1. National Aeronautics Space Administration
7-Step Project Management Process
Mr. John Marinaro
NASA Safety Center
www.nasa.gov

2. Project Management – Two Options
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3. Project Management Facts
All projects begin very successfully (meeting most or all
requirements, on cost, on schedule); but statistically many quickly
take a turn for the worse…
Standish Group’s CHAOS 2009 Report
 Successful projects are defined as projects
delivered on time, on budget, with required
features and functions.
 Challenged projects are defined as late, over
budget, and/or with less than the required
features and functions.
 Failed projects are defined as cancelled prior to
completion or delivered and never used.
And because of this –
Each Project is a Career-defining Opportunity for the Project Manager and
Team Leadership
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4. Agenda
The NASA Safety Center Technical Excellence Office’s
7-Step Project Management Process:
 Establish your vision
 Describe the end result
 Use “backward planning”
 Use “forward action planning”
 Identify metrics
 Rely on your team
 Communicate frequently
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5. STEP 1 – Establish Your Vision for the Project
What it is Why it’s Important Sage Advice
"A project vision is the No project can make “Your Vision should fit
picturing of the serious progress on the back of your
project's deliverable as without a clear business card” (to be
the solution to the understanding of where clear and concise)
stated need or it is going and what it is – Professor Bart Timm,
problem.” trying to achieve. Georgetown University
Executive Leadership Program
Vision Statement: It is too easy to start
 Should be forward- developing the solution
thinking and reflective
before you fully
 Provides a long-term view understand the
 Used by the leader to problem!
communicate mission
clarity & to help avoid
misunderstandings by the
team
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6. STEP 1 – Establish Your Vision for the Project
Methodology
 A project vision requires a mission that leads to goals
 Goals should be SMART
– Simple, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-bound
 Where does the project vision come from? Ideally, it should come from
the project's sponsor, but doesn't always. Vision means leadership and
leadership must come from the project manager. So it is up to the
project manager to gain a proper understanding of the sponsor's intent
and interpret that into the project vision. Clearly that requires access to
all the relevant information.
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7. STEP 1 – Establish Your Vision for the Project
STEP Example
My Vision for STEP (SMA Technical Excellence Program):
Create the NASA University for Safety and ultimately become the Harvard and MIT
of NASA Safety.
Other Examples
 “I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal,
before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning
him safely to the earth.” – JFK, Moon Speech
 "I Have a Dream” – MLK, "I Have a Dream" speech
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8. STEP 2 – Develop Project Success Criteria
What it is Why it’s important Sage Advice
Statements that provide NPR 7120.5 tells us: “Begin with the end in
objectives, guidelines,
“The Project Manager mind”
procedures, and standards
that are to be used to execute is then responsible for – Stephen Covey
the development, design, Author, 7 Habits of
the evolution of the Highly Effective People
and/or implementation
portions of a project.
project concept and
ultimate project
Project Success success.” Develop your project
Dimensions Include:
success criteria for all
 Accomplishing Minimum four dimensions at the
Science/Technical
beginning of the
Objectives
project.
 Keeping On Cost
 Staying On Schedule
 Meeting Safety and Risk
Factor Criteria
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9. STEP 2 – Develop Project Success Criteria
Methodology
 Project Success Criteria: Criteria that should be clearly defined and
agreed before significant development is initiated.
 These may be defined in a number of ways such as:
– Project Objectives (or goals)
– Requirements – typically technical (performance) requirements
– Critical Success Factors – typically measurable factors that, when present in
the project's environment, are most conducive to the achievement of a
successful project
– Key Performance Indicators – typically measures upon which the project will
be judged
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10. STEP 2 – Develop Project Success Criteria
STEP Examples
 STEP Level 1 designed, developed, tested, and rolled out by Sept. 30, 2009
 Appropriate for everyone from the Administrative Assistant to the Administrator;
focused on NASA Safety
 Approximately 25 hours in duration; all web-based
 Levels 2 – 4: 137 hours of coursework; courses to be available on SATERN as
online learning by Oct 2010
Other Examples
To meet the mission objective of landing on the moon with 99.7-percent
probability of success, the guidance system had to be able to correct for off
nominal initial-condition errors, for system errors during the descent, and for
uncertainties of the lunar terrain on approach to the landing area – Apollo 11
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11. STEP 3 – Apply the “Backward Planning Process”
What it is Why it’s important Sage Advice
Starts with a critical It’s often easier to view “If you don't know
event or deliverable; all a complicated project where you are going,
of the major actions when you start by any road will get you
leading up to it are visualizing the there.”
