Initiating
The initiating process group has three goals:
Defining the project
Identify stakeholders
Authorize the project
Defining the Project
During this process you will define the goals and identify the deliverables of your F1 in Schools competition entry or as we will now call it your F1 in Schools Project.
You will need to answer the basic project questions of Why, Who, What, When, Where and How:
WHY is the project being initiated? What is the reason for the project?
WHO is this work being done for? Identify the people participating in or affected by the project’s outcome both positively and negatively.
WHAT are we going to deliver? What work do we need to complete? What resources and funds do we need to produce these deliverables?
WHEN will we produce these deliverables? When will the project sponsor approve and accept the final project deliverables?
WHERE will the deliverables be used?
HOW are we going to achieve the project’s goal and objectives? How will success be measured?
Identify Stakeholders
Stakeholders are the people or organizations involved or that have an interest, positively or negatively, in the project or the project’s outcome. A stakeholder register should be created which includes the individuals involved and/or impacted by the project, their role in the project and their contact information.
An example of a stakeholder register. You should create this and periodically add new stakeholders as you gain them. Remember to keep stakeholders informed throughout the project.
Authorize the Project
A project charter is a document authorizing the start of a project and is used to further clarify and refine the project. It will describe the outcomes and expectations for the project and identify the measure of performance, milestones, assumptions, constraints, and identify risks and resources.
The Why, Who, What, When, Where and How questions are used to create the project charter.
The project description outlines your goals. Goals should be specific, measurable, and observable. Goals can guide a project from start to finish. The clearer you are in defining your goals, the easier it will be to stay on track.
The project manager should be named and a list created of the team members that will be involved in the project.
The project reason/justification outlines the reason for doing this project. The why question could be ‘we want to become World Champions’.
A milestone is an estimated time when a major deliverable will be completed. Consider when high-level progress will be made throughout the project. For example, when your car will need to be completed.
The acceptance criteria documents how the final product will be evaluated and what the quality of the final product will look like. It defines how you will know you are done and if you have successfully completed your goals.
Assumptions are factors about the project that you consider true without getting proof. Identifying assumptions helps a team clarify assumptions that not all team members share. An assumption could be that your school will excuse you from class to attend a final event.
A constraint is any factor that provides a limit on the ways that a project goal can be accomplished. This may include limitations in finance, scheduling, people or others. For example, a sponsor not paying would limit finance or the new release of the technical regulations has increased the minimum weight of the car.
Risk includes any unexpected situations that might arise. Consider potential risks at the beginning of a project so that you can manage them appropriately and create a plan of response. While you cannot predict all situations, the more prepared you are, the more successful your project will likely be. An example of a risk could be an issue with your 3D printer preventing you from printing your car front wing. The response plan would be to have a list of contacts who have a 3D printer and would be willing to let you use it.
Resources may include money, time, people, expertise, equipment, machinery, or a workplace. Consider all resources that would be needed for the project and their estimated cost.
By taking the time in the beginning to define the project and obtaining authorization, teams can set themselves up for success. Once the project charter has been approved the project is authorized and can commence.
Helpful Hints:
Deliverables: These are the products, services or results of a process or project. In F1 in Schools this will be your cars, portfolio work, pit display etc. Deliverables are written as a statement of something accomplished or produced.
Milestones: Milestones will always have at least one deliverable and will include the due date. This serves as a marker for how far along you are in the project.
The Why, Who, What, When, Where and How are not yes/no questions. Instead, they are all open- ended questions. Asking open-ended questions helps get a fuller sense of what the project includes.
For example: If your team asked “Do we know who the project stakeholders are?” You might answer “Yes,” but it is possible that each team member has different people in mind. Asking an open-ended question like, “Who are the project stakeholders?” provides the opportunity for all ideas.
Brainstorming: This is a strategy of creative thinking, usually done in groups, that comes up with as many creative ideas as possible, over a set period of time. While there are many different approaches to brainstorming, generally, the rule is that no idea should be immediately judged or dismissed because negativity or self-doubt can make it very difficult to think as freely and/or as creatively as possible. Sometimes the idea that seems the strangest at first ends up being the inspiration for the perfect project solution
Mind Mapping: This involves writing the goal of the project in the middle of a piece of a large sheet of paper. Draw a circle around that idea. Then, think of as many ideas or concepts that relate to that central goal as possible. Write them on the paper around the central goal and draw lines out from the central circle to these related ideas. For each new concept, draw a circle around it and think of as many related ideas as you can and connect those ideas with lines to that circle.
Example Mind Map
Key TERMS:
Acceptance criteria: A set of conditions that is required to be met before deliverables are accepted.
Assumption: A set of conditions that is required to be met before deliverables are accepted.
Constraint: A limiting factor that affects the execution of a project, program, portfolio, or process.
Deliverables: Any unique and verifiable product, result, or capability to perform a service that is required to be produced to complete a process, phase, or project.
Milestone: A type of schedule that presents milestones with planned dates.
Project charter: A document issued by the project initiator or sponsor that formally authorizes the existence of a project and provides the manager with the authority to apply organizational resources to project activities.
Project scope: The work performed to deliver a product, service, or result with the specified features and functions.
Resource: A team member or any physical item needed to complete the project.
Risk: An uncertain event or condition that, if it occurs, has a positive or negative effect on one or more of the project objectives.
Stakeholder: A project document including the identification, assessment, and classifications of project stakeholders.
Negative interest: A stakeholder with negative interest is typically one who is affected by the
outcomes of a project. They either do not want that outcome to happen or will be negatively impacted by that outcome.