Overview
The Project Retrospective process starts with a survey that is sent to all team members after acceptance by the client. The retrospective results help IT and the business assess what went well and where improvements can be made in the future, in the following areas:
- Planning
- Execution
- Communication
- Governance
- Business Readiness
Top lessons learned are discussed and agreed upon in a retrospective meeting and incorporated into PMO best practice when applicable.
Legacy Process for Enterprise Technology Projects (common UIT PMO process under design)
1
Initiate the Project Retrospective by submitting a task in the "ASTools" JIRA project requesting one for the project, making sure to list the recipients of the survey in the JIRA task.
2
The PMO analyst will send out the standard survey to the recipients indicated in the JIRA task and ask them to complete it by a date specified by the Project Manager.
3
The PMO analyst will also request content for a project background slide (typically a summary of scope, objectives, etc.) to be used in the PowerPoint that will be presented at the retrospective meeting, which they will work with the PM to schedule. The PM must identify all required and optional participants. Generally speaking, participants should include representatives from all of the same organizations represented at the project kickoff:
- Project Team
- Stakeholder representation including external project oversight, auditors, and/or QA
- Executive support
- Maintenance and operations staff
- Project support staff
4
The PMO analyst will request the assistance of a neutral party (typically another PM who was not involved with the project) to facilitate the retrospective meeting. At the meeting, the results of the survey are reviewed and participants typically discuss questions similar to the following:
- Did the delivered product meet the specified requirements and goals of the project?
- Was the customer satisfied with the end product(s)? If, not, why?
- Were costs budgets met? If not, why?
- Was the schedule met? If not, why?
- Were risks identified and mitigated? If not, why?
- Did the project management methodology work? If not, why?
- What could be done to improve the process?
- What bottlenecks or hurdles were experienced that impacted the project?
- What procedures should be implemented in future projects?
- What can be done in future projects to facilitate success?
- What changes would assist in speeding up future projects while increasing communication?
5
Participants will vote on the top three lessons learned at the conclusion of the meeting.
6
After the meeting, the PMO analyst will post to the PMO Confluence Wiki the retrospective slides and top lessons learned.
7
Periodically, the PMO will analyze the top lessons learned from completed projects and implement any required changes to the project management policies, procedures, and best practices.
