Saturday, April 7, 2012

What's in a Good Work Plan

Many people throw around the terms Project Plan and Work Plan. Sometimes when people say project plan, they're really referring to the project schedule. Personally, I use Work Plan and Project Plan synonymously, and the Project Schedule is a very specific item and only one element of a successful project. A Work Plan should essentially tell you how this project is going to get done, across many topics. I have a Work Plan template that I'd like to share here. It incorporates the following elements:

  • Project Objectives

  • Success Criteria

  • Overall Project Strategy

  • Project Scope

  • What's In Scope

  • What's Out of Scope

  • Project Phases – High-level descriptions

  • Key Project Deliverables

  • Communication Plan Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

  • Project Schedule

  • Risk Management Plan

  • Project Organization & Staffing

  • Team Organization Model & Core Responsibilities

  • Individual Roles & Responsibilities

  • Deliverable Review Matrix

  • Technical Overview

  • Project Budget

Any of the above might refer out to a supporting document as needed.