planned in reverse successful outcome. -Lewis Carroll
Alice in Wonderland
order based on time This ensures that every
required to complete intermediate action is
the action. focused on achieving
that final outcome.
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12. STEP 3 – Apply the “Backward Planning Process”
Methodology
Backward Planning Process
 Identify the critical event
 Identify all the preliminary actions
 Arrange the preliminary actions in chronological order
 Estimate the time needed for each action
 Schedule the critical event first and then all preliminary actions
 Check for feasibility
DON’T forget to do contingency planning and MAKE SURE that you factor
contingency into each element of the plan.
Recommendation -- Do this in a facilitated session, on a whiteboard, with
all of your key staff/team leads (and contractor leads, if possible) present.
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13. STEP 3 – Apply the “Backward Planning Process”
STEP Example
6. STEP Level 1 Rollout NLT Sept. 30, 2009.
5. STEP Level 1 Operational Beta Test conducted at two operational Centers
4. Internal Level 1 Curriculum Beta Test
3. Unit/Module Level Test
2. Level 1 Curriculum and Individual Module Development
1. Level 1 Re-baseline and Scheduling Exercise
Other Examples
7120.5
6. Launch Date (Not Later Than xx/xx/xxxx with contingency built in)
5. Launch Readiness Review and Launch Preparations
4. Initiate System Testing (NLT xx/xx/xx) Remember:
3. Initiate Final Design and Fabrication 80% on time is better
2. Initiate Preliminary Design than 100% late.
1. Initiate Concept and Technology Development
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14. STEP 4 – Use “Forward Action Planning”
What it is Why it’s important Sage Advice
“A formal action It helps communicate “Expect the best, plan
planning and tracking the: for the worst, and
process”  What prepare to be
 Who surprised.”
 When – Denis Waitley
Motivational Speaker and
 Why
Author
It helps prioritize and
balance the load across
the team.
It is a key contributor to
project success.
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15. STEP 4 – Use “Forward Action Planning”
Methodology
Forward Planning Process
 List all critical events (actions)
 Determine the performance outcomes
 Assign implementers and monitors for each item
 Estimate the time needed for each action
 Create a schedule with milestones for completion
 Maintain the plan and review periodically
Don’t forget to establish clear closure criteria for each action.
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16. STEP 4 – Use “Forward Action Planning”
STEP Example
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17. STEP 5 – Measure, Measure, Measure
What it is Why it’s important Sage Advice
Identify specific metrics Managers can and “What you can measure,
to instill confidence and should use performance you can manage.”
to measure and measures to evaluate, – unknown
communicate progress . control, budget,
motivate, promote,
celebrate, learn, and
improve.
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18. STEP 5 – Measure, Measure, Measure
Methodology
 Determine what outcome and activity measures would tell the story
 In project management, performance metrics are used to assess the
health of the project and consist of the measuring of six criteria:
time, cost, resources, scope, quality, and actions.
 Neville Turbit, 2008 – Measuring Project Health
 Include customer success criteria in the performance measurements
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19. STEP 5 – Measure, Measure, Measure
STEP Example
Pre-STEP STEP
Other Examples
Empire State building (ESB) specs:
 Exceed the height of the Chrysler Building
 Completion in one and a half years
Empire State building (ESB) outcomes:
 Completed in one year and 45 days... (ahead of schedule);
 Cost $40,948,900 (including land) but under budget, due to depression
 Met the design specifications.
 Project was a success; building was a rental failure. Took 17 yrs to become
profitable.
