Databases Reference
In-Depth Information
are watching and waiting for project results. While a status report can provide
a summary of what is happening, it may not be enough to keep expectations
aligned with actual project goals.
It can be useful to publish the project scope regularly —even if nothing has
changed. As individuals learn more about the data warehouse and interact
with the project, they form their own ideas about what they think the project
is about. The scope must be the place where these different ideas converge so
that everyone has a common understanding.
Another key strategy for managing expectations is for everyone on the
project team to listen to feedback. If there is a single person or group that
does not seem to understand what is happening, this should be brought to the
project manager's attention. This can be addressed with a formal briefing or
perhaps through information discussions.
The project has been defined and launched. Techniques for ongoing man-
agement have been presented. Let's take a look at how the two companies we
are tracking are doing.
In Real Life
The steps described in this chapter are similar to steps defined in other project
management practices. Project planning and management are necessary, but
should not become the primary focus. These are tools to help ensure that the
project is able to run smoothly and meet the stated objectives. The companies
we have been following highlight the extremes of too much or too little project
structure.
Structured Projects with Giant
Giant Company adopted a project methodology years ago and has a strong
project office staffed with certified project managers. These people work
on all types of initiatives, not just systems-related projects. Every project
must complete each step in the methodology without exception. The project
managers do not specialize in any type of project, and the one assigned to the
data warehouse project is new to this field.
Giant Company faced challenges when using the corporate project method-
ology for the data warehouse project. All projects across the enterprise are
defined in a stepwise fashion and the business group must set up the project
charter and scope. Unfortunately, for the data warehouse project, this was
completed without input from any of the enterprise data warehouse team
members or the people who will be assigned to the project. While the business
goals are captured, there has not been a sanity check for feasibility. The project
