gaze at the larger picture for a few minutes. It also helps them to take ownership of the outcome of the project when they see how this project will contribute directly to the health and bottom line of the company.
3) Definition of the critical success factors
Another important exercise is the communication of the critical success factors associated with the project. Critical success factors are those project objectives that must be met in order for the project to be deemed a success. Missing any one of the critical success factors means the project has failed. A stakeholder or sponsor is the best person to present the critical success factors to the team. Team members can refer back to the success factors during the project and they can use them to guide their activities. An example of a critical success factor could be the date the system needs to be available to the users in the field.
4) Definition of deliverables
Finally, the deliverables of a project should be defined. Deliverables are the "products" that will be created and given to another group or individual during and after completion of the project. It is common to think of deliverables only as items completed at the end of the project. In reality, deliverables for each phase of the project lifecycle should be defined and communicated in the prenatal exercises. One example of a deliverable is a requirements document. The delivery of this document is crucial to activities later in the software development lifecycle.
The entrance and exit criteria for each phase should be defined and communicated as well. Also define what milestones will be accomplished and when. It might be a good idea to go over the high-level project plan during this step.
Conclusion
Although there is some value to the postmortem, prenatal exercises can define up front the activities that will make the project run more efficiently. Many problems may be avoided by Doing It Right The First Time-thus saving both time and headaches later in the project. Follow the four steps above during your prenatal exercise and you will be well on your way to a smoother running
project.
1Crosby, Philip. Quality is Free .
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About the author
While working at Fortune 100 companies, Clark Cashman has gained industry experience in time-proven methodologies in the areas of quality assurance and project management, which has given him the opportunity, as a corporate trainer, to teach others what he has learned. He has managed QA organizations and test teams and implemented test automation tools and processes. Clark can be reached at clarkcashman@spherion.com.
