be set in place for this during the planning phase and followed up on strongly.

2. Decide What to measure

It is vital to identify which indicators are to be measured. These should be noted in the planning document and communicated with all team members and stakeholders. Acceptable levels of performance should also be identified, so that it is clearly understood when a red flag needs to be raised. A frequency of reporting as well as a format needs to be decided upon and clearly communicated to all those who will be expected to issue reports.

3. Gather the right data

If the monitoring framework if clearly defined, then there may not be any need for huge amounts of data collection. Too much irrelevant data will only create confusion and add no value. Quality of data to ensure relevance needs to be the focus of any data collection efforts.

4. Select appropriate tools

Decide initially all acceptable methods of data collection. A wide variety can be used including questionnaires, surveys and focus groups.

5. Assign monitoring responsibility

Unless someone is assigned the task of monitoring specifically, it is an activity that can slip unnoticed into cracks. It is pertinent to assign a specific person for each type of reporting or monitoring activity and to build this task into their own personal deliverables.

6. Identify who to report to

Those tagged with reporting should be told clearly who they are to report to. Reports are tailored according to the management level they are being reviewed by. A senior management team may only need high level timelines, results and resource consumption data, while a middle management group or project team itself may need minute details of each task achieved or delayed.

Monitoring Tools and Techniques

Tracking Quantitative Metrics

Much of project monitoring is focused on hard facts such as the money being spent, man hours being used up etc. These are key metrics and need to be tracked in a systematic and effective manner, providing a ready snapshot of where the project is at any point in time. Some of the ways in which projects can be tracked are:

1. Spreadsheets

Spreadsheets are a good way of tracking key metrics. All relevant data can be listed out with values against each important metric. This includes timelines with acceptable delays, projected budgets with expected increases, projected man hours with expected increases, team members and their backups in case of any emergency

2. Project Applications

If the project being worked on is very large with complex interrelationships and many sub projects, then a spreadsheet may not be sophisticated enough to offer streamlined tracking and reporting. In such cases, a tracking application like MS Project is the right way to go.

Tracking Qualitative Metrics

Apart from quantitative metrics, an equal monitoring focus needs to be given to the qualitative side. Are stakeholders happy with the progress? Are their expectations being met? Is the project meeting the needs it set out to? Some methods to achieve this are:

1. Questionnaires or Surveys

This method is simple to create and get results on. A large number of people across various cross sections of stakeholders can be reached relatively easily and it is less of a hassle for them to respond as well. People can chose to withhold their information while still participating. The information needs to be analyzed critically once data is received.

2. Feedback Forms

Feedback forms can be distributed and completed at a time where users may have just used a product or been indirect contact with you or your team. There may have been an event or a sample testing.

3. Interviews

These require a lot more preparation and time than the other methods mentioned here. The interviewer needs to have questions prepared and should be able to probe for relevant information. Though most effective in person, these can also be conducted over the phone.

4. Focus Groups

Another way of gathering first-hand information is to put together a good cross section of stakeholders into a room together and allow them to answer some pointed questions but largely able to speak freely and ignite new ideas through each other. Often this can lead to better results. A group conversation can tend to go off track so it is important for the facilitator to steer the conversation in the right direction and also to allow all opinions to be voiced freely.

The Importance of Monitoring

The following reasons make a compelling business case for proper planned monitoring

1. Accountability

If a project has received funding from a stakeholder they will expect reports on the effective utilization of these resources. Regular monitoring will ensure that this information is present whenever it may be demanded or required.

2. Future Funding

If a project team or an organization gains a reputation for lack of transparency or discipline in utilizing resources, it may become impossible to secure resources for an upcoming project. On the other hand, a less effective team with clear reporting and transparent operation may seem like a safer option to an investor.

3. Compare Actual vs Planned Progress

Without an actual planned progression through a process to compare with, there may be a tendency to forget what the goals to be achieved were. Through regular monitoring and reporting, you can keep a track what was to be achieved and what has been allowing any relevant course corrections or explanations to stakeholders.

4. Learn from Experience

Through effective monitoring systems, successful and unsuccessful processes can be identified and separated allowing creation of best practices and benchmarks to be followed during future projects.

