Project Point of Departure
The Project Point of Departure method helps teams quickly align on the essential elements of a project, ensuring everyone understands the purpose, goals, and roles. It's effective for setting a clear direction and fostering shared ownership from the outset.
Use this method at the beginning of a project to establish a common understanding of the project's purpose, desired outcomes, target audience, roles, milestones, and success criteria.
Solves: Lack of shared understanding at project kickoff, leading to misaligned efforts and wasted time.
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Step 1: Gather the project team and conduct a brief check-in to ensure everyone is present and focused. (5 minutes)
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Step 2: Explain the purpose of the workshop: to create a clear structure and direction for the project. Emphasize that it will be fast and focused. (2 minutes)
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Step 3: Create a 'Parking Lot' to capture off-topic points for later discussion. (3 minutes)
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Step 4: Agree on a total time for the exercise and divide it equally among the eight questions. Assign roles (scribe, timekeeper) or take them yourself. (5 minutes)
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Step 5: Present each question and facilitate a focused discussion, capturing the answers. (60-90 minutes)
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Step 6: Assign someone to compile the answers into a shareable digital document. (5 minutes)
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Step 7: Give the project lead a chance to clarify any points. (5 minutes)
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Step 8: Conclude with a check-out, asking each person what their next action is related to the project. (5 minutes)
- Keep the discussion focused by gently redirecting tangents to the 'Parking Lot'.
- Encourage concise answers to maintain momentum.
- Actively listen and summarize key points to ensure understanding.
- Use a voting system (e.g., dot voting) to prioritize options for each question.
- Conduct the exercise individually first, then share and discuss the answers as a group.
- Adapt the questions to fit the specific needs of the project.