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20. STEP 6 – Rely on Your Team
What it is Why it’s important Sage Advice
Team – group of people A well constructed and Teamwork is the ability
working toward a well organized team of to work together
common objective competent individuals toward a common
can accomplish much vision. The ability to
more together than direct individual
they could as accomplishments
individuals working on toward organizational
independent, loosely- objectives. It is the fuel
coupled activities. that allows common
people to attain
They are able to uncommon results.”
provide real-time
Andrew Carnegie
advice and peer review
capabilities for difficult
and complex activities.
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21. STEP 6 – Rely on Your Team
Methodology
A strong and sound team:
 Focuses on Stakeholder outcomes
 Applies “SMART” goals
 Has committed leadership
 Achieves mutual trust
 Collaborates to set direction and solve problems
 Obtains individual commitments
 Establishes discipline of personal accountability
 Identifies and removes barriers
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22. STEP 6 – Rely on Your Team
STEP Example
 Organized the team around clear roles and responsibilities
 Implemented formal organizational development and teambuilding activities
 Facilitated Team meeting to focus on strategic planning, near-term activities, and
individual common program standardization and functionality
 Balanced the Action item distribution and Task lead/monitoring
 Included our contractor leads in all key program decision-making sessions
Other Examples
 The Great Pyramid of Giza, constructed around 2,650 BC, represents a clear
example of sustained high performance teamwork by an estimated 100,000
workers over a span of 20 years.
 “It was the teamwork that had been forged in mission control over the years
that helped make that rescue possible.” – Gene Krantz, Apollo 13
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23. STEP 7 – Communicate Frequently
What it is Why it’s important Sage Advice
Communication not only Many projects are short- "Leaders who make it a
keeps everyone up-to- term, and therefore practice to draw out the
date on the project project communication is thoughts and ideas of
progress, but also temporary. This means their subordinates and
facilitates buy-in and that communication who are receptive even to
ownership of major systems need to be bad news will be properly
project decisions and established quickly in informed.
milestones. shorter periods of time. It
Communicate downward
is just as important to
to subordinates with at
develop a communication
least the same care and
plan for the project as it is
attention as you
to develop task planning.
communicate upward to
superiors.”
- L. B. Belker
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24. STEP 7 – Communicate Frequently
Methodology
 Communication not only keeps everyone up-to-date on the project
progress, but also facilitates buy-in and ownership of major project
decisions and milestones.
 To ensure the success of a project much information, including
expectations, goals, needs, resources, status reports, budgets and
purchase requests, needs to be communicated on a regular basis to all
the major stakeholders.
 Another challenge is that projects often include cross-functional or
inter-organizational teams. Project teams are not normally natural
teams and sometimes do not even reside in the same geographic
location.
http://www.corneliusassoc.com/CA/new/impact/April2002/pmcommun.htm
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25. STEP 7 – Communicate Frequently
STEP Example
 Weekly PM Staff Meetings were established to communicate left/right and
up/down – keep everyone informed and include contractors
 Focus sessions established for key programmatic elements
 Webcasts used to inform the customers and stakeholders simultaneously
 Visited every Center SMA Director personally prior to rollout and established
Center SMA Liaisons amongst Team
Other Examples
The Latimer Group:
 As business gets more complex, great leadership is more dependent than ever
on simple and clear communication.
 As we think about the examples of great leadership we have seen, the common
denominator among them is always great communication.
 The realities of the 21st century place a disproportionate level of importance on
communication skills.
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26. In Closing
Remember Simple STEPs
A couple of other key considerations for new Project Managers:
 Disenfranchising a new team – discounting and trashing everything that they
have worked hard on to date before you got there (Guaranteed to lose your
team at the Starting Line)
 Lead the team –
– Challenge them
– Motivate them
– Help them when they need it
– Make the assignments, get out of the way, and let them do their jobs
– Roll up your sleeves and get dirty with them
– Don’t ask anyone to do anything you are not willing to do yourself
– Cultivate them
– Recognize them
– Celebrate with them and let them recharge their batteries and sharpen their tools
from time to time
– Remind them to go home and enjoy their families
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