5. Team Engagement

When a team can see solid evidence of the difference their effort has made, they are more engaged and morale and ownership remain high. It may encourage them to take initiatives to further improve work and their own performance as well as think creatively for the benefit of the project.

3.4 amend a project plan in response to monitoring activity

I created a social media post trying to advertise our I.T Support package to more customer’s. The post I created was for 2 months free i.t support however the post wasn’t getting much attention as it had too much on the post to read and it wasn’t eye catching therefore I scrapped it and created another post advertising 1 year’s free I.t support, I created this one while comparing it to my previous post of 2 months support and I created something which was much more appealing simpler and generally looked a lot cleaner and well presented compared to the first one.

This is the first post:

As you can see this image I had created had way to much information on it, causing the viewers to not even bother viewing it as they didn’t want to read all the information packed on it. I also did not make our logo pop so the first thing the customer saw was a yellow background and “Mega Offer” even the 2 months free was too small to notice, overall the image in my opinion had way to much going on and way too much information to take in at once.

I use an application called “Buffer” which is where I can manage all 3 of our social media accounts post to all 3 at once and view analytics and activities on each social media account.

The 3 social media accounts we use are:

LinkdIn, Facebook, Twitter

This is the second post:

As you can see compared to the first post this one just snaps at you as the first thing you can see is “Like, Share, WIN” that’s what the hook is and that’s what gets the end user interested the next thing you can see is the name of the company so the company logo is big easy to see and easy to recognise, the one year free technical support is placed perfectly under the like share and win as you can see what you will win and generally it looks a lot more cleaner and more professional then the first post.

Buffer created me a graph to compare how each post did and the results did not surprise me:

The red represents the first post and the blue represents the second post as you can see there is a clear winner!

As you can see the first post only created a 9% spend time on the post compared to the 23% spend time the second post created this shows that only 9% of people where reading the information whereas the 23% of people where interested and looking more at the win like and share.

The second post created a 20% impression rate on the viewers compared to the 12% impression the first post created this shows a massive engagement the second post had aswell as having a 21% click rate compared to the 9% click rate the first post had this is because the second post was simple and eye catching and once people saw win they were hooked to click and read more wheareas the first post had to much information on it people where not bothered enough to read.

3.5 review a project plan

Monitoring and evaluation is an essential component of any adaptation planning and should not be neglected. Trigger indicators and performance indicators can be monitored and the results used to determine when actions should be implemented and to track the success of the adaptation plan. Effective monitoring and evaluation underpin the planning cycle.

Monitoring and evaluation (M&E) is critical to ensure the long-term success of climate adaptation initiatives, plans and actions. It can help to demonstrate accountability to stakeholders and communities.

Monitoring, evaluation and review design is critical to ensure that information is used to inform decision-making, make appropriate adjustments, and report to stakeholders and decision makers. Without a clear link between monitoring and decision-making, there is a risk that monitoring activities and resources will be seen as a drain on resources and discontinued.

Trigger points can be identified and monitored and, when reached, can stimulate the implementation of the next action in a sequence. In identifying trigger levels for response, it is important to consider the time required for the decision to be made and implemented. This should include acknowledging the time that may required for effective stakeholder engagement, or for any detailed investigation, design and development of actions that may be required.

Evaluation helps you to learn from what you have planned and what has been done. It helps with considering what changes need to be made to your planning approach, your plan and associated activities to get adaptation outcomes.

Your monitoring program should include a variety of measurements which enable you to report to your organisation and stakeholders about your activities.

Monitoring should include outputs, immediate and short-term outcomes, and longer term outcomes.

Stakeholder feedback is essential. People or groups who have an interest in the plan, or who are responsible for delivering various actions, must be made aware of any changes that affect them. Importantly, consideration must be given to how the plan is being amended so that the planning cycle can be continued.

Monitoring, evaluation and review is not the end of the adaptation planning cycle, it is a new beginning!!

