Devising an effective system to tracking progress of a project right to the closing is one of the biggest challenges of the project manager. He/she must be informed of the actual project status at all times. This allows spot variations and take corrective actions early enough for them to be effective. The same system is required for the costs management and control.
When tracking the progress we want to ensure that the project progresses on time, but preferably better in terms of time, cost and quality. Competency is required in the way the project is monitored but also in addressing issues and bringing the project on track.
In order for project tracking to be successful 3 things need to be present:
Step 1. Baseline plan of preliminary plans and budgets
When devising the baseline it is important to account for unpredicted costs and changes. We must plan-in some flexibility to minimise downsides and potential pitfalls the project.
This also involves the need to monitor the project both in the task, package and overall project progress level.
We might ask ourselves of the following questions:
- are we where we supposed to be?
- which tasks are delayed and require actions or corrections to bring it back to schedule?
This is where the baseline is helpful. We need the accurate measures of the actual progress and match it to the planned progress.
The baseline is the planned route.
It is know that in 99.9% of project deviations are predicted. At times, these might have no significant effect on the project success.
If an actual project has deviated from original plan to such extend that we can easily see the failure "re-baselining" might be required. This generally happens in large projects and requires formal approval from the senior management and customer.
Step 2. Periodically compare the actual progress to plans and budgets
There are many options for project tracking:
- Actual Start and Finish Date
To track the planned vs actual progress is to monitor and compare the actual start and finish date with the baseline. Here, we have the tasks completed, in-progress and not started.
- % completed of tasks
This is one of the easiest and widely adopted techniques. It should be clear to everyone with the task % progress rate where we stand.
- Remaining duration
We might also collect data on duration remaining for each live tasks. However, people generally are hesitant to commit themselves to set dates.
- Count of completed tasks
When projects have many tasks, over 1000, for example, the project manager might decide to report on number of tasks completed.
Which method should I use?
Choosing the best method for project progress we should be able to answer the following questions:
Which critical tasks are not expected to complete on schedule?
When non-critical tasks are delayed are they expected to exceed the float?
Which tasks are ahead of schedule?
Step 3. Instigate formal quality reviews
When the method is chosen the tracking should continue regularly, including formal reviews.
In many cases, the actual work lies behind the schedule and the completion date might need to be revised. The project manager might choose not to share this information and hope the project will regain lost time. But, at times it might be clear that the project will not progress on time. In this situation a solid baseline should be re-assessed with realistic expectations.
MS Project can make these calculations automatically and reschedule all the tasks left to complete from the current date.
But the calculations can be performed on the planning network by rescheduling the entire completion date. As presented in the below figure, task should be completed 50% but it only is completed as 25%.
By generating new project completion date (Mid-March) the calculation is performed equally with rescheduling all in-completed tasks from the set completion date. This way the network logic is untouched.
Tracking costs
The project manager is also required to monitor the expenditure. This is generally with a budget as a target. At times there is no value is staying on schedule is the costs are significantly exceeded.
When tracking costs we compare baseline costs to actual costs. We also should be able to make cost predictions based on the actual costs made to date during the project.
When preparing the cost baseline, the project manager must understand the financial and accounting systems adopted within the organisation.
At anytime during a project the project manager should be able to answer the following questions:
How much have we spent so far?
How does it compare to planned expenditure?
If we spent less, why, on which tasks, are we saving?
If we spent more, why, is it acceptable, which tasks are responsible, and can we save elsewhere?
What are the cost implications on the entire project?
Are we on track with the budget?
We need a system to provide answers to those questions or information leading to those answers. We need to define exactly where we are with spending, commitments to suppliers, contractors and human resources.
We must, however, compare "apples to apples" in order to facilitate subsequent analysis. The cost codes, therefore, should be accurate and consistent.
Project closure
The completion of project is generally rather challenging. Therefore, we need to prepare accordingly.
What are the challenges projects often face? Let's explore some of them in more detail...
Poor communications with customers
Poor communication will often be highlighted at the end of the project. The deliverables might not get signed off. The project might not demonstrate the compliance with the requirements. The project deliverables might not be accepted by managers, for example. The customer workforce must be therefore consulted and informed on the full implications of the project on their working environment.
2. Resistance from End Users
It is critical to have the End User on board with the changes resulting from the project. Technically, changes should have positive impact on the organisation. The employees need to be prepared, absorb new responsibilities. This aspect cannot be neglected.
3. Unforeseen technical problems
IT projects often experience technical issues at the end of the project. The technical aspects, therefore should be addressed properly.
4. Project deliverables and not acknowledged as complete
This often happens when customer requires significant changes at the end of the project. In some projects it is inevitable. It IT projects those changes might require more sophisticated features.
5. Late changes in the Business Environment
An unexpected scenario when the business environment for the project deliverables change and the customer asks for substantial revision of the base specification. These will affect the time, cost and quality.
6. Project Staff resists demobilisation
If the project has gone well and staff is not motivated to succeed than they will be resisting to leave the project. New reasons might emerge on why the project should take longer. Self-employed staff might be looking for opportunities to extend the contract. These people will need to be managed effectively.
Methods for positive completion
Given all the above obstacles it is worth addressing some methods on how to overcome them and complete the project positively.
Plan the Completion Phase
We need to include the training for users, test integrated systems, plan the handover process to customer and provide relevant support.
The aim is to plan the completion with a high level of detail. If you are planning the project in weeks, plan completion in days. This will require consultation with the customer and agreement on the plan precisely.
2. Increase the amount of tracking and control
Project meetings and progress reviews should become more frequent during the final stages. This will bring an urgency to the completion.
3. Stay close to customer
We need to keep close and positive relationship with those customers who will be judging the project success. This is especially important during the completion stage.
4. Prioritise the deliverables
Not everything will be completed for most projects and all the outstanding activities should be divided into:
- Things which are "good enough" with little impact on the success if not improved
- Things which will never be completed
- Things which will have a strong impact on the project success - here we focus all energy and resources
5. Training
For most projects the deliverables will have a huge impact on the customer's organisation, people and processes. People might resist the change. Well designed and targeted training sessions should be, therefore, designed. We might also identify champions with relevant commitment who's knowledge is detrimental to the success.
6. Review the results
Sometimes the deliverables might be good, but if the new ways have not been welcomed within an organisation the project might become a failure. Are the users appropriately trained? Are they using the product or service?
I hope that the information can strengthen the importance of control and completion.
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