The need for flexibility
Despite careful initial planning and scoping, what is 'theoretically true' may not always turn out to be so in practice. We found that in some instances projects had to adjust their expectations in the light of experience when they came to 'do the work'. Their experience showed that there was a need to be flexible and adaptable. Sometimes, original plans may be over-ambitious and there may arise a need to refocus upon what is possible within the timescale, while prioritising other activities for the future in the light of what has been learned.
The need for good risk assessment and contingency plans
Some projects were threatened by changes over which they had no control. For example the failure of a supplier to deliver on time was a problem for some of the projects. One relied upon a key piece of middleware, and had no alternative identified when it was needed. Another was reliant upon a commercial product whose release date was delayed by five months. In another instance a project was threatened by an institutional decision that impacted upon their access permissions to the server. The project then had to devise a workaround to enable them to continue. Although in the event all projects were able to avert failure, these unforeseen circumstances caused considerable pressure upon project staff. It is impossible of course to foresee every contingency but taking the time to have a eplan Bi in place has been shown to help relieve stress and anxiety.
The timing of project activities
A difficulty of aligning project tasks, the academic year and the start and end dates imposed by the funding provider was highlighted by several projects. The particular context in which this is problematic is when projects require input from students during the summer period, when of course, they are not available. It is difficult to know how this perennial problem can be overcome, and it may have to be accepted that user testing activities may not be as comprehensive or rigorous as desired. The timing of a project itself can also militate against the embedding of products in learning activities intended for the start of the next academic year unless academic staff have been fully engaged in the development process.
Kleim, R and Ludin, I. S. (1992). The people side of project management. Gower: Aldershot.
Electronic resources forthcoming..... contributions gratefully received