Main text

Purpose

In this step i will:

measure and evaluate adaptation plans to be accountable for projects, and to determine which adaptation actions are not achieving desired outcomes and need to be changed

identify when an action is no longer effective for the degree of change that is happening, and a new action or suite of actions is required

reflect on your planning process, noting that monitoring and evaluation should be conducted on many of the activities during preparation of the Adaptation Plan, helping to identify when adjustments are required.

Introduction

Monitoring and evaluation (M&E) is critical to ensure the long-term success of climate adaptation initiatives, plans and actions (see Box 1 for definitions of M&E). It can help to demonstrate accountability to stakeholders and communities and show that funds have been allocated, used wisely and have resulted in desired outcomes. This can also help to leverage any ongoing support for actions and for any further funding that may be required. Importantly, M&E helps to track whether actions that you have implemented have been effective or not, and can help to determine whether any small tweaks or significant changes may be required to ensure success. M&E has an added significance in climate change adaptation:

The time frames associated with climate change and adaptation outcomes are likely to be longer than those of traditional management programs.

There is uncertainty associated with the magnitude and nature of climate change, particularly at the local level, which can influence monitoring results and the ways in which they are evaluated.

A continually changing climate means that traditional approaches to measuring change, such as comparing monitoring results to static baseline conditions, may not be possible and instead you need to consider a moving baseline.

Box 1: Basic definitions

Monitoring is a continuous or periodic process which allows for regular feedback of systematically collected data or information.

Evaluation is a systematic and objective feedback of a completed or ongoing action, aimed at determining its performance.

M&E is required to:

Track the performance of activities undertaken during the development of an adaptation plan (e.g. stakeholder engagement activities).

Track pre-identified risk thresholds/trigger levels which identify the point at which to undertake new adaptation actions.

Determine whether planned outputs and outcomes from adaptation actions have been achieved.

Designing an effective monitoring and evaluation program

Design of an M&E program is critical to ensure that appropriate and current information is used to review and inform decision-making at various stages of the adaptation planning process. M&E can also help to ensure that, if required, appropriate adjustments are made in existing actions (or plans) and reported to stakeholders and decision makers together with the rationale behind the change. Without a clear link between monitoring and decision-making, there is a risk that monitoring activities and resources will be seen as a drain on resources and may be discontinued. Therefore, M&E activities must be designed to show clear links between cause and desired effects, and that there are clearly articulated processes indicating how monitoring results will be analysed and reported, and used to support evaluation.

Monitoring programs should outline approaches to monitor and respond to trigger levels at which changed or new climate adaptation measures will be implemented. They should also contain indicators that will be used to determine the success of adaptation options.

Monitoring trigger points for implementation of adaptation actions

Uncertainties associated with climate change effects on the coast—including magnitude and time scales of change, scales of impact due to future changes, evolving and contested values of communities and organisations—make it difficult to determine exactly when adaptation actions should be implemented. One way to address this is to sequence adaptation actions based on observed changes or more accurate projections; this enables adaptation actions to be implemented as required triggers or thresholds are met, rather than in a predefined time frame specified in a plan (Step-4 of C-CADS has more discussion on this approach).

Trigger points can be identified and monitored and, when reached, can prompt the next action in a sequence. In identifying trigger levels, you need to consider the time required for the decision to be made and implemented. This should include the time needed for effective stakeholder engagement, plus any detailed investigation, design and development of actions.

In general, trigger levels should be robust to climate variability (e.g. they should not be based on a single extreme event). The triggers or indicators of triggers must, as much as possible, be observable, measurable and comprehensible to all stakeholders. This will help to get the social license to implement actions. Trigger levels can either be physical, environmental, social or economic. Some examples include:

physical: number of flooding events over a certain period

envronmental: number of mangrove seedlings per square metre of saltmarsh

social: level of satisfaction with beach visits

economic: costs of insurance premiums.

Additional discussion and information on indicators and trigger levels can be obtained from Monitoring and evaluation.

Monitoring outputs and outcomes of adaptation actions

Monitoring and evaluation requires an assessment plan to measure the performance of adaptation efforts in terms of relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, results and sustainability of the results (see also C-CADS Step 4). Indicators are a core part of this. Indicators are things that we can measure. They help to determine whether objectives have been achieved for a specific program or project. Therefore, your adaptation plan should contain measurable objectives together with indicators for each of the objectives. Monitoring programs need to be in place so that they can collect appropriate data on each indicator and assess these against a baseline or reference conditions. Depending on the types of indicators, a variety of data will need to be collected and this may include biophysical, social and economic information.

