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Letters to a Young Manager

Learning to Love the Questions, #379
LTYM > Project Management



Dear Adam,
***
A big and visible project can be daunting indeed. Where do you begin? I recommend starting with questions, and the importance of thinking through what you are trying to answer before you talk about requirements and potential solutions. It was Rilke who taught me the value of learning to love the questions.[1]

I remember a humanitarian organization project where the CEO had seen an Emergency Operations Center (EOC) in another organization. He wanted one for ours. And he wanted it fast. So we formed a project team of the best people from the business unit (Disaster Preparedness), the IT department and a consultant partner. We kicked the project off by meeting with the CEO, then the SVP of the Division and then the Head of the department. These were the business owners. Rather than the traditional needs analysis approach, we asked each of them "what questions can't you answer today or are difficult to get an answer that this system should be able to answer?"

The CEO and SVP had four questions:

1. What are the details for this EVENT? (Are we matching size of response to size of disaster?)
2. What are the ASSETS and resources we can bring to bear?
3. What PROGRESS and decisions are being made?
4. How are we INFORMING others?

The Head of Department had 14, more detailed questions, which I won't list here. What was apparent was the closer to the work, the greater the demands. No surprise. The project team posted these questions on the EOC wall and referred to them often, from the beginning.

Framing the questions is a good way to start thinking about technology projects. As with strategy, challenge your business project sponsors to think about the questions that they cannot answer today, or find difficult to answer, that the application will make easier to answer. Coming up with the 10-20 questions to answer will help focus the project (and structure the demo for the CEO). It will also provide a more interesting and relevant acceptance test. If the new system can answer the questions, you’ve arrived. [2]

This is probably the most important exercise of IT project management.
***
Yours,
Ed
________________________

[1] Ranier Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet, where he writes "Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms and like books that are now written in a very foreign tongue." Quote: https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/
[2] See my Blog post "Launch Day", Oct. 9, 2010, http://eghapp.blogspot.com/2010/10/launch-day.html

Takeaways:

Ask what questions the system will answer

Discussion Questions:

1. What are the questions you cannot answer today, or are difficult to answer, that your project will be able to answer?
2. Do you notice how children have an open and inquisitive mind? How does asking "why" five times help?
3. Are the CEOs questions crisp and focused? How would you improve them? Should you?

For Further Reading:

My Blog Post "Launch Day" and the importance of questions for strategy, Oct. 9, 2010,
http://eghapp.blogspot.com/2010/10/launch-day.html



© Copyright 2005, 2024, E. G. Happ, All Rights Reserved.


1. What are the details for this EVENT? (Are we matching size of response to size of disaster?)
2. What are the ASSETS and resources we can bring to bear?
3. What PROGRESS and decisions are being made?
4. How are we INFORMING others?

Simon’s Top Questions for EOC to Answer:

1. Can we verify the disaster and assess its scale & scope?
2. Is the proposed response (DREF/EA) realistic?
3. Is there an appropriate amount of international assistance?
4. Can we perform quality assurance on appeals?
5. Can we monitor the appeal coverage?
6. Can we engage more with donors?
7. Can we do risk analysis (environmental factors)?
8. Can we track the pipeline of events and DREF and EA requests?
9. How can we improve communication?
10. Can we track Real Time Evaluation (RTE) needs and activities?
11. What are others doing?
12. Will the UN use CERF or launch a Flash Appeal – when, how much?
13. What are the major INGOs (our SCHR partners) saying / doing about the disaster / crises?
14. Government / National DM Authority? Are they calling for international assistance? If so in what areas, sectors?