Key Aspects of Successful Project Completion
Team Culture
Main qualities of a Successful team culture :
- Communication
- The persistent sense of urgency
The awful thing about this is, if one person lacks a sense of urgency, it will affect the whole team.
- Positive Approach
Task Definition
When it’s come to life there is a saying what matters is how you finished, not the way you start, but it’s the other way when it comes to projects. In projects, a solid start is very important to successful completion. How are we going to get a solid start for a project?
Well-defined scope and decomposition to task level are the keys because it allows the team to handle the progress of each task precisely. Mainly Each Task should have the below characteristics :
- Task Name
- Description of Task
- Description of done (Acceptance Criteria)
- Links to all supporting Documentation (Flow Diagrams/Wire Frames/SRS ..etc)
Task Estimation
- The resource assigned for the tasks should have at least 80% confidence in estimation. In a scenario where the estimation does not come from the resource who works on the task, a person who estimated must sit with the resource and explain reasons and expected level of effort. It is recommended to do the estimation with all team members, which will give much accuracy and visibility.
- The person who estimates the task should have 100% understanding of the Task Definition and Acceptance criteria.
- Due to the nature of the technical challenges of the task, it is always advised to keep an agreed buffer.
Task Assignment
There are a few questions that we should ask before assigning tasks :
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Do they have the skills, tools, and resources needed to complete the task?
If not, we have to identify before assigning tasks or the very beginning of the tasks. This is where the team needs to report hindrances that are slowing or completely holding up the task Promptly.
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Are they clear on the Task Definition & Requirements for the task?
Very Delicate question, most of the time we experience yes as the answer, but the end result is not what expected. Due to the severity of the task, sometimes getting written confirmation from resources is recommended. It will ensure the team thoroughly understands its tasks to prevent wasting a lot of time doing rework after QA release.
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Do they understand what defines the task as complete?
Simply prevents discovering too late that the declared percentage of completion was higher than the actual percentage and that the work will not require more time to complete. Also how far behind on the actual timeline. Good Project Managers ask below two questions every day to make sure the team doesn’t fall into any of the above situations.
- What is the remaining effort needed to complete the Task?
- Is there anything inhibiting progress on the Task?
Incomplete Tasks Release
How can we avoid Incomplete Tasks Release?
- Each Resource should maintain their own work calendar
- 100% Commitment to the assigned task
- Stick into the defined scope, don’t try to do overwork – most of the cases resources try to give perfect solutions than proposed. PM’s should be very delicate on this because this situation is like a double-edged sword. If we don’t handle it properly it will impact the momentum of the resource as well.