It is important to consider the measurability of the indicators to ensure that the collected data and information can be analysed appropriately before decisions are made. This also includes determining how to interpret monitoring information. To monitor any indicator, it is critical to have baseline information against which the indicator will be compared. You could collect baseline data for comparison or select reference sites (controls) to assess changes against. Seek expert input when developing your monitoring plan; inappropriate monitoring can result in bad decisions being made. The effects of climate change mean that baselines for comparison will not remain the same and will change over time (shifting baselines), making it difficult to compare.

The outcomes associated with climate change adaptation may not be realised for long periods which means that—over time—there is likely to be pressure to reallocate resources. It is important that from the outset, the need for and approaches used for monitoring are clearly documented and supported by external and internal stakeholders. It is also important that there are processes in place to ensure that monitoring will be continued over the lifetime of the project. This may involve training of new staff, rewriting consultant briefs to extend or change monitoring programs, and building processes to ensure consistency.

Your monitoring program should include a variety of measurements which will enable you to report to your organisation and stakeholders about your activities. In general monitoring programs should include the following high level points:

The current status of outputs, such as whether your adaptation action has been implemented or not (e.g. has the seawall been built?)

Immediate and short-term outcomes that are a consequence of your adaptation action (e.g. has the seawall stopped storm surge inundation of the coastal strip?)

Provision to re-evaluate the outcomes of your action in the longer term (e.g. after 10 years, is the seawall still stopping inundation of the coastal strip?).

The scale at which your monitoring program will operate is also important and should include consideration of ecological (e.g. ecosystem, species), landscape (e.g. catchment, river, creek), jurisdictional (e.g. local, regional) and management (e.g. policy, program, activity) scales. It is also important to consider time horizons which will determine when data are collected and for how long (duration). Many actions include a time lag before any results (outcomes) from that action can be detected (e.g. change in bank stability due to planting). Analysis of the monitored information also needs to consider the time scale of the measurement to account for variation in data (e.g. the

analysis of climate trends occurs over long time horizons; however coastal erosion can happen over shorter time periods). Lastly, you need to take care around the timing of data collection, to ensure data comparability over time and between variables (e.g. both climate and tourism data are seasonal, but the seasons differ).

Importance of collaboration

Depending on the indicators selected, the M&E data may not be collected by a single organisation. In many cases, there is available detailed data collected by the community including businesses, non-government organisations, catchment management authorities or NRM groups, local, state and Commonwealth governments and other groups. Often the most challenging aspect of monitoring programs is to understand what data are already being collected and why, how they might be shared, and whether it is possible to adapt measures in some way.

Evaluation of the plan or project implementation and outcomes

Information from monitoring provides you with the resources to determine whether you are adapting successfully (or not) and also to draw lessons from your approach to help refine it. Your organisation may have existing evaluation approaches that should be used where possible, as this will help with consistency, cost effectiveness and stakeholder engagement with the results.

Evaluation helps you to learn from the results of your planned and implemented activities. Such learning (both positives and negatives) can help to refine your existing planning and implementation approaches in order to get the adaptation outcomes that you or your organisation desire.

In evaluating the success of your planning approaches (including your plan), a number of questions should be addressed.

Is your adaptation plan being implemented with the necessary support and leadership from your organisation?

Are you successful in seeking funds or financing mechanisms for your options?

Are your reporting approaches working and is adaptation being received positively in your organisation?

Have the objectives of each adaptation option been met? (These may often be short-term objectives, as long-term objectives may not be possible to achieve as yet.)

What adaptation options have worked and what did not work? (This includes considerations of whether multiple benefits associated with objectives have been achieved.)

Have there been any unforeseen outcomes emerged from implementing your plan?

Have your stakeholders and community been effectively engaged throughout and do they remain engaged? Have timeframes allocated for engagement been sufficient?