About

The purpose of this seminar is to connect the policy development process to a project management framework. Project management techniques and frameworks offer a means of tackling essential policy development issues including planning, research, analysis, managing organisational boundaries and allocating resources.

Policy projects are expected to produce results on time and within budget, which makes careful project planning essential. Find out how the fundamental tools of project management can be applied to policy work to improve your project outcomes.

Key issues for discussion in this seminar include:
• Connecting policy development to project management
• Using project management to integrate the stages of policy development
• How to work effectively with others to promote sound policy solutions
• Assessing tasks, activities and work requirements
• Allocating resources appropriately and in a timely manner
• Managing multiple projects

Who should attend?
All those involved in planning for, and producing policy at a local and central government level including public sector managers involved in:
• Policy development/analysis
• Managing across government programmes
• Implementing policy projects
• Assessing and reviewing policy
• Managing inter-disciplinary teams
• Managing teams and resources in a large organisation
• Inter-organisational communication

Find out how to:
• Better appreciate and manage the overall policy development process
• Apply a project management framework to your policy projects
• Be better able to meet government priorities
• Manage your allocated resources more effectively
• Learn how to use projects to implement organisational strategies and policies

Outline

DAY ONE: Setting up policy projects

Policy project management: An overview
An introduction to the key steps in project management. This includes a discussion of the merits of applying project management techniques within the policymaking process.
• Steps in the project management process
• Justifications for using project management techniques
• The policymaking process and opportunities to apply project management techniques
• Keeping focused on the big picture
• The “just enough” methodology perspective

Initiating a policy project
A survey of activities associated with formally launching a policy project. Emphasis is placed on the importance of starting a project with a clear sense of the objectives and responsibilities associated with it.
• Defining the project
• Identifying the sponsor, manager, and stakeholders
• Clarifying objectives and responsibilities
• Establishing a project repository or binder
• Creating a project charter

Building and maintaining an effective team
A review of keys to successful teamwork. Much of project management involves getting work done through other people. Given this, the ability to build and maintain effective teams is crucial to successful project management.
• The logic of teamwork
• Membership selection
• Clarifying team goals and aligning incentives
• Assigning tasks and clarifying process steps
• Elements of team communication

Basic planning activities
An examination of the elements associated with developing the baseline project plan; the agreed course of action against which actual performance is tracked.
• The planning process
• Creating a task list or work breakdown Structure (WBS)
• Setting milestones
• Estimating task duration
• Assigning people to tasks
• Project budgeting
• Compiling the baseline project plan

Using scheduling techniques
Project plans can become more effective management tools when broader time constraints are recognised and when the dependencies among project tasks are fully understood. Here we review ways to estimate the duration of project tasks, review the application of critical path analysis, and discuss ways to reduce project bottlenecks.
• Improving task duration estimates
• The virtues of doing things fast
• Creating a PERT chart or network diagram
• Identifying the critical path of the project
• Ways to shorten the overall duration of a project
• Resource levelling

Conclusion: Taking stock and looking ahead
An interactive discussion concerning the material covered to this point, what participants should do to prepare for what comes next, and an overview of the focus for Day Two.

DAY TWO: Managing policy projects

Linking project planning and the policy process
A review of aspects of the policy process, as seen through a project management perspective. Consideration is given to how project management techniques can facilitate delivery of high quality conceptual, analytical, and evaluative work in contexts where strong opinions and powerful interests are ever present.
• Typical policy projects
• Tasks for policy analysts
• Working with the project management framework
• The politics of policy project management
• Managing relationships professionally and with political savvy

Assessing and managing risk
An exploration of typical risks to policy projects and effective ways to reduce the chances that any event will adversely affect the process and the deliverables. The key insight here is that the management of risk is central to all project management.
• Understanding risk and uncertainty
• Thinking in terms of adverse events, probabilities, and impacts
• Identifying and documenting project risks
• Analysing and prioritising risks
• Working to mitigate the probability and impact of risks
• Developing contingency plans
• Risk management as a mindset

Controlling the execution of policy projects
An examination of the actions project managers must take to ensure that policy project work is undertaken as planned. Consideration is also given to what must be done when projects run into trouble.
• Transitioning from planning to control
• Monitoring and controlling project work
• Tracking quality, time use, and expenditures
• The importance of effective communication
• Facilitating effective meetings
• Managing risk and issues
• Dealing with team issues
• Keeping good relations with the sponsor and stakeholders
• Handling conflicts

Closing out policy projects
A review of actions you can take to maximise the impact of the project deliverables and ensure that insights gained during project execution are carried over to future policy projects.
• Making a “punch list” of promised deliverables
• Making a project completion checklist
• Managing relations with the sponsor and other key stakeholders
• Keeping the team functional until the end
• Creating team closure
• Maximising learning from the project process
• Transferring lessons learned

Managing broader programmes
A review of approaches you can use to ensure that your contributions remain strong and useful to others, even as you are required to contribute to - or take the lead in managing - multiple projects.
• Thinking in portfolio terms
• Acknowledging scarcity of resources
• Prioritising project work
• Drawing linkages between each project and broader organisational goals
• Drawing linkages between projects
• Working with others to enhance organisational productivity
• Coping with project overload

Seminar review and evaluation
Topics covered:
• Issues that have arisen
• What participants have gained
• How participants will integrate what they have learned into their work practices
• How the seminar could be improved

Facilitator

In-house Training