- Product Quality: The ultimate goal of any project is to reach the end having produced a desired outcome that is worth the time, effort, and money you put into it. Research, research, and more research is the key. It wouldn’t hurt to ask other companies that have already implemented the product or service you’re considering in order to find out how it’s going. Address any potential hiccups with your project ahead of time
- Cost: This is the major question for any undertaking. From implementing a multi-million dollar project to constructing a dog house, the “bottom line” is king. Make sure you’ve not only identified a ball park figure for your project, but that you’ve set aside money for any unforeseen disasters (Think Gulf Oil Spill) that might arise. Good Budgeting is a Good Project
- Staffing: Do you have enough people to make this work? A good project manager can only get accomplished what he has enough people to do. The head of the project can’t also be the arms and legs (we like to get the hearts and minds too). Make sure you have enough people involved to accomplish the entire scope of any project
- Customer Satisfaction: Will your customers like what you’re implementing? After all, if no one is going to buy, or use, or benefit from your project, then maybe it isn’t worth it. Be sure you ask these questions before hand. Consider a customer poll or advice blog.
- Time Commitment: make sure you have the time to switch over. With any project being implemented, it takes time. Make sure you’ve identified how long your project management task will take, and make sure your company can afford the time commitment (that your staffers and cost centers can afford it too!)
- Risk Assessment: According to Dipankar Das , you need to create “a risk assessment plan before and during the execution of the project. Risk should be analyzed and measurable. Risk assessment is done to handle any constraints during the execution of the project cycle for the final delivery”
- Who to Hire?: Deciding if you need a Project Manager is a hard step. We’ve actually identified how to do this step in another post, click here for more details.
