Friday, February 27, 2009

Planning?

Have you run into an organization that is attempting too many digitization projects/programs at the same time? Perhaps making individual decisions for each project and not stopping to make global decisions?

Yeah...we've all heard of one organization like this.

The solution? Somehow get the organization to stop and plan. Maybe the solution isn't to scream "we must plan", but to ask questions about resource allocations that might get the organization to consider those things that would go into a plan. Even a few hours spent talking about goals, objectives, tasks, resources, etc. can be worthwhile and ensure that the organization makes good decisions about what it is trying to do. The resultant documentation doesn't have to be formal, but it should be written down and agreed to.

Yes, plans can change. And if the plan is in writing, it is easier to know (and document) what is changing.


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2 comments:

Martin Locock said...

Often the issue isn't priorities: it's just information. The problem with documentation is that it's static and becomes out-of-date, especially in a dynamic environment. I'd suggest setting up an internal wiki so that everyone can see what is happening and planned, and encourage them to update this regularly.

Russell James said...

In my experience, no matter what the project is, digitization or something else, an organization should do about as much planning as they do working on the project, at least time-wise.