Built Environment, People, Processes, Uncategorised

Building Project Excellence – 5 points to consider

Posted on by Ray Bradnock
building project excellenceBuilding project excellence – whether just in general, or for specific construction related projects – is vital if there is a lack of an agreed approach within your organisation. Many projects fail because the right foundation wasn’t in place to support their success. Here are 5 areas to consider to assist you in achieving sustained project success for the future.
Managing a business project to a successful completion isn’t easy. The Project Management Institute has identified that less than two-thirds of projects meet all their goals and business intent, and about 17 percent fail outright.
Keeping everything on track to ensure your project is on time, on budget, and delivers its intended goals, is a real challenge. Whilst it is difficult to guarantee success, here are 5 things you can do to give a greater chance of nailing all your goals first time.

1. Vision and Goals

A project requires a defined beginning and end. The clear vision will take you a long way to achieving your success. Add to this defined goals the project is meant to achieve, and making sure that everyone completely understands and is  agreed upon the project’s vision and goals before the project begins. This will help set your road map to make ideas a reality. Setting early parameters will also help you eliminate the dreaded project scope creep.

2. Assigned Roles and Responsibilities

Avoid confusion by ensuring all members know who plays what role and what their responsibilities are. Eliminate duplication of effort in tasks – it is a huge waste of time. Make sure every team member has the talents and strengths to be the best at their project job.

3. Communication

You can almost never have too much of this on a project. Create a detailed communication plan at the start of the project, showing what, how, and when it will take place. Pair the right messages with the right audience. Do not skimp on the preparation of this part of the project planning process.

4. Process

Identify standard policies, procedures, rules and processes that your team members will use to help them succeed in their assigned project roles. Standards help replicate successes from project to project and will also help minimise mistakes. Remember to train the project team in these areas so you can achieve the best results.

5. Flexibility and Adaptability

A project does not stay still. All projects will vary to some extent. It’s important that project team members are capable of responding quickly to change in project environments. Agility is a valued skill, and people who have this ability are good team members. Focus on your people, and your success rate is sure to improve. Completion of projects successfully is an exhilarating experience.

Reviewing these tips for your next project can help you make sure yours is a winner. At IiE we are able to help you with all the Processes, Facilitation, and Approaches needed for your project success.