Imagine you are a pilot: you arrive at your airport early, take off on time, and are on schedule to land on time, only to realise you’ve been flying in the wrong direction!
There will be a strong focus on time throughout the life of your project. But early on, direction matters more than even time or money, you need a compass.
Direction in project management comes from (1) finding the right person (2) listening carefully and (3) documenting what they say and what you hear.
(1) To find the right person, identify who is ultimately accountable for the projects outcomes. Ask the question “who is the Sponsor?” If a clear owner is not identified, congratulations, you have identified your first risk to fix.
(2) When you find the accountable person, meet with them, listen carefully to their longer term outcomes, the goals for the project, their objectives and key results. Identify what you are supposed to be delivering, list the products, services and results.
(3) You need to document this information. It will become the foundation of an important project document called a ‘Charter’.
A project without clear direction is like an airplane without its compass. You may get airborne, you may make progress, but there is no way of knowing if you are heading in the right direction (which is very dangerous).
A project without clear direction is like an aircraft without a compass, you will get somewhere, but not where you want to go.