Rob Prinzo

Founder & Lead Consultant

The Prinzo Group

Planning your RFPs:

Project Management Best Practices

April 26, 2017

Agenda

1. Introductions

2. Project Management Overview

- Project Management Roles

- Why Projects Fail

3. Project Assurance

- Introduction

- Project Planning Best Practices

- Hands-on Exercise

4. Summary and Wrap-up

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Introductions

Rob Prinzo

Founder and lead consultant at The Prinzo Group (www.PrinzoGroup.com).

20+ years experience in large scale business process improvement and technology projects

(mainly in State Government).

Been involved in the procurement process as a consultant, employee and vendor.

Specialize in software and services procurements.

Written three books on Project Assurance & Project Management (https://www.amazon.com)

Developed a Project Assurance Methodology which has been adopted by the State of

Georgia (GTA) for project < $1M and is as part of the GTA’s Project Management Training

program.

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Project Management Overview

Planning Your RFPs:

Project Management Best Practices

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Definition of Projects

What is a Project?

A set of activities that results in a change to a process, procedure, policy, contract or system.

Why are Projects Important?

Projects are how an organization addresses change, improves operations and achieves its strategic goals.

Projects Come in all Shapes and Sizes

And require different structures and levels of engagement

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A set of skills, processes, knowledge and methods to achieve a projects

objectives.

Project Leadership (Strategic)

Defining Scope

Defining the Project Plan & Target Dates

Assembling the Project Team

Resolving Issues / Serving as the Point of

Escalation

Determining Organization / Stakeholder

Impacts

Developing Risk Mitigation Plans

Project Manager (Tactical)

Managing the project plan

Conducting Status Meetings

Addressing Organization Impacts

Managing Issues and Action Items

Maintaining the Risk Log

Managing Scope

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Definition of Project Management

Project Success Rates

Project Statistics:

70% of organizations have suffered at least one project failure in the prior 12 months

50% of respondents also indicated that their project failed to consistently achieve what they set out to achieve. (KPMG 2012)

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Software Project Statistics

- Standish Group 2015

Why Projects Fail

Top Ten Reasons Projects Fail1. Lack of business owner engagement

2. Unrealistic expectations

3. Poor requirements definition

4. Improper vendor selection / Gap between sales and implementation

5. Gaps between the requirements and the solution

6. Inadequate resources (underestimating time and cost)

7. Poor project management

8. Lack of methodology

9. Underestimating impact of change

10.Lack of training and education

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Lack of Project Sponsor Engagement

X X X X X X XUnrealistic Expectations X X X X X XPoor Requirements Definition X X X

Improper Vendor Selection X

Gaps between the requirements and the solution.

XX

Inadequate Resources X X X X XUnderestimating Time and Costs

X X X X

Poor Project Management / Lack of Methodology

X X X X

Underestimating Impact of Change

X X X X

Lack of Training / Education X X X X

The Top 10 Project Failure Points Often

Precede Implementation

Strategy Acquisition Planning Design Testing Training Roll-out

Why Projects Fail

Project Management Summary

Key Takeaways:

We are all project managers at some level

Strategic vs. Tactical

Project Management roles varies by project phase

Project success criteria is well documented and consistent over time.

A project can be destined to fail before the tactical implementation begins.

Lack of defined requirements can lead to unsuccessful procurements

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Project Assurance

Planning Your RFPs:

Project Management Best Practices

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Introduction to Project Assurance

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Project Assurance closes the gaps that lead to project failure with a higher

level of expertise

Training for project managers and team members

Provides methods through tools, templates and checklists.

Three Step Planning Methodology

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Needs Assessment

Project Planning

Organization

Impact

Project Risk Factor

Lack of Project Sponsor Engagement

Unrealistic Expectations

Poor Requirements Definition

Improper Vendor Selection

Gaps between the requirements and the solution.

Inadequate Resources

Underestimating Time and Costs

Poor Project Management / Lack of Methodology

Underestimating Impact of Change

Lack of Training / Education

Project Planning

Assessment

X

X

X

X

X

X

Project Needs

Assessment

X

X

X

X

X

Organization Impact

Assessment

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

Project Planning Assessment

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Key Steps:

1. Identify when a change to process,

procedure, policy, contract or system is

needed and will result in a project.

2. Evaluate what the results of the project

will mean to the customers, organization

and stakeholders.

3. Assess the impacts of the project by

assembling a cross functional team to

conduct a needs assessment.

4. Validate the Scoping Assessment with a

peer review or sponsor analysis.

Validate the

Scope

Assess the

Impact

Evaluate the

Project

Identify the

Project

Project Planning Stages

Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4

Step 1: Identify the Project

Describe the procurement that is taking place? o Describe it in simple / business terms

Why is a procurement required?o Legislation / Mandate, Strategic Initiative, Process

Improvement, Part of Operations, Contract Expiration

What are the objectives of the procurement?o Process Efficiencies, Compliance, Information Access

o Different parties may have different answers for this question.

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Step 2: Evaluate the Project

Describe the current environment.o What is the current process, procedure, policy, contract or

system?

What are the challenges with the current environment?o List as many as possible

What is the desired future state?o What are the future processes, procedures, policies,

contracts or systems that will result from the project?

What are the requirements of the Future State solution that will meet the Project Objectives and Success Criteria?o Should address the challenges listed above

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Step 3: Assess the Impact

What is the Scope of the Procurement?

o Statewide, Several Agencies, Internal

What is the visibility of the project?

o Highly Visible (Strategic Statewide initiative)

o Visible to several customers or stakeholder groups.

o Internal Visibility (Visible to all internal staff)

o Limited visibility (Divisional or Departmental Improvement)

What is the impact of the change for the scope identified above?

o (High, Medium, Low)

Who is the customer(s)?

How will the project impact their organization?

o Process, Policies, Behaviors and Systems

How will they perceive the project? Explain why.

o Positive, negative, indifferent

What are the obstacles for implementation?

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Step 4: Validate the Plan

Validate the content of the Scoping Assessment by having the

project sponsor review the plan.

Some sample validation questions may include a review of:

1. What are the business drivers of this initiative / why is the change

occurring?

2. What has been your process to get to this point in time?

3. What are the expected outcomes?

4. How have similar initiatives in the past been handled? What was the

result? Are there lessons learned?

5. Are any key groups not involved in the project at this point? If so,

who?

6. What is the current process for decision making?

7. Who is accountable for delivery?

8. What other events are occurring in the organization that may have

an impact on this project?18

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Exercise:

1. Using your project as an example,

complete the Project Scoping

Assessment.

2. Present your results to your

partner.

3. Adjust your document based on

your partner’s feedback.

Project Planning Exercise

Name of Presenter

Rob Prinzowww.PrinzoGroup.com

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