Susanne Madsen - Developing Project Leaders
  • Home
  • Services
    • Workshops
    • Speaking
    • Coaching
    • Stress management
    • Testimonials
  • Bio
  • Books
  • Blog
  • Resources
  • Videos
  • Contact
  • Library

Post project reviews are good, but why not learn in the experience?

15/10/2018

1 Comment

 
When I consult with organisations, train their staff or help review their processes, I’m often told that they don’t get around to formally review their projects. There seems to be so much pressure on businesses and teams today t​hat many rush from one project to the next without taking the time to learn from the experiences they have just been through.
 
When we omit to review a project, not only do we miss out on the opportunity to improve our processes, our working patterns and our team behaviour. We also fail to assess if the project was an overall success or failure and whether the benefits have been realised. Many organisations are not able to tell me how many of their projects succeed or fail and for what reason. The first step in helping a team or an organisation improve is to understand where they are currently succeeding and where they are going wrong. Project reviews can help us gather this information and do something about the situation – and they are really easy to carry out. 
Picture


​One way of carrying out a post implementation review (PIR) is to get the team together after the project has been delivered and to first list everything they feel went really well. Then, as a second step, they list all the areas where they feel they can improve. This is not about laying blame but about identifying more effective ways of working. The post implementation review should also answer the question of whether the project was successful and if it delivered what it set out to – including the benefits. When a review is completed, the project manager will typically write up the findings and circulate it to all stakeholders. So yes, post implementation reviews do have merit, but the problem is that organisations often fail to learn from them, as many of the reports are never read after they are produced. In addition, the team only learns the lessons after the project has been delivered..
 
What would be more effective is to adopt one of the agile methods of reflecting, learning and course correcting as the project is being implemented. Why wait until the end? Why not review the project after each phase or iteration so that the team can learn the lessons, identify actions, adapt and improve straight away? Even if you’re not running an agile project, you can still carry out a retrospective after each major milestone.

I once heard researcher Susan Pritchard speak at ICCPM’s Research and Innovation seminar. She said that we must learn through rapid cycles of action and reflection in the moment and that it’s all about learning in the experience rather than from it. At the same event Tim Banfield, a previous director at the Major Projects Authority, also argued that lessons-learnt papers have limited value. He said that it’s far better to get people to talk and share their experiences across projects by giving them the space and opportunity to learn from each other as the project progresses. He also emphasised the importance of asking people outside the project for input in order to continuously learn and improve.

What is your current situation? Do you review your projects? Do you learn from your mistakes and do you get a chance to course correct in the experience? 


If you liked this post, you may also like:
Project Leadership - 20 essential tips  
​When projects go wrong and it's the worst possible moment
Why do projects continue to fail - and what can we do about it?

Innovative leaders ask powerful what-if questions
Is the Ion Triangle Outdated?



1 Comment

    Categories

    All
    Agile
    Authenticity
    Building Relationships
    Coaching
    Delegation
    Estimation
    Feedback
    Handling Conflict
    Innovation
    Iron Triangle
    Limiting Factor
    My Story
    Perception Of Failure
    Podcasts
    Positive Attitude
    Proactive Project Management
    Progress Reporting
    Project Costs
    Project Failure
    Project Initiation
    Project Leadership
    Project Management Mistakes
    Recruitment
    Requirements
    Resistance To Change
    Risk Management
    Self Esteem
    Stakeholder Management
    Stress Management
    Team Motivation
    Time Management
    Trust
    Vision And Mission

    Picture

    Susanne Madsen

    Susanne is a project leadership coach and the author of The Power of Project Leadership (now in 2nd edition). Read more..

    Picture

    Download FREE PM RESOURCES

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Archives

    November 2020
    September 2020
    June 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    October 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    February 2011

    View my profile on LinkedIn

    RSS Feed

Developing Project Leaders