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- Start out focusing on the positive lessons learned - what went well
- Be prepared to discuss specific problems (problem, perceived cause, what should have been done differently)
- For large projects, don't do it only at the end of the project - do LL at various key milestones
- Develop standard LL templates for online surveys
You can conduct
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surveys using questions selected from the following
Sample Questions for Lessons Learned Sessions
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- General
- List top significant project successes? (keep to a manageable number)
- What obstacles or unanticipated circumstances made it difficult to complete the project?
- Based on what you know now, what should have been done differently in this project?
- Communications
- Were communications adequate in all activities? (right time, right audience, right information, right type) If not, in what ways could communications be improved?
- Was documentation appropriate, timely, and clear? If not, what should be included for future efforts?
- Project Management
- What value did project management bring to the project?
- Project Planning
- How well was the project staffed to complete the project?
- How well was the project planned?
- How well were roles and responsibilities defined?
- How well was stakeholder input factored into the project planning process?
- Project Execution
- How well did we execute according to plan?
- How well were the stakeholders involved in the execution of the project?
- How well were issues resolved?
- How well did the teams/sub-teams work together?
- Testing
- Was adequate testing performed (if applicable)? If not, what should be done differently next time?
- Cutover
- Was cutover planned well? Executed well? If not, what should be done differently next time?
Additional questions
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you may want to consider
- Project Planning
- Was the project plan realistic or unrealistic?
- Did the planning effort include key stakeholders?
- Were all major activities accounted for?
- Did the individual team members responsible for the work provide the estimates?
- Were appropriate staff involved in the planning effort?
- Do you believe the technology PM applied provided a better ulimate outcome for this project?
- Communications
- Were communications effective?
- Were meetings effective?
- Were expectations clear?
- Did you know where to go to get information about the project?
- Did communications go to the right people, at the right time?
- Were communications with our consultant effective?
- Did we escalate effectively and at the right time?
- Were issues dealt with effectively?
- Staffing, Roles, and Responsibilities
- Were people appropriately assigned to the project?
- Was staffing sufficient?
- Were roles and responsibilities clear?
- Did team members and stakeholder fulfill their roles appropriately?
- Was leadership and governance effective?
- Have you participated in this type of technology project before?
- Project Execution
- Was the project executed according to plan?
- Was there an appropriate level of commitment and urgency?
- Was change management performed appropriately?
- Was risk management performed appropriately?
- Was issue management performed appropriately
- Would you recommend this technology PM service to a peer?
- Was the project flexible enough to adapt to unforeseen circumstances?
- Did the project unduly stray from identified goals and objectives?
- How well were scope changes managed
- Teamwork
- Did the teams/sub-teams work effectively together?
- Did the teams share a common goal/mission?
- All stakeholders were appropriately engaged, involved, and available?
- Cutover
- Was the cutover successful?
- Was the cutover well planned?
- Were cutover communications effective?
- Anything else?
- What tools or techniques worked well?
- How well did the project meet objectives?
End of Document
Following data is remaining work that team members will be cleaning up.
Irina Naydich
- What worked well either for this project or for the project team?
- What did not work well either for this project or for the project team?
- What needs to be done over or differently?
- What surprises did the team have to deal with?
- What project circumstances were not anticipated?
- Were the project goals attained? If not, what changes need to be made to meet goals in the future?
- List top three significant project successes.
- Other notable project successes.
- Project shortcomings and Solutions.
Micci Bogard
Space for Micci
Lisa Stensland
Survey Questions from PS 8.9 Upgrade
These questions were used in an on-line survey and folks had to answer on a scale from 1-5 (1=Strongly Disagree, 5=Strongly Agree) except where otherwise noted.
OVERALL PROJECT ASSESSMENT
- Overall, this project was a success.
- I would want to be involved in another project of this nature.
- Project successes were recognized.
- (Open-Ended) What factors most contributed to the success of this project?
- (Open-Ended) What was difficult or frustrating in this project that we could have prevented?
- (Open-Ended) Based on what you know now, what should have been done differently in this project?
LEADERSHIP
- The project manager was involved at the right level of the project.
- The lead for my area was involved at the right level of the project.
- The lead for my area clearly defined assignments.
- The lead for my area kept me well informed of the project status.
- Issues raised to the project leadership were addressed appropriately.
- (Open-Ended) What details, if any, would you like to provide regarding the answers you chose?
COMMUNICATION
- For the overall project, I received the right information from the right people at the right time.
- Within my area, I received the right information from the right people at the right time.
- Meetings I attended regarding the project were useful.
- Project status reports were useful.
- I knew where to go to get information on the project.
- (Open-Ended) What details, if any, would you like to provide regarding the answers you chose?
STAKEHOLDER PARTICIPATION
- The users of the PeopleSoft system were adequately involved in this project.
- The PeopleSoft directors were adequately involved in this project.
- (Open-Ended) What details, if any, would you like to provide regarding the answers you chose?
PROJECT PLANNING
- I was adequately involved in the planning process.
- Being involved in the project planning was beneficial for me.
- The project planning effort resulted in a realistic plan.
- (Open-Ended) What details, if any, would you like to provide regarding the answers you chose?
PROJECT CONTROL
- Management of project scope was effective.
- Management of project budget was effective.
- Management of project schedule was effective.
- Management of project resourcing was effective.
- (Open-Ended) What details, if any, would you like to provide regarding the answers you chose?
PROJECT RESOURCING
- Roles and responsibilities were clearly defined.
- Staffing in my area was sufficient for this project.
- The appropriate people were assigned to the tasks in my area.
- My ideas and concerns were fairly addressed.
- (Open-Ended) What details, if any, would you like to provide regarding the answers you chose?
PROJECT SCHEDULE
- The project schedule was clearly defined.
- Adjustments to the schedule were made when needed.
- I knew what I needed to do and by when.
- I received deliverables from my co-workers in a timely manner.
- I was able to do my work at a comfortable pace.
TESTING
- Developing the test strategy was valuable.
- Developing the test plan was valuable.
- The system/parallel testing effort was well-coordinated.
- The system/parallel testing effort throughly covered all areas.
- The system/parallel testing effort prevented major surprises from arising in production.
- Issues uncovered in testing were escalated to CIT effectively.
- Issues uncovered in testing were resolved promptly.
- Issues uncovered in testing were resolved correctly.
- (Open-Ended) In what areas should we have tested more?
- (Open-Ended) In what areas did we spend too much time testing?
- (Open-Ended) What details, if any, would you like to provide regarding the answers you chose?
CUTOVER
- For cutover weekend, planning was done well.
- For cutover weekend, execution was done well.
- For cutover weekend, communication was done well.
- I was prepared to do my job on Day 1.
- I was able to do my job on Day 1 without any major issues.
RELIABILITY AND QUALITY
- We have now been in production with PeopleSoft 8.9 for about 2 months. Compared to what you expected, how is the system quality and reliability? (Possible answers: "Better than I expected", "About what I expected", "Worse than I expected")
- (Open-Ended) What details, if any, would you like to provide regarding the answers you chose?
More generic survey questions
This set of questions was used for a Blackboard Upgrade project. Again, feedback was collected via online survey.
For each topic listed below, 3 questions were asked:
- What went well?
- What didn't go well?
- What would you do differently
- ?
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