The Art of Project Management

4.6. Drafting, reviewing, and revising

Every organization has different considerations to make in how they plan projects. I can't offer a simple, five-step plan for how to get from day 1, with no vision, to day 20 (or 5 or 50) with a completed and fully sponsored vision. Depending on how much authority you do or do not have, it may take considerable time to get all of the necessary approvals and have all of the needed conversations to pave the way for the project.

But what's important is that the process for defining the vision starts before the currently active project for your team is complete, and it needs to be finished before the team is expected to move at full speed on the next one. Sometimes, one individual can be pulled off a project in its last phases and can dedicate half her time to scouting out the key questions listed earlier. The project leader can then pick up the momentum from this work and drive toward a draft more quickly than he could if he were working alone.

Often, the most demanding part of this process, in mid-size or large organizations, is working with senior management and other teams to coordinate what needs to be done (see Chapter 16). Are there plans from the CEO or executives for the entire company that impact this next project? Are there engineers or other thought leaders who need to be consulted? Who are leaders in the organization (both the local team and the entire company) that have expertise, or political influence, that we need to be aware ...