BradEgeland.com
  • Welcome
  • Blog
  • Expertise
  • Resume
  • Software / Service Reviews
  • Contact
  • Videos
  • Books / White Papers
  • Mentoring Contact Form
  • Awards/Recognition
  • Templates & Downloads
  • Clients
  • Professional Services
  • Past Survey Results

Issue Management Part 6 - Implement Now, Tweak Later

5/19/2012

0 Comments

 

There is no question that issue management is a critical process for project management and for any organization, for that matter.  And, of course, doing it right is just as important.  After all, if it doesn’t serve your needs, doesn’t provide meaningful reporting, and doesn’t all for the proper identification, oversight and ongoing management of issues then it isn’t going to provide much value to your organization and it won’t get used.

You could plan forever

So should we take months designing the right issue management platform to make sure it’s right the first time and usable forever?  No….absolutely not.  It’s like couples who decide to wait till they have enough money to start a family, or a big enough house or just the right jobs.  Their youth passes them by and they end up with no children at all, no family and no grandchildren and so on.  And they get bored looking at each other 20 years later. 

Don’t wait for perfection

They key is, you have to start somewhere.  No one gets it right the first time.  Projects ‘fail’ more than 50% of the time, but that doesn’t mean a usable solution hasn’t been implemented.  It means they went over budget, or over the timeframe for implementation, or something was out of whack at deployment that was probably fixed later.  A majority of projects aren’t a complete success at deployment…but most get the job done and with some post deployment tweaking they are successful or at least basically delivered the anticipated outcome.

The same is true for an issue management platform.  Issues need tracked…period.  It’s imperative that you don’t miss critical windows of issue management and issue tracking on key projects just because you’re trying to build or select the perfect tracking system.  The key is to hold some planning meetings to identify what the major issue elements are that need to be tracked and reported on for your organization and develop or buy something that will meet those requirements – at least as much as possible.  You can tweak it later because it’s highly unlikely that you’ll get it completely right the first time.  Despite what my first manager told me about his first software application, no code was ever written error-free the first time, no project was implemented issue-free from beginning to end, and no tracking platform has ever been developed that will do everything you need it to do right out of the gate.  Design it to capture what you think you need today and in the near future, and plan to revisit those needs along the way.  Assume that it will need to grow and flex with your organization’s needs.  Don’t wait to start with perfection – or you will never get started and you’ll miss tracking critical issues on your early projects.

For issue management and project tracking on your ongoing engagements, check out Gemini.  Gemini uses understandable and consistent industry-specific terminology to facilitate the most collaborative situation possible for everyone involved on the project.  Gemini can meet all of your task management needs for your organization.

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Author:

    Picture

    Brad Egeland


    Named the "#1 Provider of Project Management Content in the World," Brad Egeland has over 25 years of professional IT experience as a developer, manager, project manager, cybersecurity enthusiast, consultant and author.  He has written more than 8,000 expert online articles, eBooks, white papers and video articles for clients worldwide.  If you want Brad to write for your site, contact him. Want your content on this blog and promoted? Contact him. Looking for advice/menoring? Contact him.

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    RSS Feed

    Archives

    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    March 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010
    October 2010
    September 2010
    August 2010
    June 2010
    May 2010
    April 2010
    March 2010
    November 2009

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.